Category: Environment

IIT Kharagpur discovers Isotopes in Fossil Trees from Deccan Trap Lavas that Indicate Wetter Future Due to Global Warming

 

Deccan Trap lava hills in Western Ghats (Left) and columnar basaltic lavas (Right) which erupted 66 million years back killing dinosaurs and most life on earth.

A team of scientists from IIT Kharagpur and Academia Sinica, Taipei have indeed found evidence of triple oxygen isotopes of intertrappean fossil woods that led to very high annual rainfall during the catastrophic volcanism of Deccan trap that erupted in India about 66 million years back. The eruption drove a major mass extinction killing nearly 80% of all species of animals including the Dinosaurs. The depleted values of the oxygen isotopes suggest a higher tropical rainfall (1600 mm/y) in island India during terminal Cretaceous period. The increase in rainfall and its waning in the early Palaeocene closely follows change in palaeo-atmospheric pCO2 suggesting a possible underlying link. The inferred rainfall increase is consistent with modern climate models and palaeobotanical evidence.

Prof. Anindya Sarkar
Department of Geology and Geophysics
IIT Kharagpur 

“The available records of the atmospheric CO2 concentration and temperature over both land and ocean during the time of Deccan Trap eruption were analyzed. This was a period of cataclysm. All around the central and western India, Deccan trap lavas were erupting spewing huge amount of CO2 from deep interior of the earth thus increasing the then atmospheric CO2 concentration to as high as 1000 ppm (parts per million). The land and ocean temperatures increased by ~13°C and ~4°C respectively. It was a hot earth and unbearable for life. The rainfall, both before and after this high CO2 concentrated earth was just as normal as today. This was an ancient analogue of what our future greenhouse earth could be,” said IIT Kharagpur’s Prof. Anindya Sarkar of Geology and Geophysics who led the research.

Fossil fuel emission has increased the CO2 from pre‐industrial level of 280 ppm to ~420 ppm in 2023. Climate models suggest that a doubling of CO2 will intensify the atmospheric circulation and consequently the rainfall. Many experts, however, believe that the climate change due to such fast rate of global warming is now irreversible and another mass extinction is just imminent, added Prof. Sarkar.

66 million year old fossil trees from the lake sediments within Deccan lava flows and microscopic photograph of vascular bundles in palm tree (left), and Scanning electron microscopic image of the cellular structures of fossil palm trees (right)

The 2023 AR6 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns if the CO2 emission and global warming continues unabated, annual wettest day precipitation will increase by manifold across all continents. Monsoonal precipitation associated with tropical cyclones over India will also increase by 40%. While these predictions are made through climate models, they can only be tested by studying the rainfall record in the past when the earth went through natural warming phase due to high CO2 emission.

The laser ablation system developed at IIT Kharagpur capable of analyzing ultra‐low quantity of rare isotopes of oxygen in silicate phases (shown by arrow)

 

“Deccan Traps are one of the most voluminous basaltic volcanic lavas erupted on Earth covering over 500,000 sq. km of the west‐central Indian subcontinent. We retrieved the past rainfall by analyzing oxygen isotopes in fossilized trees those grew around the lakes formed over the basaltic lavas of Deccan traps. It was as if an ancient forest was fossilized. These lakes were formed during the quiescent period between two successive lava flows. Known as intertrappeans, the sediments in these lakes contain abundant plant, frog and fish fossils. The trees were exceptionally well preserved and buried immediately after they fell in lake beds making them robust climate recorder,” added Prof. Sarkar.

Prof. Mao Chang Liang
Academia Sinica

“We studied very high magnification images of several palm trees from these lake sediments and found that their internal cellular structures are preserved just like modern trees,” said collaborator Prof. Mao Chang Liang from Academia Sinica.

There is considerable debate about the effect of future global warming on tropical precipitation. Interpretations from the global climate models differ due to an inadequate understanding of the processes controlling rainfall and associated feedback. The robustness of the predictions is also limited due to the lack of deep time data of precipitation in a high CO2 and warmer globe that existed in the geological past.

Sangbaran Ghoshmaulik
Ph.D Student
IIT Kharagpur

“Getting information about the past rainfall is tricky. We used a very novel and new technique of Laser beam as well as NanoSIMS (Nanoscale Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry) where the fossil trees were analyzed for all the three isotopes of oxygen namely, 16,17, and 18. The isotopes in the fossil trees record the isotopic composition of the lake water derived from rainfall. Analyzing isotopes of mass 17 is difficult since it occurs in extremely small quantity in natural materials. Globally there are only three or four laboratories those can reliably do this job. It took nearly four years for us to develop this method but once done the results were very startling” said Sangbaran Ghoshmaulik, a Ph.D student at IIT Kharagpur and the lead author of the paper.

The Cretaceous period represents an example of hot deep sea and land temperatures often exceeding 10 °C and 30 °C respectively and high CO2 earth. The intertrappean sediments deposited during the voluminous basaltic outpouring of end-Cretaceous Deccan volcanism in India provide a unique repository to infer the magnitude of tropical precipitation during an enhanced greenhouse period.

