R & D Area > Biomass Biology & Environmental Sciences Home || Contact Us
 
 
 
 
Biodiesel, biofuel and Petro crops: an alternative to conventional fuels
 
Introduction:
 
India ranks sixth in the world in terms of energy demand accounting for 3.5% of world commercial energy demand in 2001. The energy demand is expected to grow at 4.8%. At 479 kg of oil equivalent the per capita consumption is very low. Diesel forms nearly 40% of the energy consumed in the form of oil.

The demand for diesel components are estimated around 40 million tones. The current annual import bill of crude oil in terms of foreign exchange is around Rs. 60,4000 crores. Diesel is mainly consumed for transport of industrial and energy consumption in the country is by the transport sector of this; road transport eats up almost 75% while the Railways account for the rest.
 
 
Background:
 
NBRI’s interest in Petro crops started with the initiative of Professor T. N. Khoosho who got fascinated with the potential to harvest energy from biomass. He encouraged Dr. G. S. Srivastava, scientist to initiate collection of germplasm. Dr. H. M. Behl, who had done extensive work on guayule (Parthenium argentatum) was brought in the institute with an objective to promote this program. Several programs on petro crops were undertaken. Dr. P. V. Sane though apprehensive of the commercial potential of petro cops, encouraged programs on jojoba, guayule and later on oil bearing tree species. A large amount of germplasm was maintained at the institute. It was during this period that useful work on Jatropha curcas and other species yielding hydrocarbons was undertaken.

There was a great set back to the program when in the absence of a regular Director, officiating Director-in-charge of the institute, Dr. Sushil Kumar, got all the germplasm of Jatropha curcas and other species of Jatropha, several species and provenances of Euphorbias, Pedillanthus including Pedillanthus macrocarpus, elites of guayule, rare species of Parthenium (tree forms) and some Asclepiads removed in favour of other conventional crops. However, the program was revived when Dr. P. Pushpangadan joined as Director. Today the institute is a forerunner in biodiesel and other hydrocarbon plants research.
 
 
R&D Program and major achievements:
 
Development of biodiesel crops like Jatropha curcas
 
The country today faces a challenge to produce enough biodiesel to meet at least 5 % of its requirement of automobile fuel. A mission program has been launched by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) on the Bio fuel plants. NBRI in light of its previous experience was invited to contribute to this all India co-ordinated project. Jatropha curcas is today viewed as a challenge species that can reduce the burden of importing diesel for the country. The program was initiated during the tenure of Dr. P. V. Sane but was shelved perhaps because the country was not prepared for diesel alternatives. Recently, after the Fuel policy of India initiative led by Dr R A Mashelkar, DG CSIR, Jatropha curcas program was revived by Dr. H M Behl under the supervision of Dr. P. Pushpangadan who provided inputs to the Mashelkar committee for drafting Biofuel policy of India. Based on the group’s expertise, seed and plant material conserved by the group from previous experiments and financial assistance of the Department of Biotechnology under Biofuel mission program, Jatropha curcas plantation program has been launched at the institute15. The major breakthroughs are:
 
  • Development of clonal propagation protocol.
  • High quality planting material of Jatropha and other cultivation inputs;
  • Phytochemcial screening and studies to increase shelf life of extracted oil.
  • Exploring species other than Jatropha curcas such as Pongamia pinnata, Madhuca indica, Salvadora species etc.
  • Affordable and alternative technology for harvest and post-harvest storage;
  • Processing and packaging technology for both seeds and oil.
  • Technical knowledge and skills in Jatropha cultivation scientific harvest of seeds;
  • Technical knowledge of operating and maintaining oil extraction machinery;
  • Entrepreneurial skills and demand orientation for SME owners;
  • Ability to understand and address quality standards required by the oil industry;
  • Networking with other laboratories for developing bio diesel in the country.
 
 
The group has developed protocols for extraction of oil from seeds of Jatropha curcas, Madhuca indica, Salvadora species, Pongamia pinnata for use as biodiesel and bio oil. The oil extracted from the said species has been purified for use in stationery motors as well as for automobiles (Figure 1). The oil is transesterified and tested as biodiesel. Similarly, the extracted oil is processed for removal of gums, free fatty acids, water and other suspended or solid particles. The oil has been tested in motors for long hours and data is being evaluated for technology transfer.

Figure 1: Oil extracted from potential biodiesel plants


India is the second most populous country of the world and meeting its energy requirements in a sustainable manner continues to be a major challenge. India produces only about 30% of its annual crude oil requirement of 105MT, relying on imports to the tune of Rs. 90,000 crores for meeting the remaining requirement. Needless to say, the oil import bill has serious consequences for the Indian economy. In the scenario, giving bio-fuels a serious consideration as potential energy sources of the future is the most logical step.

Capitalizing on the mandate provided by the 10th Plan document regarding Jatropha-based promotion, as also the insights provided by the draft Biofuel policy would not be possible unless the field level interventions are well planned and are supported by an enabling policy environment. The overall thrust is on:

  • Making Jatropha cultivation a low-risk venture with attractive returns;
  • Providing Jatropha-cultivators and SME owners with a lobbying power to influence legislation and services provided by identified institutions;
  • Promoting and recognizing endeavours to build technical capacities of rural entrepreneurs;
  • Evolving a pricing and promotional strategy that would make biodiesel and attractive choice for the energy consumers.

