The first World Energy Day was on July 11 of 1924. Over 1700 experts from 40 countries marked that energy issues can influence growth and the future of mankind and accept that a permanent world energy organization should be established. It is celebrated world wide to make sure access to economical, reliable and contemporary energy for all by 2030. It is marks the important role in leading economic growth, human development and environmental sustainability.

In 2012 World Energy was created by the World Energy Forum and has been celebrated each year since October 22. The objectives of World Energy Day are to raise awareness about energy usage and ensure the safe and green energy for all people. It also targets on reducing carbon emission .

It aims to raise awareness of the importance of saving natural resources for climate change, environmental protection, and sustainability. All these elements contribute to increasing energy sustainability and efficiency.

The 2022 motto is “Energy transition – full speed ahead!”. This will include discussions on the far reaching transformation of policies and technologies for achieving climate neutrality and how to raise the pace of change. Thus World Energy Day aims to raise the importance of saving our natural resources for sustainability. All these contribute to increase energy efficiency as of the report from Sub-Saharan Africa.Here most of the people gains access to electric power has begun to outrun population growth recently.

The main objectives of World Energy Day

From the beginning, World Energy Day was a good chance to raise awareness about the importance of saving natural resources. Eventually, topics like sustainability, climate change, conservation and efficiency are all part of this ongoing conversation. But energy access for all has taken on an important priority since an estimated 900+ million are living without energy access today.

Ensuring the affordability of sustainable energy for everyone by identifying the need for developing national policies to consider a shared global energy perspective. The objectives also strengthen policies to execute and develop mechanisms to exchange experience between various countries through the world. This includes encouraging the development of resources to run after the common good of everyone by continuing the wise use of fossil fuels in the world economy.

Energy efficiency and its importance

Saving energy, improving efficiency, and conservation are the factors use to explain ways we can lower our overall energy consumption. There are several reasons why we would do this in order to use energy most efficiently:

• Lower the cost of energy 
• Reduce the threat to the environment and thus save our natural resources
• The worst predicted influence of climate change are about to happen — and much faster than climatologist expected. Climate change is the major problem,but there’s a lot we should do about it in our day to day life. Individual actions to lower greenhouse gas emissions can help reduce climate change.

An international lead for universal energy access

Innovations in decentralize energy systems permits the problem of energy access to notify. The IEA report states the people without access to electric power fell to 1.1 billion down from 1.6 billion. Now a days India is leading , focussing to reach complete electrification 10 years than the target set under the UN Sustainable Development Goals .

West makes the conversion from fossil fuels to renewable energy, an estimated 1.1 billion people through out the world. But the most of them in sub-Saharan Africa, are without access to electricity still. To spot this day, KhaitanBioEnergy look at the needs to be done in investment of technology to make universal access to energy a reality.

How can we achieve it? 

Developed countries have not observed consistent and reliable electricity a luxury for some time now. With many observing consistent electricity, it is an intolerable fact that there remain areas with irregular access to electricity. Reliable energy is the main driver of human progress. Acquiring electricity makes communities guarded, helps small businesses survive and even flourish.Also powers necessary services such as schools and clinics.

 By providing a good environment for investments, innovations and new industries that incentivize growth and provide jobs for developing economies. The government’s immense efforts over the last decades have put it on of the main success stories ever in electrification.

Subsequently, authorities have used solar, energy storage batteries and LED lighting to supply 80% of previously unconnected villages with power.

Some countries are still without electricity.

The IEA estimates that supplying electricity for all by 2030 will need an annual investment of $52 billion. The extra investment, 95% needs to be spent to sub-Saharan Africa. South Sudan with the least level of electricity access in the world. Utility organisations in developing countries often cannot pay for to hook small, scattered rural communities up to the grid. Same way, high connection costs for informal housing and the effect of power theft on services are unaccompanied by electricity.

About 110 million of the 600 million people living without access to electicity in Africa . In Kenya, approximately 70% of off-grid homes are within just 1.2 KM of a power line.

Moreover, even in resource-rich Europe, the European Union (EU) about 50 million people lack from energy , whereas they hardly heat their homes and finds utility bills in time.

Can renewable energy sufficient for energy gap?

