Ethanol Plants

The Indian government declared on World Biofuel Day 2022, 10 August, that a second generation (2G) ethanol facility would be built at the Indian Oil Corporation's refinery in Haryana.

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This ethanol plant will provide more money and green fuel while also assisting in the reduction of air pollution in the Delhi and NCR areas.

About Ethanol Plant

• By using around 2 lakh tonnes of rice straw (parali) annually to produce roughly 3 crore liters of ethanol, it will support India's waste-to-wealth initiatives.
• In addition to paddy straw, this plant will also use trash from sugarcane and maize to make ethanol.
• The project will create indirect jobs in the supply chain for the cutting, handling, and storage of rice straw in addition to direct employment for those involved in the operation of the factory.
• There will be no liquid discharge from the project.
• Through a decrease in rice straw burning, the project will help cut greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 3 lakh tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions yearly, which is roughly comparable to replacing nearly 63,000 cars on the country's roads each year.

Other Initiatives regarding Biofuels

• The Ethanol Blending Program aims to decrease the nation's reliance on crude oil imports, reduce carbon emissions, and increase farmer incomes.
• The 20% ethanol blend in gasoline (commonly known as E20) goal has been moved up by the Indian government from 2030 to 2025.
• India has already surpassed its goal of blending 10% ethanol into gasoline, with ethanol production rising to 400 crore liters.

The 2018 National Biofuels Policy:

• By 2030, 20% ethanol blend is the suggested goal under the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Program.

• TVS Apache two-wheelers are made to run on E80 or 100% ethanol as part of the E-100 Pilot Project (E100).

Pradhan Mantri JI-VAN Yojana, 2019:

• The program seeks to advance R&D in the 2G ethanol market and develop an ecosystem for launching commercial solutions.

Repurpose Used Cooking Oil (RUCO)

• This program, which was started by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), will allow for the collection and conversion of wasted cooking oil into biodiesel.

Ethanol Blending

It is one of the main biofuels and is created either naturally by yeast fermenting carbohydrates or through petrochemical processes like ethylene hydration.

Blending Objective:

• The 20% ethanol blend in gasoline (commonly known as E20) goal has been moved up by the Indian government from 2030 to 2025.
• In India right now, 8.5% percent ethanol is added to gasoline.

Objectives of Ethanol Blending:

Energy Security:

• Using ethanol more frequently can lower the cost of importing oil. In 2020–21, India's net import expense was $551 billion.
• The E20 initiative has the potential to save the nation USD 4 billion (Rs 30,000 crore) annually.

Farmer incentives:

• Oil corporations buy ethanol from farmers, which helps sugarcane farmers.
• In addition, the government intends to promote the manufacture of ethanol from non-food feedstock as well as from crops that conserve water, such as maize.

Reduces Emission:

• Use of gasoline-containing ethanol reduces emissions of carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC), and nitrogen oxides (NOx).

However, acetaldehyde emissions and other uncontrolled carbonyl emissions were higher with E10 and E20 than with regular gasoline. These emissions were, however, considerably less.

Way Forward

Ethanol From Wastes:

• If India decides to refocus on ethanol produced from trash, it has a great chance to become a global leader in sustainable biofuels policy.
• Since these wastes are currently frequently burned, which contributes to smog, doing so would have significant positive effects on both the climate and air quality.

Prioritize Food Production Over Fuel Crops:

• Due to our declining groundwater resources, limited arable land, unpredictable monsoons, and declining crop yields as a result of climate change, food production must be given priority over fuel crops.

Alternative Mechanism:

• To fulfill the primary objective of reducing emissions, alternative mechanisms such as increased adoption of electric vehicles, the installation of additional renewable generation capacity to enable zero-emission recharging, etc., must be assessed.