Biofuels Update: Many believe Algae and Jatropha hold promise as Sustainable BioCrops

Recently I came across this article " Poison plant could help to cure the planet" in the Times Online by Ben Macintyre.

Almost overnight, the unloved Jatropha curcushas became an agricultural and economic celebrity, with the discovery that it may be the ideal biofuel crop, an alternative to fossil fuels for a world dangerously dependent on oil supplies and deeply alarmed by the effects of global warming.

The hardy jatropha, resilient to pests and resistant to drought, produces seeds with up to 40 per cent oil content. When the seeds are crushed, the resulting jatropha oil can be burnt in a standard diesel car, while the residue can also be processed into biomass to power electricity plants.

While the crop appears to grow in marginal areas where nothing much exists anyhow, we still need to consider how such crops might affect the ecosystems where they are planted on a massive scale.

At about the same time, I came across this report about how " Algae looks good for biodiesel" by Amy Quinton:

As the U.S. looks for ways cut dependence on foreign oil and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, biofuels are rising toward the top of the mix of alternative fuels. Bio-fuels such as ethanol or bio-diesel burn cleaner than oil-based diesel and are seen as an environmentally-friendly replacement for our 60 billion gallon per year thirst for diesel oil. They're made from plants, and here's the rub. There aren't enough crops or land to produce enough bio-diesel to replace fossil fuel-based diesel.

We must be cautious however as it is a source of increasing frustration to many deeply immersed in sustainability to see that the bulk of the political and economic momentum in the mainstream focused on promoting "renewable" practices that will reduce the biological carrying capacity of humanity by further depleting already degraded ecosystems. The ecologists use a term called NPP (I think its full name is Net Primary Productivity) to refer to the amount of photosynthetic biomass we use for human purposes.

The exponential growth in the percent of global NPP (to power our ultra modern systems) seems to indicate that there are real problems with the sustainability of the current biomass we now use. Increasing that even more by planting once natural lands with Jatropha so that we can continue to drive our cars (with an illusionary notion that we can now have piece of mind that with biofuels our cars are now helping to "save the environment"), now that they are powered by biofuels, hardly seems like a serious strategy towards a more sustainable world. However on the bright side, it is encouraging to see some of the biofuels researchers are trying to move away from corn and other biocrops and towards crop residuals and waste products that do not involve direct conversion of crop lands and forests to biocrop monocultures.

To break it down to the most basic parts, I see the main aspects to the global environmental crisis as

1. Preservation of biological carrying capacity as in preventing " Die Off"
2. Avoiding massive water shortages as in preventing massive destabilization due to loss of reliable potable area for major cities and regions of the world
3. Mitigating climate change as in preventing major climate shifts and disruptions of weather patterns and ecosystems including the loss of many species (contributing to 1) and also to the destabilization of coastal regions where most of the human population now resides (such as what we are already seeing with many small island states and of course New Orleans)
4. Authentic Renewable Energy as in preventing "Peak Oil" and not making climate change worse with continued use of C02 based fuels and also not growing biocrops that contribute to the worsening of 1

In relation to Biofuels specifically with respect to #4 the ones that are potentially sustainable:

1. Biogas as in integrated farming/permaculture (see Biogas China)
2. Research into Algae for fuel
3. Recycling of waste biomass from industrial and residential processes that would otherwise simply treat it as waste (even that is problematic because the biomass should be recycled back into the earth as described in David Bloom's book Alcohol can be a Gas.

Designing a sustainable energy policy should be focused on research and development in the field that is based on a consideration of sustainable sources and a focus on renewables that are not biobased including wave power, ocean thermal , geothermal, solar thermal, passive solar, PV solar and wind and also the biofuels mentioned above.

The source should also be evolving towards some sort of lobbying effort to convince policymakers and investors to reduce the amount of investments in renewables that are in some if not most cases more destructive on the ecology than the fossil fuels they claim to be the "green" alternative to.

Indonesia has been devastated by the rapid destruction of its rainforest and so I am quite skeptical that replacing gas with boideisel made from growing Jatropha in places where there were once pristine rainforests is a bona fide sustainable solution.

