Rocket stoves that reduce need for wood

The Aprovecho Research Centre has assisted the Programme for Biomass Energy Conservation in Southern Africa (ProBEC) in designing biomass stoves for institutional cooking in Lesotho, Malawi, Uganda, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia. Over 1,500 institutional stoves have been produced and sold by entrepreneurs.

Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world. There is a huge problem of de-forestation, partly as a result of the high population density and also because large areas of land are taken up with cash crops such as tobacco and tea, which also use enormous amounts of wood for processing. Fuelwood and charcoal are the main fuels for cooking both in homes and institutions in rural areas.

In each country ProBEC has involved entrepreneurs in training workshops, where a woodstove of suitable efficiency for each country is developed and engineered with the assistance of an Aprovecho Research Consultant. The stoves are targeted at large institutions, such as schools, prisons and tea-estate kitchens, and use the Aprovecho 'Rocket' combustion approach to give high combustion efficiency and efficient heat transfer to the cooking pot. Practical experience suggests that using the stove saves at least 50% of fuelwood, sometimes more, which can give significant financial savings. The reduction in carbon monoxide and particulates provides a much healthier environment for institutional cooks. Stove production businesses are now well established in Malawi, Uganda and Lesotho, and have produced and sold more than 1,500 institutional stoves. Ken Chilewe, the main producer in Malawi, has made 700 of these.

To find out more about the project visit http://www.ashdenawards.org/winners/a... and check out the Ashden Awards Blog http://ashdenawards.blogspot.com

Further information:
• http://www.rocketstoves.com is the online community for the promotion of fuel efficient biomass technologies for cooking, heating and drying

• http://www.appropedia.org/Rocket_Stove explains more about how Rocket Stoves work, and has links to detailed plans of how to make them, and other related materials.