[Stoves] Development and field testing of stoves for people living in high altitude cold regions- A call for collaboration

Tue Feb 15 06:48:37 CST 2011

Hi Daniel,

Thanks for the interesting read...I myself have been working on
designing a clean dung burning stove (or u can call it a flexible
fuel) stove...it is a double walled metal stove following the Rajendra
Prasad design principle of secondary air and other features...The part
about briquetting is interesting indeed as I myself am planning on
briquetting the dung for use as a fuel in the developed cookstove and
compare it with the normal dung cakes used in traditional
stoves...would love to hear more from u...

cheers

Sarbagya Tuladhar
EWB Australia

On Tue, Feb 15, 2011 at 6:47 AM, Richard Stanley
<rstanley at legacyfound.org> wrote:
> DAniel,
> Thanks much for your stove design efforts. You probably already know of the
> stoves and biofuels network.   <Stoves at lists.bioenergylists.org>  but there
> is also the briquette network as well. I have taken the liberty of posting
> your email up on that one. Its far smaller and less active as yet because
> most of the participants are working  and or living in the third world.
> Interesting idea to add wood near the end of the burn to oxidise CO for
> inded we have been plagued with that issue widely.....
> I also sent your post off to a friend in redwood city in the SanFrancisco
>  Bay area to get his comments He id doing ver similar things.  His name is
> Harold Westrich. <hwestric at my.smccd.edu>He has a site posted at this
> URL: http://home.fuse.net/engineering/harold_westrich.htm
> Enjoy and hope it gets you all closer to the end goal...
> As a field oriented guy I will be more than happy to get your word out to
> the rest of the 90% of us in the world outside the states, although much of
> what you are doing has direct and potetially great relevence here...
>
>
>
> On Feb 13, 2011, at 7:09 PM, daniel roggema wrote:
>
> I am sending this email to individuals/ organizations involved with biomass
> briquetting, ICS design, and/or projects addressing household energy in high
> altitude/ cold climates. A list of all the recipients and their web-links is
> posted at the bottom of this email.
> My name is Daniel Roggema. I apologize in advance for this email being so
> long and appreciate the patience of those who read through it.
> As a hobby, I have been constructing a prototype flexi-fuel stove. It is
> primarily a heating stove, but it also provides a medium output cook-top
> well suited for simmer dishes.
> I do not have any professional experience with ICS (improved cooking stoves)
> projects.  I have a notion however, that this design may be worth some
> further exploration by those who do.
> The prototype is based on the Rocket Mass Heater design, but with a few
> alterations/additional features to optimize the cook top output, and to
> allow for greater fuel stock flexibility (=designing the stove so it will
> burn well with briquettes or dung etc, in addition to wood)
> It is a bit difficult to explain via e-mail what a Rocket Mass heaters is,
> and how it works. The RMH design is very different from other various rocket
> stoves used exclusively for cooking.
> With permission from the authors, I have attached a free pdf file version of
> their booklet on Rocket Mass Heaters, published in 2006. It includes some
> great illustrations and explains with beautiful simplicity RMH design as
> well as general thoughts on wood/biomass combustion dynamics.
> I strongly suggest reading this publication (-or at least certain parts of
> it) in order to understand the basic dynamics of the prototype that I am
> working on.
> Please note that in the world of wood stoves/ masonry heaters, the RMH
> design has one completely unique and extremely useful design feature ; It
> has the ability to push flue gasses for long horizontal distances; The
> system's draw/draft is not determined by the stack effect in the flue
> exit/chimney. It is determined by the siphon effect created as a result of
> temperature/pressure differences within components of the stove itself.
>
> A few words on what led me to work on this prototype:
> In 2003 I was traveling in the Atlas mountains of Morocco. It was early
> spring. It was so cold, especially at night. I imagined with dread what the
> middle of winter would be like.
> The following year I moved to the US. I made a friend who was building a
> Rocket mass heater in his own home. I have been trying to learn a bit about
> building these stoves myself ever since.
> I also started pondering the potential for RMH design to address the
> household energy needs of people living in cold regions of the developing
> world. I would think about my trip to the Atlas Mountains, and it struck me
> how this oddball of a stove design seemed like it could potentially be a
> very "good fit" for the people I stayed with. For example, it is very common
> for homes in Morocco to have a L or [_] shaped sitting arrangement of low
> profile couches or mattresses on the floor. These sitting areas are central
> to a lot of daily activities; eating, having tea, providing hospitality, and
> at night, they are used for sleeping. --  Imagine this with a RMH
> configuration: A warm comfy seat during daytime, and heated bedding for cold
> winter nights. I think this could prove to be a unique and desired
> commodity; If you are spending much of your time sitting and sleeping on top
> of a constant heat releasing radiator, you will probably feel comfortably
> warm, even on really cold days when air temperatures in the house may be
> relatively cool. The "heat battery" will be kept at a constant charge with
> the preparation of two warm meals a day.
> In 2009 I revisited Morocco for a short vacation. I had contacted an
> American Peace Corps volunteer who was living in the Middle Atlas. He was
> working with the Ministry of Energy Water and Environment on a pilot project
> to improve hammam-boilers. I asked him questions about the different heating
> stove designs common to his region, general stoking habits and practices
> concerning the collection/procurement and storing of biomass/wood fuel. I
> also wanted his opinion and input on the idea of using RMH stove design for
> rural homes in the Atlas Mountains. We had great fun, but our time together
> was way too short to have a serious dialog on the subject.
> To some extent, I started having second thoughts about RMH design being a
