India's indigenous cooking gas alternative takes shape in Pune lab

Pune: Every day, millions of Indian households rely on LPG cylinders for cooking. But behind this daily necessity lies a heavy dependence on fuel imports. Now, scientists at a Pune laboratory are working on a homegrown alternative that could reshape India's energy future -- DME, or Dimethyl Ether.

Developed at the CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory, the clean fuel is being positioned as a promising substitute for LPG. Researchers say the biggest advantage is that DME can be produced domestically using resources like coal, biomass, and methanol, reducing India's dependence on imported fuel.

"This is not just another laboratory experiment. It is part of India's next-generation deep-tech innovation," scientists associated with the project said.


According to Dr T Raja, Chief Scientist at NCL, DME and LPG are quite similar in usage and can be blended easily.

"LPG and DME are almost equivalent. The calorific value is slightly different, but DME can be easily blended with LPG, propane and butane mixtures while maintaining its effectiveness for domestic and industrial fuel use," said Dr Raja.

Scientists involved in the project explained that DME has applications beyond household cooking fuel. It can also be used in LPG-run autorickshaws and even replace diesel generators in some cases.

Project Scientist Samruddhi Mane said the technology has the potential to expand across multiple energy applications.

"DME can be used in household cooking fuel, in LPG-based autorickshaws, and it also has the potential to replace diesel generators," she said.

Researchers clarified that the transition will not happen overnight. Initially, the plan is to blend 20 per cent DME with 80 per cent LPG. One major advantage is that consumers may not need to change their existing stoves or cylinders.

Scientists believe that even a 20 per cent blend could significantly reduce India's LPG imports and ease pressure on foreign exchange reserves.

"If India starts using a 20 per cent DME blend in domestic LPG, the country can save a substantial amount of foreign exchange spent on fuel imports," said project scientist Akash Bhatkar.

Beyond the technology itself, the project is also being seen as a symbol of India's growing scientific confidence. Young researchers working on the project say they feel proud to contribute to a technology aimed at strengthening the country's energy security.

"We feel proud because this work is not just a project for us; it is something important for the country," said project associate Sheetal Gawli.

Another researcher, Aditi Kamble, highlighted how the project has scaled over time.

"We learned a lot while working on DME technology here at CSIR-NCL. Today, we are working on it at a larger scale as an energy-saving technology that can benefit society," she said.

As India searches for cleaner and more self-reliant energy solutions, the work happening inside this Pune laboratory could become a crucial step toward reducing import dependence and building an indigenous fuel ecosystem.