Journal of Fundamentals of Renewable Energy and Applications
Open Access
ISSN: 2090-4541
ISSN: 2090-4541
Darshit S Upadhyay
Nirma University, India
Scientific Tracks Abstracts: J Fundam Renewable Energy Appl
Large availability of agricultural land in India provides the country with abundant biomass energy resource of around 500 million metric tons per year. With programs like Make in India and Digital India, putting the country on a fast track growth coupled with the existing power deficit might be very difficult to meet the energy needs. India��?s Energy Development Programme has been put to severe pressure with the ever increasing demand supply gap. Many interior regions of India also known as the dark zones are yet to be connected with the power grid. Biomass also happens to be the third largest primary source of energy after coal and oil. The current power production through biomass is 2,667 MW compared to the potential of about 18,000 MW. The uneven geographic distribution of biomass, improper supply chain distribution and availability of direct combustion methods restrict the use of other efficient advanced technologies. Converting biomass into producer gas by gasification is one of the suitable ways for off grid power solution. This paper analyzes various challenges that restrict the growth of biomass gasification in India. Thermal and electrical routes for power generation from biomass are reviewed from technical and economical point of view. Production of biomass and utilization are critically reviewed from yesteryears till the latest developments. Government policies and financial support is also brought under the purview of analysis. The analysis suggests a combined approach to promote awareness as well as subsidize or provide grants to overcome these challenges. Also, decentralized collection of biomass can lead to the extensive growth of small scale off grid biomass gasifiers. In the last few years, lots of research institutes and industries in India like IISC, TERI, ANKUR, etc., have contributed a lot in overall growth of gasification technology in the country.
Darshit S Upadhyay is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the Mechanical Engineering department, Nirma University, India and also pursuing his PhD from Nirma University, India. He has published one of his papers in the international Energy Journal.