Solar cooking in Ethiopia: Experimental testing and performance evaluation of SK14 solar cooker

Abstract

Fuel-wood shortage is a rising issue that has so far been frequently addressed. Solar cooking is a promising solution to firewood dependency, and the prettiest method to exploit solar energy. The objective of this paper is to manufacture and testing of the performance of SK14 solar cooker under the Ethiopian climate. The cooker was contrived from market available flat iron and reflective aluminum sheets having a reflective index of 0.9. Experimental tests without and with load were carried out. The performance tests were conducted on March 1st and March 13th, 2020 in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. The no-load test results revealed that the maximum temperature, stagnation temperature inside the midpoint of the cooking pot and first figure of merit were 212 °C, 188 °C, and 0.22 °C/W/m2 respectively. The load tests have shown that the cooking power, standard cooking power, thermal efficiency, and second figure of merit are 635 W, 375.8 W, 46.4%, and 0.625 respectively. The cooling test also showed an optical efficiency of 51.59 and heat loss factors of 0.328. In conclusion, cooking power and achieved temperature acquired by SK14 confirms cooking of common Ethiopian dishes with great flexibility.