Biodiesel Technology Need of the Hour for India

The non-renewability, environmental concerns and health risks associated with the nonrenewable fuel sources has caused expedition of alternative sources of energy to substitute the conventional ones. An appealing innovation, still in its infancy, that could reveal us the method to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels originated from veggie oil or animal-fat that might be utilized to run diesel engines. oils like sunflower, rape seed, palm oil, soya bean, Jatropha and so on can be subjected to oil processing to produce biodiesels. It contains no petroleum but can be mixed with petroleum diesel for usage or could be used in its pure kind.

Developed countries particularly United States and European Countries have currently made substantial 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 gas, diesel and fossil fuels. India has actually also started checking out the opportunities to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A number of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently functioning in the country where vegetable oils are reacted with alcohols (ethanol or methanol usually) to produce bio-diesel.

The main factor for the increasing need for biodiesels is the reality that biodiesels are renewable and carbon-neutral, thus having no net influence on the environment. Besides, bio-diesel runs in compression engines similar to regular petroleum diesel and thus can be used with little or no engine adjustments. Biodiesel do not require any different infrastructure for its storage and can be saved just like the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy demand in the country, rising petroleum rates and the environmental hazards of fossil fuels, the Indian Government has used 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 meet 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 materials for oil processing and biodiesel production however in India the maximum 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 product is that this plant can be grown in substantial quantities in wastelands all throughout India needing very little water in comparison to other money crops. Once grown, the plant has a helpful life-span of several decades. The Jatropha seeds contain 40% oil and are thought about to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has actually determined 400,000 square kilometres of land suitable 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 assistance in reduction of Green House Gas emission by 3 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) every year. The government is taking actions to encourage the growing of Jatropha in India offering free seeds, subsidized loans and other centers. India requires to now reinforce its efforts to make the max use of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides Jatropha, the avenues for extracting biodiesel from veggie oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil ought to also be checked out. It will not just supply a response to the challenge of Global Warming however might decrease our dependence on foreign oil and add to our own economy.