Of the 1.2 billion people have gained access to electricity since 2000, nearly all have done so via connection to the main grid, with 70% getting access to power generated from fossil fuels . Recently the number of people gaining access to electric power in Sub-Saharan Africa starts to outrun population growth.

However declining costs for solar power, decentralized solutions, off-grid and mini-grid systems etc results electrifying sub-Saharan Africa that helps to achieve with clean energy.

Nowadays, renewables have been the source of over one-third of new connections, while decentralized renewables are the source of 6% of new electricity access.

The World Energy Council expects solar and wind to rise from 4% globally in 2016 to 42% in 2060. Moreover, renewables have provided more than a third , IEA expects this shift to accelerate by 2030. It should be noted that providing energy access for all would not result in a net increase in global greenhouse gas emissions. Energy demand and related CO2 emissions would only increase by around 0.2%. This would be more than offset by net GHG reductions resulting from reduced use of biomass for cooking.

Achieving universal energy access

The solution to electrifying detached communities lies in the deployment of decentralized and renewable energy sources. Mini- and off-grid systems provide communities agency over their energy utilization and independence from the main grid, while renewables are becoming highly inexpensive and thus more viable for smaller, developing sites.

Increased investment into these technologies is integral to currently unelectrified homes receiving affordable and reliable power. According to the IEA report, universal electrification would require an annual investment of $52bn, representing more than twice the level mobilized under present norms. 

Of the additional investment, 95% needs to focus on sub-Saharan Africa. Detail geospatial modelling suggests that decentralized systems, led by solar photovoltaic in off-grid systems and mini-grids, are the cheapest method for 3 quarters of the extra connections needed in sub-Saharan Africa.

About a $350m electrification program in Nigeria is expected to attract $410m in private investment and create a market for mini and off-grid energy solutions. Based on this scheme, the Nigerian Rural Electrification Agency is mapping more than 200 sites for mini-grid development.

The extreme global temperatures and weather conditions caused by climate change have led nations across the world to step up clean energy efforts. With technological innovations causing prices of solutions such as wind and solar to dip and installations to soar. However, despite renewables’ growing grasp of the energy market, the industry still faces the problem of universal energy access.

To mark World Energy Day, KhaitanBioEnergy looks at global energy access and the measures underway to improve it. However, authorities need to do much more work if the target of universal electrification is to be obtain by 2030.

On this World Energy Day, let’s pledge to help build a sustainable future for the future generations . India provides a key example of a nation working to rapidly electrify. The Modi government pledged to electrify every home in the region by December 31 2018, under an INR163 bn (US$2.5bn) scheme known as ‘Saubhagya Yojana. Since then, authorities have supplied 80% of previously unconnected villages with power, using solar energy storage batteries and LED lighting.

What is synthetic fuel

What is synthetic fuel?

A liquid fuel not from natural crude oil is a synthetic fuel, and synthetic fuels are artificial alternatives to conventional gasoline or diesel. In its simplest form, a synthetic fuel combines hydrogen and carbon atoms to form a compound known as an alkene — usually Ethene, which consists two carbon atoms and four hydrogen atoms.

Nevertheless, there is much variance in how individual companies go about obtaining to an end product that could be pump into the fuel tank of vehicles. Some synthetic fuels use mind-bending chemical processes, and others start as a literal load of old garbage.

 Modern transportation fuels demand uniform physical properties from varying feedstocks with chemical compositions mainly synthesized from petroleum or other fossil fuels. 

 The term gasoline implies that many components are synthesizing using cracking or reforming techniques. Thus, gasoline is rather than synthetic fuel, and reformulate gasoline contains a more significant fraction of petroleum molecules. 

Fuels from oil sands and heavy oil come under the same term as petroleum-based fuels. Liquid fuels from coal, peat, natural gas, and oil shale are synthetic fuels. Renewable biomass from photosynthesis gets converted into a variety of synthetic fuels. Coal gasification and natural gas reforming are sources of synthesis gas. That is a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide(CO), the essentials for producing synthetic fuels.

How is it made?

  Independent of origin, Ethanol, methanol, and biodiesel comes under the term synthetic fuel. Coal gasification and natural gas reforming are sources of synthesis gas, a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide.

