Effect of Burner-Hole Variation on Airflow, Flame Characteristics, and Thermal Performance of a Waste Cooking Oil Stove
This study investigated the effect of burner hole variation on the flame behavior thermal performance of a waste cooking oil stove. Three cylindrical burner configurations with 25, 28, and 31 holes. The methods included measurement of fuel consumption, flame temperature at the flame core and outer flame zones, visual flame appearance analysis. The results showed that increasing number of burner holes improved the effective air supply to the combustion zone, as indicated by the increase in air output mass from 0.00075kg/s (25 hole burner) to 0.00093kg/s (31 hole burner) while obstructed air mass decreased from 0.00225 to 0.00207kg/s. This improvement intensified flame behavior and accelerated water heating. The estimated boiling times for the hole burner 28 and 31 showed no significant difference, with a variance of only 0.10 minutes. Fuel consumption increased only slightly from 0.040 to 0.047kg. Flame temperature and flame height also increased consistently with burner hole number. Overall, the 31 hole burner provided the maximum combustion intensity, whereas the 28 hole burner offered the best practical balance between fuel consumption and heating performance. These findings demonstrate that burner hole optimization is an effective strategy for improving the practical thermal performance of household waste cooking oil stoves.