Charcoal is a formless mass of carbon and can be made from most carbonaceous materials. It is one of the oldest of man-made fuels and has been prepared under the ground for a thousand years. Charcoal is still a major source of energy throughout the world.
Much like the old process, the modern commercial process is to heat wood with little or no air present which takes special but simple equipment. In the United States, wood is the primary material used for charcoal and is generally procured in the form of residue like sawmill slabs and edgings. Sawmills love to find users of this material because of environment problems with burning and disposal. Where there are sawmills, there is available raw product.
It has been estimated that there are nearly 2,000 charcoal-producing units in the United States, including brick kilns, concrete and masonry block kilns, sheet steel, kilns, and retorts (a steel metal building). The state of Missouri produces a lot of this national charcoal product (they have until recently had less stringent environmental regulations) and 98 percent of all charcoal is produced in the eastern United States.
While charcoal can be made from any number of natural materials, hardwoods such as hickory, oak, maple, and fruitwoods are favored. They have unique aromas and tend to produce a better grade of charcoal. Better grades of charcoal come from raw materials with low sulfur content.
Uses of charcoal may surprise you. Besides being the fuel that cooks steaks, hotdogs, and hamburgers on a Sunday picnic, charcoal is used in many other processes. It is used in certain metallurgical "purifying" treatments and as a filter to remove organic compounds such as chlorine, gasoline, pesticides, and other toxic chemicals from water and air.
Activated charcoal, which has a super adsorptive surface, is growing in use. It is used in purifying and refining metals and in the gas masks that were used during the Gulf War. NutraSweet (tm) uses activated charcoal to transform the product into a powder. Activated charcoal is used as an antidote for many types of poisons and is touted as an effective anti-flatulent.
Most charcoal manufacturers sell their product as a briquette. This market has been dominated by several companies to include Kingsford and Royal Oak. They do not make "lump" charcoal which is an alternate product that has advantages and has potential as a startup business.
More on Market Considerations
More on Startup Considerations
Other Sites:
Dan Gill's How to Make Charcoal at Home
About's Barbeque and Grilling Site
An online publication (pdf) with self-help suggestions for rural entrepreneurs is Income Opportunities in Special Forest Products . It is printed by the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, Agricultural Information Bulletin 666. This publication discusses charcoal as well as many other forest income producing opportunities.
