Carbon-Intensity and Carbon-Efficiency of Charcoal Production, by Pathway

Atlantic Consulting, Gattikon, Zurich, Switzerland
Email: ejohnson@ecosite.co.uk
Manuscript received September 1, 2023; accepted October 16, 2023; published December 27, 2023.

Abstract—There are four commercial pathways to make grill charcoal from wood. These have been modelled to calculate a Carbon Intensity (CI) for each. Results are presented along with discussion of the sensitivities: biogenic carbon; quality of the charcoal; classification of products, wastes and residues; and division of burden. Grill charcoal’s CI ranges greatly, depending on the pathway by which it is produced. Wood distillation, a commercial process that once was common but now is rare, has a CI 50+% lower than that of the next-lowest commercial process, Kilns. Earth mounds/pits and external-fueled Retorts have CIs considerably higher still. The Carbon Efficiency (CE) of Wood distillation is more than twice that of the next-best, again Kilns. CE is defined as normalized, total carbon emitted. This is not the same as CI, it is not usually considered in studies such as this, yet it is important for climate impact. CE could be a useful measure in assessments (such as this) where biogenic carbon is significant.

Keywords—carbon intensity, carbon footprint, charcoal, carbon efficiency, grilling

Cite: Eric P. Johnson, "Carbon-Intensity and Carbon-Efficiency of Charcoal Production, by Pathway," International Journal of Sustainability in Energy and Environment, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 9-15, 2024.

Copyright © 2024 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited (CC BY 4.0).