Economic and Environmental Evaluation of Rice Husk Gasifier Cookstoves: A Life Cycle Assessment Approach in Agricultural Energy Utilization

This study conducted a comparative life cycle analysis (LCA) of five rice husk gasifier cookstoves Rua (RRHS), Viet (VRHS), Paul Olivier 150 (PO150), Paul Olivier 250 (PO250), and Mayon (MYN) to assess their cumulative energy demand (CED) and environmental impacts for household cooking applications. Using SimaPro 8.5.2.0 and the ReCiPe 2016 Midpoint (I) methodology, the analysis covered material extraction, manufacturing, and operational phases per 1 MJ of cooking energy. Results revealed that the PO150 model recorded the lowest CED (268 MJ/MJ), followed by VRHS, RRHS, PO250, and MYN (610 MJ/MJ). The major contributors to total energy demand were unalloyed steel production and electricity use during fabrication. The PO150 cookstove also showed the lowest global warming potential (31.8 kg CO₂ eq/MJ) and human toxicity impacts, while MYN exhibited the highest (93 kg CO₂ eq/MJ). These findings demonstrate that PO150 is the most environmentally sustainable option for rice husk utilization in African households and can promote cleaner cooking and resource efficiency