for several hours.
The qualities that a good briquette should possess are,
according to Mr. Schwackhofer: (1) They must be homo
geneous, ringing and nearly smokeless; (2) breakage in
transit must not exceed 5 per cent.; (3) weight of each bri-
Ittette must not be more than 234 lbs.; (4) the moisture in
each must not be more than 5 per cent. and the ash not
more than 10 per cent.; (5) they must be easy to kindle and
must not fall to pieces in the fire. The various shapes of
briquettes are, rectangular (like ordinary brick) cylindrical,
ovoid, and syherical. Their weight varies from sy 2 ' oz. to
24 lbs, and their size from 3 inches long 234 inches wide and
2 inches thick to 11 inches king by 8 inches wide by 7 inches
thick.
The process of briquette making has been patented in the
principle countries of Europe, in Japan, Australia, Canada,
United States, and New Mexico, England and France being
the leading countries in the manufacture of briquettes. In
the United States the industry has as yet very narrow limits
there being but one successful briquette manufacturing
plant in operation in this country, that of the Briquette
Coal Company of Chicago, However this company is turn
ing out about 100 tons of briquettes, daily, for which there is
a continual and increasing demand, so that it may be said
that the industry has at least obtained a good start. The
briquettes made by the company are ovoid in form, (and thus
more properly called eggettes) 3 inches long by 2 32 inches
wide by 2 inches thick, and weigh ounces each. They
are very compact and hard and do not break in handling. In
burning the shape of the briquette is retained until all the
carbon is exhausted and the ash is a fine dust. They pro
duce almost no smoke: The reason why the briquette
industry has gained such a small footing in the United
States is chiefly because a binding material, suitable and
cheap enough to enable the briquette to complete with ordin
ary coal in all parts of the country has not yet been found.
Anthracite Coal TVaste