[Stoves] Balancing Technical and User Objectives

Xavier Brandao xav.brandao at gmail.com
Tue Jan 2 15:49:53 CST 2018


Hello,

 

Happy new year 2018 to everyone!

 

I had a look at the thesis:

 

« Laboratory Testing Procedure

The test procedure that was followed was according to the Water Boiling Test
protocol (WBT) [109]. This test is a lab based test and provides for
repeatable and low cost testing of biomass cookstoves. Because of its
repeatable nature, it is an excellent test to determine the effect of
certain design changes throughout the development process. »

 

« It should be noted that WBT results presented here do not necessarily
represent the channel stove’s actual performance in the field, but are only
accurate for comparing alternative designs tested in this particular lab
setting. This disparity between WBT results and field use has been clearly
documented by several previous authors [99–101]. Despite the limitations of
the WBT in predicting actual performance, it is useful in selecting the most
promising products for field trials, and thus we have employed it in this
study [109]. »

 

Sigh.

 

Haven’t we said so many times that the WBT should not be used to select
stoves?

Like some greenhouse gas emissions, some papers, handbooks, and toolkits
about stove testing have long-lasting harmful effects.

 

Best,

 

Xavier

 

 

De : Stoves [mailto:stoves-bounces at lists.bioenergylists.org] De la part de
Tom Miles
Envoyé : lundi 1 janvier 2018 21:30
À : 'Discussion of biomass cooking stoves'
Objet : [Stoves] Balancing Technical and User Objectives

 

A Brigham Young Unversity thesis exemplifies a relevant topic of,”
Balancing Technical and User Objectives in the Design of Improved Biomass
Cookstoves for Developing Regions of the World” 

By Kendall Steven Thacker, Brigham Young University

 

“Over the past decade a large amount of research has been dedicated in
academic literature to improving the technical capabilities of improved
cookstoves; primarily the performance efficiency and reduction of emissions.
Unfortunately, as published literature has highlighted, the trade-offs that
result from placing such a concentrated emphasis on these technical
objectives is that improved cookstoves lack the same level of usability as
traditional cookstoves. Thus, users often return to using their traditional
stoves and the potential impact of the improved cookstoves is never fully
realized. In order for improved cookstoves to have greater impact, there
must be
betterbalancebetweenthetwocompetingdesignobjectivesoftechnicalcapabilitiesan
dusability. This research explores the challenges and benefits associated
with achieving the appropriate balance, and provides guidance on how to more
effectively achieve this. A list of the most common customer needs from
around the world is provided for cookstoves. Interestingly, there are needs
that are common to all cookstove users (global needs), and needs that apply
to only a subset of users (local needs). Due to the diversity of such needs,
there are many unique challenges that come with trying to satisfy these in
the design process. A design methodology is presented that accounts for
these challenges and helps balance the competing design objectives. This
methodology is demonstrated through the modification of a traditional
cookstove used in the Tambogrande region of Peru. This modification includes
an inexpensive set of pot skirts that integrates directly with the
traditional stove. These pot skirts allow for varying sizes and number of
pots, and the use of traditional fuels. Laboratory testing, using the Water
Boiling Test (WBT), identified the skirts’ technical improvements: 41.7%
increased thermal efficiency, 32.7% decreased fuel consumption, 28.8%
decreased time to boil. Field testing was performed to determine the pot
skirts acceptance and compatibility with the traditional cookstoves, with
over 75% of the participants recognizing some type of benefit. Although the
technical improvements of these pot skirts are less than other cookstoves on
the market, the higher levels of usability are likely to lead to a more
positive enduser reaction, which could potentially lead to higher rates of
adoption and impact. Though this research is primarily focused on the
application of improved cookstoves, the need for more balance between
technical and user objectives is applicable to nearly all products being
designed for the developing world.”

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7301
<https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7301&context=et
d> &context=etd

 



---
L'absence de virus dans ce courrier électronique a été vérifiée par le logiciel antivirus Avast.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: winmail.dat
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 7262 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.bioenergylists.org/pipermail/stoves_lists.bioenergylists.org/attachments/20180102/39526e82/attachment.bin>


More information about the Stoves mailing list