TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT ON THE USE OF DIMETHYL ETHER AS FUEL: A REVIEW (REVIEW PERKEMBANGAN TEKNOLOGI PEMANFAATAN DIMETHYL ETHER SEBAGAI BAHAN BAKAR)

Researchers have started focusing their research on alternative fuels. During the last two decades, Dimethyl Ether (DME) has emerged as a new potential fuel to substitute for oil and its derivatives. Raw materials for DME from sources such as coal, biomass, natural gas and also crude oil are spread all over the world so the interest is growing for using it as an energy source. While the technology for processing raw materials into DME is well established, the technology for DME applications for a wide range of usages is still being developed. The range of DME usage includes for automotive purposes, in industrial sectors, for household applications, and there is even fundamental research to discover more knowledge about DME safety and another technical considerations. Many research activities are now intensively being conducted in RD otomotif, industri, aplikasi pada rumah tangga, dan bahkan juga penelitian fundamental untuk menggali pengetahuan yang lebih dalam tentang keselamatan penggunaan DME dan pertimbangan teknis lainnya dilakukan secara intensif di universitas serta lembaga –lembaga penelitian. Paper ini meringkas progress kegiatan penelitian yang telah dilakukan untuk mengembangkan teknologi aplikasi DME. Beberapa peluang untuk menemukan aplikasi baru didiskusikan dalam tulisan ini.