IISc, IndianOil R&D sign MoU to develop affordable hydrogen fuel

Bengaluru, Oct 31 : The country’s premier research institute, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), and the Research and Development Centre of Indian Oil Corporation Limited have entered into an agreement to develop biomass gasification-based hydrogen generation technology so as to produce affordably-priced fuel cell-grade hydrogen.
Under this MOU, IISc and IndianOil will work jointly on the optimisation of both biomass gasification and hydrogen purification processes. The developed technology will be scaled up and demonstrated at Indian Oil’s R&D Centre at Faridabad.
Hydrogen generated from this demonstration plant will be used to power fuel cell buses as part of a bigger project being conceived by Indian Oil towards ushering in the country’s hydrogen economy.
“The current initiative of producing fuel cell grade hydrogen from biomass is another step by Indian Oil together with the IISc, to bring hydrogen fuel into India’s mainstream energy matrix while utilising the agrarian strengths of the country,” Indian Oil Corporation’s Director (R&D) Ramakumar said after signing the MoU.
He added that the technology envisaged under this programme would not only provide a cleaner energy option for India but will also be a step towards addressing the challenge of biomass waste.
Ramkumar claimed that hydrogen is a promising clean and green alternative to conventional fossil fuels.