Comparison of the energy consumption of five tabletop electric cooking appliances

Abstract

This research tested the energy consumption and efficiency of five electric tabletop appliances (cooktops) used in home cooking, specifically induction, infrared, resistance plate, resistance coil, and electric pot. The water boiling test with a cold start was used to determine the energy consumption and the efficiency for each appliance with variable volumes of water—500, 1000, 1500, and 2000 mL—and two pot sizes of 3 and 5 quarts. The effect of cold vs. hot start was evaluated with one water volume, 1000 mL, on all appliances. The electric pot was studied with and without insulation to determine if it is worth insulating the pot that comes un-insulated from the factory. Also, the appliances were subjected to simulated simmering tests to determine which device was more efficient in slow cooking. Of the five appliances tested, the induction cooktop and the electric pot were the most energy efficient and took the least time to boil water. Moreover, the energy efficiency and heating time were similar for the induction matched with the smaller pot and the electric pot. Induction lost efficiency by approximately ten percentage points when used with the large pot, thus reinforcing the importance of matching the pot size with the heating element. During the simmering experiments, induction proved easier than resistance coil to control the temperature in the culinary simmering band, from 85 to 100 °C; however, the energy consumption difference between induction and resistance coil was unclear.