Investigating the Use of Local Materials for the Construction of a Solar/Biomass Hybrid Cooker

Abstract

There are many locally available materials that can be used in the construction of cooking devices. Materials account for a significant portion of construction costs, and reducing their cost can help lower the overall cost of such projects. One of the most effective ways to reduce costs in the development of affordable cooking systems is to promote the use of local materials. This study therefore explores the use of local materials in the construction of solar-biomass hybrid cookers. The objectives are to identify the types of local materials used, the factors influencing their use, their thermophysical properties, and the benefits they offer.This work focuses on the design and construction of a solar-biomass hybrid cooker, made from locally available and low-cost materials. The characterization of these materials using the KD2 Pro analyzer allowed the determination of their thermophysical properties. The thermal conductivity was measured at 0.675 ± 0.010 W/(m·K) for compressed earth bricks and 0.120 ± 0.007 W/(m·K) for plywood. The density was found to be 2048.77 kg/m³ for compressed earth bricks and 500 kg/m³ for plywood. The specific heat capacity was 1749 ± 4 J/(kg·K) for compressed earth bricks and 1600 ± 3 J/(kg·K) for plywood. Infrared images show that the materials used provide effective thermal insulation by minimizing heat loss and directing it towards the cooking vessel. The evaluation of the cooker’s energy quality through exergy, which ranged from 0.15 W to 6.61 W (i.e., 0.092 kJ to 3.968 kJ), and exergetic efficiency, which ranged from 0.008% to 2.38%, shows that a significant portion of the energy is used for cooking food After manufacturing the device, cooking tests conducted on beans and rice yielded successful results. It was also found that this solar cooker can prepare an average of 510 meals per year using only the available solar energy in Burkina Faso, with an additional 221 meals made possible through biomass when solar energy is insufficient for cooking.