Having said that, I think it is also important to remain open to such approaches as a temporary and transitional movement towards bona fide sustainability that can help some marginalized non-affluent tropical communities become more self-reliant on energy. With that though I would have to see proof that biodiversity was preserved in the process of this development strategy and social considerations were being made to improve the lives of local workers and community members.

Uganda: Citizens Sitting on Rich Oil Plant

Posted to the web 23 July 2007

Salome Alweny
Kampala

The jatropha carcus tree, if exploited, will not only relieve Uganda of dependency on fossil fuels from oil producing Arab countries but may also go a long way in becoming a major source of income

It is around us on the hedges of our homesteads, in the garden supporting other climbing plants and acting as fences for cattle kraals. While we complain about the ever-increasing fuel prices, we do not know that we are sitting on a rich oil shrub.

This amazing shrub is the jatropha carcus tree locally known as ekiroowa in Luganda and among the Langi's as Omara Omara. The plant naturally produces seeds with up to 30-40 percent oil content, a source of fuel.

When dried and crushed, the seeds yield oil, which can be burned in most diesel engines, Reuters news agency reported on July 13. A commissioner for energy at the ministry of Energy and Mineral Development Eng Ben Todwo confirms that jatropha seeds can be processed into biomass to power electricity plants, hence substitute for kerosene for lighting and heating in homes.

The seedlings of this shrub yield seeds in the first year after plantation but begins yielding oil in the second year. After the first five years, the typical annual yield of a jatropha tree weighs 3.5 kilogrammes.

The tree remains productive for up to between 30 and 40 years as it also absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Hence one who has it in his garden or kraal could also earn from the sale of carbon absorbed by it if Uganda starts exploiting this other source of income.

One can harvest one up to 25 tonnes of processed oil, rising to a maximum of 12.5 tonnes in the fourth year. Research shows that 2,200 trees can be planted per hectare (approx 1,000 per acre) where one hectare should yield around seven tonnes of seeds per year. So one hectare of land should yield around 2.2-2.7 tonnes of oil.

The oil pressed from four kilogrammes of seeds is needed to make one litre of biodiesel for running diesel engine vehicles. The member of Parliament for Maruzzi County in Apac District Mr David Ebong says this plant has a big potential for large business enterprises and that it comes at a time when the cabinet of Uganda has approved renewable energy policy where all petroleum companies in Uganda will be required to blend their fossil fuels (oil) with 20 percent plant oil/biodisel.

A plant pathologist who heads the Cereals Research programme at the National Agricultural Research Organisation Dr George Bigirwa, says there is big potential for business in Jatropha carcus as the shrub can grow almost everywhere in Uganda.

"It can grow even on marginal lands like sandy, saline and on the poorest stony soil," he says.

This plant is not only important for biodisel, it also enhances soil productivity.

"When oil is squeezed out of the plant seeds, the refuse (seed cake) can be taken back to gardens and range lands as organic manure for it is rich in nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium," says an expert in biofuels based at the National Forestry Authority John Begumana.

Mr Begumana argues that the fertility value of Jatropha carcus to the soil can only be compared to chicken droppings and therefore has the potential of increasing the carrying capacity of grazing lands.

He gives an impression that one who chooses to deal in it can actually get income from the sale of the seeds and higher yields from the soil. "Jatropha can be intercropped with other cash crops such as coffee, sugar cane, fruits and vegetables and therefore little chances that it will compete for land with food crops and cause food insecurity," he adds.

The shrub originated from the Caribbean and spread as a valuable hedge plant to Africa and Asia by Portuguese traders.

Today it is widely used in India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Egypt as a quick growing source of oil-bearing nuts that can be pressed to produce biodiesel for running cars.

Research shows that rail lines between Mumbai and Delhi is planted with Jatropha and the train itself runs on 15-20 per cent biodiesel.

Other sources show that Jatropha has also been a crop of choice in development programmes in Africa where local villages have grown Jatropha on small plots of land and have hand-pressed the oil for use in generators, sewing machines and small motors.

Glycerin, a by-product of Jatropha oil, can also be used to produce soap while Glycerol, a by-product of bio diesel refinement, can be sold in India for around 45-70 pounds per kilogramme.

