S. Jebaraj

Bio: S. Jebaraj is an academic researcher from Jubail Industrial College. The author has contributed to research in topics: Energy source & Renewable energy. The author has an hindex of 8, co-authored 12 publications receiving 1366 citations. Previous affiliations of S. Jebaraj include Anna University & King Khalid University.

A review on biodiesel production, combustion, emissions and performance

Abstract: This article is a literature review on biodiesel production, combustion, performance and emissions. This study is based on the reports of about 130 scientists who published their results between 1980 and 2008. As the fossil fuels are depleting day by day, there is a need to find out an alternative fuel to fulfill the energy demand of the world. Biodiesel is one of the best available sources to fulfill the energy demand of the world. More than 350 oil-bearing crops identified, among which some only considered as potential alternative fuels for diesel engines. The scientists and researchers conducted tests by using different oils and their blends with diesel. A vast majority of the scientists reported that short-term engine tests using vegetable oils as fuels were very promising but the long-term test results showed higher carbon built up and lubricating oil contamination resulting in engine failure. They concluded that vegetable oils, either chemically altered or blended with diesel to prevent the engine failure. It was reported that the combustion characteristics of biodiesel are similar as diesel and blends were found shorter ignition delay, higher ignition temperature, higher ignition pressure and peak heat release. The engine power output was found to be equivalent to that of diesel fuel. In addition, it observed that the base catalysts are more effective than acid catalysts and enzymes.

A review of energy models

Abstract: Energy is a vital input for social and economic development of any nation. With increasing agricultural and industrial activities in the country, the demand for energy is also increasing. Formulation of an energy model will help in the proper allocation of widely available renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, bioenergy and small hydropower in meeting the future energy demand in India. During the last decade several new concepts of energy planning and management such as decentralized planning, energy conservation through improved technologies, waste recycling, integrated energy planning, introduction of renewable energy sources and energy forecasting have emerged. In this paper an attempt has been made to understand and review the various emerging issues related to the energy modeling. The different types of models such as energy planning models, energy supply–demand models, forecasting models, renewable energy models, emission reduction models, optimization models have been reviewed and presented. Also, models based on neural network and fuzzy theory have been reviewed and discussed. The review paper on energy modeling will help the energy planners, researchers and policy makers widely.

Forecasting of Coal Consumption Using an Artificial Neural Network and Comparison with Various Forecasting Techniques

Abstract: The forecasting of energy consumption is essential for any country to study its future energy demand and to formulate necessary government policies. This article presents the formulation of forecasting models for the prediction of coal consumption in various sectors, such as domestic, transportation, power, and other sectors including the total coal consumption in India. A new system of forecasting a model based on the artificial neural network (univariate and multivariate) has been developed, which is a refinement on the classical time series models. The objective of the present work is to formulate the neural network model to forecast coal consumption and to compare it with the regression models. The forecast of total coal consumption in India for the years 2010, 2020, and 2030 was predicted to be 695,518, 890,143, and 1,594,844 thousand tons, respectively. The actual coal consumption data is used to validate the different forecasting models and it is found that the artificial neural network mo...

Renewable energy programmes in India

Abstract: With a strong industrial base and successful commercialisation of technologies in renewable energy, India is in a position today to offer state-of-the-art technology to other developing countries and is poised to play a leading role in the global movement towards sustainable energy development. India has a separate ministry to promote renewable energy sources, which has been named Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources (MNES). The ministry has different programmes, such as the solar energy programme, wind energy programme, bio-energy programme and small hydro programme. These renewable energy programmes are discussed in detail in this paper. The ministry has estimated the potential of solar, wind, bio-energy and small hydropower as 55 MW/Sq Km, 45 000 MW, 14 300 MW and 10 000 MW respectively. Out of these potential, the ministry has installed 191 MW, 2980 MW, 727 MW and 1693 MW through solar, wind, bio-energy and small hydro respectively. The country is aiming to install more renewable energy systems to contribute 25% of the total energy requirement by the year 2020.

