Opportunities for Bio Fuels - Indian Scenario - ScienceDirect.com

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ScienceDirect Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 847 – 852

International Conference on Solid Waste Management, 5IconSWM 2015

Opportunities for Bio Fuels - Indian Scenario Nirmala Kaushik*, Sanjay Singh * Technology Information, Forecasting & Assessment Council (TIFAC) An Autonomous Organization of Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, Shaheed Jeet Singh Marg, New Delhi, India

Abstract Sustainable biomass resource has been receiving much attention worldwide due to the depletion of raw material for fossil fuels. However, for proper and optimal exploitation of the available biomass, there is a need to quantify the district-wise availability of biomass in our Country and to prepare a zone-wise recommendation for adopting appropriate technologies for converting the biomass into biofuels. Earlier in 2007-08, TIFAC had carried out an in-depth nationwide survey on biomass generation, consumption, costing patterns and surplus availability from select agro & forest residues. Subsequently, a ‘Centre for Biofuels’ has been set up at National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science & Technology (NIIST), Thiruvananthapuram towards undertaking cutting edge research activities in bio-refinery related technologies. Six biomass feedstock were identified for their abundant availability in India. The Lignocellulosic (LC) ethanol pilot plant with a biomass processing capacity of 80 kg/ day has been completed, wherein the first phase focused on detailed laboratory scale studies for select Indian biomass. The second phase would primarily deal with the validation of laboratory scale data at pilot plant for techno-economic analysis of LC ethanol. TIFAC has recently taken up the task of mapping the current biomass availability and also to assess the technologies for their conversion to biofuel before coming up with zone-wise recommendations. TIFAC would source inputs from both secondary as well as primary research including those from GIS and remote sensing. Automated updation of biomass availability based on current data is also being planned. The paper presents TIFAC initiatives in the biofuel sector – past and present besides recapitulating the technology trend in biofuels sector. © 2016 by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license 2016Published The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015. Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015 Keywords: Biomass, biofuels, agro-residues, value-added chemicals, lignocellulosic ethanol);

* Corresponding author. E-mail address: [email protected]

1878-0296 © 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of 5IconSWM 2015 doi:10.1016/j.proenv.2016.07.101

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Nirmala Kaushik and Sanjay Singh / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 847 – 852

1. Sources of Biomass Biomass, fourth largest source of energy following coal, oil and natural gas (SLU, 2009) is derived from plants or plants based materials, mainly composed of mixture of C, H, O, N and alkali, alkaline earth and heavy metals in traces. It is categorized as agricultural residues, obtained from agriculture harvesting & processing; energy crops, high yielding variety of crops specially grown for energy applications; food & industrial waste, preparation and processing and post-consumer waste obtained from food, drink manufacturer, industrial processes etc. BEC, a (n.d); forest residues obtained from dead wood, logging residues, very small trees, underutilized wood etc. Walker,2010 (as cited in Bajpai, 2013) Biomass has always been considered as an important renewable resource for generation of energy (Forsberg, 2000). However, so far, traditionally a large quantity of biomass especially in rural India has been used in a very inefficient manner either for cooking purpose in the domestic sector (Chaturvedi, 1998) or in small commercial establishments. Even though the energy scenario indicates a growing dependence on conventional forms of energy, for overall socio-economic development in the country and larger utilization of non-fossil based fuel, biomass-based energy solutions are critical. As there are wide varieties of biomass types, there exist several technological options too for converting biomass into bioenergy. The major conversion technologies include thermal & biochemical, which may release energy directly in the form of heat or electricity, or it may convert into combustible gas or liquid fuel BEC, b (,n.d.). Production of bioenergy also offers a solution to waste management as well as there exists opportunity for production of a wide array of chemicals from biomass. This paper provides an overview of estimates on the production of biomass residues and its usage patterns. 2. Biomass Data Collection and Methodology Considering the importance of biomass as a sustainable and reliable source for producing energy it was felt important to carry out its assessment. With this in view, detailed information on biomass availability in India from different agricultural sources, its assessment, consumption, availability & costing patterns was assessed by TIFAC through its earlier study report titled ‘Availability of Indian biomass resources for exploitation’. The study was based on primary & secondary research. The primary research was carried out by identifying and selecting districts in various states and identifying relevant government, non-government organizations and private sectors including user groups and industries etc. For secondary research purpose, various Government of India publications, information available through website, research institutes & their articles, etc. were referred. Based on secondary data research, the state-wise and country level crop- production data for all the identified crops had been collected. The primary research included qualitative and quantitative survey. The survey questionnaire was sent to subject experts, local government offices, farmers, farmer-cooperatives, user industries, NGO who are active in rural areas, government departments, mandis, etc. Under qualitative survey, to get first hand information, target groups were either directly contacted or well-structured interviews were organized among the farmers growing one or more crops. Around 700 interviews were conducted across the country to capture all the regional nuances. The production and availability of crops, type of biomass residues generated from each crop national estimates and statewise, forest and aquatic resource were covered under the study. The surplus biomass availability was assessed based on the quantity of biomass crops produced, its residues generated, the existing usage patterns and practices in that particular region. Generation, consumption & surplus density of biomass was calculated based on per sq. km availability in major states. Top five states producing crops selected under the study were shortlisted based on the secondary research. Within each state, the top three crop producing districts were shortlisted. Within each district a few villages were chosen for survey. The states covered under the study included Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chattisgarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, etc. Vegetables, fruits and plantation crops were however not covered, as their volumes are low relative to food grain crops.