Prof. Sourendra Bhattacharya
Co‐author of the Paper
IIT Kharagpur

“Excepting the arid/semi‐arid regions, the modern annual rainfall over large part of peninsular India on an average is about 1000‐1200 mm. Our data suggested that these fossil trees recorded 1800‐1900 mm/year rainfall. This is exactly what the IPCC predicts in case of a future extreme 4oC warming of the planet,” said Prof. Sourendra Bhattacharya, a co‐author of the paper. The study has just been published online in prestigious Elsevier Journal Chemical Geology.

Link of the paper:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0009254123002991

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Contact person : Prof. Anindya Sarkar, Department of Geology and Geophysics, IIT Kharagpur
Email: sarkaranindya@hotmail.com

Edited By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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IIT Kharagpur Researchers Aids to Green Construction to Reduce Global Warming

Climate change and green and sustainable growth have found top most importance in India’s G20 presidency this year. Not only India, but all the leading economies have spoken in one voice on it. To revolutionize green construction, a team from IIT Kharagpur, Department of Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering, led by Prof. T.K Bhattacharyya, Scientist Dr. Jhimli Manna, Mr. Ayan Chatterjee, and Dr. Debmallya Das have developed and patented a Nano-Engineered Graphene derivative to reduce clinker factor from cement as well as concrete which can save the CO2 emission upto 25% annually. In addition, it will help to reduce the cost of cement production by approximately 2000 crore INR annually for the leading cement manufacturers whose annual production volume is 120 million tons. This is mainly achieved by reducing the cost incurred due to clinker production and energy consumption, with an added advantage of green taxation.

Cement Industry is the second major contributor of CO2 emission [8%] which leads to global warming with more than 4.4 billion tons produced every year, a number that is expected to grow to 5.5 billion by 2050. This is due to the clinker production which is the main component of strength for cement. But we cannot essentially remove the clinker as lower clinker means lower strength. Hence the major challenge in developing green cement for all cement companies across the globe lies in reducing the clinker without compromising the strength of cement.

 

Nano-Engineered Graphene derivative contains a unique product fingerprint which helps in physical removal of clinker, enhancing strength by 25%. It also reduces water to cement ratio leading to water conservation specially beneficial for water starved areas. The product can be easily produced in large scale, hence can be seamlessly integrated into the existing industrial process flow, downsizing energy consumption. The nanoengineered graphene reinforced cement and concrete reduces crack propagation, enhances durability and resilience with lesser curing time without disrupting the current operating process. It can cater to the need of PPC, OPC, and slag based cement industries. The researchers  have successfully reduced clicker in industrial setting by up to 25% without compromising strength.

“The CO2 emission during cement production increased steeply by 1.8% per year during 2015-2020. In this scenario, we must decarbonize its production to reduce the carbon footprint for a greener future and meet the commitment to deliver Net Zero Emission by 2050. Almost all the national and international cement producing giants have focused their efforts in developing green cement using different strategies. A few of them have used clinker reduction strategies but till date none of them have declared a cement composition with physically reduced clinker which is the need of the hour. In this scenario, this technology is a breakthrough in revolutionizing green construction,” remarked Prof. T K Bhattacharyya, who is the professor at Department of Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering, and head of Advanced Technology Development Centre, IIT Kharagpur.

Microelectronics and MEMS Laboratory
Department of Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering 
IIT Kharagpur

The production of cement is the most carbon-intensive part which involves using fossil fuels to heat a mixture of limestone and clay to more than 1,400  °C in a kiln. When limestone (calcium carbonate) is heated, roughly 600 kilograms of carbon dioxide is released for every ton of cement produced.

The product has already been validated from two places. Firstly, it is tested in laboratory at the Civil Engineering Department at IIT Kharagpur and then MVP has been validated at the industrial testing laboratories of one of the major cement producing companies. A patent has also been filed and published.

Media Coverage :

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Contact Person: Prof. Tarun Kanti Bhattacharyya, IIT Kharagpur
Email: tkb@ece.iitkgp.ac.in

By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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A Study on Rising Atmospheric Pollution in Rural India

Researchers from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur have found increasing atmospheric pollution in rural India using Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) measurements from satellites. Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath and Research Scholar Mansi Pathak of Centre for Ocean, River, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL) of IIT Kharagpur analysed the significant impact of urban pollution on the air quality of rural India by differentiating the pollution in two zones – rural and urban – and assessing the extent of air pollution in rural India. The researchers found that air pollution is not typically an urban phenomenon but can also affects the environment in rural perimeter. They conducted an analysis of the rural air quality to assess the extent of air pollution by measurements of NO2 through satellite imaging. The analysis carefully delineates the rural and urban regions of India, to examine the unheeded rural air pollution. Most air pollution assessments till date, discussed only the urban air quality issues. This analysis exposes increasing trends (0.05–0.44×1015molec./cm2/yr) of NO2 in the rural regions of India.

The study titled “Air Quality Trends in Rural India: Analysis of NO2 Pollution using Satellite Measurements,” highlights that rural sources account for 41 per cent of the overall NO2 pollution in India of which 45 per cent and 40 per cent are from transportation and power sectors, respectively. As the sources of NO2 are well coupled to the industrial and economic upliftment of a nation, the analyses for the rural regions show distinct seasonal changes with the highest value (2.0 1015 molecules per cm2) in winter and the lowest in monsoon (1.5 1015 molecules per cm2) seasons.

Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath
CORAL
IIT Kharagpur

“What we observe is that there is a decline in air quality in rural India in terms of our NO2 analysis, which is not beyond the threshold levels now, except in regions such as Delhi and suburbs and eastern India. However, given the positive trend in NO2 concentration, the high rate of urbanization and relocation of industries to suburbs, growing population and development activities, other regions of India would also cross the pollution threshold to impact the health of its people, and thus, our massive rural population. This is the real concern and it is the right time to take appropriate actions to control the atmospheric pollution in rural India,” explained Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath of CORAL, IIT Kharagpur. 

Air pollution is one of the biggest problems in India’s major cities. Comparison of pollutant-wise highest health risk values show that NO2 is about 19 times more harmful than Particulate Matter (PM) and about 25 times more risky than that of Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) . The population residing in the regions of high NO2 such as in the proximity of power plants, industries, cities, and in the areas above the permissible limit, are prone to be at high risk of adverse health effects such as asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia and cardiovascular diseases.

 Ms. Mansi Pathak
Research Scholar
IIT Kharagpur

Research Scholar, IIT Kharagpur and lead author of the paper, Ms. Mansi Pathak, stated, “We usually think the atmospheric pollution exists only in cities or it is just an urban threat. The air quality standards in rural regions are often neglected. However, our analysis suggests that it is high time to shift our focus to rural regions and examine the pollution levels and health issues of rural India. This is of paramount importance for a country like India, as rural areas have about 67 per cent of the country’s population (947 million) as of 2020 and public health today stands out to be the utmost priority globally.”

The indirect impact of NO2 on global climate change is not less with a net cooling effect attributed to the oxidation-fueled aerosol production.

Figure: The average concentration and long-term trends in atmospheric NO2 in India for the period 1997-2019.

High Nitrogen Oxide (NO) – which includes Nitric Oxide and Nitrogen Dioxide – levels in the troposphere can alter ozone formation, contribute to nitrate aerosol formation and acid deposition and affect regional climate.

Prof. Kuttippurath said though, other Indian rural regions are under permissible limits of CPCB, the increasing trends in NO2 would surpass the standards in future if no controlling measures are implemented, which is a serious concern.

This study suggests the need for taking action towards improving rural air quality to reduce the impact of air pollution on the large rural population of India. Although NO2 is a non-abundant gas, its indirect impact on global climate change is likely to be greater, with a net cooling effect attributed to the oxidation-fueled aerosol production. NOx levels in the troposphere can alter ozone formation, contribute to nitrate aerosol formation, and acid deposition and affect regional climate. The regions covered in this study are Indo-Gangetic plain, Central India, North-West India, Peninsular India, Hilly Region and North-East India where the authors analysed atmospheric NO2 concentration in different regions of India for the period 1997-2019.

Figure: Rural and urban atmospheric NO2 concentration in different regions of India for the period 1997–2019.

“Regulations similar to the Bharat Stage norms (for limiting vehicular emissions) need to be implemented in thermal power plants and industries located in both rural and urban regions, to restrict the overall NO2 pollution in rural India. Introducing new natural gas-fed power plants or using selective catalytic reduction (SCR) in older power plants can also reduce emissions, and thus, the NO2 pollution in rural India,” pointed out the researchers.

Publication Links: https://doi.org/10.1039/D2EM00293K

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Contact Person: Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath of CORAL, IIT Kharagpur
Email: jayan@coral.iitkgp.ac.in

Edited By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Devastating Aftermath of Cyclones

Isotope studies by IIT Kharagpur and Academia Sinica, Taiwan scientists shed light on how the cyclones sustain their energy.

Cyclones are increasingly becoming perilous to the coastal populations of the subcontinent. Climate change due to global warming, projects that the frequency of category 4 and 5 storms (60 to >70 m/s sustained wind speed) will be doubled by the end of the 21st century. However, the question remains: why some cyclones are devastating while others are not? What controls the intensity of cyclonic winds and rains? Cyclones are gigantic vortex, 500-700 km in diameter and 20 km in height, which form when sea surface temperature is higher than normal. They get their energy from evaporation of the underlying seawaters, forming spirally rotating rain bands around the centre called eye where the winds are strongest. The latent heat released during conversion of vapor to rain acts as fuel and the raining vortex moves on.  However, one critical question has been bothering scientists: what is the exact mechanism and the source that supply moisture to the cyclone? Is it evaporation alone from the sea beneath, or the pre-existing atmospheric vapors?

The scientists from IIT Kharagpur and Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan have found the exact mechanism and the source that supply moisture to the cyclones. The research analyses the devastating aftermath of cyclones in respect to Cycle Sitrang which made its landfall on Bangladesh on 25 October 2022 . The study indicates that the cyclone movement through the atmosphere continuously scavenges the existing vapour over the vortex cross-section much like a moving suction pump and provide the first experimental evidence of a theoretical model.

Prof. Anindyo Sarkar
Dept. of Geology & Geophysics
IIT Kharagpur

“West Pacific Ocean waters are the warmest in the world, producing nearly 30% cyclones of the world that routinely devastate Taiwan, China and Japan. There cannot be any better place to study the internal mechanism of these cyclones. In Chinese the cyclones are called ‘Typhoons’ (daaihfùng) meaning “great wind”. We have studied four such typhoons, named Nepartak, Meranti, Malakas and Megi of category 4/5, which devastated Taiwan in the year 2016. Billions of dollars of properties and lives were damaged in the due course which formed basis of this study. Our study indicates that the cyclone movement through the atmosphere continuously scavenges the existing vapour over the vortex cross-section much like a moving suction pump and provide the first experimental evidence of a theoretical model suggested by Russian atmospheric scientists,” said Sarkar” said Prof. Anindya Sarkar, Department of Geology & Geophysics and co-author of the research paper that has just been published in prestigious, ‘Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres of American Geophysical Union.’