NBRI has initiated a program for plantation of Jatropha curcas and other species with a potential of producing biodiesel.
 
Selected materials/resources , technical knowledge and other support that would be required to promote Jatropha curcas have been developed. It is essential to screen the germplasm to find elites. Seeds of Jatropha curcas and Pongamia pinnata were collected from various parts of the country (Figure 2a, 2b) and were evaluated for morphological traits, oil quantity and quality (estimated by Gas Liquid Chromatography) and other raits of the plant. Plants ith high oil percentage and other useful traits were identified, accessioned, raised in clonal gardens and multiplied by clonal propagation. The elites were identifie for further improvement. Nearly 3 lakhs seedlings have been raised for trails and plantation.


Jatropha curcas holds immense untapped opportunities for farmers and rural entrepreneurs to make money and for the populace to replace diesel with homegrown, environmental friendly biodiesel. The biodiesel revolution would go a long way in reducing the oil import bill of the country as more and more people substitute and fossil fuels with non-edible oil from plants like Jatropha to meet their household and commercial energy needs. Sufficient land is available for cultivating Jatropha to meet the 5-mha target as set in the 10th plan document; the challenge would be to suitably allocate and efficiently utilize this land.


 

   Figure 2 a: Seeds of Jatropha curcas
Studies that would focus as much on yield as on performance of biodieselare being undertaken. The main challenge of Jatropha promotion in rural areas would come from the communities for whom the scope of petrocrop adoption would need to be attractively and profitably packaged along with a demystified plantation and processing technology. Site-specific cultivation packages and agroforestry models for Jatropha would need to be developed and mass mobilization/awareness campaigns designed and implemented to institutionalize the process and to achieve the desired scale of Jatropha plantation in the country.

Figure 2 a: Seeds of Pongamia pinnata
 
Evaluation of Petro crops: Euphorbs
 
Under a Ministry of Non Conventional Energy Source, Govt. of India a coordinated program ‘National Coordinated project on Petro-Crops” to evaluate hydrocarbons crops1 was initiated. NBRI collected and evaluated more than 400 species yielding hydrocarbons that can be commercially exploited. The program was carried out in collaboration with IIP, Dehradun. Out of 400 species, 60 were short listed as potential ones for availability, yield and ease of extraction. This list was further reduced to 26 as commercially exploitable. The report formed a basis for research on petro crops in the country.

Intensive studies were carried out on 10 euphorbs for quantification of isoprenes18-19 and compared the same with Parthenium argentatum, a known source of potentially exploitable hydrocarbons. There were significant differences in quality, as well as the quantity of oligomers in various euphorbs. Hexane extractables were in relatively lower proportions than the acetone extractables. A regression analysis of the acetone- and hexane-extractable fractions revealed that there was a good correlation. Average molecular weight of polyisoprenes was determined by gel permeation chromatography. In all the taxa investigated, Mw was far less than that observed in guayule. There appeared to be no correlation between hexane extractables and average molecular weight. GPC chromatograms of the euphorbs showed a unimodal distribution, while most of the cultivars of guayule had a bimodal distribution. The molecular weight distribution (Mwd) range was very narrow in most of the species investigated. High resin content and lack of minimum threshold temperature appear to hinder synthesis of cis-polyisoprenes. Apparently, latex flow seems high but the latex has very low hivin Mw. Poor biomass and high moisture content further restrict their usefulness24.
 
 
Evaluation and improvement of guayule (Parthenium argentatum)
 
Arid land plants provide useful resource of hydrocarbons4. Many of these synthesize rubber, waxes, resin, latex and other phytochemical specialties5. A coordinate program on “Cultivation Improvement and Biochemical Investigation of Guayule (Parthenium argentatum)’ was sanctioned by the Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi during 1987-89. Guayule was developed as a crop by screening a large quantum of germplasm and making selections6. The selections were tested in multi-locational trials.

HPLC protocols were developed for quantification of guayulins present in the resin. Earlier large variability has been reported in rubber content, resin quality and quantity8,10 in guayule. Protocols have been developed for analyses of resin traits12-13 that can be used as indicators for selecting elite germplasm and breeding programs11.

Guayule plants when introduced in India were found to be infected with several fungal pathogens2-3. A rare disease (blight) was noticed in plants growing in Lucknow region20-23. It was easy to control the disease when helath of the plants was maintained. Seed formation was not significantly effected when the infection was mild. However, damping off was a major limiting factor22.

