JayAlchemAPL

Cheng,
From my co-worker:
"this occurs when one of the wires is not connected.  it is normally open as it is a dimming switch, so if disconnected or improperly connected the blower will be fully on and not dimming.  check all of the wires and connections to verify they are seated properly and connected and this issue should go away.  particularly check the purple wires since the system is getting power (yellow and black) but no dimming signal.  


Let us know if you are able to fix the issue.
Regards,
Jay

Cheng,
Glad you got it under control. These are two common issues that can happen that the operator has to be aware of.
As far as the blower knob, this is unusual, we havent had this happen before.
I will review with my technician and see what we will have to troubleshoot to fix this or that we may have to send you a replacement part. Either way, we will help get this fixed for you right away.
Email at support@allpowerlabs.org for further information on the status of your case here.

Cheng,
If the engine starts then stops abruptly after 3 seconds or so, this may not be due to gas quality. This could be due to something else. If the engine revs up to high then the governor may be automatically shutting it down due to over speed protection. Do you have a load on the engine when you are starting it?
It also does look like your pratio value is too low and this will cause difficulty in gas flow and quality. The pratio value shouldnt be below 15. If it is and its decreasing further, shut down the system and open up the ash port. From here you may see that the char is packed tightly between the grate and the reduction bell. You will want to purge this out. This could be happening due to your feed stock characteristics, grate shaking frequency or because of the fuel level switch. The grate shake frequency and length of shaking time can be customized directly from the PCU menu. You can also turn it on manually to see if the pratio will recover. Sometimes the fuel switch may need adjustment. If the fuel switch is too tight, then it will need a lot of resistance to be able to switch the auger off, meanwhile the auger will pack the feedstock into the reactor very tightly causing pratio to drop. Open up the top of the reactor and see if this might be happening. Adjust the fuel switch by taking off the top silver cover and turning the tension screw to adjust the tension spring. You can feel it with your hand to see how easy it is to turn the switch on and off.
I suggest looking into each of these, this should solve your reactor issue.

Cheng,
Your feed stock looks perfect.
It looks like there are two issues here, one is the T-bred thermocouple and the engine.
We have had a couple of reports on the T-bred thermocouple not reaching higher temperatures due to it being incorrectly installed or that it is grounded thermocouple -it should be ungrounded . We will just want to double check to make sure that this isnt the issue. See the pictures attached about the installation of the thermocouple. You will want to remove it from the bottom and make sure its not damaged or bent down below the air lines. Instead it should go between the air lines of the reactor.
Test it with a flame to see that it rises to combustion temperatures.
Also you can check to make sure that it has a secure connection on the board. Switch the thermocouple briefly between T0 and  T1 to see that both channels are giving the same reading.

For the engine, is the starter working? Or is it the engine just isnt turning over? When first starting the engine, there will be air in the gas filter and the lines leading up to the enigne. The engine will need to crank enough to purge the air from the system. This takes longer than one is use to for a typical car engine.

Cheng,
See the files attached. This may help you find the issue.
For the temperatures, try to use drier and more ideal feedstock at first to start the reactor. Once your temperatures are up, then you may add feedstocks that are a little less ideal or wetter.

When first starting up the engine, the engine must crank enough to purge the air from the gas filter and through the gas lines. Be sure to give the starter motor a rest between cranking so as not to burn out the motor. Once the air is purged, the wood gas will reach the engine and the engine will start.

What is your p_ratio value? If its too low then there is a large resistance in the reactor that is making it difficult to produce gas from the gasifier. We might want to look at the feedstock you are using. Are you using pelletized feedstocks? Sometimes these can break apart into fine material that packs the grate and reduction bell.

We could also look at adjusting your grate shaker values. See the attached documentation for this.

The attached documents will walk you through some troubleshooting for the temperatures and engine start.
Please keep me in touch. Feel free to email us at support@allpowerlabs.org

Is anyone else reading this post having similar issues? Please let us know!
Regards,
Jay