To understand the manufacturing of renewable synthetic fuels, firstly, you must understand what fossil fuels are. They consist of a large number of various hydrocarbon molecules.

The key to component synthetic fuels is syngas. Syngas is a mixture of hydrogen (H) and carbon monoxide, and it is essential to produce liquid hydrocarbon fuel like jet fuel, diesel, or gasoline. Turning syngas into fuel is a confirmed industrial process, using coal and natural gas as feedstocks, which is not sustainable. So that is precisely where the challenge lies: producing sustainable syngas. This production requires a large amount of energy, and to produce it sustainably, it needs to come from a renewable resource like biomass, solar, wind or hydro.

Synthetic fuels can be created via several different processes. One of these processes is coal liquefaction. Usually, this process generates large amounts of carbon dioxide, making it a wrong alternative to conventional fuels.

However, it is also possible to create synthetic fuels through a method that captures carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This technique is receiving appreciation and investment from car makers and other industries.

The process works like this:

1. Obtain Carbon dioxide either directly from the atmosphere or industrial plants. Various methods exist for these processes.
2. Renewable energy sources are avail to produce hydrogen. This can use to power hydrogen cars. 
3. Then, hydrogen and carbon dioxide combine into synthetic methanol, which can then be convert into synthetic petrol and diesel.

 

Process :

The processes used to generate synthetic fuels broadly fall into three divisions: Indirect, Direct and Biofuel processes.

Indirect conversion

This type of conversion has the broadest deployment worldwide. About 260,000 barrels per day are produced by this method.

Indirect conversion broadly attributes to a step in which biomass, coal or natural gas converts to syngas through gasification or steam methane reformation. Then the syngas undergoes many processes and then converted into a liquid transportation fuel using any conversion techniques depending on the end product.

The primary technologies that produce synthetic fuel from syngas are Fischer–Tropsch synthesis and process is Methanol-To-Gasoline conversion( MTG). In the Fischer–Tropsch process, syngas act in the presence of a catalyst, transforming into liquid products and potential waxes.

The process of generating synfuels through indirect conversion is coal-to-liquids (CTL), gas-to-liquid (GTL) or (BTL), depending on the initial feedstock. Some projects combine coal and biomass feedstocks, creating hybrid-feedstock synthetic fuels called Coal and Biomass To Liquids (CBTL).

Indirect conversion process technologies are available to produce hydrogen, mainly for use in fuel cell vehicles, either as a slipstream co-product or as a primary output.

 

Direct conversion 

Direct conversion means coal or biomass feedstocks converts straightly into intermediate or final products, thus avoiding conversion to syngas via gasification. These conversion processes are of two different methods: Pyrolysis & carbonization and hydrogenation.

Biofuel processes

One example of a Biofuel-based synthetic fuel process is Hydrotreated Renewable Jet (HRJ) fuel. There are different types of these processes under development, testing and certification process for HRJ aviation fuels is beginning.

There are two such processes. One using solid biomass feedstocks and one using bio oil and fats. The process uses solid second-generation biomass sources like grass or woody biomass. It then uses pyrolysis to produce a bio-oil, which undergoes stabilization and deoxygenation to produce jet-range fuel. The process then undergoes deoxygenation, followed by hydrocracking and isomerization to produce jet fuel.

The primary source of synthetic fuel

Generally, there are three methods for the production of renewable syngas. Furthermore, eventually, eco-friendly synthetic fuels are known as biofuels. These are mainly from biomass, e fuels- produced with renewable electricity, and solar fuels- manufactured with solar heat. All three methods mainly go through syngas, a combination of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The syngas then turns into liquid fuels via industrial gas-to-liquid processes. These three methods are called Biomass-to-Liquid, Power-to-Liquid, and Sun-to-Liquid, respectively.

Biomass-to-Liquid produces biofuels

Even though several processes exist to change biomass into liquid fuels, the most scalable and versatile in terms of feedstock unergoes the gasification of biomass. Specifically, biomass changes at high temperatures into syngas. The heat input needed to drive the process is usually created by burning a part of the biomass. Feedstocks can be crops such as sugar cane, corn waste(stubble) biomass, or algae. Biofuels are the only form of renewable synthetic fuels that are readily available on the market in small quantities. 

