1 Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour For India
Susanne Leslie edited this page 2025-01-12 06:45:01 +09:00


The non-renewability, environmental issues and health hazards related to the nonrenewable fuel sources has actually caused exploration of alternative sources of energy to replace the conventional ones. An appealing innovation, still in its infancy, that could show us the way to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels stemmed from grease or animal-fat that could be utilized to run diesel motors. Vegetables oils like sunflower, rape seed, palm oil, soya bean, Jatropha etc can be subjected to oil processing to produce biodiesels. It includes no petroleum however can be combined with petroleum diesel for usage or might be used in its pure type.

Developed countries especially United States and European Countries have actually already made substantial advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have found its use throughout markets and verticals and could become a perfect cleaner and more affordable option to petrol, diesel and nonrenewable fuel sources. India has also started checking out the opportunities to produce and use bio-diesel. A of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently functioning in the nation where veggie oils are responded with alcohols (ethanol or methanol usually) to produce bio-diesel.

The main reason for the increasing need for biodiesels is the fact that biodiesels are eco-friendly and carbon-neutral, hence having no net effect on the environment. Besides, bio-diesel runs in compression engines simply like regular petroleum diesel and hence can be used with little or no engine modifications. Biodiesel do not need any different infrastructure for its storage and can be saved simply like the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy need in the nation, increasing petroleum costs and the ecological dangers of nonrenewable fuel sources, the Indian Government has taken up initiatives to develop the Bio Diesel Technology in India and set up more oil processing units. The Government revealed its 'National Biofuel Policy' on 12 September 2008 which aims to fulfill 20% of India's diesel demand with bio-fuels in the coming years.

Globally, edible veggie oils like sunflower, soya bean, rape seed, palm oil are used as the pre-dominant basic materials for oil processing and biodiesel production however in India the maximum capacity to produce biodiesels is from Jatropha oil - a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The most significant benefit of using jatropha curcas as a basic material is that this plant can be grown in huge quantities in wastelands all across India requiring very little water in contrast to other money crops. Once grown, the plant has a useful life-span of a number of years. The jatropha curcas seeds consist of 40% oil and are thought about to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has identified 400,000 square kilometres of land suitable for the Jatropha cultivation in the country. India now

A study approximates that even if a mixing initiative of 2% Jatropha based Biodiesel is achieved in 2011-12, India will save around Rs. 3000 crores. Besides, it will produce around Rs. 5500 crores in the rural economy and help in decrease of Green House Gas emission by 3 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) every year. The federal government is taking steps to motivate the cultivation of jatropha curcas in India supplying free seeds, subsidized loans and other centers. India needs to now reinforce its efforts to make the fullest use of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides Jatropha, the opportunities for extracting biodiesel from vegetable oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil ought to likewise be explored. It will not just supply a response to the challenge of Global Warming however might reduce our reliance on foreign oil and contribute to our own economy.