Workshop on biofuel production from agriculture waste commences

A two-day training workshop on "biofuel production from agriculture waste" started at Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi (PMAS-AAUR) here on Tuesday. The workshop is jointly organised by the Department of Biochemistry PMAS-AAUR in collaboration with Higher Education Commission (HEC) Islamabad with the objective to strengthen the knowledge of existing scientific manpower and impart practical training on different biofuel production techniques.
The workshop will also provide opportunities for collaborative research initiatives and identify and expose important biofuels issues. The main topics being discussed in two days workshop are Bioethanol Technology, Biodiesel Technology, Biotechnology and Industrialisation Food Security Threats, Pre-treatment Technologies, Fermentation Technologies and Agricultural Waste, as a source of energy.
On the first day of the workshop the speakers delivered lectures on the importance and utilisation of Biofuel, Role of Biotechnology in the development of Industry, Agriculture wastes and Biofuel and Plant as a source of energy, which were followed by lab sessions.
They elaborated that production of an alternative and environment friendly fuel from agricultural waste will be helpful to reduce the prices of existing fossil fuel and also to minimise green house gases and to clean up environment of the country. In the practical session the participants got training on how the conversions of sugar from biomass, would be converted to the ethanol by using different techniques and how the available of fatty acid in the grain seed into biodiesel.
That would be quantified by using gas chromatography. Professor Dr Khalid Mahmood Khan, Vice Chancellor, PMAS-AAUR was the chief guest. Addressing on the occasion, he said biofuel has become very important in a global scenario because the energy requirements and human beings are increasing day by day and resources of energy production are becoming lesser and lesser.
He said Pakistan is an energy deficient country and therefore, it is pertinent that scientists should work on exploring new ways and methods for new energy sources. Through fossil fuel pollution, green house gases and other problems are increased but biofuel has an advantage that it has a sort of recycling process because first carbon dioxide is taken by the plant then it is used for the oil. But it is cheaper than the fossil fuel.