The non-renewability, ecological issues and health with the fossil fuels has actually caused expedition of alternative sources of energy to replace the conventional ones. A promising technology, still in its infancy, that might reveal us the method to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels obtained from veggie oil or animal-fat that might be used to run diesel motors. Vegetables 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 however can be mixed with petroleum diesel for use or might be used in its pure type.
Developed countries specifically United States and European Countries have currently made considerable advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have found its use across industries and verticals and could become an ideal cleaner and less expensive alternative to fuel, diesel and fossil fuels. India has also started checking out the opportunities to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A variety of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently working in the country where vegetable oils are responded with alcohols (ethanol or methanol usually) to produce bio-diesel.
The primary reason for the increasing need for biodiesels is the reality that biodiesels are sustainable and carbon-neutral, hence having no net impact on the climate. Besides, bio-diesel operates in compression engines much like regular petroleum diesel and hence can be utilized with little or no engine modifications. Biodiesel do not require any separate facilities for its storage and can be saved similar to the petroleum based fuels.
Considering the growing energy need in the nation, increasing petroleum prices and the ecological risks of nonrenewable fuel sources, the Indian Government has taken up initiatives to establish the Bio Diesel Technology in India and set up more oil processing systems. The Government announced its 'National Biofuel Policy' on 12 September 2008 which aims to satisfy 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 used as the pre-dominant raw products for oil processing and biodiesel production but in India the maximum potential to produce biodiesels is from jatropha curcas oil - a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The greatest advantage of using jatropha curcas as a raw material is that this plant can be grown in big quantities in wastelands all across India requiring extremely little water in comparison to other cash crops. Once grown, the plant has a useful life expectancy of a number of years. The jatropha curcas seeds consist of 40% oil and are considered to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has actually recognized 400,000 square kilometres of land appropriate for the jatropha curcas growing in the nation. India now
A study approximates that even if a mixing initiative of 2% jatropha curcas based Biodiesel is accomplished in 2011-12, India will save around Rs. 3000 crores. Besides, it will create 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 encourage the cultivation of jatropha curcas in India offering totally free seeds, subsidized loans and other facilities. India needs to now reinforce its efforts to make the maximum use of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides Jatropha, the opportunities for extracting biodiesel from veggie oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil ought to likewise be explored. It will not only provide an answer to the challenge of Global Warming but could decrease our dependence on foreign oil and contribute to our own economy.
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Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour For India
Stevie Vrooman edited this page 2025-01-12 03:31:08 +01:00