Producer gas

USA

Producer Gas is a generic term referring to:

• Wood gas : produced in a gasifier to power cars with ordinary internal combustion engines.
• Town gas : manufactured gas, originally produced from coal, for sale to consumers and municipalities.
• Syngas : used as a fuel source or as an intermediate for the production of other chemicals.

In old movies and stories, when describing suicide by "turning on the gas" and leaving an oven door open without lighting the flame, they were talking about producer gas. It was odorless and poisonous. Modern 'natural gas' used in homes is far less toxic, and has an onion-like scent added to it for identifying leaks.

UK

In the UK, Producer Gas, also called suction gas, specifically means a fuel gas made from coke or other carbonaceous material. Air is passed over the red-hot carbonaceous fuel and carbon monoxide is produced. The reaction is exothermic and proceeds as follows:

2C + O₂ → 2CO

The nitrogen in the air remains unchanged and dilutes the gas, leaving it a very low calorific value. After "scrubbing", to remove tar, the gas may be used to power gas turbines which are well-suited to fuels of low calorific value.

Producer gas is useful but requires careful handling because of the high risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

References

• Mellor, J.W., Intermediate Inorganic Chemistry, Longmans, Green and Co., 1941, page 211
• Adlam, G.H.J. and Price, L.S., A Higher School Certificate Inorganic Chemistry, John Murray, 1944, page 309

See also

• Water gas

External links

• Paxman Suction Gas Producers
• http://www.ekomobiili.fi Presentation of modern woodgas powered cars in Finland