Context:
As several vehicles going up in flames for unexplained reasons in the State, Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) has launched a study on the suspected role of a ‘miscreant’ beetle behind such mishaps.
Facts about Ambrosia Beetles:
- Belongs to the wood-boring insect families
- Distribution – Eastern Africa, India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan and southeast Asia
- They prefer deceased trees to cultivate ambrosia fungi (a vital food source)
- They are drawn to trees that emit volatile organic compounds like ethanol when stressed or weakened, as part of a natural process.
Reason for beetle boring fuel pipe – National policy to encourage using petrol blended with 10% ethanol to lower vehicle pollution. Thus, beetles are drawn to fuels containing ethanol and end up burrowing into fuel pipes.
About Ethanol:
- Ethanol, a biofuel produced sugarcane, corn, rice, wheat, biomass etc.
- Produced by –
- Fermentation of sugars by yeasts
- Petrochemical processes such as ethylene hydration.
- By products –Distillers’ Dried Grain with Soluble (DDGS) and Potash from Incineration Boiler Ash
- Applications –
- DDGS – Animal feed with high protein content
- Potash Ash – Fertilizers
Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) seeks to decrease the nation’s reliance on imported crude oil, decrease carbon emissions, and increase farmers’ earnings, with the Indian government moving up the goal for achieving 20% ethanol blending in petrol (known as E20) to 2025 instead of 2030.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Questions
Which of the following organisms perform a waggle dance for others of their kin to indicate the direction and the distance to a source of their food?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2023 Prelims]
(a) Butterflies
(b) Dragonflies
(c) Honey Bees
(d) Wasps
Answer: (c)
According to India’s National Policy on Biofuels, which of the following can be used as raw materials for the production of biofuels?
1) Cassava
2) Damaged wheat grains
3) Groundnut seeds
4) Horse gram
5) Rotten potatoes
6) Sugar beet
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2020 Prelims]
(a) 1, 2, 5 and 6 only
(b) 1, 3, 4 and 6 only
(c) 2, 3, 4 and 5 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6
Answer: (a)
