Insights into the Innovation Journeys of Entrepreneurs: VIVIRA Process Technologies Pvt. Ltd. – Dr. Vivek V. Ranade

About Entrepreneur –
Vivek Vinayak Ranade (born 1963) is an Indian chemical engineer, entrepreneur and a professor of chemical engineering at the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering of the Queen’s University, Belfast. He is a former chair professor and deputy director of the National Chemical Laboratory, Pune. He is known for his work on bubble column, stirred and trickle-bed reactors and is an elected fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Indian National Science Academy. and the Indian National Academy of Engineering. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, the apex agency of the Government of India for scientific research, awarded him the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology, one of the highest Indian science awards for his contributions to Engineering Sciences in 2004. I have also cofounded a technology start-up, VIVIRA Process Technologies Pvt Ltd which is being incubated at NCL Venture Centre, Pune.

About VIVIRA Process Technologies Pvt. Ltd. –

VIVIRA is a spin-off based on NCL’s technology. The Start–up plans to develop a novel and patent protected vortex diode based cavitation device (VodCa®) for enhancing bio-gas yield and throughput of anaerobic digesters.

  • In-particular, prove the concept for biological digesters used in distillery industries (enhance throughput per m3 of digester and gas yield per m3 of spent wash by 20%).
  • Applications to several agri- and marine- biotech industry.

Meeting’s Takeaway –

  1. VIVIRA is working on hydrodynamic cavitation technology for enhancing bio-gas yield and throughput of anaerobic digesters. The vortex diode uses hydrodynamic cavitation to convert part of COD from spent wash and convert it to easier to digest form for microbes in anaerobic digesters. The vortex diode also helps in increasing the nutrient contents of the spent wash thereby enhancing the productivity of microbes. Finally, the effluent from digester can be treated further to reduce its COD content.
  2. industrial effluent waste is main challenge because type of effluent varies from industry to industry. So, it is hard to build a one common solution. They need optimize solution for different effluent waste.
  3. Before building any technology, we should look for customers; who is your customer?
  4. Selection of problem is THE most important thing.
  5. Try to answer – why people are not accepting your technology and then rethink.

 

About Author – Pramod Bhurji, BIRAC Social Innovation Immersion  Programme Fellow at Venture Center, Pune