Callus cultures were initiated in leaf and inflorescence explants from mature guayule rubber plants9, 16. Initial cultures were morphologically heterogeneous and contained leaf and shoot primordia. These structures were substantially eliminated by serially sub culturing only the least organized callus-like tissues. The selected calli from inflorescences have exhibited stable morphogenetic properties and growth rates for over one year. These cultures produced chlorophyll when grown under illumination and chemical analyses of both light- and dark-grown calli showed the presence of alkanes, sesquiterpenoids and cis-1,4-polyisoprene (rubber). Callus contained the same alkane species that were previously found in leaves of mature plants. Similarly, the predominant n-alkanes in both callus and plants had the carbon chain lengths C29 and C31. The proportions of alkane size classes differed between tissue sources. A change in pattern from longer to shorter alkanes was found according to the order: mature leaves, light-grown callus and dark-grown callus. Two sesquiterpene phenolic esters (guayulin-A and -B), allergenic compounds found in guayule plants14, were present in guayule callus at about 4% of levels found in whole plants. Light had a negligible influence on production of the guayulins but showed a larger effect on rubber synthesis; light-grown callus produced about ten times the amount of rubber produced by dark-grown callus. The appearance of these important secondary hydrocarbons in long-term guayule tissue cultures represents a useful system for further studies of the regulation of these chemicals17.
 
 
State of Art Report on Petro crops
 
A State of Art Report on Petro Crops was written for the Ministry of Non Conventional Energy Source, Govt. of India during 19967.
 
 
Acknowledgements
 
The authors are grateful to the Ministry of Non Conventional Energy Source, Govt. of India, NOVOD Board, Gurgaon, University of California, Irvine, USA for financial support.
 
 
Literature cited:
 
  1. Behl, H.M. and Sidhu, O.P. (1989). In: Proc. National Workshop on Jojoba (Ed. V.K. Bhatia), Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun, pp 76 - 81.
  2. Behl, H.M. and Sidhu, O.P. (1990). In: Proc. Fourth International Mycology Congress, (Eds.) A. Reisinger & A. Bresinsky, Rogensborg, Federal Republic of Germany, IIF-269/1.
  3. Behl, H.M. and Sidhu, O.P. (1994). Fungal pathogens as deterrents to establishment of guayule (Parthenium argentatum Gray) in India. In: Vistas in Seed Biology, Vol. 1, Rupa Books Pvt. Ltd., Jaipur, India, pp. 287 - 297.
  4. Behl, H.M. (1984). In: Proc. Kew International Conference on Economic plants of Arid lands, Kew, Richmond, U.K.
  5. Behl, H.M. (1989). In: Proc. 5th European Conf., Lisbon, Portugal, Oct 9-13, 1989.
  6. Behl, H.M. (1995). Technical and economical feasibility of guayule as rubber resource in India. Published by Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, India
  7. Behl, H.M. (1996). Feasibility & State of Art Report on Petro Crops. Published by the Ministry Non Conventional. Energy Sources, New Delhi, Govt. of India.
  8. Behl, H.M. , Merchand, B. and Rodriguez, E. (1983). Z. Naturforsch. 38c: 494 - 496
  9. Behl, H.M., M. Behl and Rodriguez, E. (1983). In Proc. National Symposium on Advancing Frontiers of Plant Sciences, Jodhpur University Press, India.
  10. Behl, H.M., Merchand, B. , West, J. & Rodriguez, E. (1983). El. Guayulero, 4 (2): 10 - 11.
  11. Behl, H.M.; J. West and Rodriguez, E. (1982). In: Proc. IX International Symposium on Natural Products Chemistry, University de Monterrey, Mexico, p. 22.
  12. Merchand, B., Behl, H.M. and Rodriguez, E. (1983). Journal of Chromatography A, 265: 97 - 104.
  13. Proksch, P., Behl, H.M. and Rodriguez, E. (1981). Journal of Chromatography, 213 (2): 345 - 348.
  14. Proksch, P., Behl, H.M. and Rodriguez, E. (1982). Phytochemistry, Volume 21, Issue 8, Pages 1977 - 1979.
  15. Pushpangadan, P. & Behl, H.M. (2004). Appraoch paper for implementation of Jatropha curcas in Uttar Pradesh. In: Policy meeting with U.P. State, India.
  16. Radin, D N, Behl, H.M. and Rodriguez, E. (1982). Plant Sci. Letters, 26: 301 - 310.
  17. Radin, D.; Behl, H.M.; Devey, J.; Proksch, P. and Rodriguez, E. (1982).. In: Proc. Conference on Genetic Engineering in Plants, University of California, Davis, California, USA.
  18. Ratti, N., Sidhu, O.P. and Behl, H.M. (1995). Bioresource Technol, 52 (3): 231 - 235.
  19. Sidhu O.P., Ratti, N. and Behl, H.M. (1993). J. Agric. Food Chem., 41: 1368 - 1369.
  20. Sidhu, O.P. and Behl, H.M. (1988). Indian J. Plant Pathol. 6(2): 139 - 143.
  21. Sidhu, O.P. and Behl, H.M. (1990) J. Indian Bot. Soc 69: 67 - 69.
  22. Sidhu, O.P. and Behl, H.M. (1991). Indian Phytopath., 44: 254 - 255.
  23. Sidhu, O.P. and Behl, H.M. (1991). Plant Disease, 75(7):748 - 749.
  24. Sidhu, O.P., Ratti, N. and Behl, H.M. (1995). J. Agric. Food Chem., 43: 2012 - 2015.
 
 
Copyright(c) 2002 National Botanical Research Institute. All rights reserved.