In a major technological breakthrough that can be a game changer for advancing use of bio-diesel in the country and ensuring ready acceptance of the fuel by the automobile industry, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOC) has successfully developed and commercialized a technology to co-process non-edible vegetable oil in the existing diesel hydrotreating (DHDT) units of a petroleum refinery to make bio-diesel.
This is first time in India and possibly the first in the world when Jatropha oil has been used for co-processing in a petroleum refinery. This technology for co-processing of Jatropha oil has been developed by the R&D Centre of IOC located at Faridabad.
"During the development of this process technology, Indian Oil also developed a process for de-metallization and de-gumming of vegetable oils. It may be noted that de-metallation of oils is a pre-requisite for co-processing since metals are poisonous for the catalyst in the DHDT unit," the company said.
A total quantity of 200 tonne of Jatropha oil was supplied by CREDA Biofuels Ltd. (A JV of Indian Oil and Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Authority). This oil was used for de-metallization and de-gumming using IOC-R&D developed process and subsequently co-processed in the Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (CPCL) Refinery at Manali.
Conventionally, Bio-diesel is produced by the trans-esterification process which requires separate plant to be set up. Bio-diesel thus produced through trans-esterification route has inferior properties in terms of oxidation stability, lower energy content and results in more deposits in the engine due to which, it is not very well accepted by Automobile industry, the company said.
However, the novel innovative co-processing technology developed by IOC overcomes these disadvantages and produces Bio-diesel with higher Cetane number, good oxidation stability and lower density. In addition, co-processing technology can be deployed in an existing petroleum refinery infrastructure with minor modifications and does not require a separate plant. This process also costs less as operating cost is reduced by 50 percent, compared to a conventional Biodiesel plant, it added.
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