Prof. Mao-Chang Liang
Academia Sinica
Taipei, Taiwan

“Flying experimental airplanes through the typhoons have been attempted but is pretty dangerous. To circumvent this, we placed a mass spectrometer on top of a tall building to continuously measure the isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen in the vapor as these typhoons approached Taiwan. This technique provided us real-time variation inside typhoons every ten minutes as it was raining and vapour compositions changed. Since both cyclone frequency and intensities are increasing due to on-going climate change, this observation will be very important while studying the tropical cyclones that recurrently hit both India and Taiwan/Japan region. It also opened up avenues for future collaboration between the two countries,” stated Prof. Mao-Chang Liang of Academia Sinica and the collaborator of the study.

Sourendra Bhattacharya,
Former Visiting Professor
IIT Kharagpur

Sourendra Bhattacharya, a former visiting Professor at IIT Kharagpur and the lead author of the paper cited,”Cyclones are extremely dynamic systems and rainfall as high as ~150 mm per hour is very common. As the cyclone moves, shedding of this enormous amount of rain causes a progressive reduction in the ratio of the isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen in the leftover vapor mass. We tracked this magnitude of reduction, calculated and modelled to see how much rains were scavenged by these moving cyclones.”

Typhoon Nepartak (left) and Megi (right) those devastated Taiwan in 2016 just like cyclone Amphan that struck Indian east coast in 2020 caused death, misery and destruction.

The mass spectrometer (right) that continuously measured isotopes on the top of Academia Sinica building (left) as the typhoons passed over.

Details of the paper: Vapor isotope probing of typhoons invading the Taiwan region in 2016 by S.K. Bhattacharya, Anindya Sarkar, Mao-Chang Liang. Journal of Geophysical Research Atmospheres, American Geophysical Union.

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2022JD036578

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Contact Person: Prof. Prof. Anindyo Sarkar, Department of Geology & Geophysics, IIT Kharagpur
Email: anindya@gg.iitkgp.ac.in

Edited By : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Effective Control Technologies to Reduce Sulphur Dioxide Pollution In India

FLUE GAS DESULPHURIZATION REDUCES SO2 POLLUTION IN INDIA

A study by a team of researchers from IIT Kharagpur led by Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath from Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL) found a significant decline in SO2 trends in India in the last decade, as compared to those in the previous three decades. The decrease in trend and concentration of SO2 is due to the environmental regulation and adaptation of effective control technologies such as scrubber and Flue Gas Desulphurization that shows the positive impact of technological advance and policy decisions to improve the air quality in India. The study represents temporal changes in SO2 concentrations over India in the past four decades (1980–2020). Thermal power plants (51%), and manufacturing and construction industries (29%) are the main sources of anthropogenic SO2 in India. The temporal analyses reveal that SO2 concentrations in India increased between 1980 and 2010 due to high coal burning and lack of novel technology to contain the emissions during that period. Both economic growth and air pollution control can be performed hand-in-hand by adopting new technology to reduce SO2 and GHG emission.

Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath
Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL)
IIT Kharagpur

“SO2 is an atmospheric pollutant and can be converted to sulfate aerosols in high humid conditions. These aerosols can affect cloud reflectively, rainfall and regional climate by modifying the radiative forcing.  At high concentrations, SO2 affects adversely on human health and ecosystem as well. Therefore, continuous monitoring of its abundance in the atmosphere is highly warranted, as these kind of analyses would help making the policy decisions related to emissions. This particular study is serving that purpose,” remarked Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath, Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL), IIT Kharagpur and the lead author of the study.

Sulphur dioxide (SO2) is one of the criteria pollutants that mainly released from the coal-based thermal power plants. At higher concentrations, it has hazardous affects on public health and environs. In this study, we find a significant decline in SO2 trends in India in the last decade, as compared to those in the previous three decades. The decrease in trend and concentration of SO2 is due to the environmental regulation and adaptation of effective control technologies such as Scrubber and Flue Gas Desulphurization showing the positive impact of technological advance and policy decisions to improve the air quality in India.

“Our analysis shows Indo-Gangetic Plain and Central and Eastern India regions as the SO2 hotspots in India. Although there is a relative reduction in SO2 in the last decade, the concentration of SO2 is still very high in these regions. Therefore, we need to continue our efforts to reduce SO2 emission in India, whether it is with innovative technology or environmental regulations,” said Vikas Kumar Patel, another author of the paper.

Fig 1: The SO2 trends in the last four decades in India. A rapid economic development in the 2001-2010 periods shows the largest trends among the decades. However, the recent decades with technological advance and environment policies help to reduce atmospheric SO2 concentrations and its trends.