3. Generation of Biomass Residues Biomass crop residue is distributed with variation in its zone-wise availability, its characteristics and competing uses also varies geographically. Further, a substantial amount of biomass residues are available as by-product from other agricultural produce through milling and packaging process. Realising the limited crop level database in the country, it was felt necessary to create local database of biomass for decentralized energy production. Total fourteen crops and twenty biomass residues were covered under TIFAC study report which included: Rice, Wheat, Sugarcane, Maize, Cotton, Chilli, Jowar, Ragi, Bajra, Pulses (Gram, Tur, and Lentil), Oilseeds (Groundnut, Castor seed, Mustard/Rapeseed, Niger seed, Safflower, Soyabean, Sesame, Linseed and Sunflower), Forestry biomass (Bamboo, Pine needle) and Aquatic biomass (Water hyacinth). The study highlighted that sugarcane, rice and wheat are the most grown crops in India accounting for over 91 per cent of the production of crops. The resultant generated biomass such as sugarcane tops and bagasse, rice straw, rice husk and wheat straw respectively account for almost 80 per cent of the residue generated. Hence, even a small per cent of surplus residue generated from these crops results in a substantial quantity. The following Table 1 summarizes the generation of crop residues and the top three states in terms of quantum of generation. Table 1: Crop wise availability of biomass residues

Crop

Generation (MMT*)

By-Product

Top Three States

Straw

112.0

Husk

22.4

Straw

109.9

UP, Punjab, Haryana

Tops

97.8

UP, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu

Bagasse

101.3

UP, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu

Stover

22.7

Karnataka, AP, Bihar

Cob

4.2


Husk

2.7


Cotton

Stalk

18.9

Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh

Chillies

Stalk

0.6

AP,Karnataka, Orissa

Jowar

Stover

15.6

Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh

Ragi

Stalk

4.6

Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttaranchal

Bajra

Stalk

12.2

Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra

Pulses

Waste

18.9

Madhya Pradesh (MP), Maharashtra, UP

Oilseeds

Waste

57.7

Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra

Bamboo

Top, Root, Leaves

5.4

North East States, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh

Pine

Needle

1.6

Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal

Water Hyacinth

Whole plant

15.0

Orissa, AP,Tamil Nadu

623.4

UP, Maharashtra, AP, Punjab

Rice Wheat Sugarcane

Maize

Total

West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh (UP), Andhra Pradesh (AP)

Source : TIFAC Study Report, 2009

The study brought out that, a total of 623.4 MMT of biomass residues were generated from the crops given in the table 1. The top four states generating these residues are Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab. *MMT = Million Metric Tonnes 4. Consumption Pattern of Biomass Residues In our country, rice straw, wheat straw, maize stover, jowar stover, ragi stalk are mainly used to feed cattle and other farm animals. Some non-fodder crop residues like chilli stalk, cotton stalk, pulses residues, oilseed residues are mainly used as household firewood, which is the second major application. Sugarcane tops, maize stover, bamboo

