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The Charcoal Stove Project

Why Charcoal Stoves?

Efficient charcoal stoves have a much lower emission of toxic gasses compared to efficient wood stoves. Due to its much lower calorific value and its lower bulk -density the transport costs of wood are a factor 3-4 higher than the transport costs of charcoal.
  • Insulated and firebox adapted to the pot-size: all heat is going to the pot.
  • Lightweight thus can be easily moved around during cooking.
  • Optimized combustion thus low emission of toxic gasses.
“As long as there is no alternative and people in the urban have to cook on charcoal and the people in the rural area have to rely on wood we have the obligation to provide them with the most effective wood and charcoal cookstoves. Envirofit stoves have been piloted in Malawi and are world-wide accepted.”
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Stove 4

THE BIG DIFFERENCE

Charcoal VS Wood

stove 1

Charcoal

A lady wants to cook beans. Once the charcoal is burning, she puts the pot with beans on the stove and she can leave the place and take care for other things. The charcoal stove does not need regular attention and after 1,5 hours the beans are readily cooked.

Inefficient use of woodstoves copy

Wood Fire

Much different, however if she would use a wood fire she regularly needs to attend and feed the fire. if she does not carefully and constantly feed the fire with wood in a proper way, she may use and burn more wood compared with the wood which is needed to produce the charcoal used!

Charcoal stoves are used more efficiently by the cooks and therefor from an energy point of view the difference between the amount of biomass used for an efficient woodstove does not significantly differ from the amount of biomass used for an efficient charcoal stoves (presuming efficient charcoal
production).

 

Health implications:

  • Compared to efficient woodstoves the use of charcoal stoves will minimize the cases of PM-related child pneumonia by a factor of 3.
  • The CO emission of the high efficient charcoal stoves is comparable with high-efficient woodstoves.

Why is Charcoal a widely accepted fuel in Southern Countries?

  • Higher fuel efficiency
  • No smoke and no blackening of the cooking pots
  • Less labor-intensive, thus really Kuphika Kwaphweka

Why is charcoal the preferred fuel in the urban and firewood in the communities?

Social:

The preference of charcoal above wood is partly socio-cultural determined. “Only poor people are using firewood

Health implications:

No smoke; no fine particles. Compared to efficient woodstoves the use of charcoal stoves will minimize the cases of PM-related child pneumonia by a factor of 3. The CO emission of the high efficient charcoal stoves is comparable with high-efficient woodstoves.

Easy to use:

Most woodstoves need permanent attention while charcoal stoves can be used without a constant intervention by the cook.

Economical

The transport costs per unit of energy are much lower for charcoal. And storage of wood around houses attracts snakes, rats, weevils and termites. Wood quality decreases due to weevils and fungus

Price

The purchase price of the charcoal stove hinders broad adoption in the communities. Furthermore until now firewood is collected for free by the villagers.

Savings between 150,000 and 200,000 MK (Malawian Kwacha) per year

Fuel Saving
0 %
Faster Cooking
0 %
Toxic emissions decrease
0 %
CO reduction
0 %

Beleidsplan

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