The Indian government is likely to introduce a mandate allowing the mixing of isobutanol with diesel by the end of this year, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Secretary V Umashankar said. The move is expected to enhance the country’s energy security while simultaneously decarbonising the road and highway sector, he told news agency PTI recently.
“Diesel blending has been considered very seriously. BPCL is already conducting strategic research into blending isobutanol with diesel. The results have been very encouraging,” he added. “It is very likely that the blending mandate will begin later this year.”
Isobutanol, also called isobutyl alcohol, is frequently used as a solvent in the flavor, fragrance, pharmaceutical and pesticide industries as well as being a chemical ingredient in the manufacture of products such as paint, paint strippers, primers and craft paints. As with ethanol, it is often used as a biofuel and can be manufactured from plants.
Since diesel consumption is twice that of petrol in the country, Umashankar revealed, diesel blending will have a much greater impact on the country’s energy security and foreign imports than petrol mandates.
In his speech at the CII Multimodal Transport and Logistics Summit, Umashankar also revealed that the ministry may issue a draft notification on the possibility of interchange of truck trailers soon. This is expected to build an ecosystem that requires battery replacement and battery charging for heavy electric commercial vehicles.
How did the E20 spark controversy?
This development represents the latest in a series of initiatives in the government’s blending program that has taken off in the past decade or so.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has listed the country’s switch to E20 (a blend of 20 percent ethanol with gasoline) as a savior in the face of the current fuel crisis sparked by the US-Israeli attack on Iran.
“In this time of crisis, other preparations of the country have proven to be very useful: in the last 10-11 years, unprecedented work has been done in ethanol production and blending,” the Prime Minister told the lower house of parliament in a 20-minute speech in March this year.
“A decade ago, the country’s capacity to blend ethanol was only 1%. Today, we are close to achieving 20% ethanol blending into petrol. As a result of this, last year we had to import about 4.5 crore barrels of less oil.”
But the move did not come without its share of controversy.
Concerns of wear and tear on the car and low mileage were displayed by several owners, as HT had previously reported.
Roads Minister Nitin Gadkari and Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri have repeatedly denied such allegations, with Gadkari even blaming the situation on manipulation by the oil lobby.
Minister Umashankar has also responded to similar concerns: “There have been some concerns about blending at the lower level (E20), but here it is a little different because the vehicle is manufactured differently. It will also have a separate (fuel) dispenser at petrol pumps to dispense E85 or E100 fuel, unlike normally blended petrol, which is done through a common dispenser.”
Now, the ministry has also issued a draft notification for requirements for manufacturing of E85 (a blend of 85 per cent ethanol with petrol) and E100 (which will allow vehicles to run on almost pure ethanol) vehicles.
In addition, amendments to vehicle emissions rules have been proposed in order to expand the scope of higher ethanol blends and alternative fuels.
Truck trailers and barrier-free tolls
Additionally, the draft notification on truck trailers is expected to address concerns related to building an ecosystem requiring battery swapping and battery charging for heavy electric commercial vehicles, reports ANI.
“If you were to look at a battery swap, there have to be multiple points that have to be in place with that kind of infrastructure for the swap to happen. If you look at battery charging, it will take a long time for it to charge. So, is the truck sitting idle in that time?” Umashankar explained. “So, what we’re looking at is what we call tractor-trailer interchangeability. Where you don’t have to swap out the battery, you can swap out the entire front of the truck.”
In response to questions about experimenting with hydrogen-based models, Umshankar revealed that the results have been good so far. “The results are very good. The main cost is comparable with respect to other forms of logistical travel. It is not high. The only high-cost item is the hydrogen refueling stations. At present, government support is being provided in pilot projects,” he said.
Recently, hydrogen buses were introduced on public level between Delhi-Faridabad and Delhi-Noida. “…Hydrogen refueling station has already been supported and set up under this scheme. When you refuel, you cover a distance of 450 km before you need to refuel. So if you take Delhi-Mumbai as a corridor, there will probably be three refueling stations along the highway on the new expressway,” the minister added.
The Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF), a barrier-less toll system that has already been introduced at two toll plazas, is likely to be expanded next year. “The third station is likely to be operational in the next 8 to 10 days. We plan to expand this to all toll plazas, four-lane toll plazas as well as toll plazas across the country over the next year,” Umashankar said.
The government is expected to implement an advanced traffic management system where slow and fast traffic will be separated in order to increase the average speed of vehicles on roads and highways.
