Rajasthan: IIT professor develops catalytic process for converting bio-oil into transport fuel

Bengaluru: An IIT professor has claimed to have developed a catalytic process using Rajasthani clay for converting bio-oil from organic waste into transport fuel at a considerably lower temperature, paving way for its mass production. The novel catalytic process with the use of Rajasthani clay has been developed by Professor Rakesh Kumar Sharma of IIT, Jodhpur’s Chemistry department, along with postdoctoral researcher Krishna Priya of the department. A catalyst is a substance which fastens a chemical reaction without taking part in it.

Sharma has developed many Rajasthani clay-based effective catalytic systems for difficult chemical processes under milder temperature conditions.