CSIR-NCL's Indigenous DME Tech Aims to Slash India's LPG Imports

CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL) in Pune have developed a patent-protected technology for the production of Dimethyl Ether (DME), a clean and versatile fuel that could serve as a sustainable alternative to LPG and help advance India's energy self-reliance goals under Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Energy security has become a major concern for India, which imports more than 80 per cent of its fossil energy requirements. Disruptions in global supply chains have also led to a rise in LPG prices, impacting households, particularly those covered under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.

DME is a clean-burning synthetic fuel that emits significantly lower levels of soot, nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur oxides (SOx) and particulate matter compared to conventional fuels, while offering comparable thermal efficiency, according to a release.

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has already issued the standard IS 18698:2024, allowing up to 20 per cent blending of DME with LPG for domestic, commercial and industrial applications. Experts note that blending up to 8 per cent DME with LPG can be done without any modification to existing infrastructure such as cylinders, regulators, hoses and burners.

India imported nearly 21 million tonnes of LPG in 2024. Scientists estimate that substituting just 8 per cent of LPG with DME could lead to foreign exchange savings of around ₹9,500 crore annually. Such substitution for the 10.5 crore LPG connections under the Ujjwala scheme would require a DME production capacity of nearly 1,300 tonnes per day.

Apart from cooking fuel, DME also has applications as an automotive fuel and as a propellant in aerosol products, replacing ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). It can also serve as a chemical intermediate for the production of lower olefins, dimethyl sulfate and methyl acetate.

The indigenous technology developed by CSIR-NCL converts methanol into DME using a highly active and cost-effective catalyst. The research team, led by Thirumalaiswamy Raja, integrated catalyst chemistry with reactor engineering to develop an efficient production process.

It has been stated in the release that the technology enables DME production at around 10 bar pressure, allowing the fuel to be directly filled in LPG cylinders with minimal operational cost implications. The process has already been successfully scaled up to a pilot capacity of 250 kg per day.

CSIR-NCL has also developed a patented burner prototype capable of operating in flexible mode--from 100 per cent LPG to 100 per cent DME and any blend in between. The burner has been tested for efficiency at the LPG Equipment Research Centre in Bengaluru.

The institute is now preparing to scale up the technology to an industrial demonstration plant with a capacity of 2.5 tonnes per day within the next six to nine months in collaboration with a process engineering partner. The demonstration project could pave the way for commercial plants with capacities ranging between 50 and 100 tonnes per day.

CSIR-NCL has expressed interest in partnering with major oil public sector undertakings and bioenergy companies to take the technology to commercial scale.

Scientists believe that large-scale adoption of DME could help India reduce its dependence on imported LPG, improve energy security and contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable energy ecosystem.

- ANI