What is the Environmental Impact of Burning Wood?

[sweettractors]

To keep it simple, if I burn 100 pounds of wood in my stove, what happens to each of those 100 pounds? Ken Sweet

 

[EarPlug]

Wood-burning stoves: Harmful or safe?

 

[Rock knocker]

Ideally, you'll make CO*2 and H*2O. Because the burning won't be complete and ideal, you also produce some acids like carbonic acid (H*2CO*3) various soots ranging from almost pure carbon to complex hydrocarbons, maybe some NOx and some other stuff.

You'll also aerosolize the metals that have been partitioned into the tree from the soil. Mercury comes to mind, which is why mercury levels are so bad near coal power plants and paper mills. But in those cases you are looking at the products of millions of trees, not you and your firewood

 

[CobyRupert]

So, I believe the answer is : the 100lbs turns into a vapor/ gas (steam and smoke) that goes up the chimney, and some ash that also goes up or sifts down.

 

[sixdogs]

So what happens if it just rots on the woods?

 

[rsallen]

'Conservation of energy' is what happens.

It's one of those geeky things I don't fully understand but can only grasp wisps of.

Check it out, Conservation of energy, maybe you can it explain more thoroughly for me.

The upshot is though, it dunt matter how the wood is consumed.

 

[MossRoad]

Wood-burning stoves: Harmful or safe?

The best conclusion in that article is this, " The only thing we can say with certainty is that emissions are reduced by improved combustion conditions and that we are thus exposed to smaller amounts of particles when new stoves are used.".

Meaning if you have an outdoor wood boiler that sits there damped down most of the day, then belches smoke for 10 minutes each time heat is demanded, your neighbors downwind will complain and lump you in with "those stupid wood burners" and eventually work for a law banning such devices. Whereas if you have a clean burning EPA rated wood stove or boiler that you rarely see smoke coming out of, very few neighbors will ever complain.

 

[jinman]

Without a detailed analysis as Rock Knocker posted, I agree with CobyRupert in general. The amount of ash depends on the wood and how hot the fire is, but I find I have about 4 lb of ash for each 100 lb of oak firewood. Conservation of matter says if you fuel with 100 lb, 100 lb will be given off in waste, but with burning's oxidation, the total waste is going to be heavier than the weight of the fuel alone.

 

[MossRoad]

So what happens if it just rots on the woods?

All of the carbon that was sequestered in the wood will be released slowly over time if left to rot, whereas if you burn it, it gets released now. Its gonna get released sooner or later. Ask the Conservationist-September 2010 | The Nature Conservancy

 

[RoyJackson]

Wood-burning stoves: Harmful or safe?

Interesting article
Thank you for posting!

The catalytic stoves are suppose to burn a lot cleaner. I do expect the EPA to come down hard on wood stoves. I think there's a lot of people who would be very upset if and when this comes to pass...