Smokeless camping stove changes the way you cook outdoors

A new camp stove will have you cooking with… biomass. The Enki Stove Wild, the brainchild of an Italian startup, is the cleaner and greener way to have a BBQ. The gadget burns biomass such as twigs, sticks and wood pellets that are placed directly into the center of the stove. Powered by a battery or solar panel, the gizmo cuts CO2 emissions by producing smokeless heat, while producing a consistent flame. The only waste left after using the Wild is an organic charcoal called BioChar, which can be used as a natural fertilizer for soil. The company’s communications manager Andrea Moratti explains how this camp stove produces energy in a sustainable way.

Why did you decide to develop a camp stove fueled by biomass?

Our story began in 2011 when engineering student Ivan Mura and I were away from the University of Pisa campus when we received an excessive gas bill, which we could not pay. He decided to create a stove without a vent that was powered by waste material. He needed a burner that produced no emissions and that was capable of burning without pollution to use as a home burner. And we got it. The already existent pyrolytic stoves have three big issues: they are unstable, they run only with ultra-dry and homogenous biomass and are not rechargeable. After many rounds of prototyping, we designed a stove that can solve all of these problems with a customized airflow, which can burn heterogeneous biomasses and be used in any conditions.

Do you want to help save the world with this device?

Our aim is to create a series of devices that produce energy in a sustainable way. Enki Stove systems are safe and link functionality to accurate design.

How can this stove help in terms of the environment?

Enki Stove systems are based on an evolution of open pyrolysis: thanks to the particular geometrical structure, they improve the pyrolytic process [thermal decomposition of organic material] and it becomes stable, smokeless and easy to use. The only waste left is an organic charcoal called Biochar, in which CO and CO2 — mainly responsible for the greenhouse effect—are trapped. The Biochar prevents the release of harmful gases into the atmosphere and it can also be added to soil as a fertilizer.

Could you explain how this device work?

Enki Stove Wild is easy to use: you need just a few branches or other dry biomass, a small battery or a solar panel, and a firelighter. All that you have to do is to insert biomass into the stove chamber, then cover the top of the fuel with flammable material (as dry biomass or a firelighter). When the flame covers up the entire chamber top, connect the battery or the solar panel and you’re ready to cook.

How do you make it smokeless?

The pyrolytic process gasifies the biomass and burns all the gases in a clean and efficient way.

Enki Stove Wild is available in two sizes: Wild is portable and light; suitable for a small party up to four people: $259

The Wild+ is more powerful for bigger groups: $395

— By Daniel Casillas