Dimethyl Ether (DME)

• The researchers at IIT Kanpur have successfully developed India’s first 100% Dimethyl Ether (DME)-fuelled tractor/vehicle for both on- and off-road applications.

ABOUT DIMETHYL ETHER:

• It is a synthetically produced alternative to diesel for use in specially designed compression ignition diesel engines.
• It can be produced indigenously, and several countries, like Japan, USA, China, Sweden, Denmark, and Korea, are already using DME to power their vehicles.
• The DME-fuelled engine emitted extremely low particulate and soot emissions and almost no smoke without using expensive exhaust gas after-treatment devices and advanced engine technologies.
• It can be a viable alternative fuel and engine technology to adapt to conventional diesel engines used in India’s economy’s agricultural and transport sectors.

PROPERTIES OF DIMETHYL ETHER

• It has a very high cetane number, which is a measure of the fuel’s ignitibility in compression ignition engines.
• Under normal atmospheric conditions, DME is a colourless gas.

APPLICATION OF DIMETHYL ETHER

• It is used extensively in the chemical industry and as an aerosol propellant.
• It is used in chemical industries and also to produce dyes and plastics.