E20 implementation: Ethanol blending in diesel fails flash-point test, experts warn of E20's effects on environment
The central government's plans to implement blending of 20% ethanol into transport fuels like petrol and diesel have come across a massive hurdle - ethanol
The central government's plans to implement blending of 20% ethanol into transport fuels like petrol and diesel have come across a massive hurdle - ethanol blending in diesel has failed the flash-point test, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi said on Monday, thus effectively ruling out a chance for use of ethanol-blended diesel in India unless this technical issue is resolved. The test was conducted by public-sector oil marketing companies (OMCs), who blended ethanol into diesel at their research and development centres where they collaborated with accredited laboratories and automobile manufacturers. However, the tests revealed that the blended fuel did not meet the required flash-point specification. The flash-point fell sharply in case of ethanol-blended diesel, Gopi said. Also Read | E20 petrol meets quality standards, say OMCs citing new tests The findings come in the wake of the Indian government wanting to implement its E20 policy across the country as the primary transport fuel.
While E20 for petrol has been implemented across the country, the fate of E20 diesel now looks dim. Ethanol-blended fuel's use can impact environment, land-use patterns: Experts Another issue which might worry the government is that scientists are now warning that the use of ethanol-blended fuel can impact land-use patterns and also the environment. The experts also suggested that the government should decrease the prices of ethanol-blended fuel so that consumers can be adequately compensated for drop efficiency and expenditures incurred due to wear and tear of vehicle components, as per PTI. The group included D Raghunandan, scientist and activist at the Delhi Science Forum, Siraj Hussain, former secretary with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Food Processing, and Ramesh Chand, former member of the NITI Aayog. Raghunandan observed how ethanol-blended fuel has transformed the Indian agriculture sector from being food oriented to fuel oriented.
He took up the example of maize, saying that India, which used to export maize, now has to import the crop as demand has multiplied since the crop is now used to produce ethanol. "The ethanol-blended fuel policy is disruptive. Its use has an environmental impact in terms of water utilisation and a shift in agriculture patterns," PTI quoted him as saying. Also Read | FIIs up stakes in these 3 ethanol stocks as India pushes E20 fuel goals He also pointed out that comparisons to Brazil's use of ethanol-blended fuel are not correct. "Brazil also produces a huge surplus of sugar. It produces 45 million tonnes of sugar and exports 36 million tonnes of it. The country has a small population and a large area for production. There have been studies that say climate change can reduce India's production by 25 per cent.
The BriefWire