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Watching the Smoke Rise Up: Thermal Efficiency, Pollutant Emissions and Global Warming Impact of Three Biomass Cookstoves in Ghana

Author

Listed:
  • George Y. Obeng

    (Technology Consultancy Centre, College of Engineering, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, PMB UPO, Kumasi, Ghana
    Barrett, The Honors College, Arizona State University, Mesa, AZ 85212, USA)

  • Ebenezer Mensah

    (Department of Agricultural Engineering, College of Engineering, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, PMB UPO, Kumasi, Ghana)

  • George Ashiagbor

    (Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, PMB UPO, Kumasi, Ghana)

  • Owusu Boahen

    (Department of Information Systems and Decision Sciences, KNUST School of Business, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, PMB UPO, Kumasi, Ghana)

  • Daniel J. Sweeney

    (D-Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA)

Abstract

In Ghana, about 73% of households rely on solid fuels for cooking. Over 13,000 annual deaths are attributed to exposure to indoor air pollution from inefficient combustion. In this study, assessment of thermal efficiency, emissions, and total global warming impact of three cookstoves commonly used in Ghana was completed using the International Workshop Agreement (IWA) Water Boiling Test (WBT) protocol. Statistical averages of three replicate tests for each cookstove were computed. Thermal efficiency results were: wood-burning cookstove: 12.2 ± 5.00% (Tier 0); coalpot charcoal stove: 23.3 ± 0.73% (Tier 1–2); and Gyapa charcoal cookstove: 30.00 ± 4.63% (Tier 2–3). The wood-burning cookstove emitted more CO, CO 2 , and PM 2.5 than the coalpot charcoal stove and Gyapa charcoal cookstove. The emission factor (EF) for PM 2.5 and the emission rate for the wood-burning cookstove were over four times higher than the coalpot charcoal stove and Gyapa charcoal cookstove. To complete the WBT, the study results showed that, by using the Gyapa charcoal cookstove instead of the wood-burning cookstove, the global warming impact could be potentially reduced by approximately 75% and using the Gyapa charcoal cookstove instead of the coalpot charcoal cookstove by 50%. We conclude that there is the need for awareness, policy, and incentives to enable end-users to switch to, and adopt, Gyapa charcoal cookstoves for increased efficiency and reduced emissions/global warming impact.

Suggested Citation

  • George Y. Obeng & Ebenezer Mensah & George Ashiagbor & Owusu Boahen & Daniel J. Sweeney, 2017. "Watching the Smoke Rise Up: Thermal Efficiency, Pollutant Emissions and Global Warming Impact of Three Biomass Cookstoves in Ghana," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-14, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:10:y:2017:i:5:p:641-:d:97750
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Yogesh Mehta & Cecilia Richards, 2017. "Gasification Performance of a Top-Lit Updraft Cook Stove," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-11, October.
    2. Phisamas Hwangdee & Singrun Charee & Watcharin Kheowkrai & Chaiyan Junsiri & Kittipong Laloon, 2022. "Application of the Simplex-Centroid Mixture Design to Biomass Charcoal Powder Formulation Ratio for Biomass Charcoal Briquettes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-15, March.
    3. Noah Ver Beek & Elvin Vindel & Matthew Kuperus Heun & Paul E. Brockway, 2020. "Quantifying the Environmental Impacts of Cookstove Transitions: A Societal Exergy Analysis Based Model of Energy Consumption and Forest Stocks in Honduras," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-22, June.
    4. Jacopo Barbieri & Fabio Parigi & Fabio Riva & Emanuela Colombo, 2018. "Laboratory Testing of the Innovative Low-Cost Mewar Angithi Insert for Improving Energy Efficiency of Cooking Tasks on Three-Stone Fires in Critical Contexts," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-9, December.
    5. Yixiang Zhang & Zongxi Zhang & Yuguang Zhou & Renjie Dong, 2018. "The Influences of Various Testing Conditions on the Evaluation of Household Biomass Pellet Fuel Combustion," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-11, May.
    6. George Yaw Obeng & Ebenezer Mensah & Richard Opoku, 2021. "Fabricators and End-Users of Single-Pot Biomass Stoves: Conceptualizing, Hypothesis and Performance Metrics for Developing Energy Sustainability Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(13), pages 1-19, June.
    7. Katherine E. Woolley & Tusubira Bagambe & Ajit Singh & William R. Avis & Telesphore Kabera & Abel Weldetinsae & Shelton T. Mariga & Bruce Kirenga & Francis D. Pope & G. Neil Thomas & Suzanne E. Bartin, 2020. "Investigating the Association between Wood and Charcoal Domestic Cooking, Respiratory Symptoms and Acute Respiratory Infections among Children Aged Under 5 Years in Uganda: A Cross-Sectional Analysis ," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-14, June.
    8. Imaduddin Ahmed & Priti Parikh & Parfait Munezero & Graham Sianjase & D’Maris Coffman, 2023. "The impact of power outages on households in Zambia," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 40(3), pages 835-867, October.

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