Even though several processes exist to convert biomass into liquid fuels, the most scalable and most versatile in terms of feed stock goes through the gasification of biomass. Specifically biomass converts at high temperatures into syngas. The heat input require to drive the process is usually generated by burning a part of the biomass itself. Feedstocks can be any crops such as sugar cane or corn waste(stubble) biomass or algae. Biofuels are the only type of renewable synthetic fuels that are already available on the market in small quantities.

Power-to-Liquid produces e-fuels

E-fuels are produced from renewable powers such as solar, wind, or hydro power. The Power-to-Liquid process depends on a series of energy conversion steps. Firstly renewable electricity is generated which then drives an electrolyzer that splits water in hydrogen and oxygen. Next, the hydrogen is mixed with carbon dioxide and turned into syngas via the reverse water gas shift (RWGS) reaction .It is a process that conducts at high temperatures and driven with electricity. E-fuels can be produced with any type of renewable electricity. However, electricity storage for continuous operation remains a challenge.Hence it limits the application to few regions with an extraordinarily cheap and continuous renewable electricity supply .On the other hand it requires the integration of expensive battery technology for its working.

Sun-to-Liquid produces solar fuels

Solar fuels obtaining from solar heat that drives a thermochemical reactor. In this reactor, carbon dioxide and water are convers to syngas. Just like e-fuels, solar fuels are not yet available on the market. Sunny regions offer ideal conditions for the production of solar fuels, mainly deserts and semi-arid regions with high solar radiation. The solar heat during the day can store by inexpensive thermal energy storage to enable energy cycle of the production of fuels. Storage makes solar fuel plants self-sufficient and independent from any framework.

Why synthetic fuel necessary in future energy systems

It is clear that the benefits to energy systems from the stores of fossil fuel-based energy will not be able to replace without some other form of fuel-based energy storage. All energy systems have benefited from the stored chemical energy intrinsic in fossil fuels that has allowed a decoupling of primary energy supplies from the final use demand on a grand scale. Despite the fact that synthetic fuels are expensive, if policy makers wish to encourage them to grow in market share, then they could consider providing protected markets for them to compete within. Also to provide subsidies, or by costing fossil fuels with a carbon price that helps to close the cost gap.

The creation of synthetic fuels also provides a highly dispatchable demand to help integrate greater levels of weather-dependent renewables, which will be increasingly desirable in future energy systems that rely on primary electricity from renewables to a much greater degree.

The question simply put is not whether we will continue to need fuels in future energy systems, but the type of fuels that will be suitable in a highly eco-friendly.

Flex fuel engines have an injection system that can operate with gasoline, with any mixture ratio of gasoline and ethanol, or with pure ethanol. Which means they are capable of running on 100% petrol or 100% bio-ethanol or a combination of both. Regardless of the supply, customers are supple when it comes to the choice of fuel and are able to respond to possible price developments immediately. Clearly flexibility with the choice of fuel is the key argument for buying vehicles with flex fuel engines. The market share of such flex fuel engines are high while other markets still show great potential to establish those systems. The main advantages of Flex Fuel Engines for Your Vehicle is resource saving mobility with ethanol as fuel. Flex Fuel Strong Hybrid Electric Vehicles (FFSHEV) basically houses an electric motor which powers the vehicle alongside the traditional petrol engine.

Dual fuel vehicle means the engine that uses two fuels (gas and diesel) together. Bi Fuel means the engine could run on either fuel but separately. On the other hand FFV is capable of running on either petrol or ethanol or a combination of both. Hence it is a combination of Dual fuel vehicle and Bi fuel vehicle.

How do flex fuel engines work using ethanol?

A flex fuel car looks just like any other kind of car. The main differences between the two lie with the engine and fuel system. Flex-fuels vehicles can run on regular gas, various ethanol blends and other types of fuel . Production of ethanol is mainly by fermenting agricultural residues. The main ethanol blends on the market today are E85 and E95, which get their names from their compositions. E85 is 15 percent unleaded gas and up to 85 percent ethanol . While E95 typically used in diesel powered vehicles is up to 95 percent ethanol. An engine that runs on regular petrol can also run on flex fuel which means any car with the spark-ignition engine can run on this flex fuel .

