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MrunalExplained:BharatEmissionstandards&SaumitraChaudhuriCommittee

Mrunalhttp://mrunal.org

[Pollution]BharatEmissionStandards,Saumitra
ChaudhuriCommittee,AlternativeFuelsPros&Cons
PostedByMrunalOn28/06/2014@12:06amInEnvironment|81Comments

Timeline:VehicleemissioncontrolinIndia
WhatisBharatemissionstandards?
SulfurleadcontentvsBharatnorms:
WhyadditionalLevyonpetrol/diesel?
BharatStandards:limitations
FlashpointinDiesel
AlternativeFuels
#1:Methanol
#2:Ethanol
#3:Hydrogenfuel
#4:CNG:CompressedNaturalgas
#5:LPGLiquefiedPetroleumgas
#6:Hybridandelectricvehicles(HEV)
Suggestionstoreducetailpipepollution
MockQuestions:
Correctanswers
Timeline:VehicleemissioncontrolinIndia
1991

VehicleemissionnormsintroducedinIndia

1999

SCordergovernmenttointroduceEuronormslikepollutioncontrolregime.

2000
onwards
2003
2005
2010

BharatStateemissionstandardIintroduced.
Dr.R.A.MashelkarCommitteedraftedAutoFuelPolicy.
RecommendedadoptingBharatstage3andstage4fuelstandards.
AutoFuelPolicy2003implemented.
Bharat3standardsintroducedin13majorcities.
By2010entireIndiaunderBharatstage3.
PetroleumministryhadsetupSaumitraChaudhuriCommitteeforAutofuelvision
policy2025

Dec2012 Saumitraiswasamemberofplanningcommission.(notanymorebecause
Montek&Co.gaveresignationtoModi)

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2014,

SaumitraChaudhrigaverecommendations.Henceinnews.

May

WhatareBharatemissionstandards?

Euronormsdefinethemaximumlimitofpollutantthatavehiclecanemit.(CO2,nitrogen
oxide,sulfurandsuspendedparticulatematter)
Ifvehicleemitsmorethanthislimit,itcannotbesoldinEurope.
InIndia,wefollowEuronormsunderthelabelBharatstagenorms.wearegradually
implementingtheminmoreandmorecities

higherstagemeanslessemission(justforreference,exact
numbersnotimportantforexam)
EuronormBharatStage limitofRSPM* Indiaimplementsfrom
I(1)

0.14

2000:nationwide

II(2)

0.08

2005:nationwide

III(3)

0.05

2010:nationwide
2010:

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0.025

2011:7cities
2014:24morecities#
2017:(AllIndia)#

V(5)

0.005

2022(AllIndia)#

VI(6)

0.0025

after2024(AllIndia)#

#asperSaumitraCommitteerecommendation.
*Respirablesuspendedparticulatematter(RSPM)

SulfurleadcontentvsBharatnorms:
Toreduceemissionfromvehicle,wevetofitcatalyticconverter,particulatefilter,&other
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fancydevicesinitsexhaustionsystem.
Butthechemicalcatalystsinsuchdevicesgetimmobilizedinpresenceoflead/sulphur.
Therefore,fuelshouldhaveminimalquantityofleadandsulfur.Else,youllhavetoreplace
thosefancydevicestoooften.
Lead:wearealreadysellingleadfreepetrol.Sinceyear2000onlyleadfreepetrolsoldin
India.
sulfur:theBharatnormsgivefollowinglimits:
year

particlespermillion(ppm)indiesel

present(BS3) 350
2017(BS4)

50(alreadydoneinBS4cities)

2020(BS5)

10

WhyadditionalLevyonpetrol/diesel?
ToimplementBharatnorms,wevetodotwothings:
ToVehiclemanufacturers

ToOilrefineries

Youvefitcatalyticconverter,particulatefilter&other

Youproducefuelwithlesssulfur,

fancygadgetsintheengine.Thiswilldecreasesoot&

olefin&otherimpurities.

pollutants.

(especiallyforBharatstage5)

ok,Notaproblembecausethesecompaniesalreadyfitting Problembecauserefinershaveto
suchequipmentsinengine,beforeexportingvehiclesto

buymachinesandtechnology

Europe.(duetohigherlevelEurostandards)

worthRs.~80,000crore.

