Building and Performance Evaluation of Novel Solar Cooking System in Gujarat, India

Abstract

Wood is generally used as a source of energy for cooking in rural and semi-urban areas of India. Approximately 216 million tons per year of wood is consumed in the cooking of which 9.731 million tons per year is used in Gujarat. The use of wood causes deforestation and increases indoor pollution. To reduce this, solar energy can be used as an alternate source of energy for cooking. The current research aims to present the findings of two weeks of experiments in the Indian (Gujarat) climate with the novel solar cooker. The cooker was build using a parabolic dish collector (85 % reflectivity) with a supporting structure and adjustable mechanism, a receiver (heat exchanger) and a cooking burner with a pot. The experimental result shows that the maximum temperature available at the receiver is 110°C with 560.7 W/m2 of average solar irradiation, justifying solar cooking as a viable alternative source of energy for cooking in Gujarat and India.