@article{mccord_parsons_bittner_jumbe_kabwe_pedit_serenje_grieshop_jagger_2024, title={Carbon Monoxide Exposure and Risk of Cognitive Impairment Among Cooks in Africa}, volume={2024}, ISSN={["1600-0668"]}, DOI={10.1155/2024/7363613}, abstractNote={We use air pollution exposure measurements and household survey data from four studies conducted across three countries in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) to analyze the association between carbon monoxide (CO) exposure from cooking with biomass and indicators of cognitive impairment. While there is strong evidence on the relationship between ambient air pollution exposure and cognitive impairment from studies in high‐income countries, relatively little research has focused on household air pollution (HAP) in low‐income country settings where risks of HAP exposure are high. This study is the first to our knowledge to focus on the association between HAP exposure (specifically CO exposure) and cognitive impairment across diverse settings in SSA. We use 24‐hour measurements of primary cooks’ exposure to CO across four study sites: urban Zambia ( n = 493); urban Malawi ( n = 130); rural Malawi ( n = 102); and urban Rwanda ( n = 2,576). We model the estimated percent carboxyhemoglobin (%COHb) of cooks and map values to a toxicological profile for risk of cognitive impairment. We find that across all study settings, cooks’ average %COHb levels are below levels of daily concern, but that cooks who use charcoal for preparing greater than 40% of meals are more likely to spend additional time at higher levels of risk. For the urban Zambia sample, we compare %COHb and frequency of charcoal use to a series of cognitive test scores and find no consistent relationships between %COHb and cognitive test scores. High levels of daily CO exposure from cooks across SSA highlight the potential for longer‐term negative cognitive (and other) health outcomes motivating additional research and efforts to characterize and mitigate risk.}, journal={INDOOR AIR}, author={McCord, Ryan and Parsons, Stephanie and Bittner, Ashley S. and Jumbe, Charles B. L. and Kabwe, Gillian and Pedit, Joseph and Serenje, Nancy and Grieshop, Andrew P. and Jagger, Pamela}, year={2024}, month={Jun} }
 @article{parsons_tanner_champion_grieshop_2022, title={The effects of modified operation on emissions from a pellet-fed, forced-draft gasifier stove}, volume={70}, ISSN={["2352-4669"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.esd.2022.08.004}, abstractNote={Traditional solid fuel cookstoves emit gas- and particle-phase pollutants that contribute to household air pollution, human disease, and climate impacts. Forced-draft semi-gasifier stoves are an attractive intermediate step to zero-emitting stoves due to their reported lower emissions in laboratory and field studies, and potential for increased availability in more rural locales. However, emissions from these stoves have been shown to be highly variable and sensitive to stove design, fuel type, secondary air velocity, and operation mode. We measured carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM2.5), organic and elemental carbon, and particle number (15–685 nm) emissions of the widely adopted Mimi Moto pellet-fed, gasifier stove for different operating conditions under two modified protocols, the Water Boiling Test (WBT) and an updated laboratory testing protocol ISO 19867-1 (ISO). We categorized operating conditions into three approaches: Startup (varying ignition material), Shutdown (varying fan speed during a 45-min burnout period), and Refuel (varying the height of charred pellets added for re-ignition). Refueling led to the largest and most variable emissions, but lab emissions were all lower than high field emissions (e.g., similar to those of traditional solid fuels) and remained primarily in ISO Tiers 5 and 4 for CO and PM2.5, aspirational and second-best, respectively. We find large relative differences in emissions when comparing our results to similar studies conducted with the Mimi Moto and ISO protocol, suggesting small operational differences can have large emissions implications. To minimize emissions, we recommend using kerosene for ignition, turning the fan off when pellets are done burning and flame has extinguished, and reigniting with fresh pellets instead of pellet char. Improved training and maintenance are needed in real-world applications to decrease the frequency of high-emission events. Tightly constrained testing and detection limits remain challenges to fully understanding factors contributing to these events.}, journal={ENERGY FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT}, author={Parsons, Stephanie and Tanner, Ky and Champion, Wyatt and Grieshop, Andrew}, year={2022}, month={Oct}, pages={259–271} }