An improved air quality monitoring network is needed to understand the spatial and temporal changes of pollutants, which would help to make policies relevant to improve air quality and to meet targeted reduction in emissions. The measurements and emissions in this study have uncertainities and are not computed in absolute figures. However, the trends computed are statistically significant across all Indian regions. Therefore, the findings have important implications for future environmental policies on India’s SO2 emissions and for understanding the impact of SO2 on regional climate, air quality, ecosystem dynamics, and public health. This study also provides a baseline for future studies that would critically examine changes in SO2 pollution as a result of the country’s socio-economic development.

“What we have found from our analysis is that, SO2 has been increasing in India for the past few decades, consistent with our economic development, but a declining trend in SO2 is found in the last decade (2010-2020). This is a good sign. The implementation of Bharat Stage norms on vehicular emissions, regulations for power plants to employ scrubber and FGD technologies, and policies encouraging the production of renewable energy may have contributed to this reduction in SO2 emissions,” added Prof. Kuttippurath.

Fig 2: Ground-based measurements also show reduction or stabilization of SO2 emissions; as shown for different cities here.

Due to rapid industrialization and urbanization in the past decades, India’s energy demand has been increased substantially with coal consumptions. The expansion of coal-based electricity generation in India is the primary cause of the country’s high emission. Although these help economic development of the country, the air pollution also increases along with it, which poses a health concern. Currently, India is one of the world largest emitters of SO2, accounting for more than 15% of global anthropogenic emissions. The situation warrants reduction SO2 emission in our country. However, majority of coal plants in India lack the Flue-Gas Desulfurization (FGD) technology necessary to adequately remove SO2 emissions. On the other hand, India’s power sector has seen an increase in renewable energy capacity, which would help to curb the pollution in India.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur stated, “India relies heavily on coal-based thermal power plants to meet its energy demands. Analysis of spatial and temporal changes in SO2 using accurate and continuous observations is required to formulate mitigation strategies to curb the increasing air pollution in India. Since 2010, India’s renewable energy production has also increased substantially when India adopted a sustainable development policy. The shift in energy production from conventional coal to renewable sources, solid environmental regulation, better inventory, and effective technology would help to curb SO2 pollution in India. India’s nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement includes achieving about 40% cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. This commitment would help to reduce the dependency on the coal-based energy, and also help to curb the SO2 pollution in the future.”

Publication Links:

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-21319-2

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Contact Person: Prof. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath, Centre for Oceans, Rivers, Atmosphere and Land Sciences (CORAL)
Email: jayan@coral.iitkgp.ac.in

Edited by : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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IIT Kharagpur Develops Affordable and Fast Charging E-Cycles with Na-ion based batteries.

IIT Kharagpur has developed Na-ion-based batteries and supercapacitors which can be used to develop affordable e-vehicles such as e-cycles and next-generation Na-ion-based energy storage.

A team of researchers from IIT Kharagpur led by Prof. Amreesh Chandra, Department of Physics have used nano-materials to develop Na-ion-based batteries and supercapacitors for next-generation Na-ion based energy storage technologies and their use in e-vehicles. The low-cost Na-ion-based technologies can be charged rapidly and are expected to reduce the cost of the e-cycles significantly. Under the ‘Materials for Energy Storage Program’ and support from Technology Mission Division (TMD) of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, the team has used sodium iron phosphates and sodium manganese phosphates which they synthesized to obtain Na-ion-based batteries and supercapacitors. Supercapacitors are modern electrochemical devices, which are attracting attention because of their high-power density, energy density and excellent cyclic stability. The rapidly growing consumer market of portable electronics is seeking affordable and efficient alternatives for Li-batteries or supercapacitors. His team has also developed a large number of nanomaterials which can be rapidly charged and then integrated them in e-cycles.

• A facile synthesis route for stable, single phase NaMnPO4 nanoparticles
• Performance optimization in proper electrolyte with suitable concentration
• 65% increment in specific capacitance value for NMP//AC at elevated temperature
• Stable electrochemical behavior under external magnetic field
• A modified theoretical model to explain magnetic field dependent behavior

These sodium materials are cheaper than Li-based materials, high performing, and can be scaled up to industrial-level production. The Na-ion cell can also be totally discharged to zero volt, similar to a capacitor, making it a safer option in comparison to many other storage technologies. These sodium materials were combined with various novel architectures of carbon to develop a battery. The research on the Supercapacitors was published in the Journal of Power Sources, and a few patents are in the pipeline on the use of these Na-ion-based batteries in e-cycles.

Compared to other reported metal oxides, the electrochemical performance of NaMnPO4 shows a much more stable tolerance towards varying magnetic fields. One of the challenges for the industry has been the current generation of lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles that are still expensive and as a result, e-bicycles continue to be seen as a premium product for consumers in a market like India. Moreover, electric bicycles can also play a big role in making green mobility accessible and make customers switch over to clean vehicles easily.

Prof. Amreesh Chandra, Department of Physics, IIT Kharagpur remarked, “Sodium ion batteries and supercapacitors can now compete with their illustrious counterparts i.e. Li-ion based energy storage devices. Combination of novel nanostructures of Na-based oxides and carbon leads to high energy and power density devices. These energy storage devices can be used easily in electric vehicles and many other applications and will eliminate our dependence on imported lithium, which is found only in a selected few countries of the world.”

The sodium materials are cheaper than Li-based materials, high performing, and can be scaled up to industrial-level production. The Na-ion cell can also be totally discharged to zero volt, similar to a capacitor, making it a safer option in comparison to many other storage technologies.

