Biofuels

Biofuels

Subject – Environment

Context – The biofuels route to carbon neutrality

Concept –

• The continued use of fossil fuels for addressing the world’s energy needs is leading to rapid depletion of natural resources and a simultaneous increase in environmental pollution. Biofuels are viewed as one of the solutions to this dual problem.
  • The best part is that biofuels can be manufactured from what is generally considered as agricultural “waste”.
• Using biotechnology and bio solutions, it is possible to improve agricultural produce as well as the conversion of agro-residue to biofuels.
• The March 2021 Report of the World Biogas Association estimates that around 105 billion tonnes of organic waste is generated every year, which can be used to produce biofuels, thus driving progress towards a low-carbon energy transition.
• Sugarcane ethanol has one of the smallest carbon footprints among biofuels. It is clean and affordable and, when blended with petrol, can reduce GHG emissions by up to 90 per cent. Ethanol blending also significantly reduces emissions of particulate pollutants and noxious gases.
• India launched the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) scheme in 2003. With concerted efforts by the government over the past seven years, the production of fuel-grade ethanol touched three billion litres in Ethanol Supply Year 2020-21.
  • The targets for ethanol blending have now been set at 10 per cent for 2022 and 20 per cent for 2025.
• To guide efforts in this direction, the NITI Aayog and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas released the “Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India, 2020-25” in June 2021. It is expected that a successful E20 (20 per cent ethanol blend) programme could save $4 billion per annum for India.

What are Biofuels?

• A biofuel is any liquid fuel derived from biological material such as trees, agricultural wastes, crops, or grass. Biofuel can be produced from any carbon source that can be replenished rapidly, such as plants.
• Biofuels are used globally and biofuel industries are greatly expanding in Europe, Asia, and North and South America.
• They contain no sulphur and produce low carbon monoxide and toxic emissions.
• Biofuels are substitutes for conventional fossil fuels, such as petroleum, propane, coal, and natural gas.
• Biofuels are made from plant or animal products. Some are produced by the extracting of sugar or starch from crops and then fermenting it to make alcohol. Other biofuels are made by the decaying of organic matter and the capturing of the resultant gases.

To know more about biofuels, please click here.

To know about Generations of biofuel and ethanol blending, please click here.