Peko Pe Stove, Fuels, Charcoal vs Firewood

Peko Pe Stove, Fuels, Charcoal vs Firewood
Paal Wendelbo, Norway, paaw@online.no, June 2008

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Peko Pe http://www.pekope.net/stove.html

The gasifier Peko Pe stove I developed in Uganda about 20 years ago burns with a clean blue/yellow flame, smoke and sootless at a temperature of 650/750dg.C. with only natural draft. Chipped wood, straw, briquettes and pellets as fuel.

The development of the Peko Pe stove in 1985 was based on experience from several years working in rural areas in in most African countries south of Sahara. The fuel used, the way of cooking, the culture and tradition was the background.

One of the most important observation to me was the fact it was not common to reduce the power or fire when food or water came to a boil, but rather to remove the pan from the hot fire. That happens with electricity, gas, wood and charcoal cooking. And by that experience, I decided to have no regulation on my stoves because it would not be used and not working. Next, the stove should be easy to produce by local tinsmiths with simple hand tools. Any kind of sheet metal should be possible to use apart from galvanized sheets for the combustion chamber. Then the stove should be flexible in use and easy to operate, burn with clean smokeless and sootless flame and be fuel efficient.

After some thousands of failing and trying, I managed to produce the stove with straw as fuel. Later I found any kind of dry biofuel could be used as fuel, only with small adjustments needed. I called it the Multifuel Combustion System.

Since I have no thermo technical education it is difficult to explain the function, but it seems to be primary air to heat up the fuel, second air to speed up and ignite the unburned gases and the third air to stabilize the process. And a balance of the three different air intakes gives the blue/yellov flame of 600/700 deg C. The stove was tested in 1986 at The Technical High School in Copenhagen, and they found there was no dangerous gases, clean and efficient. It has also been tested at UBM and GTH in Norway, but no official electronic English report exist as far as I know. Aprovecho could probably make one. Complete drawings exist and it is easy to make one from there.

Charcoal vs Firewood

(A good word for those who are thinking. dreaming, talking and working with [Fuel Efficient Stoves]FES)

I make my own Peko Pe at my simple workshop and use it almost every day for cooking, frying, working, baking and heating during wintertime, with no chimney but good ventilation, saving allot of fuel. (I think Tom's XL stove is doing the same)

During about 25 years I have tried to introduce this stove and combustion system in about 10 countries in Africa and some other places around the world. Almost all NGO's and UNHCR has been contacted but up to now, no response. Why? In Uganda 1995 UNHCR told me it dos not fit to the African culture and tradition, though there was about 300 km to collect firewood at some of the refugee camps around The Great Lakes. Most NGO's has their own stove projects. And the charcoal producers were not very happy for the phenomenon. As for Zambia about 15 % of the population is in one another way involved in the charcoal business. 2-3 million charcoal stoves are in use daily. In some other countries around towns more than 50 % of the population is working with charcoal and it is a treat to the forest.

A family of 5 need about 2,5kg of charcoal per day for their cooking, and in Uganda they found there was an 85 % loss of energy by the production and transport of charcoal, it means about 20 kg firewood as charcoal is needed for daily cooking for a family. 20 kg firewood made to charcoal gives 1 day of cooking. 20kg chipped wood will give you 4-5 days of cooking into a FES.

I think we have the stoves, there is a lot of good FES at the market and the main problem will be the fuel, the production and the commercialization of that. You have to compete with charcoal prices.

Fuel

To make a hot meal you need fuel, a fireplace with a good, clean flame and time. The most important is the fuel. With the right fuel you can make a meal on a 3 stone fireplace and on the most advanced stove with fans and chimney. No fuel no hot meal, whatever you have of a fireplace. Hundred of millions people around the world still use a 3 stone fireplace and the fuel they can find or afford to buy. Due to inefficiency, people will spend unnecessary much more fuel and money for their cooking. Some places more than half of their daily income.

So what can we do? Make better efficient stoves which people can afford to buy. Then they will save both time and money. In addition save forest and improve the environment. At the laboratory or workshop we can get almost every stove to work, but it will always be the practical use, which will be decisive.

To me it seems that stoves is not the problem, but the fuel, which are the best for the actual stove will be the problem.. The biofuel, pellets, briquettes and the infrastructure to that have to be given more attention.

Have a nice day.

Regards Paal W paaw@online.no

Peko Pe L and Peko Pe S



Peko Pe L 1.8 kg fuel PP S 180g fuel



Peko Pe L 3 L boiling within 15 minutes from 14 to 100degC and boiling for 45 minutes on 1,8kg chopped wood.



Peko Pe S 1 L boiling within 10 minutes



2 Burner Peko Pe under development, 30cm wood feeds on top without removing the pot. With 2kg of fuel it will burn about 1 hour and 10 minutes



2 Burner Peko Pe



2 burner Peko Pe with Wok


A 20 liter 3 burner unit is under development.


See: http://www.hedon.info/docs/MFCS-PekoPe-Afrika.pdf
MultiFuel Combustion System and the Peko Pe