Particle Emissions from Domestic Gas Cookers

Abstract

The authors experimentally studied the formation of submicron particles from a domestic gas cooker in a compartment free from external particle sources. The effects of fuel (methane, natural gas, odorant-free natural gas), primary aeration, flow rate, and fuel sulphur content on particle emissions were investigated. The experiments confirmed reports from literature that blue burning flames of domestic gas cookers emit submicron particles. The particle number concentrations varied in the range 10³–10⁶ particles/cm³, depending on the fuel, flow rate, and primary air addition. The diameters of the emitted particles were found to have a mean value of about 7 nm for partially premixed flames, increasing to ∼10 nm for nonpremixed flames. The quantity of primary air had a strong impact on the particle emissions, showing a minimum at a primary aeration level of 60–65%. Presence of sulphur in small quantities may enhance particle formation under some conditions, but results were not conclusive.

Keywords:

• Aerosols
• Gas cooker
• Indoor air
• Partially premixed flames
• Soot

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This work was carried out at the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). The work was cofinanced by DTU, Danish Gas Technology Center (DGC), and Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation. The authors would like to thank Michael Heiredal and Merete Bilde for helpful discussions and assistance with verifying the SMPS measurements.