Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) are working on a green technology to recycle rice waste to make raw materials for industrial applications.
The technology will provide an additional source of income for farmers, as rice waste can be used to produce power devices that can be used by industry. This approach can make a key contribution to reducing stubble burning and other agricultural waste burning in North India.
The researchers are fostering a new ‘agricultural energy synergy’ through their work with organic waste, particularly kitchen waste, to develop usable activated carbon, a key component in making supercapacitors. Supercapacitors made from activated carbon produced from rice waste offer many benefits to consumers in the electronics, power and agriculture sectors and can help develop self-sufficiency in the field of supercapacitors. Self-sufficiency with respect to supercapacitors and supercapacitor-based energy storage technology will improve IP generation and employment within the country.
Currently, the amount of rice waste generated is 76 million metric tons per year in India. Farmers consider that burning the straw is the most economical and efficient alternative to leaving the straw on the ground. This causes substantial pollution and serious ecological problems. Furthermore, burning reduces the potential utilization of the biomass. The estimated loss for India alone is around Rs 92,600 crore.
Researchers at IIT Madras have already demonstrated the conversion of biomass biowaste (such as plant residues) into activated carbon and used it to make supercapacitor electrode material. The technology can be adapted to make rice waste suitable for the production of activated carbon. The future plan is to use the approach being followed to make activated carbon and explore production scales.
Mahesh Panchagnula, Dean (Alumni & Corporate Relations), IIT Madras, said, “Agriculture remains at the heart of India’s economy. This innovative technology that converts biomass, such as rice waste, into activated carbon, will have a significant influence on our health, the environment and the economy.”
Explaining the key benefits of this technology, Tiju Thomas, Associate Professor, Department of Metallurgy and Materials, IIT Madras, said: “The solution we are identifying is a well-defined process. It will enable the conversion of the country’s rice waste into commercial standard carbon material and the use of the activated carbon to make supercapacitors that meet the market standard. The material will be implemented in the form of a suitable hybrid energy storage device based on a supercapacitor.”