Effects of Oil Drops and the Charcoal’s Proximate Composition on the Air Pollution Emitted from Charcoal Barbecues

Kuo-Pin Yu,Yun-Jhe Miao,Whei-May Grace Lee,Yen-Chi Chen,Yu Wei Tsai,Sepridawati Siregar

doi:10.4209/aaqr.2019.01.0042

Abstract

ABSTRACT This research investigated the emission rates (ERs) and emission factors (EFs) of air pollutants generated from charcoal barbecues and the influence of temperature, the charcoal’s proximate composition (moisture, volatile matter, fixed carbon, and ash), and oil drops. Charcoal briquettes, longan charcoal, and binchotan (commonly used for indoor barbecues) were selected for combustion experiments, and the exhaust gas was collected for the analysis of air pollutants, viz., CO, CO2, NOx, hydrocarbons (HCs), benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, PM2.5, and trace metals (Al, Cr, Cu, Fe, and Zn). A linear regression model was employed to verify the major factors affecting the EFs. The EFs of HCs measured during the dripping of oil and sauce on the charcoal ranged from 2486.2 to 9305.2 mg kg–1, 76.4–357% higher than those measured during no dripping. For PM2.5, the EFs measured during dripping ranged from 3080.4 to 3926.5 mg kg–1, 8–19 times higher than those measured during no dripping. The EFs of benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde also significantly increased during dripping. In addition, increasing the combustion temperature reduced the EFs of HCs, formaldehyde, and CO but increased those of Fe and Zn. The charcoal moisture content was significantly positively correlated with the EF of HCs, whereas the volatile matter content was significantly positively correlated with those of HCs and benzene. Positive correlations existed between the charcoal ash content and the EFs of CO, Fe, and Zn. The fixed carbon content was significantly positively correlated with the EF of CO2 but negatively correlated with those of CO, Al, and Zn.

Highlights

Worldwide, approximately 2.8 billion people rely on solid fuels, including wood, charcoal, coal, crop residues, bamboo, and animal dung, for cooking, in developing countries (Jetter and Kariher, 2009; Bonjour et al, 2013; Huangfu et al, 2014)
As a follow-up study, the primary objective of this study is to investigate the effects of oil dripping from food on air pollutants, namely, carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), total HCs, nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbonyls, aromatic HCs, PM2.5, and PM2.5 metals, emitted from commonly used BBQ charcoal and to determine the pollutant emission factors (EFs)
To eliminate this effect and obtain the EF of each air pollutant, the emission rates (ERs) of the air pollutants emitted by charcoal burning were normalized to the mass of charcoal burned

Summary

Introduction

Approximately 2.8 billion people (approximately half of the world’s population) rely on solid fuels, including wood, charcoal, coal, crop residues, bamboo, and animal dung, for cooking, in developing countries (Jetter and Kariher, 2009; Bonjour et al, 2013; Huangfu et al, 2014). Emissions from cooking activities can have detrimental impacts on aerosols and air quality at regional and global scales. Daily PM2.5 filter samples were collected in Navrongo, Ghana, from 2009– 2010 (Ofosu et al, 2013); using source apportionment techniques, observed particulate elemental carbon (EC) and Copyright The Author(s). Regional PM2.5 monitoring has been performed in Accra (Rooney et al, 2012); Nigeria (Obioh et al, 2013); Ouagadougou, Burkina-Faso (Boman et al, 2009); and Cairo (Abu-Allaban et al, 2007)

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