Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour For India

The non-renewability, ecological concerns and health threats connected with the nonrenewable fuel sources has caused expedition of alternative sources of energy to replace the standard ones. An appealing innovation, still in its infancy, that could show us the way to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels derived from vegetable oil or animal-fat that might be used 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 but can be blended with petroleum diesel for usage or could be used in its pure form.

Developed countries specifically United States and European Countries have actually already made substantial advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have actually discovered its usage throughout industries and and could emerge as an ideal cleaner and more affordable option to petrol, diesel and fossil fuels. India has actually also begun exploring the opportunities to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A number of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently working in the country where veggie oils are reacted with alcohols (ethanol or methanol normally) to produce bio-diesel.

The main reason for the increasing demand for biodiesels is the fact that biodiesels are renewable and carbon-neutral, therefore having no net effect on the climate. Besides, bio-diesel operates in compression engines similar to regular petroleum diesel and for this reason can be used with little or no engine adjustments. Biodiesel do not require any separate infrastructure for its storage and can be kept much like the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy demand in the country, increasing petroleum prices and the ecological hazards of nonrenewable fuel sources, the Indian Government has actually used up initiatives to establish the Bio Diesel Technology in India and established more oil processing systems. The Government revealed 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 basic materials for oil processing and biodiesel production however in India the optimal potential to produce biodiesels is from Jatropha oil – a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The biggest advantage of using jatropha curcas as a raw product is that this plant can be grown in huge amounts in wastelands all throughout India requiring really little water in contrast to other money crops. Once grown, the plant has a beneficial life expectancy of a number of years. The jatropha curcas seeds contain 40% oil and are thought about to be an exceptional source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has recognized 400,000 square kilometres of land appropriate for the Jatropha cultivation in the country. India now

A research study estimates that even if a blending initiative of 2% jatropha curcas 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 assistance in decrease of Green House Gas emission by 3 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) every year. The government is taking actions to motivate the cultivation of jatropha curcas in India supplying free seeds, subsidized loans and other facilities. India requires to now enhance its efforts to make the fullest usage of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides jatropha curcas, the opportunities for drawing out biodiesel from vegetable oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil need to also be explored. It will not just offer an answer to the challenge of Global Warming however could reduce our dependence on foreign oil and add to our own economy.