Cooking with Sound - the Generator That Transforms Lives

A case study produced by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) which looks at an affordable cooking stove that generates electricity and could transform lives in the world’s poorest communities. It burns biomass such as wood or dung and converts the heat produced into electricity. Over two billion people have no access to electricity. Recent tests showed that Score (Stove for Cooking, Refrigeration and Electricity) stove could produce enough electricity to power lights and simultaneously charge a mobile phone (19.5W). The objective is to produce 100W per household. The EPSRC-funded project is led by the University of Nottingham and is based on a novel application of thermo-acoustics, where heat is produced, converted into sound energy and than electricity. This application has already been demonstrated in the Thermo-Acoustic Stirling Engines and refrigerators developed by the US military for applications including nuclear-powered satellite systems. EPSRC is a part of the Research Councils UK (RCUK) partnership of research councils.