Biofuel-Economy: A Game Changer for Atmanirbhar Green Bharat

Biofuels is a perfect solution that adds green value to the transport sector. It is economical, user-friendly fuel that will nourish our economy. Nowadays, methanol-blended petrol used as biofuel in India is in discussion. However, without strong policy and monitory support from all stakeholders, it will be impossible to fulfill our dream.

November 30, 2023. By News Bureau

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Atmanirbhar Green Bharat

E-vehicles infrastructure

India is fighting against massive usage of fossil fuels and India is targeting to be an ‘Energy-Independent’ nation by 2047. As per the recent economic reports, India’s total import expenses in 2020-21 are around USD 551 billion. Since carbon-based fuel has several detrimental effects on the environment and ecosystem, the government of India has set up a committee to work on this and find a suitable solution. The committee has prepared a report and come up with a roadmap for ethanol blending in India by 2025 to encourage biofuel-economy. Till now, only 8.5 percent ethanol has been mixed with petrol in India. But the aim is to mix 20 percent ethanol with petrol by 2025 which reduce the import expenses drastically by INR 30,000 crore per annum. Just to quote a figure, last year, oil companies earned INR 21,000 crore from only ethanol production.

The government is going to achieve the benchmark of 20 percent ethanol-based petrol (E20) by 2025. Primarily the biofuels are categorised as first generation (1G), second generation (2G) and third generation (3G) in India.

First generation (1G) bio-fuels are made from corn seeds and sugarcane which are popular food sources in India. These are highly water-sensitive crops and can cause hydrological damage and food crises.

Another popular type of biofuel is second generation (2G) bio-fuel which is prepared from agricultural wastes. Cellulose is extracted from corn cobs, rice husks, wheat straw and sugarcane bagasse and then by fermenting the cellulose, ethanol is produced. As per the views of experts, it will play a vital role which will help India to grow its bio-economy.

Along the same line, another kind of bio-fuel, third-generation (3G) is also a marketable solution to support the clean economy. It is prepared from algae which is found in wastewater, sewage and saltwater. The advantage of 3G fuel is that it doesn’t disturb the human-food chain and hydrological cycle. It depends on the ‘waste-to-wealth’ concept.

100 Miles to Green Freedom
Biofuel will reduce carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions. About 50 percent carbon monoxide (CO) reduction is observed in bio-fuel-based two-wheelers and 30 percent reduction in four-wheelers. Compared with conventional petrol fuel, ethanol mixed-fuel has resulted in a reduction of 20 percent hydrocarbons (HC). However, there is no evidence till now regarding the decrease of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions due to the usage of biofuel.

The usage of biofuel will help to accelerate the industrialisation drive initiated by the Government of India. Also, it will strengthen the country’s economy. As plenty of raw material is available in India, it is a relatively low-cost option and quick in implementation as compared to E-vehicles infrastructure rollout.

According to experts’ opinions, using biofuels can cause issues in the hardware of vehicles. It can reduce efficiencies. But by updating or changing hardware, it can be minimised. As biofuel is prepared from agricultural waste, it will reduce the effects caused by stubble burning which leads to air pollution in various parts of India. Only one stumbling block is a supply of raw materials. It can be mitigated by implementing a robust techno-management framework in coordination with the agriculture community.

3G fuels are expected to solve problems related to food security and hydrological imbalance. This initiative will enhance farmers’ quality of life and also It will promote sugarcane industries in India.

Conclusion
Everyone is excited about biofuels. It is a perfect solution that adds green value to the transport sector. It is an economical, user-friendly fuel that will nourish our economy. Nowadays, methanol-blended petrol used as biofuel in India is in discussion. India may follow the model developed by Brazil which has not only cleaned their environment but also boosted the country’s economic growth. But without having a strong policy and monitory support from all stakeholders, it will be impossible to fulfill our dream.

Needless to mention we have to overcome some bottlenecks like mindset, gaps in technology, red-tapeism, and supply chain issues and it may be a game-changer for Atmanirbhar Green Bharat.

- Ashish Rajote, Head- Service Operations, Engineering & Product Development, WaterHealth International
- Rangeet Mitra, Independent Consultant