Ishimura Industry Co. in Iwate Prefecture, Japan, announced that it has developed a wood stove, with technical support from the Iwate Industrial Research Institute. The stove uses new combustion technology, the outcome of input from local industries, including ironworking from Kamaishi and casting from Mizusawa.

The new wood stove achieves high combustion efficiency and produces almost no smoke and odor. The stove can burn various sizes of wood material, including shavings, sawdust, and timber up to one meter long and 14 by 14 centimeters on the end.

The company has also developed a pellet stove for household use, an improved version of this new wood stove. Pellets are made of bark or wood from the thinning of plantation forests, and processed by Iwate-based Kuzumaki Forestry & Co. and Sumita Town.

In Japan, finding uses for wood material from the thinning of plantation forests is essential to protect the country's forests and forest industry. One type of wood utilization is as a source of biomass energy. The new wood stove is attracting attention as it takes advantage of local casting technology and promotes biomass use in this prefecture, known as a major wood producer in Japan.



Posted: 2003/12/07 04:48:39 PM
Japanese version

TAG Eco-product/Business , Ecosystem , Energy , Local government , Manufacturing industry