Prof. V K Tewari, Director, IIT Kharagpur stated, “Taking advantage of the fact that Na-ion batteries can be charged rapidly, Dr. Amreesh has integrated it in e-cycles which is an easy, affordable option for the masses. With further development, the price of these vehicles can be brought down to the range of Rs. 10-15 K making them nearly 25% affordable than Li-ion storage technologies based e-cycles. As disposal strategies of Na-ion-based batteries would be simpler, it can also help in addressing the climate mitigation issue.

Publication Links :

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378775321011745?via%3Dihub

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2021/ra/d1ra05474k

Media Coverage : 

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Content Writer : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Pledge for Green has not gone unseen

Trees and forests play a very crucial role in maintaining an ecological balance and providing oxygen to human beings on the planet. Van Mahotsav is thus, both warning and an urge to mankind to protect forests, plant trees and avoid the future from turning into deserts. If enough trees are planted in towns and cities, definitely it can help in reducing the overall temperature.

Planting trees is recognized as one of the most engaging, environment friendly activities. In an endeavor towards maintaining the green campus as well as to spread awareness of planting more and more trees and protecting the environment, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur has celebrated Van Mahotsav on July 07, 2021.

To commemorate the occasion, the Director, the Deputy Director, the Dean Outreach, the Associate Dean Outreach and the Associate Dean of Alumni Affairs and Branding of IIT Kharagpur along with other staffs and faculty members have planted the saplings of Bakul Tree (Mimusops elengi) – for the fact that it is an evergreen and a medicinal plant as well as it provides the dense shade, at the campus and the pledge has been taken to take care of the saplings planted throughout the year.

 Speaking on the occasion, Prof Virendra Kumar Tewari, the Director of IIT Kharagpur, said, “It is our social responsibility towards our Mother Nature to improve the health of the environment. IIT Kharagpur has a lush green campus with the initiatives of all round management and development of the campus in an eco-friendly manner. People love the greenery and the atmosphere here. Every year, IIT Kharagpur community plants saplings at various designated spots within the campus, as their regular activity”.

Institutions need to ‘GO GREEN’ not only to spread awareness about the virtues of trees and greenery but also to maintain ecological balance and thrive for sustainable development. Since its foundation in 1951, IIT Kharagpur has embarked on a journey to protect the environment and spread the awareness of conserving forest through various activities. Further, since 5th June, 2021 (World Environment Day), more than 300 saplings have been planted at the campus. The campus is full of greenery including age-old trees, plants and medicinal herbs.

During a short detour around the campus, one could enlighten the mind and soothe the eyes with a stunning visual of wider varieties of trees, including Simul, Sirish, Gulmohar/ Krishnachura, Radhachura, Palash, Eucalyptus, Banyan, Jarul, Bakul, Mahogany, Mahua, Akashmoni, Amaltus, Arjun, Ashoka, Aswatha, Jarul, Kanak Champa, Banyan, Pipal, Chatim, Sal, Segun, Sajna, Rubber plant, Debdaru, and Fruit trees- Mango, Lichi, Neem, Jamun, Bael, Cashew and many more. You can get to see some rare varieties of trees in the campus, such as Nagchampa or the Cannoball tree, Jagya dumur, Bhojpatra or Bertula uitilis, Haritaki, Madras Thorn/Manila Tamarind, Karanj, Putranjiva, Bahera, Tejpata, Sisso, etc. Our campus also has some unusual trees, such as Gamhar or white teak and Sausage trees. Rudrakhsh trees and Allspice trees are two unusual trees are there at the Director’s Bunglow.

While delivering an aspiring speech, Prof Amit Patra, the Deputy Director of IIT Kharagpur mentioned the famous quote of Rabindranath Tagore, “DAO PHIRE SE ARANYA, LAO E NAGAR which means give us back the sylvan past and take away today’s cities”.

We believe that it is highly essential to increase the greenery and landscaping for all the residents in the campus and beyond, because trees greatly benefit the people living around them by having a positive impact on mental health, wellbeing, reducing stress and encouraging outdoor exercise.  Human lives exist in complete synonymity with the nature and trees could be the guide and friend that we could look for, while going towards a ‘better tomorrow’.

To create links between a healthy environment and healthy livelihoods, IIT campus dwellers have opted for organic farming and planting trees in free spaces to adhere to the outcry of growing green. Our students and staff contribute immensely to increasing the green cover. The departments have also been planting trees in the hall of residence. The staff and student are highly passionate about taking care of the campus greenery.

Contact: Paramita Dey, Junior Assistant

Email: media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282004

Green Innovation by IITKGP Students Stands Second at NEC Hackathon

Students from IIT Kharagpur have secured 1st Runners-up position at the NEC Hackathon: Environment for developing environment-friendly and revenue-maximizing business applications for the farming community to manage crop residue. Vaishnav Katiyar, Pranav Agarwal, Paras Chaudhary and Shivam Tiwari, final year students from the Dept. of Architecture & Regional Planning have achieved this feat at the PAN India competition organized by NEC Japan and HackerEarth. The event witnessed participation from 1149 teams from all over the country of which 18 teams reached the finale.

The hackathon enabled participants to identify the challenges, a factor of problems, analyze them and develop a solution using technologies such as FIWARE and other open-source platforms. The participants were encouraged to think of a solution on the platform that can solve the current environmental challenges in India. This year’s themes were air pollution and water pollution.

