Evaluation of performance of household solar cookers.

Household solar cookers were evaluated according to ASAE (American Society of Agricultural Engineers) Standard S580.1 - Testing and Reporting Solar Cooker Performance. Per ASAE S580.1, standardized cooking power at a temperature difference of 50°C between ambient air and cooking vessel water temperatures (± 95% confidence interval) was 198 (± 32) W for a parabolic-type cooker, 65 (± 12) W for a box-type cooker, and 25 (± 9) W for a panel-type cooker. ASAE S580.1 specifies standardized cooking power as a single measure of performance, and additional measures of performance, including thermal efficiency and water heating times, were evaluated. The issue of water evaporation was examined. Clarifications for ASAE S580.1 wind velocity specification are recommended. ASAE S580.1 is specified as a normative reference in the ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 19867-1:2018 standard for laboratory testing of cookstoves, and a specified deviation for average wind velocity, ≤1.5 m/s, is based on recommendations from this study and concurrence from other ISO working group experts.