NSI, IISR to work jointly on making tech for ethanol prodn

Kanpur: National Sugar Institute (NSI), Kanpur and Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research (IISR), Lucknow will jointly work on developing technology for production of second generation, 2G ethanol so as to enable country to meet its requirement of ethanol blending in petrol. The country will require about 10,000 million liters of ethanol for blending it @20% in petrol by 2025. For the purpose, IISR director Dr Rasappa Vishwanath visited NSI on Wednesday and discussed the matter with Narendra Mohan, Director, and other scientists of the institute. The two institutes aim to develop a low cost technology for production of ethanol from bagasse, which otherwise is used mainly as fuel for burning in boilers. “Sugar factories, even after meeting their own requirements save about five million metric ton of bagasse per annum which can be utilized for production of ethanol. For the purpose, the cellulose present in the bagasse is to be converted into ethanol and therefore apart from 2G, it is also known as cellulosic ethanol,” said Narendra Mohan. “We will extend our studies on other abundantly available cheap raw materials and waste viz. wheat straw, rice straw and cotton stalk etc. too as utilization of these material in such a manner will also help in solving issues related to pollution due to stubble burning,” he added. 2G ethanol production technologies have faced lot of challenges to be economically and technologically viable despite more than 100 pilot plant and tens of demonstration and commercial plant commissioned globally. Together, we aim to work out technology requiring lower capital and operational cost so as to ensure lower cost of production and making units viable, said Director, Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research.

NSI director gets gold medal at sugar convention

Scientists from the National Sugar Institute in Kanpur have been recognized for their innovative work in developing new techniques and products from by-products of the sugar industry. The awards were presented during the Sugar Technologists Association of India's annual convention in Thiruvananthapuram. Professor Narendra Mohan and Shalini Kumari were awarded the Noel Deerr Gold Medal for their successful development of Silica Nano Particles from boiler ash. Additionally, Professor Mohan, Mahendra Yadav, and Amresh Pratap Singh received the Bansi Dhar Gold Medal for their technology that will lead to significant fuel savings.

Explained: How does blockchain technology work?

Blockchain technology is a decentralized system that uses a network of computers to record and validate transactions. Transactions are grouped into blocks, each with a unique identifier. The blockchain is secure and resistant to manipulation, as altering one block would affect the entire chain. It offers transparency, as transactions are visible to anyone on the network. Blockchain also enables the execution of smart contracts, programmable agreements that automatically execute when conditions are met. It has applications in industries like supply chain management, healthcare, finance, and voting systems.

IIT Council, US association tie up to form research institute

The IIT Council, on behalf of higher educational institutes in India, has signed an MoU with the Association of American Universities (AAU) to establish the Indo-US Global Challenges Institute. With an initial seed fund of $10 million, the institute aims to address economic, environmental, and technological challenges that can impact the security and prosperity of both countries. The institute will be a virtual network of partner universities and will focus on areas such as sustainable energy, health, semiconductor technology, advanced materials, telecommunications, artificial intelligence, and quantum science. Several partnerships and research collaborations are also being formed between Indian and American institutes.