WORLD BIOFUEL DAY

• On World Biofuel Day 2022, the government of India announced a 2nd generation (2G) ethanol plant to be set up at the Indian Oil Corporation’s refinery in Haryana.
• This ethanol plant will help reduce air pollution from the Delhi and the NCR region along with generating additional income and green fuel.

World Biofuel Day

• It is celebrated every year on 10th of August.
• It is observed to raise awareness of the importance of non-fossil fuels as a substitute for conventional fossil fuels.
• This day is observed in honour of Sir Rudolf Diesel.
• He was the inventor of the diesel engine and was the first to predict the possibility of vegetable oil replacing fossil fuels.
• What do we know about the Ethanol Plant?
• It will boost India’s waste-to-wealth endeavours by utilising about 2 lakh tonnes of rice straw (parali) annually to generate around 3 crore litres of ethanol annually.
• This plant will also utilize maize and sugarcane waste besides paddy straw to produce ethanol.
• The project will provide direct employment to people involved in the plant operation and indirect employment will be generated in the supply chain for rice straw cutting, handling, storage, etc.
• The project will have zero liquid discharge.
• Through reduction in burning of rice straw, the project will contribute to a reduction of greenhouse gases equivalent to about 3 lakh tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions per annum, which can be understood as equivalent to replacing nearly 63,000 cars annually on the country’s roads.

Ethanol

• It is one of the principal biofuels, which is naturally produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts or via petrochemical processes such as ethylene hydration.
• It is a domestically produced alternative fuel most commonly made from corn. It is also made from cellulosic feedstocks, such as crop residues and wood.
• The use of ethanol as a fuel for internal combustion engines, either alone or in combination with other fuels, has been given much attention mostly because of its possible environmental and long-term economical advantages over fossil fuel.
• Ethanol can be combined with petrol in any concentration up to pure ethanol (E100).
• Anhydrous ethanol (ethanol without water) can be blended with petrol in varying quantities to reduce the consumption of petroleum fuels, as well as to reduce air pollution. 

Way Forward

• India has a real opportunity here to become a global leader in sustainable biofuels policy if it chooses to refocus on ethanol made from wastes.
• This would bring both strong climate and air quality benefits, since these wastes are currently often burned, contributing to smog.

SOURCE: THE HINDU,THE ECONOMIC TIMES,MINT