Central Mexico has copious amounts of sun and tortillas, so perhaps it isn’t so surprising someone came up with the idea of using solar power to make them. In the town of El Sauz, north of Mexico City, German businessman Gregor Schrapers has created some solar-powered ovens to make tortillas in a carbon-free manner. (He is a self-taught solar engineer who moved to the region of Hidalgo.)
Conventional ovens there typically use gas — up to 16 gallons a month. Some might expect a solar oven to be rather anemic in the temperature ranges. However, his solar cookers can reach beyond 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. Schefler reflectors are used to heat up a griddle, oven, and cauldron. They are made in El Sauz by Triny Sol and can last thirty years.
“At first people here in the region were very skeptical about the usefulness of my project. Once they saw the facilities and what we can do with these reflectors, they realized that they work,” he explained. (Source: Softpedia) Here’s a short news video here about the solar cookers:
Solar-powered cooking isn’t for everyone, though. It isn’t new, and in some cases is inappropriate. For example, some people need to cook before sunrise or after sunset. Also, people generally need to cook on cloudy days, as well. It may turn out that affordable energy storage systems are the solution to such conditions. However, they currently don’t exist, especially in such regions of the world.
Image Credit: Public Domain, Wiki Commons
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