Governmentcanarrangecashforrefineries,byimposing75Paisespecialfuelupgradation
cessonPetrolandDiesel.(saysSumitraCommittee)
SendthiscashtoOilIndustryDevelopmentBoard(OIDB)
Then,OIDBwillupgradetherefineriestoBharatstage4and5.
Previously,recallFamouslawyerHarishSalvereportedtosupremecourtandaskedfor30%
cessonprivatedieselvehicles.andthatmoneyshouldbeusedforimplementingBharatstage
5and6.
Taxation:Misc.recommendations
Importdutyshouldbe0%onbothLNGandcrudeoil.
StatesVATshouldbereducedonCNGsale(topromoteCNGvehicles)

BharatStandards:limitations
FourrefineriesintheNorthEastGuwahati,Digboi,NumaligarhandBongaigaontheir
equipmentoutdated,cannotproduceBS4,BS5qualityfuels.
GovernmentdesignatedonlyafewcitiesunderBS4standards.BS4vehiclesmore
expensivethanBS3.HencepublicbuysBS3vehiclesfromperipheraltownstoevade
registrationtaxes.
BS3fuelischeaperthanBS4fuel.
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Onoldervehicles,weneedtofitcatalyticaftertreatmentdevicestoreducetheiremission.
Butgovernment&publicnotpursuingthisprojectenthusiastically.
Ourdieseltopetrolusageratioisalmost(4.5):1hencemorepollution.Thisratioislowin
USA,EuropeandJapan.

FlashpointinDiesel
Itisthelowesttemperatureatwhichafuelstartsturningintovapor(whichwilllaterignite)
Flashpointofdieselissetat35degreeC.(underbothBS3andBS4.)
Somejournalistarguethat35degreeistoodangerous.BecauseinIndia,temperatureoften
above40degreecelcius(EvenEUhasflashpointlimit55C,despitehavingcoldclimate.)
Sumitrarejectsthishypothesis,becauseeventropicalcountrieslikeBrazilandArgentina
havelowerflashpoints.Thetemperatureinandaroundtheengineofthevehicleiswellover
100Cmuchabovethehighestflashpointprescribedanywhereintheworld.Hence35
degreeflashpointdoesntautomaticallymeanexplosion.

Misc.termsfromhisreport
Olefin

Theseareunsaturatedalkanes.Weneedtoreducetheirquantityinfuel,to
reducepollution.

Cetane

Itisameasureofdieselquality.Lowerthecetanenumber,dieselwillproduce

number

moresmoke.

AlternativeFuels

Overall,Saumitrareportisthreethings
Bharatnorms:implementingnextstage
taxationissues
Alternativefuelsforreducingpetrolanddieselconsumption.Here,hegiveprosandconsof
eachalternative.

#1:Methanol
Goodpoints

Badpoints
Methanolhasahightoxicityinhumans.

Methanolisreadilybiodegradableinbothaerobic

Even10mlpuremethanolcancause

(oxygenpresent)andanaerobic(oxygenabsent)

permanentblindness.(recallthosehooch

environments.

liquorvictims)

isanalternativefuelforinternalcombustion

Methanolfireburnsinvisibly,whilepetrol

engines

burnswithavisibleflame.

Canbeuseddirectlyorbyblendingwithpetrol

Sodifficulttodetectmethanolfire

Usedinracingcarsinmanycountries,evenin

hazard.

China.

Puremethanoliscorrosivetoengineand
fuellines

Mrunalnotes:Additionalpros,consandfactscanbegatheredforeachalternativefuelvia
googlebooks,Britannicaetc.butthenarticlewillbecome5mileslongandwilltakeanother
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fivedaystofinish.Andyetthereisnoguaranteethatitllhavesufficientfactstosolvea
possibleUPSCMCQ!Therefore,IveconfinedmyselfonlytothefactsmentionedinSaumitra
report,nothingbeyondthat.Butyourefreetodigthroughallangles.