> realistic, plausible or even feasible candidate in the world of ICS
> projects. Besides the fact that it is not a small metal box that can be
> manufactured off site and easily transported/distributed, I was also
> starting to wonder if the fuel specs required for optimal operation of RMHs
> were a bit rigid for real life conditions. Straight, bone dry, thinly split
> wood - who the heck has that for fuel staple in rural Morocco (-or in the
> Himalayas, Andes or Central Asia etc.) ? Fuel wood is often burned semi
> green, and wood stacks are often damp in wet winter weather. Some people
> suggested I should think about sawdust for fuel, which they said was both
> cheap and readily available in their region. In other areas of the Atlas
> Mountains, people were said to be scraping by on flimsy brush and heather
> type plants.
> I started looking at possible options for adjusting RMH design to
> accommodate these less dense, more available fuels. Ideas ranged from
> bigger, batch-burn feed chambers, to fulgora/sawdust and gassifier stove
> configurations. All options seemed to over complicate the system and
> jeopardize its original functionality, output or efficiency.
> Last spring I came across this youtube video
> (www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1t6eD9Ijwc&feature=player_embedded ) posted by Rok
> Oblak. Seeing the vivid burn profile of a biomass briquette in this rocket
> stove configuration gave me an idea. By configuring the RMH fuel chamber to
> "co- fire" briquettes with wood, I could both lower RMH "fuel wood quality
> requirements"  and provide greater flexibility in terms of fuel stock.  (-I
> suspect that sounded a bit like gibberish- It may perhaps only make sense
> when seeing the the prototype in operation, and understanding basic RMH
> dynamics.) I have attempted to make a few video segments with my photo
> camera to better explain.- I apologize for my lack of skills as a
> videographer and for the unpolished appearance of the prototype stove which
> is currently set up outdoors. I also ask that the prototype only be viewed
> in context of a complete RMH specimen (- with heated benches etc.)  such as
> presented in the pdf / RMH book.
> Prototype video link:  www.vimeo.com/19415675
> The stove works using either wood or briquettes alone, but their combustion
> together seems to present an almost symbiotic relationship.
> I suspect the briquettes may have the same effect on dung cakes.
> Designing stoves to have a certain fuel type flexibility may become
> increasingly important for the future. Flexibility may help prevent the
> overtaxing of one single fuel resource and mitigate problems associated with
> fluxing supplies/availability.
> Biomass briquettes have a real potential where fuel wood is increasingly
> becoming an scarce commodity. BUT ... the end user most often seems to lack
> a stove which burns them really well. I imagine this factor is limiting end
> user demand for the briquettes, which in turn makes it hard for briquette
> programs/producers to get off the ground.
> Today, an overwhelming amount of work (and money) is dedicated to improve
> biomass fueled cooking stoves. These programs are primarily addressing the
> energy needs of people living in (sub)tropical climates.  But what about
> people living at high altitudes and in seasonally cold regions. These people
> may be fewer in numbers, but with the additional need for heating and a slow
> bio-mass regeneration rate, household energy issues become far more complex
> and taxing. These problems deserve more attention.
> Thanks again for taking the time to read through this email.  I would
> greatly appreciate any feedback you may have.
> This is also a call out to anyone interested in collaborating on further
> development and testing of this prototype and/or other variations of rocket
> mass heaters. I am currently searching for an indoor location as well as
> resources to build and fine-tune a full scale, working model. I will be
> looking into reducing the cost of certain key components by use of
> alternative materials. (- like the stove pipe; could the non-exposed
> segments that are buried in thermal mass be produced by connecting used 6
> inch diameter cans from hermetically sealed food products-?) Options for a
> safe, durable and reliable heat exchanger for water heating should also be
> explored, as well as ways to accommodate baking of bread.
> A final prototype will need to be field tested. I have some ideas for
> potential test locations/groups, but I would greatly appreciate any form of
> collaboration, guidance or advice from those with more experience.
>
> For further information on RMH design, please visit the website of my friend
> and collaborative partner, Ernie Wisner:
> www.ernieanderica.info/rocketstoves
> If there are any technical problems with accessing the attached pdf file,
> please let me know. Copies of this publication may also be purchased in
> either book format or as a pdf.file at these web sites:
> www.rocketstoves.com  or
> www.amazon.com/Rocket-Mass-Heaters-Superefficient-Woodstoves/dp/0966373839/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1294866126&sr=8-1
>
> If I do not hear back from you, I may send this email again, in case it
> ended up in spam boxes.
>       The recipients of this email are:
> Sjoerd Nienhuys                   www.nienhuys.info/ics-wood-stoves.html
> Geres
> www.geres.eu/en/household-energy/42-activites-nrjmenages-maroc-equi-bois
>
> Afghans For Tomorrow      www.afghans4tomorrow.com
>                                        www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpYjjarm_Bo
>
> Prakti design / gtz
> www.praktidesign.com/images/stories/prakti_gtz_khorog_ceramic%20tadjikistan.pdf
> Sanu Kaji Shrestha           www.fost-nepal.org
> Richard Stanley                www.legacyfound.org
> Dr. Bernard Amadei          www.ewb-usa.org/about.php
> Peter Scott                      www.rocketstove.org
> High Atlas Foundation       www.highatlasfoundation.org
>                                        http://www.vimeo.com/13475796
> Amy B. Smith                   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_B._Smith
> Rok Oblak
> www.mdulastove.wordpress.com/biomass-briquettes
> Crispin Pemberton-Pigott   www.newdawnengineering.com/website/opening.php
> <Rocket_Mass_Heaters.pdf>
>
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