Other bio fuel crops that can be used to produce energy are Areurites mollucana (Kabaka njagala), Soya, sugarcane, groundnuts, palm, oilseed rape and sunflower.

Apart from bio diesel, other forms of bio fuel include bio ethanol, bio dimethylether and biogas.

Bio ethanol is produced from crops such as sugar cane, corn, beet, wheat and sorghum.

Bio fuels however have for a long time met strong resistance from environmental experts who argue that growing bio fuel crops makes farmers dedicate much of their land to grow "food for cars" and forget growing "food for their stomach" hence causing food insecurity.

In some parts of the world, bio fuel crops have also met resistance from foresters who say that the current rush for the green energy is threatening forest reserves and wetlands and generally biodiversity in plants and animals as most governments are now dedicating them to international investors for growing bio fuel crops.

However, proponents for bio fuels argue that bio fuel has potential to reduce green house gas emissions by partially replacing fossil fuel with oil as a transport fuel.

They further argue that with bio fuel, countries could meet their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol which expects countries to reduce their carbon emissions by at least five percent from the 1990 levels and therefore mitigate the effects of climate change, according to a report "international trade in bio fuel" by Annie Dufey of the International Institute for Environment and Development.

This plant, if exploited, will not only relieve Uganda of dependency on fossil fuels from oil producing Arab countries but may also go a long way in becoming a major source of income.

For Uganda, bio-diesel production, especially in adequate amount, could relieve the country of estimated $230 million spent on importing diesel per annum.

Mr Twodoa says Uganda imports more than 400,000,000 litres of diesel per annum.

Hawaii tree holds promise for future of biofuel

Posted at 20:47 on 23 July, 2007 UTC

Efforts are underway in Hawaii to grow a plant that has the potential to be turned into biofuel.

The University of Hawaii and the Hawaii Agriculture Research centre are growing test plots of jatropha, a plant that's already used to make biofuel in India.

The plants have three pointed leaves like the kukui nut tree and when the fruit ripens, it contains three seeds which are high in oil content.

Mike Poteet, a crop scientist with the Hawaii Agriculture Research Center, told the Honolulu Star that as well as reducing imported fuel costs, it has the potential to create a new agriculture industry.

Researchers emphasize that they are at least 3 years away from being able to determine the economic viability of fuel crops in Hawaii and the best way to grow them.

D1 founder cashes in

Fri 20 Jul 2007

LONDON (SHARECAST) - D1 Oils founder Karl Watkin took advantage of recent share price strength, offloading £670,000 of shares in the company which has doubled in value since March.

Watkin sold 250,000 shares in the biodiesel producer at 268p each, but still holds 2.6m shares or 4.19% in the company.

Last month, D1 announced it plans to establish a global joint venture with BP to create a world-leading business in Jatropha curcas: D1-BP Fuel Crops Limited.

It said the target is to plant 1m hectares over four years. BP will provide working capital of £31.75m through equity in the joint venture. Total joint venture funding will amount to approximately £80m over five years.

Jatropha is an oilseed tree that grows in tropical and sub-tropical regions and produces high yields of inedible vegetable oil that can be used to produce high-quality biodiesel.

D1 Oils (DOO)
Director name: Mr Karl E Watkin
Amount sold: 250,000 @ 268.00p
Value: £670,०००

Biodiesel in Haiti, Appropriate Technology, & Micro-Lending

By Robert Miller on Saturday, April 14, 2007.

Recently, Wyclef Jean went to Capitol Hill to discuss Haiti's longterm developmental needs. His visit incited a rarely seen attendance at a subcommittee hearing and elicited some great reactions from the public. Dr. Johanna Mendelson Forman of the Center for Strategic and International Study, who we've mentioned before [ link], submitted testimony for the record.

Below, I have transcribed a small portion of her comments and then linked to a pdf file containing the complete testimony. You will also find mention of the Jatropha plant in the Inter-American Development Bank's recently published biofuels report in the section on Haiti [ link].

Also, I spoke on panel at the US Institute of Peace yesterday (see my previous blog post [link]) and Haitian Ambassador to the United States Raymond Joseph raised the issue of biofuel production--and Jatropha in particular--in his opening remarks.

