Wood Instead of Gasoline

Wood, instead of gasoline, as a fuel for U.S. automobiles was seriously proposed last week by Robert S. Arie of Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, writing in Chemical Industries.

Wood has one advantage over all other motor fuels; it is available locally in all the gasoline-rationed areas. It does, however, require a stovelike generator to convert the wood into combustible gases for the engine. This means a new diversion of semiprecious light steel or cast iron. The generator can be mounted on the rear bumper, the trunk compartment or the rumble seat, can be charged with coal or charcoal, but more cheaply with a charge of equal parts of sawdust and chopped or "hogged" wood. A carefully controlled draft prevents complete combustion of the wood while generating carbon monoxide, the fuel actually used by the motor. The combustible gas is blown or sucked into the engine manifold. Cleaners are provided to remove tar, water, dust.

In Europe such wood burners have long been used on trucks, busses, tractors. In pre-war Germany, France and Italy they consumed 450 million pounds of wood a year, the equivalent of about 18 million gallons of gasoline. It takes some 25 pounds of wood to do the work of a gallon (about six pounds) of gasoline.

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