This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Esbit is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007) |
A hexamine fuel tablet is a form of solid fuel in tablet form. The tablets burn smokelessly, have a high energy density, do not liquify while burning and leave no ashes. Invented in Murrhardt, Germany in 1932, the main component is hexamine.
A number of alternative names are in use, including heat tablet and Esbit. Esbit (which stands for Erich Schumms Brennstoff in Tablettenform or Erich Schumm's Fuel in Tablets) is a genericized trademark as it is used to refer to similar products made by other companies.
Contents |
Uses
The tablets are used for cooking by campers, the military and relief organizations. They are often used with disposable metal stoves that are included with field ration packs. Backpackers concerned with ultra light gear tend to buy or make their own much lighter stove. An Esbit stove can be made by cutting off the bottom of an aluminum soft drink can, and turning it upside down to support the fuel tablet. A pot can be supported above this with a circle of poultry netting or metal tent pegs. The burning tablets are sensitive to wind, so a simple windscreen should be used; such as a strip of aluminum foil, curved in a circle around the pot and stove. Although not ideal, the fuel tablet can be placed on a rock or on the dirt, with a pot supported above it by rocks.
Another common use is to provide a safe heat source for model steam engines, such as those manufactured by Wilesco and Mamod.
They may be used as a heat source for a pop pop boat.
Advantages and disadvantages
Fuel tablets are simple, ultra-lightweight compared to other stove options, and compact; the entire stove system and fuel can be stored inside a small 850ml cooking pot. However, the heat given off cannot be easily adjusted, so water can be boiled, but cooking requiring simmering is more difficult. Tablets are not a particularly powerful stove fuel, and are sensitive to wind. They are expensive and less widely available than alternatives such as alcohol or petrol. Furthermore hexamine tablets give off noxious fumes, requiring foods being cooked to be contained in a receptacle such as a pot or pan, and burned tabs will leave a sticky dark residue on the bottom of pots.
See also
External links
- Esbit Compagnie GmbH website
- Esbit MSDS
- Typical Esbit stove
- Lightweight Esbit stove
- Lightweight Esbit stove system
 |
This chemistry article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 27 December 2008, at 04:50.
Wikipedia Authorship and Review
Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Wikipedia Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Esbit".
The URL for this specific entry is:
All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.