At long last, it seems Jatropha and biofuels are receiving the attention and clout they deserve. Please see below for Dr. Forman's helpful overview of Jatropha in Haiti.

Follow this link to go directly to the full testimony [link ].

 

Why Jatropha?

"Jatropha curcas is an important feedstock for the production of biofuels. Its widespread use in India and Egypt is gaining popularity as a quick growing source of oil-bearing nuts that can be pressed to produce biodiesel products. Jatropha has also been a crop of choice in development programs in Africa where local villages have grown Jatropha on small plots of land and have hand-pressed the oil for use in generators, sewing machines and small motors. Glycerin, a by product of Jatropha oil, can also be used to produce soap.

"Jatropha has also been proven to have strong anti-erosion qualities which make it ideally suited for use in Haiti. A recent study on watershed preservation commissioned by USAID this year reinforced this fact, adding that it was more effective than the tree-planing efforts that have been used to help reforest Haiti.

Follow this link to read the complete text [link].

Seed Oil Technology

While in Peace Corps, I discovered a firm, then called Approtech (short for Appropriate Technology), now called Kick-Start [link] that made innovated machines simple enough for domestic production and rural maintenance, and at the same time--and probably most importantly--able to get the job done at prices readily covered by micro-credit loans.

Because we are talking Jatropha, I wanted to point out the Kick Start Oil Press [link], which will extract oil from sunflower, sesame, and other oil seeds. The filter produces clear, cold-pressed, cooking oil ready for direct sale, biofuel processing (Jatropha), or consumption (when used with other seed oils).

Micro Credit Lending

While the press would by no means be cheep to a Haiti farmer, there are numerous organization in Haiti that offer small loans to jump-start small businesses. FONKOZE, which is short for Fondasyon Kole Zepol, or Shoulders Stuck Together, is probably the most well-known and respected micro credit lending institution in Haiti. More information on FONKOZE can be found on their website [ link].

The second organization, which has the market share of the Western Hemisphere is FINCA. While predominantly in Central and Latin America, FINCA does have an evolving presence in Haiti. They too offer small business loans and can be considered the powerhouse of micro-credit in the region. Information can be found on their website [ link].

Jatropha nuts

Suwit Yotongyot displays jatropha nuts at his farm in Loei province in February 2007. The nuts are more than 30 percent oil, which burns with a clear flame, producing a fraction of the emissions of traditional diesel. Scientists say that could help produce biodiesel and ease Thailand's reliance on imported oil.(AFP/File/Pornchai Kittiwongsakul)

Jatropha: Biodiesel in India

 

My compilation on Jatropha, this is really exciting to see such a rapid development in India.

Jatropha the wonder plant produces seeds with an oil content of 37%. The oil can be combusted as fuel without being refined. It burns with clear smoke-free flame, tested successfully as fuel for simple diesel engine. The by-products are press cake a good organic fertilizer, oil contains also insecticide.

Jatropha curcus is a drought-resistant perennial, growing well in marginal/poor soil. It is easy to establish, grows relatively quickly and lives, producing seeds for 50 years.

It is found to be growing in many parts of the country, rugged in nature and can survive with minimum inputs and easy to propagate.

Medically it is used for diseases like cancer, piles, snakebite, paralysis, dropsy etc. this is amazing!

Jatropha grows wild in many areas of India and even thrives on infertile soil. A good crop can be obtained with little effort. Depending on soil quality and rainfall, oil can be extracted from the jatropha nuts after two to five years. The annual nut yield ranges from 0.5 to 12 tons. The kernels consist of oil to about 60 percent; this can be transformed into biodiesel fuel through esterification.

Family: Euphorbiaceae Synonyms: Curcas purgans Medic. Vernacular/common names: English- physic nut, purging nut; Hindi - Ratanjyot Jangli erandi; Malayalam - Katamanak; Tamil - Kattamanakku; Telugu - Pepalam; Kannada - Kadaharalu; Gujarathi - Jepal; Sanskrit - Kanana randa.

