Development of a plant oil cooking stove

In rural areas of tropical and subtropical countries wood is still the main energy source. Steadily rising wood consumption for cooking purposes results in deforestation of large areas creating several ecological, economical and sociological problems. Because of the low efficiency of open fire and the rise of the worldwide population demand for firewood is increasing. Moreover, collection of firewood is a drudgery work that is mainly carried out by women and children. This practice often causes severe health problems, especially for the children. With less wood available, the collection becomes increasingly difficult and the amount of time spent rises. As a consequence, families have less time for generating income and for field as well as household work, or they must pay steadily rising prices for wood. Both heavily burdens the family budget. Cooking on open fires with firewood leads to serious health risks for the users. Noxious gases cause eye and lung maladies. In the context of a project promoted by the company Bosch Siemens Home appliances group GmbH in Munich the existing plant oil pressure stove „protos“ is further developed. Analyses are focused on plant oil ingredients and plant oil parameters, which can influence deposition of residues during the combustion. Investigations are carried out at the improvement of the efficiency of the plant oil stove as well as short and long-term investigations of the optimised plant oil stove. Apart from the technical optimisation the university supports field tests with the plant oil cooker in the target countries to asses the feasibility of new technical developments under real conditions.

Budget: 466 309 Euro