From Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi: A gas stove using ordinary rice husks could be an easy but cheap alternative to the LPG gas cylinder, which is scarce, and polluting traditional chhulahs in the landlocked North Eastern region where transport and communica-tion is very difficult.
The Biomass Gas Stove, christened “AGNI”, operates on the principle of rice husk gasification.
The gasification process is assisted with a 12V electric fan and converts the rice husk fuel into combustible gases by thermo-chemical reaction of the oxygen in the air and the carbon in the husk.
According to the manufacturers of the stove one kilogramme of rice husk gives over an hour of a continuous flame, which is hotter than LPG.
It is available in different domestic and community models with DC/AC/Solar options for powering the fan.
The stove is very easy to use and portable, the sources said.
There is no smoke and the ignition time is very quick using waste paper scraps to initiate the gasification process.
The stove also has flame control knobs.
Ash from the rice husk is reduced to around 15-20% of the original weight and, according to the company, it is useful as a soil conditioner due to its high water retention and can also be used for washing utensils.
The company explained that risk husk is a widely available, low cost, agro waste obtained from rice mills and that one kilogramme of rice typically contains around 200 grams of rice husk, approximately 20%.
The North Eastern states are both a leading producer and consumer of rice, and according to the company a huge quantity of rice husk is treated as waste and destroyed, which leads to pollution.
There is a shortage of LPG cylinders, kerosene and other fuels used for cooking meals, which are costly and subsidised by the government.
The situation is exacerbated by the fluctuating cost of LPG, with the government deciding to limit its subsidy to six/nine cylinders per year per connection.
According to the company, in terms of energy, one kilogramme of subsidised LPG gas, which would, with the government subsidiary, cost around Rs 30 is equal to four kilograms of rice husk, which costs around Rs 8.
Adding to the problem, the stoves or mud chullahs used for cooking are not energy efficient, as the fuels are not burned completely.
The incomplete combustion also releases harmful smoke and air pollutants leading to many respiratory diseases in humans in the region, the company sources added.
The company claimed that the unique stove has been approved by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and launched in North East India, but the claim could not be confirmed officially.