In Kane and Sullivan's examination of 27 kinds of Irish peat, the specific gravities ranged from 0.274 to 1.058.
3.—Heating power of peat as compared with wood and anthracite.
Karmarsch found that in absolute heating effect
| 100 lbs. of turfy, air-dry peat, on the average = 95 lbs. of pine wood. |
| 100 lbs. of fibrous, air-dry peat, on the average = 108 lbs. of pine wood. |
| 100 lbs. of earthy, air-dry peat, on the average = 104 lbs. of pine wood. |
| 100 lbs. of pitchy, air-dry peat, on the average = 111 lbs. of pine wood. |
The comparison of heating power by bulk, instead of weight, is as follows:—
| 100 cubic ft. of turfy peat, on the average[12] = 33 cubic ft. of pine wood, in sticks. |
| 100 cubic ft. of fibrous peat, on the average = 90 cubic ft. of pine wood, in sticks. |
| 100 cubic ft. of earthy peat, on the average = 145 cubic ft. of pine wood, in sticks. |
| 100 cubic ft. of pitchy peat, on the average = 184 cubic ft. of pine wood, in sticks. |
According to Brix, the weight per English cord and relative heating effect of several air-dry peats—the heating power of an equal bulk of oak wood being taken at 100 as a standard—are as follows, bulk for bulk:[13]
| Weight per cord. | Heating effect. | |
| Oak wood | 4150 lbs. | 100 |
| Peat from Linum, 1st quality, dense and pitchy | 3400 lbs. | 70 |
| Peat from Linum, 2d quality, fibrous | 2900 lbs. | 55 |
| Peat from Linum, 3d quality, turfy | 2270 lbs. | 53 |
| Peat from Buechsenfeld, 1st quality, pitchy, very hard and heavy | 3400 lbs. | 74 |
| Peat from Buechsenfeld, 2d quality | 2730 lbs. | 64 |
These statements agree in showing, that, while weight for weight, the ordinary qualities of peat do not differ much from wood in heating power; the heating effect of equal bulks of this fuel, as found in commerce, may vary extremely, ranging from one-half to three quarters that of oak wood.
Condensed peat may be prepared by machinery, which will weigh more than hard wood, bulk for bulk, and whose heating power will therefore exceed that of wood.