An optimal energy allocation model using fuzzy linear programming for energy planning in India for the year 2020

Abstract: Development of an energy allocation model will help in the proper allocation of the energy sources in meeting the future energy demand in India. In this paper, an attempt has been made to develop a fuzzy-based linear programming optimal energy model that minimises the cost and determines the optimum allocation of different energy sources for the centralised and decentralised power generation in India. The potential, energy demand, efficiency, emission and carbon tax are used as constraints in the model. The model allocates the energy distribution pattern for the year 2020 in India. The results indicate that the energy distribution pattern would be 15 800 GWh (4%) from the coal-based plants, 85 400 GWh (20%) from the nuclear plants, 191 100 GWh (44%) from the hydro plants, 22 400 GWh (5%) from the wind turbine generators, 45 520 GWh (11%) from the biomass gasifier plants, 14 112 GWh (3%) from the biogas plants, 8400 GWh (2%) from the solid waste, 33 600 GWh (8%) from the cogeneration plants and 11 970 GWh (3%) from the mini-hydel plants, for the year 2020. A sensitivity analysis has been done to validate the OEAM model. This study will help in the formation of strategies for the effective utilisation of energy sources in India.

A comprehensive review on biodiesel as an alternative energy resource and its characteristics

Abstract: As the fossil fuels are depleting day by day, there is a need to find out an alternative fuel to fulfill the energy demand of the world. Biodiesel is one of the best available resources that have come to the forefront recently. In this paper, a detailed review has been conducted to highlight different related aspects to biodiesel industry. These aspects include, biodiesel feedstocks, extraction and production methods, properties and qualities of biodiesel, problems and potential solutions of using vegetable oil, advantages and disadvantages of biodiesel, the economical viability and finally the future of biodiesel. The literature reviewed was selective and critical. Highly rated journals in scientific indexes were the preferred choice, although other non-indexed publications, such as Scientific Research and Essays or some internal reports from highly reputed organizations such as International Energy Agency (IEA), Energy Information Administration (EIA) and British Petroleum (BP) have also been cited. Based on the overview presented, it is clear that the search for beneficial biodiesel sources should focus on feedstocks that do not compete with food crops, do not lead to land-clearing and provide greenhouse-gas reductions. These feedstocks include non-edible oils such as Jatropha curcas and Calophyllum inophyllum , and more recently microalgae and genetically engineered plants such as poplar and switchgrass have emerged to be very promising feedstocks for biodiesel production. It has been found that feedstock alone represents more than 75% of the overall biodiesel production cost. Therefore, selecting the best feedstock is vital to ensure low production cost. It has also been found that the continuity in transesterification process is another choice to minimize the production cost. Biodiesel is currently not economically feasible, and more research and technological development are needed. Thus supporting policies are important to promote biodiesel research and make their prices competitive with other conventional sources of energy. Currently, biodiesel can be more effective if used as a complement to other energy sources.

Optimization methods applied to renewable and sustainable energy: A review

Abstract: Energy is a vital input for social and economic development. As a result of the generalization of agricultural, industrial and domestic activities the demand for energy has increased remarkably, especially in emergent countries. This has meant rapid grower in the level of greenhouse gas emissions and the increase in fuel prices, which are the main driving forces behind efforts to utilize renewable energy sources more effectively, i.e. energy which comes from natural resources and is also naturally replenished. Despite the obvious advantages of renewable energy, it presents important drawbacks, such as the discontinuity of generation, as most renewable energy resources depend on the climate, which is why their use requires complex design, planning and control optimization methods. Fortunately, the continuous advances in computer hardware and software are allowing researchers to deal with these optimization problems using computational resources, as can be seen in the large number of optimization methods that have been applied to the renewable and sustainable energy field. This paper presents a review of the current state of the art in computational optimization methods applied to renewable and sustainable energy, offering a clear vision of the latest research advances in this field.

Effect of biodiesel on engine performances and emissions

Abstract: As a renewable, sustainable and alternative fuel for compression ignition engines, biodiesel instead of diesel has been increasingly fueled to study its effects on engine performances and emissions in the recent 10 years. But these studies have been rarely reviewed to favor understanding and popularization for biodiesel so far. In this work, reports about biodiesel engine performances and emissions, published by highly rated journals in scientific indexes, were cited preferentially since 2000 year. From these reports, the effect of biodiesel on engine power, economy, durability and emissions including regulated and non-regulated emissions, and the corresponding effect factors are surveyed and analyzed in detail. The use of biodiesel leads to the substantial reduction in PM, HC and CO emissions accompanying with the imperceptible power loss, the increase in fuel consumption and the increase in NOx emission on conventional diesel engines with no or fewer modification. And it favors to reduce carbon deposit and wear of the key engine parts. Therefore, the blends of biodiesel with small content in place of petroleum diesel can help in controlling air pollution and easing the pressure on scarce resources without significantly sacrificing engine power and economy. However, many further researches about optimization and modification on engine, low temperature performances of engine, new instrumentation and methodology for measurements, etc., should be performed when petroleum diesel is substituted completely by biodiesel.