Distribution and habitat
It is still uncertain where the centre of origin is, but it is believed to be Mexico and Central America. It has been introduced to Africa and Asia and is now culti-vated world-wide. This highly drought-resistant spe-cies is adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions. The current distribution shows that introduction has been most successful in the drier regions of the tropics with annual rainfall of 300-1000 mm. It occurs mainly at lower altitudes (0-500 m) in areas with average an-nual temperatures well above 20°C but can grow at higher altitudes and tolerates slight frost. It grows on well-drained soils with good aeration and is well adapted to marginal soils with low nutrient content.

Botanical Features
It is a small tree or shrub with smooth gray bark, which exudes a whitish colored, watery, latex when cut. Normally, it grows between three and five meters in height, but can attain a height of up to eight or ten meters under favourable conditions.

Leaves
It has large green to pale-green leaves, alternate to sub-opposite, three-to five-lobed with a spiral phyllotaxis.

Flowers
The petiole length ranges between 6-23 mm. The inflorescence is formed in the leaf axil. Flowers are formed terminally, individually, with female flowers usually slightly larger and occurs in the hot seasons. In conditions where continuous growth occurs, an unbalance of pistillate or staminate flower production results in a higher number of female flowers.

Fruits
Fruits are produced in winter when the shrub is leafless, or it may produce several crops during the year if soil moisture is good and temperatures are sufficiently high. Each inflorescence yields a bunch of approximately 10 or more ovoid fruits. A three, bi-valved cocci is formed after the seeds mature and the fleshy exocarp dries.

Seeds
The seeds become mature when the capsule changes from green to yellow, after two to four months

Flowering and fruiting habit
The trees are deciduous, shedding the leaves in the dry season. Flowering occurs during the wet season and two flowering peaks are often seen. In permanently hu-mid regions, flowering occurs throughout the year. The seeds mature about three months after flowering. Early growth is fast and with good rainfall conditions nursery plants may bear fruits after the first rainy season, direct sown plants after the second rainy season. The flowers are pollinated by insects especially honey bees.

Ecological Requirements
Jatropha curcas grows almost anywhere , even on gravelly, sandy and saline soils. It can thrive on the poorest stony soil. It can grow even in the crevices of rocks. The leaves shed during the winter months form mulch around the base of the plant. The organic matter from shed leaves enhance earth-worm activity in the soil around the root-zone of the plants, which improves the fertility of the soil.

Regarding climate, Jatropha curcas is found in the tropics and subtropics and likes heat, although it does well even in lower temperatures and can withstand a light frost. Its water requirement is extremely low and it can stand long periods of drought by shedding most of its leaves to reduce transpiration loss. Jatropha is also suitable for preventing soil erosion and shifting of sand dunes.

Biophysical limits
Altitude: 0-500 m, Mean annual temperature: 20-28 deg. C, Mean annual rainfall: 300-1000 mm or more.

Soil type: Grows on well-drained soils with good aeration and is well adapted to marginal soils with low nutrient content. On heavy soils, root formation is reduced. Jatropha is a highly adaptable species, but its strength as a crop comes from its ability to grow on very poor and dry sites.

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Wild jatropha stirs hope of biodiesel bounty
Firms are contracting villagers to grow the hardy, oil-rich plant
Hari Ramachandran. Malegaon

Reuters: The glow from burning jatropha seed torches has often saved Maruti Chindu from treading on snakes, but now he carefully nurtures them for a use that he never imagined before — running cars and trucks.
 
On the hilly grasslands of Maharashtra, near the village of Malegaon, Chindu and his tribe of some 40 men and women busily plant jatropha saplings. The saplings are expected to bear seed in three to four years, one of dozens of new biodiesel projects being planned by private firms to feed the nation's galloping energy needs.

Once the trees start bearing seeds, they will continue the yields for the next 30 years without a break. "When electricity came to our village eight, 10 years ago, everybody just forgot about the jatropha trees," said Chindu. "We could not believe our ears when people offered to pay us to cultivate jatropha trees on our lands," he added.

In anticipation of the rapidly evolving biofuels market, dozens of private firms are contracting villagers to grow the hardy, oil-rich plant in their mostly barren plots of land. In the past, the tribes — who have suffered caste discrimination for years — would randomly pluck the fat, green seeds of the jatropha and set them on bamboo spikes to make torches. But now they treat the plant almost reverentially.
 
