Technology of making fuel from pine needles developed in Champawat
Under the direction and guidance of the Government of Uttarakhand, an MoU was signed between CSIR – Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun and UCOST on March 5, 2024 under the aegis of “Adarsh Champawat” Mission. On this occasion, Dr. Harendra Singh Bisht, Director, Indian Institute of Petroleum and Prof. Durgesh Pant, Director General, UCOST signed MoU documents and inaugurated a landmark project to harness the technology of making fuel from pine needles in Champawat.
Under this agreement, CSIR – Indian Institute of Petroleum will implement two key technologies at the grassroots level in Champawat. The selected technologies include a 50 kg per hour capacity briquetting unit based on pine needles and 500 units of improved cookstove for rural households. An extended field trial study will be conducted regarding energy conservation and its environmental impact. Briquetting unit will be set up in the energy park of Champawat as a part of women empowerment initiative. The briquettes produced will be used as fuel in homes and local industries.
Dr. Harendra Singh Bisht, Director of CSIR-Indian Institute of Petroleum, said that the use and management of pine needles is necessary to reduce the incidence of forest fires. Pine needle briquettes and pellets can replace coal and protect the environment. Briquettes can be used for domestic cooking and as direct or co-firing fuel in brick kilns and thermal power plants.
He also informed that Indian Institute of Petroleum is working hard towards utilization and value addition of pine needles and has developed an improved technology for briquetting of pine needles and an energy-efficient, low-cost, natural draft biomass cookstove. have developed. The Biomass Cookstove with Pine Needles Briquettes operates at an energy efficiency of 35 percent and reduces household pollution by up to 70 percent. In addition, CSIR – Indian Institute of Petroleum is a designated laboratory to certify biomass pellet for use in thermal power plants. The laboratory has advanced facilities for biomass characterization and assessment of biomass combustion equipment.