Electricity is the preferred “fuel” for both cooking and lighting in modern society. Hence it is instructive to compare the overall energy
efficiency of electric cooking/lighting with our lanstove. For evening cooking and lighting only, electric devices (electric stove and compact
fluorescent lamps) will consume about 2.6 times more energy than lanstove. This is because the efficiency of electric power plant is 30% and with 20%
losses in transmission and distribution the overall efficiency of electric power at the household socket is only 24%. With the electric stove
efficiency of 60% the overall efficiency of electric cooking is only 14%. Similar is the efficiency of electric lighting. Our lanstove efficiency is ~
28% and hence tremendous energy savings can result via the use of decentralised liquid fuel for cooking and lighting. Thus the use of lanstove for
rural applications is a step forward towards sustainable solutions for these areas. Besides the high efficiency, lanstove also provides an excellent
opportunity to rid the rural households of pollution caused by using inefficient kerosene lanterns and biomass based wood stoves. According to a World
Health Organization study this pollution causes about 1.2 million deaths per year worldwide. Lanstove can also provide clean drinking water for the
household since the food is cooked in 1.5 hours and for the rest of the time, when the light is needed, the heat from the stove can be used to boil
the water. It boils 5 litres of water in about one hour with boiling efficiency of 36%. Thus for a family of 4 or 5 it can easily boil about 10 litres
of drinking water everyday. This single device therefore has the potential of providing light, cooking energy and clean drinking water for rural
households
|