#2:Ethanol
isanorganicsolvent
Ethanolitselfburnscleanerandburnsmorecompletelythanpetrol.
EthanolcanbederivedfromSugarcanejuiceandmolasses.
Molassesisthebyproductwhensugarcanejuiceconvertedtosugar.
TimelineofEthanolblendingprograminIndia
2001 GovernmentpermittedaddingEthanolinpetrol.PilotprojectinUttarPradesh.
2006 5%EthanolBlendedPetrol(EBP)beganinmoststates,exceptJKandNorthEast.
Nationalbiofuelpolicy.Nowoilcompaniesrequiredtoblendatleast5%ethanolwith
2008

petrol.
Butprojectmostly#EPICFAIL.Mostcompaniesnotblendingmorethan2%ethanol,
becauseethanolnoteasilyavailableatreasonableprice.

2017 SumitraCommitteeproposed20%ethanolblendingby2017
Casestudy:Brazilsethanolblendingprogram
Startedinmid70s
Theircarenginesdesignedsuchway,theyuseevenupto18%ethanolblending.(Exact
figuresnotimportantbutforMCQtheexaminermaytwiststatementsayingcarengine
cannotrunproperlyifethanolblendingmorethan10%thenyoushouldknowitisan
incorrectstatement.)

#3:Hydrogenfuel
Badpoints:
Costofhydrogenpipelineis15xtimesmoreexpensivethanaCNG/LPGpipeline.
Hence,onlyfewareasofUSAhavehydrogenpipeline.
Intheentireworldhardly200hydrogenrefilingstationsby2013.(rank:N.America>Asia>
SouthAmerica)
Hydrogenburnswithcolorlessodorlessflame,hencehardtodetectleakage.

HydrogenVision2020(GIFT)
MinistryofNewandRenewableEnergy(MNRE)sGreenInitiativesforFutureTransport(GIFT)
Ithasvision2020forHydrogen.
Aim:sellHydrogenatcostof6070perkg
Buildpipelinesandrefillingstationsforhydrogenfuel.
Getatleast1lakhhydrogenvehiclesonIndianroad
Safetyregulation,lawsandcodes.

#4:CNG:CompressedNaturalgas
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Favor

Against
CNGfillingstationrequiresmoreinvestment

CNGemitsfarlesspollutantsthanpetrolor
diesel

thanpetrolpump.
PublicnotreadytobuyCNGkits/vehicles

CNGdoesnthavecarcinogenslikeBenzene. because
SuccessstoryinDelhiandMumbaiCNG
publictransport.

LackofCNGfillingstationsinmanyhighways.
PricedifferencebetweenCNGvspetrol/dieselnot
thatbig.

#5:LPGLiquefiedPetroleumgas
LPGispredominantlypropaneandbutane.Propaneconstitutes3099%.
LPGcanbederivedfrom.
refiningcrudeoil
naturalgas
Hencenoriskofsinglesourcedependence
LPGisgloballysurplusbecauseofNaturalGasproduction.
Insomecountries,LPGiscalledAutoGasandusedintaxise.g.Korea,Turkey,Russia,
PolandandItaly.
Goodpoints
emitsfarlesspollutantsthanpetrolordiesel
UnlikeCNG,theLPGdoesnotrequireelaborategas
gridnetworkorcompressorstationatrefueling
stations.
Therefore,LPGrefillingstationcanbeopenedwith
lessinvestment.Cheaperinlongrun.

badpoints
Today,costperkmforLPGcaris
almostequalspetrolcar.
Sothereisnocostadvantagetomake
publicshiftfrompetrolcarstoLPG
cars.

#6:Hybridandelectricvehicles(HEV)
HEVshavebothinternalcombustion(runningonpetrol)andelectricity.
BothUSAandChinaplanningtoadd15millionnewHEVvehiclesby2020.
Indiashouldalsoworkonthis.Moredetailsinoldarticleclickme

Suggestionstoreducetailpipepollution

Listnotexhaustive.Iveliftedonlyafewnontechnical,easytomemorizepointsfromhis
report.

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BEE(Bureauofenergyefficiency)labelsonvehiclestoshowtheirfuelefficiency.
WeneedtoreplacetheexistingPUCsystemtoamorereliablecomputerizedsystem.
Weneedtolinkvehicleinsurancewithpollution.(i.e.higherpollutionvehicleshouldbe
orderedtopayhigherpremiumforsamecoverage)
Givesubsidy,taxbenefittovehicleownerstoretrofittheirengineswithnewlyemission
controldevices
Imposehighertaxesonoldvehicles,becausetheyemitmoregases.
MoretaxondieselguzzlingSUVcars.
Lesstaxonhybridcars,CNGvehicles.
Usechemicalmarkerstodetectadulterationofdiesel/petrolwithkerosene.Makeoil
companiesresponsibleforfuelqualityattheirstation.