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root etc. are used for compost manure which is considered as the third largest application. Thus the consumption pattern of generated biomass may be summed up as below: 1) Consumption by farmer as animal fodder, firewood for household purposes, etc. for their own purposes.\ 2) Consumption in other applications like rice husk used by rice mills or other boilers, bagasse used by sugar mills and crop residue used by biomass power plants etc. Farmers can also sell crop residues to other farmers. 3) Surplus availability biomass residues that rots away in farm, burnt in the field etc. which is considered as nonvalue adding activities. The table 2 below shows average per cent of crop residues consumed through self consumption, selling to others and burnt or wasted or not utilised in an optimum manner. In India, consumption pattern of biomass residue varies from region to region. In Punjab and Haryana, rice residues are surplus as farmers feed mainly wheat straw to cattle whereas in Southern States most of the other crops are consumed by farmers themselves. Cotton and Chilli stalk are the only major surplus residues as they are used mainly for firewood. Jowar, Ragi and Maize are mostly consumed by farmers themselves. Table 2 : Current usages of biomass residues

AP

Straw

Self (%) 100

Punjab

Straw

25

15

Tamil Nadu

Straw

85

10

5

UP

Straw

88

4

8 4

Crop

Rice

Wheat

Sugarcane

Maize

Cotton

Chilli

Jowar

Ragi

State

By-Product

Selling (%) 0

Surplus (%) 0 60

West Bengal

Straw

84

12

Haryana

Straw

75

25

0

Maharashtra

Straw

93

0

7

MP

Straw

88

12

0

Punjab

Straw

95

5

0

UP

Straw

90

10

0

AP

Tops

100

0

0

Maharashtra

Tops

97

0

3

UP

Tops

67

0

33

AP

Stover

100

0

0

Karnataka

Stover

88

0

12

Maharashtra

Stover

100

0

0

AP

Whole Plant

33

0

67

Haryana

Whole Plant

100

0

0

Maharashtra

Whole Plant

95

0

5

AP

Whole Plant

4

0

96

Karnataka

Whole Plant

22

0

78

Orissa

Whole Plant

100

0

0

AP

Stock/Stem

100

0

0

Karnataka

Stock/Stem

99

0

1

Maharashtra

Stock/Stem

100

0

0

MP

Stock/Stem

93

5

2

Maharashtra

Stock/Stem

100

0

0

Uttarakhand

Stock/Stem

100

0

0

Uttarakhand

Trash

100

0

0

Source : TIFAC Study Report, 2009

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Nirmala Kaushik and Sanjay Singh / Procedia Environmental Sciences 35 (2016) 847 – 852 Table 3: Statewise biomass surplus density

State Uttar Pradesh Haryana Tamil Nadu Punjab Maharashtra West Bengal Karnataka Gujarat Andhra Pradesh Bihar Others Total

State Area 238,566 44,212 130,058 50,362 307,713 88,752 191,796 196,024 275,068 94,164 1,668,264 3,284,979

Biomass Generation Density (MT*/km2)

578.6 669.7 309.9 823.7 265.6 299.8 203.8 157.7 160.7 221.6 189.8 Source : TIFAC Study Report, 2009

Biomass Consumption Density (MT*/km2) 417.7 554.5 207.2 731.0 173.0 259.0 143.8 102.2 118.2 185.4 140.4

Biomass Surplus Density (MT*/km2) 160.9 115.1 102.7 92.7 92.6 71.4 60.1 55.5 42.5 36.1 50.1

