4-H Outdoor Cookery on a Biofuel Rocket Stove

By Connie Gerow, 4-H Mentoring Site Coordinator

What's a Rocket Stove? Where do you find Biofuel? Recently, these questions and many other questions were answered in the 4H Mentoring program when the youth participated in an Outdoor Cookery activity. The 4H Outdoor cooking activity combines ideas from traditional 4H cooking projects with the new hi tech and sustainable energy science concepts. The activity utilizes eco-friendly and energy saving methods for making outdoor cooking fun, safe and energy eco-wise.

As an introduction to the activity, the youth were asked how many have ever cooked outside and what type of fuel was used to cook their food? The most common answer was a propane grill. Very few had ever experienced the opportunity to cook a meal with wood (aka Biofuel). This led to the scientific process of inquirer and the following questions: What is fire and how does it "work"? How does wood fire burn? and, What makes a good efficient campfire?

The youth learned that fire comes from a chemical reaction between oxygen in the atmosphere and some sort of fuel (wood or gasoline, for example). Naturally, wood and gasoline do not spontaneously catch fire because they're surrounded by oxygen. For combustion to happen the fuel needs to be heated to its ignition temperature. An in-depth explanation of the process of how a wood fire burns led to a discussion that "cooking smoke" is one of the leading causes of death in small children in some third world countries. The poor-burning, inefficient fires produce a toxic smoke, including carbon monoxide.

Next the youth were introduced to Biofuel Steel Can Rocket Stove that operates on the principles of energy efficiency. It uses biofuels as a source of heat and is therefore carbon neutral. It's easy to make and very inexpensive (almost free) utilizing recycled cans. Simple step by step instructions for a back yard table top design can be found at the following YouTube website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDADCZtVJ9w

As a culminating activity, the youth were able to make popcorn and enjoyed making a campfire favorite; roasting marshmallows and having Smores. For more information on how to involve your child in a 4-H program, one may visit the Franklin County Cornell Cooperative Extension website at http://franklin.cce.cornell.edu/ or one may call the office at 518.483.7403.