There are a dozen students here from the University of Michigan working on various projects. One group is experimenting with converting used corn cobs into charcoal briquettes. Charcoal (from wood) is commonly utilized here for cooking, but deforestation has caused the government to pass laws limiting the cutting of trees. Corn/maize is a large part of the Ghanaian diet, so this promises a possibility for using a material that is already a byproduct. The briquettes have been burned successfully in local experiments. Several Ghanaians have stopped by to check out the process and join in the experiment.
They slow cook and smoke the corn cobs until they are blackened all the way through.
The corn cobs are then pulverized into powder.
In the final steps a binder is created from cassava and water, mixed with the powder, and put into molds to dry.
Final briquettes