Ethanol from seaweed project to get a major boost

Ethanol from seaweed project to get a major boost with CSMCRI deciding to ramp up off-shore production

AHMEDABAD: The project of deriving ethanol, a bio-fuel for blending with petrol, from a seaweed is all set to get a major boost, with the Central Salt and Marine Chemical Research Institute (CSMCRI) deciding to ramp up off-shore production of the weed by manifolds.

The joint project of Council of Scientific & Industrial Research ( CSIR) and Ministry of New Renewable Energy (MNRE) is expected to give a major push to efforts in the country for producing ethanol from sources other than cash crops like sugarcane.

"We are planning to increase cultivation of ethanol producing seaweed - Kappahycus alvarezi- say in a few hectares of area about 5 to 10 km's inside sea with the help of over 1,000 bamboo rafts," CSMCRI director Dr Pushpito Ghosh told PTI.