Third World Countries face extraordinary problems in meeting the energy demands required for development, especially due to their general lack of foreign exchange. They are also confronted with high levels of unemployment, but have the mixed blessing of low wage levels. Therefore, a renewable energy system that could engage many people in its operation would be an especially welcome prospect. Since most Lesser Developed Countries lie in the tropics and already have economies largely based on agriculture and forestry, the potential for biomass as a renewable energy source is therefore great; particularly since it is very labor intensive. In addition, a big supply of biomass is already available in the form of agricultural and forestry residues that, to a very large extent, are currently wasted. These residues are not only scattered about in the fields and forests, but they are also concentrated at processing plants such as rice mills, saw mills, cotton gins, sugar mills etc, and therefore a significant fraction is already available conveniently for use as an energy source.The main problem, however, with biomass as it is available now is that: at an industrial scale, most current energy conversion equipment is designed to operate on fossil fuels and at a domestic scale, most if not all stoves are for wood or charcoal use and will not operate properly on these residues. Thus there is a need for a means for converting residues into synthetic coal, oil and gas which could be utilized in existing equipment. Pyrolysis, especially low temperature pyrolysis, which favors char and oil production, offers a particularly promising means of conversion,since the char and oil products are storable and easily transportable-an especially attractive characteristic in developing countries.Morever, recent U.S. experience with the steady-flow, vertical packed bed, partial oxidation pyrolysis process (1,2) has demonstrated that this technology, updated from its earlier froms is a viable means for conversion of forestry and agricultural wastes into synthetic fuels. In addition, the basic simplicity of the process makes it suitable for applications in rural environments because of its few moving parts, low maintenance requirements, and general ruggedness. But the steady-flow, vertical, packed bed, 0-8412-0565-5/80/47-130-671$05.O0/0