Latest news with #BharatKale
India Today
17-06-2025
- Business
- India Today
New MIT-WPU lab sparks innovation in lithium and sodium batteries for India
As the world looks for new sources of clean energy, a team of researchers at the MIT-World Peace University (MIT-WPU) has launched a cutting-edge battery fabrication and research facility focused on lithium-ion (Li-ion) and sodium-ion (Na-ion) is the first private state university in India to launch such a facility. This initiative supports national goals to boost India's energy independence and sustainable technology facility offers comprehensive, end-to-end capabilities—from synthesising active materials to fabricating coin cells and evaluating their electrochemical performance. MIT-WPU's research team is developing advanced electrode materials to improve battery energy density, cycling stability, and efforts focus on next-generation solid-state electrolytes (SSEs), which promise higher ionic conductivity and better thermal stability than traditional liquid electrolytes, enhancing battery safety and efficiency. The team aims to translate laboratory breakthroughs into scalable, real-world battery solutions. (Photo: MIT-WPU) Innovations at the centre include exploring glass-polymer composite electrolytes and pioneering paper-based batteries in collaboration with Mid Sweden facility has also begun synthesising high-purity solvents and electrolytes to support Indian battery manufacturers with quality raw materials, a critical step toward strengthening domestic supply with state-of-the-art instruments, the centre facilitates both academic research and industry partnerships, aiming to translate laboratory breakthroughs into scalable, real-world battery are underway to expand manufacturing capabilities to include cylindrical and prismatic cells, broadening the range of battery Dr. Bharat Kale, Director of the Centre of Excellence in Materials Science at MIT-WPU, emphasised the facility's alignment with India's strategic missions and its role in nurturing future talent."The group is working on paper batteries in collaboration with MID Sweden. This facility not only fosters academic and industry collaboration but also serves as a vital platform for training future talent. With greater support from national funding agencies like ANRF and others, private institutions like ours can significantly contribute to India's clean energy future,' Prof. Dr. Bharat Kale centre provides hands-on training for engineering and science students and offers research opportunities for Ph.D. scholars, preparing them for careers in clean energy technologies.
Hindustan Times
23-04-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
MIT researchers develop hydrogen from sugarcane juice
The MIT-WPU researchers have developed a hydrogen production process using sugarcane juice and microorganisms, a sustainable alternative that also converts CO₂ into acetic acid. This eco-friendly method aligns with India's Green Hydrogen Mission and can be a game-changer for the sugar industry. The project is led by researchers Sagar Kanekar, Bharat Kale, Anand Kulkarni, prof Niraj Topare, Santosh Patil, Dev Thapa, Biswas and Ratnadip Joshi. As per the information given by the research team, the university has developed a unique process to generate hydrogen from sugarcane juice using microorganisms, which also convert carbon dioxide into acetic acid, making it more sustainable. A patent has already been submitted for this technology. This project proposal has been submitted to the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy (MNRE) for funding. Dr Bharat Kale, emeritus professor and director of Material Science [COE]s said, 'The university's bioprocess operates at room temperature using sugarcane juice, seawater, and wastewater, contributing to global efforts to reduce hydrogen costs to $1/kg. We are seeking industry partners for lab-scale development and eventual technology transfer.' 'The work on hydrogen storage is also in progress using Metal-Organic Framework (MOF). The MOFs for hydrogen storage and CO2 capture have been focused on intensely. The university aims to support industries in scaling up the technology, which could be commercially viable within a year,' said Sagar Kanekar.
India Today
22-04-2025
- Science
- India Today
Could sugarcane juice power your car? An Indian team is working to make it possible
As the world continues to look at new alternatives to fossil fuel, your car of the future could have a fuel source extracted from sugarcane fuels are the main source of energy used by humans today. But using too much of them is causing these fuels to run out and creating serious environmental problems. At the same time, the energy demand is growing quickly as the world's economy grows and the population estimate that by 2040, global energy use will increase by 48% compared to what it was in 2012. To reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and meet this growing energy need, we must find a new fuel that is plentiful, renewable, and better for the environment. Sugarcane juice is being used to extract clean hydrogen. (Photo: Sibu Tripathi) This green alternative is hydrogen, which could be extracted from sugarcane juice, and India is one of the biggest producers of sugarcane in the at the Pune-based MIT-World Peace University have devised a unique method to extract hydrogen from sugarcane juice that could be then used as a fuel to power hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs), which use hydrogen gas to generate patented technology has been successfully used to extract over 140 litres of hydrogen from four litres of sugarcane team is using an undisclosed microorganism, which also converts carbon dioxide into acetic acid, making it more university has developed an innovative bioprocess that uses sugarcane juice, along with seawater and wastewater, to extract green hydrogen — all at room approach stands out from conventional water-splitting methods by not only lowering energy requirements but also producing valuable byproducts, resulting in zero waste discharge. Researchers at the Pune-based MIT-World Peace University have devised the unique method. (Photo: Sibu Tripathi) "The process supports the global push to bring down the cost of hydrogen to $1 per kilogram, making it a promising solution for India's clean energy transition. The team is now looking for industry partners to help scale the technology from the lab to real-world applications through collaboration and technology transfer,". Dr Bharat Kale, Emeritus Professor & Director of the Material Science Department at MIT-WPU university aims to support industries in scaling up the technology, which could be commercially viable within a the process is unique, it still takes over three to four days to extract the hydrogen from the given sample of sugarcane university is now looking to scale up the production in collaboration with private players.(The author visited MIT-WPU on an familiarisation invitation from the university)Must Watch
