Comparative evaluation of emissions from selected paraffin lamps and a paraffin thermoelectric generator

Paraffin lamps are commonly used as light sources in low-income, off-grid households. Pollutant emissions from these appliances are a potential health hazard and a cause of material soiling by soot deposits. This paper reports on evaluation of emissions of two off-the-shelf paraffin lamps (a standard lantern and a glass lamp) - considered as baseline reference devices - and a prototype paraffin-fuelled thermo-electric generator. The thermoelectric generator is designed to provide a higher intensity and quality of light output than conventional paraffin lamps. This is achieved through LED lamps. In addition, it also has a plug point to charge mobile phones. These devices were fuelled with commercially sourced illuminating paraffin, and tested according to the SeTAR Centre heterogeneous test protocols (HTP). Results show that the thermoelectric generator has 83% reduction in PM_2.5 (black carbon) emissions per hour of burn (mg/h) compared to the two reference lamps. The CO emissions and CO/CO₂ ratio for the three devices did not show significant differences at the 95% confidence level. The thermoelectric generator has a similar fuel consumption rate to the paraffin glass lamp, while the standard paraffin lantern has a higher burn rate. The thermoelectric generator exhibits lower risks of fires and contact burns since there is no exposed flame. The paraffin thermoelectric generator with LED lamps would therefore be a serious contender as a substitute for polluting paraffin lamps, providing a higher quality of light while reducing black carbon emissions.