Components that comprise the fueling system of flex fuel vehicles are also crafted to be ethanol compatible. Otherwise higher water content of ethanol could cause rust to form and damage the fuel system from the inside out. Despite these different components, maintenance costs for FFVs are generally the same as for other vehicles, and sometimes are even lower, since flex fuels burn fuel more cleanly .

Comparison of flex fuel Vs gasoline vehicles

Apart from few differences, a flex fuel engine and a gasoline car have almost similar components.

Flex Fuel Engine

• Battery: The battery provides electricity to start the engine and power vehicle electronics/accessories.  
• Electronic control module (ECM): The ECM controls the fuel mixture, ignition timing, and emissions system; monitors the operation of the vehicle; safeguards the engine from abuse; and detects and troubleshoots problems.    
• Exhaust system: The exhaust system channels the exhaust gases from the engine out through the tailpipe. There is a 3 way catalyst to reduce engine-out emissions within the exhaust system. 
• Fuel filler: A nozzle from a fuel dispenser attaches to the receptacle on the vehicle to fill the tank. 
• Fuel injection system: This system introduces fuel into the engine’s combustion chambers for ignition.        
• Fuel line: A metal tube or flexible hose (or a combination of these) transfers fuel from the tank to the engine’s fuel injection system.
• Fuel pump: A pump that transfers fuel from the tank to the engine’s fuel injection system via the fuel line.        
• Fuel tank (ethanol/gasoline blend): Stores fuel on board the vehicle to power the engine.            
• Internal combustion engine (spark-ignited): Here fuel inject into either the intake manifold or the combustion chamber, where it is combined with air, and the air/fuel mixture is ignited by the spark from a spark plug.            
• Transmission: Transfer mechanical power from the engine and/or electric traction motor to drive the wheels.          

  Gasoline Car

• Battery: The battery provides electricity to start the engine and power vehicle electronics/accessories.
• Electronic control module (ECM): The ECM controls the fuel mixture, ignition timing, and emissions system.Similarly it monitors the operation of the vehicle, safeguards the engine from abuse, detects and troubleshoots problems.            
• Exhaust system: The exhaust system channels the exhaust gases from the engine out through the tailpipe. A three-way catalyst is there to reduce engine-out emissions within the exhaust system.            
• Fuel filler: A nozzle from a fuel dispenser attaches to the receptacle on the vehicle to fill the tank.    
• Fuel injection system: This system introduces fuel into the engine’s combustion chambers for ignition.            
• Fuel line: A metal tube or flexible hose (or a combination
• ) transfers fuel from the tank to the engine’s fuel injection system.            
• Fuel pump: A pump that transfers fuel from the tank to the engine’s fuel injection system via the fuel line.            
• Fuel tank (gasoline): This tank stores gasoline on board the vehicle until engine require it.            
• Internal combustion engine (spark-ignited): In this configuration, fuel inject into either the intake manifold or the combustion chamber. Then it is combined with air, and the air/fuel mixture is ignited by the spark from a spark plug.            
• Transmission: The transmission transfers mechanical power from the engine and/or electric traction motor to drive the wheels.            

The Mechanism Behind Flex-Fuel Vehicles    

The engine of a FFV is designed to run on more than one type of fuel .Usually gasoline or a combination of fuel is stored in the same tank . When you start the engine a sensor mounted in the fuel line can detect the percentage of fuel blend . The ethanol/methanol/gasoline ratio, or the fuel’s alcohol concentration and sends a signal to an electronic control module. The electronic control module then adjusts the engine’s fuel delivery control to compensate for the different fuel mixtures.The engine then delivers the precise amount of fuel into the engine via injectors. Rest, it works similar to a conventional engine.

In order to ascertain the exact proportion of gasoline and ethanol in the fuel tank the engine management parameters should set accordingly.The virtual sensor to helps in adjusting the fueling rate. Knowledge of the ratio between the two fuels is necessary because of the different parameters of the various fuels . Nowadays, physical alcohol sensors have become more common, especially in markets with challenging emissions and on-board diagnostics requirements.

