An IVIF-Distance Measure and Relative Closeness Coefficient-Based Model for Assessing the Sustainable Development Barriers to Biofuel Enterprises in India

Abstract

Biofuel can become a favorable sustainable energy resource in India by relieving conventional fossil fuels. However, biofuel enterprises (BEs) are still in the preliminary phase because of sustainable development barriers (SDBs) in environmental, technological, economic, social, and regulatory aspects. In the paper, nineteen SDBs to biofuels are identified by studying the literature and decision experts’ (DEs’) views. Considering the involvement of multiple tangible and non-tangible barriers, the assessment of SDBs to BEs can be taken as a multi-attribute decision-analysis (MADA) problem. Since ambiguity and imprecision generally ensue in the assessment of SDBs to BEs, the doctrine of interval-valued intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IVIFSs) has been recognized as a more sensible and proficient way to tackle uncertain MADA problems. Then, an integrated approach with IVIF-distance measure and IVIF-relative closeness coefficient models is presented to form associations between the SDBs to recognize the most important SDBs. The outcomes of this study show that four SDBs, i.e., “lack of effective storage facilities (EC-2), lack of investors (EC-3), technical issues associated with conversion technologies (T-2), and lack of trust between local societies, agencies, and developers (S-4)” are the leading obstacles. The paper also discusses some policies that can be utilized as a managing stage by the DEs to articulate guidelines for the operational exclusion of SDBs to biofuel enterprises.