*MT = Metric Tonnes 5. Surplus Availability of Biomass Residues Based on the surveys, the study concluded that Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Tamil Nadu are leading states based on per sq. km availability of biomass (MT/km2) 6. TIFAC Initiatives in the Sector - Centre for Biofuel Pilot Plant As a follow up to the study, TIFAC took up the task of developing and assessing the technologies for conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to ethanol. TIFAC established a Centre for Biofuel pilot plant in partnership with CSIR- National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science & Technology (NIIST), Thiruvananthapuram. In this Centre, laboratory scale studies for six identified biomass feedstock namely, sugarcane bagasse, sugarcane tops, bamboo, rice straw, cotton stalks, chilli stalks were carried out. These included assessing their composition, carrying out pretreatment, hydrolysis and fermentation steps. Results obtained on these aspects confirm that the selected feedstock could be potential raw materials for bio-ethanol production. Dilute acid, alkali and hybrid technologies were evaluated for pre-treatment and optimized for the conversion of biomass to sugars. The studies were also conducted using advanced methods for evaluating the structural changes occurring during pretreatment and the changes in chemical composition of biomass. Best pretreatment strategies were derived for all the six biomass types. Technologies for recovery of lignin were also evaluated and optimized. The second phase of the project has now been initiated for development of laboratory scale processes into workable technologies at the pilot plant. The project objectives also include evaluation of energy requirements and cost for various process steps and to identify the parameters contributing to low efficiencies calling for their optimization. Several experiments carried out in phase-I on pre-treatment and hydrolysis in the laboratory scale would be validated in the pilot plant under more realistic operating conditions. Currently, pilot plant trials are underway for two identified Indian biomass i.e. sugarcane tops & cotton stalks for composition, pretreatment, hydrolysis and fermentation experiments at the centre. 7. Conclusion India is the fourth largest energy as well as crude and petroleum products consumer in the world after United States, China and Japan. The oil consumption in India is expected to reach more than 8 million barrels per day by 2035. Thus, development of alternative sources of energy from second generation biofuels assumes critical importance.

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Considering the fact that there is wide variance in biomass availability in India along with consumption and usage pattern, the applicable technologies for conversion from biomass to fuel would be region specific. For biofuels, to be viable and integrated with the market, aspects like drying, in-field densification of biomass residues and pelletization, etc. associated transportation cost would be the determining factors. In view of the above, TIFAC has recently taken up the task of zone-wise mapping of the current biomass availability, their characterization and also to assess the available technologies for their conversion to biofuel before coming up with technological recommendations. The study would also highlight the local logistics cost towards transportation etc. The inputs would be sourced from both secondary as well as primary research including those from GIS and remote sensing. It is expected that the study would go a long way in setting up of biofuel units in potential areas across the country. References 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11) 12) 13) 14) 15) 16)

Bajpai P.(2013). Advances in Bioethanol: Springer: Springer Science & Business Media. Bandyopadhyay K R. (2015, February). Biofuel promotion in India for transport: exploring the grey areas. Policy Brief, teri. BEC, a.(n.d.). Biomass Energy Centre, What is Biomass? Retrieved from http://www.biomassenergycentre.org.uk/portal/page?_pageid=76,15049&_dad=portal BEC, b.(n.d.) Biomass Energy Centre, Conversion Technologies. Retrieved from http://www.biomassenergycentre.org.uk/portal/page?_pageid=75,15179&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL Chaturvedi P. (1998). Rural energy for sustainable development technology & environmental issues. Forsberg G. (2000). Biomass energy transport analysis of bioenergy transport chains using life cycle inventory method. Biomass & Bionergy 19 (2000) 17-30. SLU. (2009). Global Potential of Sustainable Biomass for Energy: Report 013: Uppasala 2009. SLU, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. TIFAC Study Report. (2009, September). Availability of Indian Biomass Resources for Exploitation. Abbott P C, et.al. (2011). What’s driving Food prices in 2011? Farm Foundation Issue Report, NFP. Available at http://www.farmfoundation.org/news/articlesfiles/1742-Foodprices_web.pdf (last accessed on December 15, 2014). Background on bioenergy & biofuels. Retrieved September 04, 2015, from http://www.in.gov/isda/biofuels/background.pdf Gupta A. (2015, April 02), Biomass sector in India –problems and challenges, agricultural residues, Biomass Energy, India. EIA. (2014, August 14). US Energy Information Administration. Retrieved from http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=17551# IEA. (2013). World Energy Outlook 2013, International Energy Agency (IEA), Paris. Kaushik N & Biswas S. 2013. Indian Biomass Resources - An Assessment of Generation, Utilization and Surplus, Yojana, Planning Commission. TIFAC Study Report. (2009, September). Major inputs taken from TIFAC Study Report on ‘Availability of Indian Biomass Resources for Exploitation’. Sims, R.E.H., et al. (2010). An overview of second generation biofuel technologies. Bioresource Technology, 101 (6), pp. 1570-1580.

17) Rediff.com. (2013, December 04). India will be largest source of oil demand after http://www.rediff.com/money/report/india-will-be-largest-source-of-oil-demand-after-2020/20131204.htm

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