The IIT Kharagpur team which participated under the name ‘BioNet’ proposed a revolutionary platform for the benefit of farmers and to increase the overall production of Biopellets with better supply chain management. They developed an application which will provide a single platform to the farmers and biofuel plant operators to sell agricultural waste (biomass) and to buy biopellets. The user interface was designed in local languages for ease of use. The proposal also took into consideration in-app bidding process for biopellets buyers to ensure maximum revenue generation and profit maximisation for the farmers. The platform could also be used for selling local agricultural products directly to the customers in the near future.

Explaining the concept team member Shivam Tiwari said, “Air pollution in India is caused by fuelwood and biomass burning, burning of crop residue in agriculture fields on a large scale, emission from vehicles and traffic congestion etc. We have built an android application which provides a single platform to the farmers to sell their crop residue directly to bio-pellet plant operators (Govt./ Pvt.) and further the bio-pellets are sold in the open market using in-app bidding process. This will solve the issue of crop residue burning, thus tackling air pollution and building a healthier living environment in India.”

The final round was held online on March 28-29 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The shortlisted participants were invited to submit their prototype on the hackathon website and present their prototypes to NEC through a video conference. The toppers were announced too online video announcements.

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics company, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. NEC has conducted various hackathons aiming at resolving social challenges in India through technology and in continuation to that they conducted this hackathon focussed on ‘Environment’. The event partner was HackerEarth which has been professionally managing hackathons and programming challenges and coding competitions for developers and companies.

The day of many victories

Times of India,  NDTV,  Business Standard, The Week, Preptube.in, Hans India, Devdiscourse, College Dekho

Greta Thunberg can take heart. The theme of ‘Energy and Environment’ received top billing at IIT Kharagpur’s Young Innovators Program 2019, with a majority of the participating school students electing to find their own ways to combat pollution and promote conservation. In its third edition, the contest drew students from Classes VIII-X from schools all over India and abroad to brainstorm on the themes of Health and Cleanliness, Hardware Modelling, Product Designing, Disaster Management, Financial Inclusion, as also Energy and Environment. The grand finale of YIP was held at the IIT Kharagpur campus over three days ending on November 10.

The winners: Team Divyang, KiiT International, Bhubaneswar

The team that walked away with the trophy for 2019 was Team Divyang from KiiT International School, Bhubaneswar. Students Pritesh Deb, Divyan Sahoo and Ankit Pradhan designed a green water dispenser for the use of the differently-abled. Operated by foot or body weight through a simple lever mechanism, the user could use the water to take a shower, water plants or bathe a guide dog.

1st runner up: Team Kriyative Bhavanites, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavans Public School, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad

The first runner-up was Team Kriyative Bhavanites from the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavans Public School, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. Siddhanth Yellanki and Shreyas Bhargava won the prize for their activated charcoal smoke filter made from coconut shells and corn cobs that could be fitted on vehicles to reduce emission.

2nd runner up: Team Innovativeloops, Brahm Prakash D.A.V School, Hyderabad

The second runner up was Team Innovativeloops from Brahm Prakash D.A.V School, Hyderabad. P. Pranavaditya, Raj Bhattacharjee and Shreyas Biradar of the team, inspired by the Chandrayan mission, have developed an Astron telescope with 7 plane mirrors set in honey comb structure that can capture bright and high quality image during a space mission.

Among several other notable innovations was Sakhi – a biodegradable sanitary pad – made from natural materials such as cotton, dry leaves, resin and coconut husk by the students of Delhi Public School, Ruby Park, Kolkata. The project won “special mention” from the judges – consisting of a multi-disciplinary team of faculty members of IIT Kharagpur – for its boldness, given the social stigma surrounding the subject of menstruation.

Team Green Trenders from St. Arnolds School, Rourkela

Six teams were selected for the final round and were evaluated for not only the originality of the project ideas and the quality of presentation but also their societal impact. They were Team Green Trenders from St. Arnolds School, Rourkela, who showed how bioplastics can be profitably manufactured from yam starch; Team DL Puram Diamonds from Z.P.H. School, DL Puram, Visakhapatnam, who displayed their eco-friendly disease free and low budget toilet; Team Grow-It from Sanghamitra School, Telangana, who demonstrated a multi-level food manufacturing unit that used sensors to detect the growth of plant and aquatic life.

Team Grow-It from Sanghamitra School, Telangana

A total of 32 teams had made it to the final two rounds that began on November 8 at the IIT Kharagpur campus. The competition, which went international last year, received applications from UAE and ASEAN countries. Two teams from Singapore, and one team each from Indonesia and UAE made it to the semi-finals.

“YIP is not a contest, but a platform where students can showcase their ideas and mingle with others so that greater ideas can emerge,” said Prof. Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Associate Dean, International Relations. What was particularly noteworthy of YIP 2019 was not only the fact that girls were members of almost every team, and that the teams hailed from both international schools and district schools of India, but the quality of thought and superior technology that students brought to the table. Several of the teams had worked with Arduino, and some had even used AI to frame solutions to problems.

