Pune Lab's Green Fuel Reactor: LPG Alternative Ready

A team of scientists at the CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory in Pune, led by Senior Principal Scientist Raja Thirumalaiswamy, has successfully developed a reactor and catalyst technology to produce Dimethyl Ether (DME). This innovation offers a sustainable alternative to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and has been in development since 2016. The technology has advanced from producing milligrams to 2500 kg per day, with a patent secured in 2019 for their unique catalyst.

Interest in this groundbreaking DME production technology has been substantial, with seven companies and four countries, including Finland and Ghana, approaching the laboratory. ONGC has committed to a partnership for producing 2.5 tonnes per day at its Hazira facility. The catalyst operates efficiently at lower temperatures and pressures, ensuring high purity and cost-effectiveness, and has been rigorously tested for over 15,000 hours.

Further innovations include cooking stoves designed to run on DME or LPG, with improved efficiency of 74.5% compared to ordinary stoves. Ordinary household stoves can also operate with up to 20% DME blended with LPG without modification. The certified technology has undergone due diligence from prominent organizations like IOCL Research and Development, Attrium Innovations, and ONGC, underscoring its reliability and potential impact on energy security.