Author(s)

Paul Njogu¹, Purity Muthoni¹, Peter Oketch², Daniel Omondi², Elijah Ngumba³

¹Institute of Energy and Environmental Technology, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), Nairobi, Kenya.
²Department of Mechanical Engineering, JKUAT, Nairobi, Kenya.
³Department of Chemistry, JKUAT, Nairobi, Kenya.

Use of biomass in domestic cookstoves leads to the release of oxides of nitrogen (NO_x), nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons C_xH_x that can be detrimental to health of the public and the environment. Attainment of complete combustion is the best strategy for mitigating the release of these emissions. This study sought to experimentally determine the effects of secondary air injection on the emission profiles of NO_x (NO & NO₂), CO and C_xH_x in a charcoal operated cookstove. Charcoal from Eucalyptus glandis was bought from Kakuzi PLC. Composites from three batches were analyzed for chemical composition and the stoichiometric air equivalent. Proximate analysis data show that the charcoal composed 58.72% ± 3.3% C, 15.95% ± 1.2% Volatile Matter, 4.69% ± 0.55% Moisture, 20.7% ± 0.8% Ash, High heat value (HHV) of 30.5 ± 1.1 and 29.3 ± 1.3 Low heat value (LHV) (MJ/kg) with a chemical formula of C₁₈H₂O and a stoichiometric air requirement of 5.28 ± 0.6 with a fuel flow rate of 1 kg fuel/hr. Emission profiles for CO and C_xH_x reduced significantly by 70% and 80% respectively with secondary air injection whereas those of NO_x increased by between 15% and 20% for NO₂ and NO. The study reveals that secondary air injection has potential to mitigate on emission release, however other measures are required to mitigate NO_x emissions.

Biomass, Stoichiometric, Emissions, Combustion, Pollution, HAP, Cookstoves

Njogu, P. , Muthoni, P. , Oketch, P. , Omondi, D. and Ngumba, E. (2023) Experimental Investigations of the Effects of Secondary Air Injection on Gaseous Emission Profiles (NO_x, NO, NO₂, CO) and Hydrocarbons (C_xH_x) in Cookstoves Using Charcoal from Eucalyptus glandis. Smart Grid and Renewable Energy, 14, 1-13. doi: 10.4236/sgre.2023.141001.