Cogeneration of Heat and Electricity from Biomass in India: Current Status and Future Challenges

Energy generation from waste or residual biomass has gained significant importance in light of the ongoing “biomass carbon neutrality” debate. Seasonal agro-residue biomass by-products meet the standard of carbon neutrality because emission burden from such by-products is very minimal or almost zero from a life cycle prospective. Development of advanced and efficient technology such as cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) to tap the energy potential of residual biomass is crucial. Cogeneration is a process in which energy is recovered from by-products for simultaneous production of process heat and power to generate electricity. Studies around the world have demonstrated sugar mill cogeneration as an attractive low-cost power option. India is the world 2nd largest producer of sugarcane, and many sugar mills in the country are traditionally using sugarcane bagasse cogeneration technology for heat and power. Moreover, many Indian states have surplus biomass and bio-wastes especially in the form of agricultural residues and are capable to implement biomass-based cogeneration. However, a majority of them have failed to properly utilize the resources for cogeneration and, therefore, actual generation is far below than potential. The present study explores the biomass and bio-wastes potential for power generation in India and the technologies adopted with particular focus on cogeneration. We observed high biomass potential in India, but variation in the tariff of biomass-based power among the states is a major hindrance for the Indian biomass power sector. The government programmes/policies have a major role to play in enhancing the growth of biomass-based technologies in the states with high biomass resources potential. We recommend a precise, up-to-date biomass database down to the scale of village level and complete knowledge of the existing and state-of-the-art technologies for the success of biomass power in India. Selection of the appropriate technology to suit a particular biomass fuel(s) for a given geographical location is also important.

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