Testing of Improved Biomass Cook stove (Tikikil and Mirt) in Rural Households of Southern Ethiopia Using the New Field Testing Standard: The Case of Gamo Zone
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Date
2023-07
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
This study has been carried out in the Gamo Zone of Ethiopia with the aim of evaluating the performance of household biomass cookstoves in actual field settings in kitchens. Both Tikikil and Mirt cookstoves were distributed to 38 households to evaluate the daily fuelwood consumption, PM2.5 emissions, and the overall usability of these stoves by comparing them to the Choche cooking stoves which is practiced in the community by applying the newly developed ISO 19869:2019 field standard procedure. Data on daily fuelwood and energy consumption, as well as user preferences, were collected through before-and-after surveys of randomly selected households. Direct field examination of seven home-specific fuel use for baking injera for three replication and monitoring PM2.5 emissions over 24 hour in 20 household kitchens using both Choche and the improved cookstoves (Tikikil and Mirt). The cooking tests and kitchen performance assessments were carried out using Excel-based data and calculation tools developed by the Shell Foundation. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests for mean differences were performed using SPSS software. The concentration of PM over a 24-hour period in households was calculated using PICA software. The study finds that, the mean daily fuel use for Choche cooking stove was 8.72 kg (SD = 2.26), and the mean daily fuel use for improved cook stoves was 5.80 kg (SD = 2.06). The paired differences between the two means were 2.91 kg (SD = 2.65), which was statistically significant (p < .001) ICS in this study reduced fuelwood use on average by 33.3%. A household in the locality would emit, 5,858.9 kg and 3,898.89 kg CO2e per year from using the Choche, and ICS (Tikikil and Mirt) stoves, respectively. The difference between the two types of stoves in CO2 emissions is 1.96 metric tons per year per household. The mean specific fuel consumption for Choche and Mirt stoves was 609.52 g/kg (SD= 65.83), and 444.95 g/kg (SD= 59.48), respectively. The mean total cooking time for Choche and Mirt stoves was 99.90 minutes (SD=4.51) and 95.47 minutes (SD=7.51), respectively, the paired differences between the two cooking methods was 4.42 minutes (SD= 5.88). The average PM2.5 concentration with the Chocho stove is 1102±408.6 μg/m3, while for Tikikil and Mirt stoves was 749.6±225.1 μg/m3 , This figure is about 45 times and 30 times above the WHO 24-hour guideline of 25 μg/m3 of household air pollution. The relative difference in mean between the two stove types is 32.6 % emission reduction by Tikikil and Mirt stoves.
The performance of the Tikikil and Mirt improved cookstoves demonstrates their enhanced efficiency compared to the Choche stove. As a result, these improved cookstoves have a positive impact on better fuel utilization, reducing cooking time household health by reducing exposure to indoor air pollution. The finding majorly suggests that further studies need to be conducted in depth on the traditional cooking practice of the rural community and try to engage them in designing the alternative technologies, awareness creation should be in place for the adoption of improved cookstoves and enhance collaborative efforts among the government, non-government, and private sectors for the success of large-scale dissemination. In view of this, important lessons could be drawn from this case study and local household cooking practice for future interventions.
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Choche, Mirt, Tikikil, Improved cookstove, Particulate Matter, Fuelwood