Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour for India

The non-renewability, ecological issues and health hazards associated with the fossil fuels has actually led to exploration of alternative sources of energy to replace the standard ones. A promising innovation, still in its infancy, that could show us the method to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels obtained from vegetable oil or animal-fat that could be used to run diesel engines. like sunflower, rape seed, palm oil, soya bean, Jatropha etc can be subjected to oil processing to produce biodiesels. It consists of no petroleum but can be mixed with petroleum diesel for usage or might be used in its pure type.

Developed nations particularly United States and European Countries have actually already made significant advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have found its use across industries and verticals and could become an ideal cleaner and cheaper alternative to petrol, diesel and fossil fuels. India has also started exploring the opportunities to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A number of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently functioning in the nation 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 reality that biodiesels are eco-friendly and carbon-neutral, hence having no net impact on the environment. Besides, bio-diesel operates in compression engines just like typical petroleum diesel and for this reason can be utilized with little or no engine modifications. Biodiesel do not require any different facilities for its storage and can be saved similar to the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy demand in the country, rising petroleum costs and the environmental risks of nonrenewable fuel sources, the Indian Government has taken up initiatives to establish the Bio Diesel Technology in India and established more oil processing systems. The Government announced 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 vegetable 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 potential to produce biodiesels is from Jatropha oil – a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The greatest benefit of utilizing Jatropha as a raw material is that this plant can be grown in big amounts in wastelands all throughout India needing very little water in comparison to other money crops. Once grown, the plant has a useful life-span of a number of years. The Jatropha seeds include 40% oil and are thought about to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has actually recognized 400,000 square kilometres of land ideal for the Jatropha cultivation in the nation. India now

A study approximates that even if a mixing initiative of 2% Jatropha based Biodiesel is achieved in 2011-12, India will conserve around Rs. 3000 crores. Besides, it will create around Rs. 5500 crores in the rural economy and aid 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 totally free seeds, subsidized loans and other facilities. India requires to now strengthen 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 must also be explored. It will not only provide an answer to the challenge of Global Warming but might reduce our reliance on foreign oil and add to our own economy.