The non-renewability, ecological issues and health dangers related to the nonrenewable fuel sources has led to exploration of alternative sources of energy to replace the conventional ones. An appealing innovation, still in its infancy, that might show us the way to the future ahead is Biodiesels. Biodiesels are diesel fuels obtained from grease or animal-fat that might be used to run diesel engines. Vegetables oils like sunflower, rape seed, palm oil, soya bean, Jatropha and so on can be subjected to oil processing to produce biodiesels. It includes no petroleum however can be blended with petroleum diesel for use or could be utilized in its pure kind.

Developed countries specifically United States and European Countries have actually already made substantial advances in the Biodiesel Technology. Biodiesel have actually found its use throughout industries and verticals and might become an ideal cleaner and cheaper alternative to fuel, diesel and fossil fuels. India has actually also started exploring the chances to produce and utilize bio-diesel. A number of plants for biodiesel transesterification are currently in the nation where vegetable oils are reacted with alcohols (ethanol or methanol normally) to produce bio-diesel.

The main factor for the increasing demand for biodiesels is the reality that biodiesels are eco-friendly and carbon-neutral, therefore having no net effect on the climate. Besides, bio-diesel operates in compression engines simply like regular petroleum diesel and thus can be used with little or no engine adjustments. Biodiesel do not need any separate facilities for its storage and can be saved similar to the petroleum based fuels.

Considering the growing energy need in the nation, increasing petroleum prices and the ecological threats of nonrenewable fuel sources, the Indian Government has used up initiatives to establish the Bio Diesel Technology in India and set up more oil processing units. The Government announced its 'National Biofuel Policy' on 12 September 2008 which intends to satisfy 20% of India's diesel need with bio-fuels in the coming years.

Globally, edible veggie oils like sunflower, soya bean, rape seed, palm oil are utilized as the pre-dominant basic materials for oil processing and biodiesel production but in India the optimal capacity to produce biodiesels is from jatropha curcas oil - a non-edible one produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas. The biggest advantage of utilizing jatropha curcas as a raw product is that this plant can be grown in big quantities in wastelands all throughout India needing very little water in contrast to other money crops. Once grown, the plant has a useful life-span of numerous years. The jatropha curcas seeds consist of 40% oil and are considered to be an excellent source of bio-diesel. The Government of India has identified 400,000 square kilometres of land ideal for the Jatropha growing in the country. India now

A study estimates that even if a mixing effort of 2% Jatropha based Biodiesel is achieved in 2011-12, India will save around Rs. 3000 crores. Besides, it will produce around Rs. 5500 crores in the rural economy and aid in reduction of Green House Gas emission by 3 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) every year. The government is taking steps to encourage the cultivation of jatropha curcas in India providing free seeds, subsidized loans and other facilities. India needs to now enhance its efforts to make the maximum use of the Biodiesel Technology. Besides Jatropha, the avenues for extracting biodiesel from vegetable oils, fats, sunflower, rape seed oil and palm oil should also be explored. It will not only supply an answer to the difficulty of Global Warming however could decrease our dependence on foreign oil and contribute to our own economy.