Quality of the bark and wood of nine Eucalyptus species for the charcoal production

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of bark and wood of the Eucalyptus for carbonization in the steel industry. Eucalyptus globulus, E. viminalis, E. dunnii, E. robusta, E. phaotrica, E. deanei, E. pellita, E. grandis and E. saligna were used, from which three trees of each species were selected for sampling of bark and wood for determination of the apparent specific gravity, calorific value and the immediate chemical analysis. In the bark, E. phaotrica showed higher apparent specific gravity (0.418g cm-3) and higher calorific value (4669.67 kcal kg-1), whereas E. deanei, E. viminalis, E. globulus, E. robusta, E. grandis showed higher ash content with 14.064; 8.050; 7.469; 6.438 and 6.270% respectively. In the wood, E. saligna showed higher specific gravity (0.652 g cm-3), with calorific value ranging from 4468.333 kcal kg-1 to 4820 kcal kg-1 in E. viminalis and E. pellita respectively, with low ash content. Therefore, both the bark and the wood of the nine eucalyptus species has the potential to be used for the charcoal production for steel industry.