Team DL Puram Diamonds from Z.P.H. School, DL Puram, Visakhapatnam

“For 200,000 years, human history has been a story of constant inventions. We are where we are today for our ability to innovate and cooperate. You are the inheritors of this legacy, both good and bad. It is for you to find the way forward, “ Prof. Baidurya Bhattacharya, Dean, International Relations, said to students while inaugurating the YIP 2019 finals. The inauguration saw a Pledge for the Environment being taken by the 300 strong crowd of participants, teachers and parents who attended the event.

“What is important to remember is not only the necessity of innovation, but also the importance of implementation,” said Prof. Sriman Kumar Bhattacharyya, during his inaugural address. IIT Kharagpur’s alumni as also corporate sponsors such as Indigene and ICICI made YIP 2019 such a success.

Team Shopaholics, Ridge Valley School

“Thank you IIT Kharagpur for organizing such an amazing event and on such a large scale. It was good to see schools participating across the globe. I saw a lot of interesting models, and what is most important is the focuss on social challenges,” said Dr Sumeet Ahluwalia, Vice-President of Indegene, who addressed students on the second day of the finals.

Photographs: Suman Sutradhar

Clean India, Healthy India

Hindustan Times      ET Health World (Economic Times)      India Today        The Week       UNI India       Millenium Post       Business Standard       Republic World

Does economic growth have a positive correlation with clean drinking water in India? Researchers at IIT Kharagpur seem to be not only agreeing with this idea but even found concrete proofs. In a recent study published in the Scientific Reports, the link between the influence of economic growth in reducing fecal pathogens in groundwater has been established. These are the pathogens that are considered to be one of the key causes of water-bourne diseases, across India.

Water-bourne diseases like diarrhea have been the cause of 15.5% of total deaths in India from 1990 – 2016. The study has made first-time observations on a significant reduction of fecal pathogen concentration in the spatially variable groundwater from 2002 to 2017. The study, however, reported elevated fecal coliform concentration in potable groundwater in rural regions across India than UNGA’s safe limit of zero pathogens. Download Paper

“Looking beyond the country globally, more than one-third of the total country’s population, living in economically stressed areas of Africa and South Asia still do not have access to basic sanitation, and more than 1 billion still opt for open defecation. Until recently, India has more than 500 million open-defecating population resulting unsafe disposal of fecal waste to nearby drinking water sources poses a serious environmental crisis and public health concern,” says Prof. Abhijit Mukherjee, faculty at the School of Environmental Science and Engineering and Dept. of Geology and Geophysics at IIT Kharagpur who led the research project. 

In recent years, sanitation development to achieve goal-6 of UNGA’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been encouraged across India by implementing Clean India (Swachh Bharat) Mission. But their effect on groundwater quality and human health are yet unquantified until now. The study, published on October 23 on the Nature group of journals, gives long term, high-spatial-resolution measurements of fecal coliform concentration (>1.7 million) and acute diarrheal cases for the first time. The study data covered almost the last three decades to delineate the long-term improvement trends of groundwater quality across India, as a consequence of development.

“A uniqueness in this study to determine economic development was instead of GDP or other economic growth data, we have used satellite-based nightlight (NL) information from NASA for the period 1992-2013 which was used to investigate the statistical trends and causal relationships. In most areas’ economic development, suggested by increasing satellite-based nightlight correlated to the reduction in faecal coliform concentration and alleviation of water quality. While, sanitation and economic development can improve human health, poor education level and improper human practices can potentially affect water-borne diseases loads and thus health in parts of India.” explained Srimanti Duttagupta, Ph.D. scholar at IIT Kharagpur, second author of the research paper which has come out recently based on this study. 

Numerical and statistical analyses were performed on aforesaid culled datasets to understand the efficiency of development in alleviating the water quality and public health, and relationship with economic development. Enhanced alleviation of groundwater quality and human health have been observed since 2014 with the initiation of accelerated construction of sanitation infrastructure through Swachh Bharat Mission.

In the study it was observed that in more than 80% of the study region, night-time light demonstrated to be a strong predictor for observed changes in groundwater quality, sanitation development and water-borne disease cases.

However, the goal of completely fecal-pollution free, clean drinking water is yet to be achieved, Prof. Mukherjee remarked, however, needs more data to confirm.

“Nevertheless, in areas with inferior water quality, improper human practices outweigh economic development in affecting human health,” he added.

It has been further observed that very high population density deteriorates the quality of water in certain areas. The problem of overpopulation and slums is an intricate problem that is reflected in all life aspects in countries like India. Different statistical analyses conducted in this study showed about a 3.09 % decrease in fecal coliform concentration and a 2.69% decrease in acute diarrheal cases per year for the last three decades. Groundwater quality with respect to fecal coliform concentration and acute diarrheal cases generally reduced in most areas of India and has been mostly caused by sanitation development, urbanization and related land-use changes.

Since 2014 the government has built over 100 million toilets in six lakh villages and 6.3 million toilets in cities covering a total of 600 million people (almost 60% of India’s population) which is more than the total figure for toilets since 1947. Currently, 93% of village households have toilets with a usage rate of over 90%. On October 2, while celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that India was open-defecation free. But there are facts beyond statistics primarily challenging the initiative at the level of societal and poor human practices.

The researchers opined that use and disuse and beliefs are mostly related to lower literacy rates. In turn, these results in a lack of awareness and encourage malpractice on sanitation, eventually leading to increased fecal waste into drinking water sourced from groundwater.