Comparative assessment of pollutant emissions between biofuel briquettes and charcoal: implications for domestic cooking fuel selection

Abstract Fuels influence indoor air quality and occupants' health. This study aims to evaluate and compare the emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), and aerodynamic size less than or equal to 2.5 µm (PM 2.5 ) from biofuel briquettes to those from household charcoal. This approach allows for selecting a fuel based on its pollutant emissions. CO emissions ranged between 0.79 ± 0.014 and 7.430 ± 0.063 g/MJ delivered for biofuels and charcoal, respectively. The emitted CO 2 ranged between 2 ± 0.212 and 129 ± 1.41 g/MJ delivered for biofuels and charcoal, respectively. The PM 2.5 emissions from biofuels and charcoal were 507.5 ± 61.5 and 256.50 ± 13.44 mg/MJ delivered , respectively. The specific fuel consumption varied between 4.16 ± 0.056 and 1.35 ± 0.120 kg/L for biofuels and charcoal, respectively. The Bravais-Pearson statistical tests revealed a strong correlation between pollutant emissions and certain fuel properties. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed a significance in the data, with a p-value of 0.05. The results obtained provide scientific evidence to support the promotion of biofuels for cleaner, affordable, and sustainable energy from sawdust, aiming to reduce deforestation. Graphical Abstract