IIT Bombay finds a way to turn garden waste into cooking fuel for 1,200 students; here’s how it works
IIT Bombay is turning fallen leaves, twigs and garden waste into cooking fuel, giving discarded organic material a second life. The initiative has reportedly reduced LPG consumption by 60% in one hostel kitchen while helping the institute tackle its campus waste problem.
At the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B), garden waste like fallen leaves and twigs are being transformed into cooking fuel for 1,200 students. The Research Hub for Green Energy and Sustainability (GESH IITB) has developed a gasifier-based cook-stove system that reduces liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) consumption by 60%.
The process begins with collecting garden waste, which is then compressed into biomass pellets with a calorific value of 16-18 MJ/Nm³. These pellets are used in a downdraft gasifier to produce producer gas, which fuels a premix burner. The project, titled "Gasifier-based cook-stoves to manage garden waste," was developed by professors Sandeep Kumar and Sanjay Mahajani over several years.
The technology, which was installed in the staff canteen on February 26, 2025, has shown a 10 kg daily reduction in LPG consumption.
Written by urgent.news from Live Mint's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
