Production of Bio Bitumen Using Sugarcane Molasses: Lab & Field Application

Nikhil Saboo - Associate Professor & Dheeraj Mehta, Research Scholar, IIT Roorkee, explore the applicability of sugarcane molasses as a partial replacement of bitumen.

Picture courtesy: KNR Construction

Introduction

Demand for petroleum bitumen is on a constant rise due to rapid urbanization and development of road infrastructure. Petroleum bitumen is obtained from fractional distillation of crude oil. Crude oil being a non-renewable resource, is progressively depleting. India imports 40% of its bitumen demand. For the year 2023-2024, the consumption of bitumen stood at 8.8 million metric tonnes whereas the production was 5.2 million metric tonnes (Petroleum Planning & Analysis Cell (Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas) 2023). The fluctuating crude oil prices and finite nature of bitumen demands exploration of renewable materials, commonly referred to as bio-materials.

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