(Bantu, D. J). An investigation on the use of volcanic rocks in terms of cooking fuel saving and their implication on the environment. (Unpublished undergraduate dissertation). Makerere University, Kampala Uganda.

Abstract

Cooking is extremely important for any community, regardless of its geographical location or cultural heritage. The use of traditional biomass fuel for cooking is increasingly seen as a contributor to indoor and outdoor air pollution in discussions on health and climate change in the globe. The cost of biomass continues to increase as its quality deteriorates. In regard to this, the stove that uses volcanic rock, a fan (solar aided) and charcoal was introduced promised on saving fuel as well as no emissions. However, the use of these stoves remains at an unnoticed level. Therefore, this work evaluated the performance of this stove in terms of emissions and fuel saving. The physio-chemical characteristic of the volcanic rock was determined under a microscope using thin sections of the rock. The potential of charcoal saving of the stove that uses volcanic rocks and charcoal was done with a family that uses this stove. The emissions released were measured using a Portable emissions measurement system. Obtained results show that this volcanic rock is an energy storage material with a Silicon dioxide value of 34.85%. In terms of charcoal saving, there is no significant difference in the cost and quantity of charcoal when using the stove that uses volcanic rock and charcoal and that of a normal charcoal stove. It was also observed that this stove of volcanic rock emitted 1873.996 ppm of carbon dioxide and 954.547ppm of carbon monoxide as opposed to the claims that there are no emissions released. These results on quantity of charcoal used and emissions released together with the cost of the stove that is 27 times more expensive than the normal charcoal stove could be the reason why the stove using both volcanic rocks and charcoal has not received much attention.