MockQuestions:
Correctstatements
Q1.PetroleumministryhadsetupSaumitraChaudhariCommitteefor___.
DieselsubsidypricinginIndia
PetroltaxationinIndia
ImplementationofBharatstage4norms.
Autofuelvisionpolicy2025
Q2.Supposetwocarsareofidenticalsizeandbody.OneproducedIndiaandanotherin
Europe.Whichofthefollowingis/arecorrect:

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EuroIVcarcauseslesspollutionthanBharatVcar.
EuroIIIcarcausesmorepollutionthanBharatIIIcar.
BothAandB
NeitherAnorB
Q3.Atpresent,everycityofIndiaisunder___norm.
BharatstageVIorhigher
BharatstageIIofhigher
BharatstageIIIorhigher
BharatstageIVorhigher
Q4.TocomplywithhigherlevelBharatnorms,oilrefineriesneedtoproducedieselwithless
sulphurcontentbecause
Itisanairpollutant
Itdeactivatesthecatalystsinparticulatefilter&otheremissionreductiondevicesfittedinthe
vehicles.
BothAandB
NeitherAnorB
Q5.Considerfollowingstatementsaboutflashpoint:
Flashpointisthetemperatureatwhichfuelcatchesfire.
Indiandieselhasflashpointof35degreecelcius.
Highertheflashpoint,lessdangerousthefuel.
Correctstatement
Only1and2
Only2and3
Only1and3
Noneofthem
Q6.Considerfollowingstatements
Toimprovethequalityofpetrolanddiesel,refinerieswillhavetoaddOlefinintothemfrom
BharatstageIVonwards.
DieselwithhigherCetanenumberisconsideredtobeoflowerquality.
Nationalbiofuelpolicy2008requiresOilrefineriestoblendatleast5%ethanolwithpetrol.
Incorrectstatementsare
Only1and2
Only2and3
Only1and3
Noneofthem
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Q7.ConsiderfollowingstatementsaboutMethanol
PureMethanolcanbeusedintreatmentofretinalglaucoma
Methanolisbiodegradableinaerobicenvironmentbutnotinanaerobicenvironment.
Inmanycountries,methanolisusedasafuelinracecars,includingChina.
Incorrectstatementsare
Only1and2
Only2and3
Only1and3
Noneofthem
Q8.Considerfollowingstatements
CNGisnotasafefuelbecausecontainstracesofcarcinogenssuchasBenzeneinvaporform.
Inthewholeworld,NorthAmericahashighestnumberofHydrogenrefillingstations
Purehydrogenfuelburnswithblueflamehenceprovideshighestamountofenergyperkg,
thananyotherfuel.
Incorrectstatementsare
Only1and2
Only2and3
Only1and3
Noneofthem

Mains
GeneralStudiesMainspaper3Syllabustopic:EnvironmentalPollution.
WriteanoteonthesalientrecommendationsofSaumitraChaudharyCommitteeonauto
fuels(200words).
WhatisIndiasHydrogenVision2020?(100words)
Whatarealternativefuels?WhyisitimpracticaltoadoptmostoftheminIndia?(200words).
WhatisBharatStageemissionstandards?Discussthechallengesintheirimplementation.
(200words).
Tominimizevehicularpollution,Bharatnormsalonearenotsufficient.Comment.(200
words).

Correctanswers
Cautofuelvisionpolicy
Dneithercorrect.BecauseBothEuroandBharatnormsaresame.Andhigherstagemeans
lesspollution.
CBharatStage3orhigher
Cbothreasonscorrect
Bonly2and3correct.
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A1and2wrong.Olefincausesmorepollution.Highercetaneisbetterquality.
A1and2wrong.Methanolitselfcancauseblindnesseveninminutequantity,howcanyou
treatglaucomawithit!Secondstatementisalsowrong.
C1and3wrong.CNGdoesnthavebenzeneandhydrogenflamecolorless.

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URLtoarticle:http://mrunal.org/2014/06/pollutionbharatemissionstandards
saumitrachaudharicommitteealternativefuelsproscons.html
Copyright2014Mrunal.Allrightsreserved.

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