During a re filling time the sensors check the fuel tank level sensor. This helps get an approximate value for the volume of fuel . Thereby use an algorithm to allow the EMS to calculate two approximate new values of the stochiometric Air Fuel Ratio( AFR ). And then it check that the fuel added was either gasoline or a combination. On restarting it monitors the O₂ sensors and looks for a perturbation in their signal. Once when the AFR is swinging in the rich or lean direction it adjusts the operating parameters gradually until it locks on to the new value and the vehicle has been ‘conditioned’. Figure shows a representation of a sensor detection system. The initial swings to the new AFR is quite rapid, but an extended period of conditioning is necessary .

Since flex fuel engines are increasingly popular they are not a miracle solution. The good news is they enable us to consume fewer fossil fuel as plant-based bio ethanol is a renewable energy source. It also burns much more cleanly, which is great for the entire environment. But flex fuels get fewer miles than gasoline-powered vehicles. Also they can be pricier and there aren’t many gas stations selling E85. Higher blending of ethanol results in higher manufacturing costs which translates to pricier vehicles. Some engine parts especially those that come in contact should be replaced with a compatible product to avoid corrosion. Despite all these ,automotive companies say that they are ready to move with government regulations on ethanol blending of E20 by 2025. Government officials have said that many popular car making companies have agreed to make flex fuel engines in coming future.

 

Paddy straw is a central field-based residue that is produced in large amounts in Asia. In reality, it could theoretically produce 187 gallons of bioethanol from the total area if the technology were available. However, an increasing proportion of this paddy straw encounters field burning, and this improper management results in high fuel prices and air pollution. For the past 25 years, conservation farming has continued to evolve. There is now less burning and, therefore, less soil cultivation and increased crop stubble retention. This trend is growing because of the need to improve water use and protect soils from erosion. As climate change is a threat to development, there is a growing interest in alternative uses of agricultural remnants.

What is stubble burning?

Crop stubble is the straw and crown of plants left on the field after harvest. Stubble consists straw and chaff discharged from the harvester. It is also known as ‘residue’ or ‘trash’. Managing this agricultural waste is one of the complex tasks that farmers must be concerned with. Usually, farmers burn stubble to manage weeds and diseases and reduce biomass to make sowing better. This is no longer a good option, as many other alternatives manage the residuals.

There are primarily two types of residues from rice cultivation that have potential in terms of energy—straw and husk. Although the technology of using rice husk is thoroughgoing in many Asian countries, paddy straw, as of now, is rarely using as a source of renewable energy. One of the principal reasons for the major use of husk is its easy procurement, i.e., it is possible at the rice mills. Collecting paddy straw is tedious, and its availability is tedious during harvest time. The collection logistics improve through baling, but the fundamental equipment is expensive and buying it is uneconomical for farmers. So technologies should develop for the efficient use of a straw to commit for the high costs involved in straw collection.

Retaining stubble than burning or cultivating, protects the soil from erosion. It also preserves soil moisture and organic matter to retain crop production. This is mainly beneficial in dry areas or dry seasons. Stubble impact many things, including the passage of equipment, penetration, soil temperature, herbicide interactions, frost severity, pests, weeds and other problems. Burning is often used as a last way to manage heavy agricultural residuals. Stubble burning contributes to global warming to a great extent. About 39 million tonnes of paddy straw are burning yearly. In The Indian state of Punjab, rice farms burn about 7 to 8 million tons of leftover plant debris. Similarly, the total national annual emission for CO2 from crop residue burning is more than 64 times the total CO2 pollution emission in Delhi.

Why do farmers choose stubble burning?

Burning paddy straw residue has risen remarkably over the past twenty years. Despite the benefits of keeping the stubble, most of the farmers opt for heavy stubble burning for the following reasons:

• Ease of sowing and better establishment of tiny seeds like canola.
• To make the area most inappropriate for many types of pests.
• To manage certain weeds, mainly herbicide-resistant weed populations.
• Burning is the cheapest and easy way to remove stubble and control weeds.
• Reduced reliance on agricultural chemicals.
• Provides better weed control caused due to a more even spreading of herbicides and effective incorporation of pre-emergent herbicides.
• Less nitrogen tie-up -Nitrogen tie-up in cropping soils is only a temporary constraint as the immobilised N will be released through microbial turnover, mostly later in the crop season in spring.
• To some extent, it results in less frost damage to crops.
• By completely removing the stubble, only less inoculum is required for certain crop diseases.

