Collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

In the photo: Prof. Krzysztof Zaremba, the Rector of Warsaw University of Technology, Prof. Piotr Przybyłowicz, the Dean of the Faculty of Automotive and Construction Machinery Engineering, and Czesław Siekierski, PhD, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

A cooperation agreement was signed by Prof. Piotr Przybyłowicz and Czesław Siekierski, PhD, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

The promotion of research and innovation in the production and use of renewable fuels was the central focus of the agreement signed on December 17, 2024, by Prof. Piotr Przybyłowicz, Dean of the Faculty of Automotive and Construction Machinery Engineering, and Czesław Siekierski, PhD, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. The meeting was also attended by Prof. Krzysztof Zaremba, Rector of the Warsaw University of Technology.

The scope of the signed agreement includes the completion of scientific research, development, and implementation projects, as well as the promotion of renewable fuel production and usage in agriculture. A primary focus is the use of bioethanol (ethyl alcohol derived from biomass) as a fuel for internal combustion engines. Two main pathways are being considered: powering spark-ignition engines with pure ethanol and significantly increasing the proportion of ethanol as an additive to widely used conventional fuels, such as gasoline or diesel.

The joint initiative between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MRiRW) and the SIMR Faculty will begin with a project aimed at developing a "technology demonstrator" in the form of a generator powered by pure bioethanol. This will be a simple device based on existing market designs with a gasoline engine, which will be modified to accommodate the properties of the new fuel. Modifications will include, among others, adjustments to the engine control system and the replacement of certain components in the fuel supply system, which are prone to degradation from ethanol, with parts resistant to such effects. The team of experts from the SIMR Faculty will focus on demonstrating that adapting existing engines to run on bioethanol in Polish conditions can be simple and cost-effective.

The device serving as the base for the demonstrator was purchased by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MRiRW) and transferred to the SIMR Faculty. The fuel for testing was provided by the National Chamber of Biofuels. The SIMR Faculty will provide the technical resources for the project and, most importantly, the experienced scientific and technical staff. A team consisting of faculty members and external experts will be established for this purpose. The first results from the team's work are expected next year.

In the long term, the plan is to launch additional joint scientific, research, development, and implementation projects that would establish a foundation for an initiative to promote biofuels, especially bioethanol, in the Polish market.

Although the issue of powering internal combustion engines with ethanol is not new, it has so far been a niche topic in Poland, discussed primarily in the context of increasing the share of ethanol as a biodiesel additive to gasoline (the latest increase was to 10% at the beginning of 2024). Meanwhile, ethanol is widely used to power engines around the world. A prime example is Brazil, where a successful ethanol program has been implemented, using sugarcane as the raw material for alcohol production. In the United States, ethanol is produced on a large scale from corn. In Poland, the most suitable raw materials for this purpose appear to be grains and waste materials (such as cellulose). It is also worth highlighting that areas unsuitable for growing food crops, like certain degraded soils, can be allocated for cultivating biomass for biofuel production. The large-scale production and use of ethanol fuels in Poland would be beneficial not only for economic reasons (such as agriculture and the fuel industry) but also for strategic reasons (reducing dependence on oil imports) and environmental reasons (limiting emissions of certain pollutants in exhaust gases and reducing the consumption of fossil resources).

The collaboration between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MRiRW) and the Faculty of Automotive and Construction Machinery Engineering (SiMR) will enable the exchange of knowledge and experience between the academic and agricultural-food sectors, opening new development opportunities for our staff and students.

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