Divergent consumer preferences and visions for cooking and heating technologies in the United Kingdom: make our homes clean, safe, warm and smart!

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dc.contributor.authorGordon, Joel A.
dc.contributor.authorBalta-Ozkan, Nazmiye
dc.contributor.authorNabavi, Seyed Ali
dc.date.accessioned2023-08-18T14:43:39Z
dc.date.available2023-08-18T14:43:39Z
dc.date.issued2023-08-12
dc.description.abstractDecarbonising the global housing stock is imperative for reaching climate change targets. In the United Kingdom, hydrogen is currently being tested as a replacement fuel for natural gas, which could be used to supply low-carbon energy to parts of the country. Transitioning the residential sector towards a net-zero future will call for an inclusive understanding of consumer preferences for emerging technologies. In response, this paper explores consumer attitudes towards domestic cooking and heating technologies, and energy appliances of the future, which could include a role for hydrogen hobs and boilers in UK homes. To access qualitative evidence on this topic, we conducted ten online focus groups (N = 58) with members of the UK public between February and April 2022. The study finds that existing gas users wish to preserve the best features of gas cooking, such as speed, responsiveness and controllability, but also desire the potential safety and aesthetic benefits of electric systems, principally induction hobs. Meanwhile, future heating systems should ensure thermal comfort, ease of use, energy efficiency and smart performance, while providing space savings and noise reduction, alongside demonstrable green benefits. Mixed-methods multigroup analysis suggests divergence between support levels for hydrogen homes, which implies a degree of consumer heterogeneity. Foremost, we find that domestic hydrogen acceptance is positively associated with interest and engagement with renewable energy and fuel poverty pressures. We conclude that internalising the perspectives of consumers is critical to enabling constructive socio-technical imaginaries for low-carbon domestic energy futures.en_UK
dc.description.sponsorshipEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC): EP/T518104/1 Cadent Gas Ltden_UK
dc.identifier.citationGordon JA, Balta-Ozkan N, Nabavi SA. (2023) Divergent consumer preferences and visions for cooking and heating technologies in the United Kingdom: make our homes clean, safe, warm and smart!, Energy Research and Social Science, Volume 104, October 2023, Article Number 103204en_UK
dc.identifier.issn2214-6296
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2023.103204
dc.identifier.urihttps://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/20121
dc.language.isoenen_UK
dc.publisherElsevieren_UK
dc.rightsAttribution 4.0 International*
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/*
dc.subjectDomestic energy futuresen_UK
dc.subjectHydrogen transitionen_UK
dc.subjectFocus groupsen_UK
dc.subjectHeat decarbonizationen_UK
dc.subjectLow-carbon-cookingen_UK
dc.subjectSocio-technical imaginariesen_UK
dc.titleDivergent consumer preferences and visions for cooking and heating technologies in the United Kingdom: make our homes clean, safe, warm and smart!en_UK
dc.typeArticleen_UK

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