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Atmosphere
Volume 16
Issue 9
10.3390/atmos16091061
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Brief Report

Exploring the Relative Effects of Natural Gas and Biogas Cooking on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Kitchens

by
Wande Benka-Coker
1,*,
Kailey Sipe
1,
Dinela Dedic
1,
Alexander Jones
1,
Bramley Hawkins
2,
Emily Lyons
2,
Matt Steiman
1 and
Megan Benka-Coker
2
1
Department of Environmental Studies, Dickinson College, P.O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013, USA
2
Department of Health Sciences, Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA 17325, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Atmosphere 2025, 16(9), 1061; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16091061
Submission received: 28 July 2025 / Revised: 6 September 2025 / Accepted: 7 September 2025 / Published: 9 September 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Enhancing Indoor Air Quality: Monitoring, Analysis and Assessment)
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Abstract

Indoor air pollution from gas stove combustion remains a public health concern, given links to adverse cardiorespiratory health effects, yet few studies have characterized or compared the air quality impacts of different gas-based cooking fuels. We investigated kitchen-level concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in four homes in Central Pennsylvania that used natural gas and/or biogas fueled stoves. We conducted time-resolved kitchen monitoring and assessed pollutant concentrations during cooking and non-cooking periods. We applied linear mixed-effect regression models with kitchen-level random effects and time-varying covariates to estimate the influence of fuel type on indoor air quality. During cooking, mean kitchen NO2 concentrations during cooking were more than 160% higher in homes using natural gas compared with biogas (95% confidence interval [CI]: 109.4%, 211.1%), although both levels remained below the WHO guideline. PM2.5 concentrations showed limited sensitivity to fuel type, with modest differences observed. Adjusted mixed-effect regression models revealed attenuated but consistent associations, with natural gas use increasing NO2 exposure by 2.8 ppb, or 60.3% (95% CI: 1.7, 4.6 ppb). These findings suggest further research into understanding the exposure and health benefits of alternative fuels in residential kitchen settings is merited.
Keywords: household air pollution; nitrogen dioxide; natural gas combustion; biogas fuel; cooking emissions; kitchen exposure assessment household air pollution; nitrogen dioxide; natural gas combustion; biogas fuel; cooking emissions; kitchen exposure assessment

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MDPI and ACS Style

Benka-Coker, W.; Sipe, K.; Dedic, D.; Jones, A.; Hawkins, B.; Lyons, E.; Steiman, M.; Benka-Coker, M. Exploring the Relative Effects of Natural Gas and Biogas Cooking on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Kitchens. Atmosphere 2025, 16, 1061. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16091061

AMA Style

Benka-Coker W, Sipe K, Dedic D, Jones A, Hawkins B, Lyons E, Steiman M, Benka-Coker M. Exploring the Relative Effects of Natural Gas and Biogas Cooking on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Kitchens. Atmosphere. 2025; 16(9):1061. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16091061

Chicago/Turabian Style

Benka-Coker, Wande, Kailey Sipe, Dinela Dedic, Alexander Jones, Bramley Hawkins, Emily Lyons, Matt Steiman, and Megan Benka-Coker. 2025. "Exploring the Relative Effects of Natural Gas and Biogas Cooking on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Kitchens" Atmosphere 16, no. 9: 1061. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16091061

APA Style

Benka-Coker, W., Sipe, K., Dedic, D., Jones, A., Hawkins, B., Lyons, E., Steiman, M., & Benka-Coker, M. (2025). Exploring the Relative Effects of Natural Gas and Biogas Cooking on Indoor Air Quality in Residential Kitchens. Atmosphere, 16(9), 1061. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16091061

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