Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour For India

The non-renewability, environmental concerns and health hazards associated with the nonrenewable fuel sources has led to expedition of alternative sources of energy to replace the standard ones. A promising technology, still in its infancy, that might reveal 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 engines. oils like sunflower, rape seed, palm oil, soya bean, jatropha curcas and so on can be subjected to oil processing to produce biodiesels. It contains no petroleum but can be blended with petroleum diesel for use or might be used in its pure form.

Developed countries especially United States and European Countries have already made significant advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have actually found its usage throughout markets and verticals and might emerge as a perfect cleaner and cheaper alternative to gas, diesel and nonrenewable fuel sources. India has actually likewise started exploring the opportunities to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A number of plants for biodiesel transesterification are already working in the country where vegetable oils are reacted with alcohols (ethanol or methanol usually) to produce bio-diesel.

The main factor for the increasing demand for biodiesels is the truth that biodiesels are eco-friendly and carbon-neutral, thus having no net influence on the climate. Besides, bio-diesel runs in compression engines similar to normal petroleum diesel and for this reason can be utilized with little or no engine modifications. Biodiesel do not require any separate facilities for its storage and can be saved just like the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy demand in the nation, increasing petroleum prices and the ecological threats of fossil fuels, the Indian Government has actually taken up efforts to establish the Bio Diesel Technology in India and established more oil processing units. The Government announced its ‘National Biofuel Policy’ on 12 September 2008 which aims to fulfill 20% of India’s diesel need with bio-fuels in the coming years.

Globally, edible veggie oils like sunflower, soya bean, rape seed, palm oil are utilized as the pre-dominant raw products for oil processing and biodiesel production but in India the optimal capacity to produce biodiesels is from jatropha curcas oil – a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The greatest benefit of using Jatropha as a raw material is that this plant can be grown in huge amounts in wastelands all across India requiring very little water in comparison to other cash crops. Once grown, the plant has a beneficial life expectancy of numerous years. The Jatropha seeds consist of 40% oil and are thought about to be an exceptional source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has actually determined 400,000 square kilometres of land ideal for the jatropha curcas cultivation in the country. India now

A research study approximates that even if a mixing initiative of 2% Jatropha based Biodiesel is attained in 2011-12, India will conserve 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 actions to encourage the cultivation of Jatropha in India supplying complimentary seeds, subsidized loans and other facilities. India needs to now reinforce its efforts to make the max usage of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides Jatropha, the opportunities for drawing out biodiesel from vegetable oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil should likewise be checked out. It will not only offer a response to the obstacle of Global Warming but might reduce our reliance on foreign oil and contribute to our own economy.