All Power Labs BEK (Biochar Experimenter’s Kit) is being assembled at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB... the research arm of the Malaysian palm oil industry).
This initiative is part of the biochar research collaboration between MPOB and UniKL MICET. The BEK (Biochar Experimenter’s Kit) is a reconfiguration of GEK components to create a multi-mode pyrolysis machine for characterized biochar and bio-oil making. The BEK supports multiple pyrolysis process modes in direct combustion (updraft, TLUD and stratified downdraft), indirect combustion retort, and sweep gas through bed heat transfer.
Jay from ALL Power Labs in Berkeley, California was on hand to guide the assembly process and provide some initial training. The first solids consumed by the BEK were palm kernel shell, one of the more easily digestible biomass waste feed-stocks from the PO industry. More difficult wastes such as EFB will be targeted for production research and soil trials.