Optimal sizing of a solar–biogas-based cooking system for a cluster of villages

Abstract

Energy supplies particularly in remote and far-flung rural areas are in pathetic situation. Leave aside other needs, most of the rural communities still use wood as a source of energy for cooking. Burning of wood is not only an inefficient method, but also hazardousness for the person working on the stove. People have been working for cleaner and efficient means of cooking for decades. Solar cooker- and biogas-based cook stoves are two of the successfully implemented technologies in this area. Although solar cooker requires no maintenance, the initial investment is quite high for a cluster of villages. In addition to this, the intermittency involved in solar energy makes this an unreliable source.In this paper, a cluster of villages of Narendra Nagar block of Tehri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand, India, has been studied in terms of their thermal requirements. The potential of solar energy and biomass energy has been estimated. An integrated solar–biogas system has been proposed to satisfy this cooking demand. To obtain the optimal sizes of solar cooker and biogas generator, MATLAB codes have been developed. It was found that this system is more economical and much reliable than the other two cases.