Harmful effects of burning

• Atmospheric pollution and climatic changes:

Open stubble burning emits many toxic pollutants into the atmosphere, which contain harmful gases like methane, carbon monoxide etc. These gases contribute a lot to the formation of smog. Stubble burning emits delicate particulate matter at high levels, which concerns people’s health. These particles can get trapped inside the lungs, ultimately leading to lung cancer. Pollution from stubble burning significantly reduced lung function and was particularly harmful to people in the surrounding area.

• Effects on soil fertility and agricultural production:

Stubble burning affects soil fertility through the destruction of nutrients present in the soil.t also raises the soil temperature to about 42 °C, thus displacing or killing the essential microorganisms in the soil at a depth of about 2.5 cm. Thus successive fire destroys the soil’s fertility, resulting in the reduction of crop yields over time, and therefore growers have to rely on costly fertilisers.

• Effects on human health and mortality rates:

Many studies have established the vital role of air pollution in the rising health problems, especially among children, pregnant women, elderly persons, and people with pre-existing health issues. This hazardous chemical produced as a result of burning causes problems for skin and eyes irritation, severe neurological, cardiovascular, and respiratory diseases etc. Moreover, the first and primary target of toxic substances inhaled through the air causes respiratory system disorders, cancer, or even death in extreme cases. Continuous exposure to particulate emissions may lead to an elevated cardiovascular mortality rate.

Alternatives to burning heavy stubble

There are many valuable ways to manage stubble rather than burning it and causing pollution. Some of them are :

• Growers should focus on cutting heavy stubble and using it after harvest. This helps to shorten stubble, retain soil moisture and accelerate decomposition.
• Inter-row sowing allows stubble to be retained when crop rows are more than 22 centimetres wide.
• Growers may need to review stubble management decisions each year.
• Strategic removal of stubble-it is possible to lower stubble loads if they are likely to make problems with sowing, establishment or weed management. Legume and oilseed crops produce reduce stubble loads. Their inclusion in the rotation may help to manage the risk of stubble burning.
• Grazing-Small mobs of sheep in large paddocks often only reduce stubble loads in parts of the paddock.
• Bailing- It is possible to remove stubbles profitably after harvest by baling straw. Baled straw has been used in animal bedding, mushroom compost and livestock feed for some years. It has other potential uses, such as for bioenergy.

Since the pollution from stubble burning has become a concern, Khaitan bioenergy has found a way to extract ethanol from it, which is a valuable fuel. Thus proper stubble management is economically beneficial to farmers and can protect the environment from severe pollution.

Biofuel production and energy generation

Recently much progress has done in the usage of stubble for biofuel production. This applies to managing agricultural stubble, which promotes cleaner air and a greener environment by preventing the release of toxic emissions by burning and indirectly reducing the use of fossil fuel-based energy. India ultimately depends on imports for automobile fuel, spending massive amounts of money for obtaining and transporting into the country. A shift from fossil fuel energy to biofuel produced from agricultural stubble is a feasible alternative. Biofuels have recently been gaining global interest due to their lower carbon footprint than fossil fuels.

Most farmers in North India are unaware of these prolific alternatives and, therefore, consider burning the best option. This necessitates extensive awareness programs to enlighten the growers about the availability of economically feasible options and the combined effects of stubble burning.

In short, despite the federal and state government’s strict policies and legislation to ban the burning practices, the activity continues in many parts of northern India, especially in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. Nationalistic compliance with these strategies requires effective follow-up with timely and continuous tracking everywhere. The government should compel the pulp and paper production, bioenergy and power industries to use the crop stubble as a proportion of their raw materials. This will motivate the farmers as selling the stubble will generate additional income. So an immense awareness program is necessary to notify the farmers of the environmental and economic benefits of using alternative approaches for managing the crop stubble.