Paulownia Charcoal: Why Kiri Wood Makes Exceptional Charcoal
Paulownia is best known as a lightweight timber for surfboards, lining boards and furniture, but it has another, less obvious use: making high-quality charcoal. In Japan, charcoal made from Kiri (桐, the Japanese name for Paulownia) has a long-standing reputation, and we regularly supply Paulownia to customers here in Australia who produce specialist charcoal from it.
Not all charcoal is the same
Most people think of charcoal as barbecue fuel, where the goal is a dense, slow, long-lasting burn. Hardwoods such as ironbark or the famous Japanese binchōtan (made from dense oak) are ideal for that.
Some applications need the opposite: a light, porous, highly reactive charcoal that ignites easily and burns quickly and cleanly. That is where very low-density timbers such as Paulownia excel.
Why Paulownia makes excellent charcoal
Low density: at around 260–300 kg/m³, Paulownia produces a very light charcoal with an open, porous structure and a large internal surface area.
Fast, even ignition: that porous structure lets the charcoal catch and burn readily and consistently.
Low ash and clean burning: clear Paulownia has few knots or resin pockets, giving a cleaner, more consistent product.
Uniform timber: plantation-grown Paulownia is consistent from board to board, so batches of charcoal behave predictably.
Easy to process: the soft, straight-grained timber cuts easily into the uniform pieces charcoal makers prefer.
Traditional and specialist uses
Kiri charcoal has a long history in Japan, where it has been valued by craftspeople who need a light, quick-burning charcoal. Today, makers use Paulownia charcoal for a range of purposes, including:
Barbecue and cooking: a fast-lighting charcoal that gets up to temperature quickly, ideal for starting fires or quick grilling.
Artists' charcoal: soft, light charcoal is pleasant to draw with and easy to blend.
Kiln and craft uses: where a quick-lighting, clean charcoal is useful.
A sustainable feedstock
Paulownia is the world's fastest-growing hardwood and regrows from its stump after harvest, making it a renewable source of charcoal timber. Using our clean offcuts for charcoal also means less of our production waste goes to landfill. Read more about the environmental benefits of Paulownia and how we put our sawdust to work in compost.
What we can supply
We can supply Paulownia in a range of formats to suit charcoal production, from full rough-sawn planks to cut-down lengths and clean, untreated offcuts. All of our Paulownia is supplied untreated, with no glues or finishes.
Need Paulownia for charcoal making? We supply plantation-grown Paulownia timber and clean offcuts from our workshop in Hornsby, Sydney, and deliver Australia-wide. See our current prices or get in touch to discuss quantities.
