Elliott Tyler Gall, PhD

Over 40 million homes in the United States use natural gas for cooking, which emits air pollution indoors. Indoor emissions from cooking gas combustion are potentially responsible for 200,000 pediatric asthma cases. Replacing natural gas cooking appliances with electric options is an opportunity for improving indoor air quality. However, replacing a stove is expensive and complicated, especially for low-income populations who already face higher exposure to emissions from indoor gas cooking. We will evaluate a novel solution to addressing the barriers to gas stove changeout through distribution of countertop, “portable” induction cooktops. The project will distribute cooktops to a group of low-income households and evaluate impacts on indoor air quality and their perceptions of the change. This project aims to clearly show the impact of a new approach to reducing exposure to indoor gas combustion emissions.

Update: Gas stoves contribute to indoor air pollution by releasing harmful pollutants like nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which is strongly linked to childhood asthma. Because completely replacing gas ranges is often expensive and difficult for renters and lower-income populations, this research team is testing a practical alternative: distributing compact, portable induction cooktops. The research team recently completed their initial field study, successfully measuring cooking emissions like NO2 and particulate matter in seven homes. Data were compared to emissions from gas ranges. The team recently launched the second, larger field study involving 45 households to track how introducing these portable cooktops measurably changes indoor air quality.