India plans to replace around five per cent of its current 40 million tonnes of annual diesel consumption with jatropha biodiesel within about five years. Nearly half a dozen states have set aside a total of 1.72 million hectares of land for jatropha cultivation and small quantities of the oil were already being sold to industry. However, it might take around four years until jatropha fuel is sold at the pump, said a senior government official.

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Biodiesel in India
Jatropha is a genus of approximately 175 succulents, shrubs and trees (some are deciduous, like Jatropha curcas L.), from the family Euphorbiaceae. Plants from the genus natively occur in Africa, North America, and the Caribbean.

Originating in the Caribbean, the jatropha was spread as a valuable hedge plant to Africa and Asia by Portuguese traders. Currently the tree is widely used for getting Biodiesel in India, and is being promoted as a very easy to grow biofuel crop in hundreds of projects throughout India and the third world. The rail line between Mumbai and Delhi is planted with Jatropha and the train itself runs on 15-20% biodiesel. The mature small trees bear male and female inflorescence, and do not grow very tall.

Here are some selected species, with use:

- Jatropha aconitifolia, leaves of this tree were boiled and eaten by the Maya.
 
- Jatropha cuneata, stems are used for basket making in Mexico.
 
- Jatropha curcas , also called physic nut, is used to produce the non-edible Jatropha oil, for making candles and soap, and as an ingredient in the production of biodiesel. The trees produce 1600 liters of oil per hectare. The cakes remaining after the oil is pressed out can be used for cooking, for fertilizing, and sometimes even as animal fodder, while the seed husks can be used to fuel generators. Large plantings and nurseries of this tree have been undertaken in India by women's Self Help Groups, using a system of microcredit to ease poverty among the nation's semi-literate population of women. Extracts from this species have also been shown to have anti-tumor activity. The seeds can be used as a remedy for constipation, wounds can be dressed with the sap, and the leaves can be boiled to obtain a malaria and fever remedy.

- Jatropha gossypifolia, also called bellyache bush, its fruits and foliage are toxic to humans and animals. It is a major weed in Australia.
 
- Jatropha podagrica, was used to tan leather and produce a red dye in Mexico and the Southwestern United States. May also be used as a house plant.

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Jatropha has been selected by the Indian Government as one of the plants to provide alternative fuel for the coming years. The government has identified 400,000 square kilometres (98 million acres) of land where jatropha can be grown, hoping it will replace 20% of diesel consumption by 2011. This has provided much needed employment to the rural poor of India and also a means to energy Independence to India.

The Indian Railways has started to use the oil (blended with diesel fuel in various ratios) from the Jatropha plant to power its diesel engines with great success. Currently the diesel locomotives that run from Thanjavur to Nagore section and Tiruchirapalli to Lalgudi, Dindigul and Karur sections run on a blend of Jatropha and diesel oil.

The President of India Dr. Abdul Kalam is a strong advocate of jatropha cultivation for production of bio-diesel. In his recent speech, the President said that out of the 60 million acres (240,000 km²) of waste land that is available in India over 30 million acres (120,000 km²) are suitable for Jatropha cultivation. Once this plant is grown the plant has a useful lifespan of several decades. During it life Jatropha requires very little water when compared to other cash crops.

Recently the State Bank of India provided a boost to the cultivation of Jatropha in India by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with D1 Mohan to give loans to the tune of 1.3 billion rupees to local farmers in India. Farmers will also be able to pay back the loan with the money that D1 Mohan pays for the Jatropha seeds.

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Chhattisgarh has decided to plant 160 million saplings of jatropha in all its 16 districts during 2006 with the aim of becoming a bio-fuel self-reliant state by 2015. Chhattisgarh plans to earn Rs.40 billion annually by selling seeds after 2010. The central government has provided Rs.135 million to Chhattisgarh this year for developing jatropha nursery facilities.

In May 2005, Chief Minister Raman Singh became the first head of a state government to use jatropha diesel for his official vehicle. Chhattisgarh plans to replace with jatropha fuel all state-owned vehicles using diesel and petrol by 2007.

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Maharashtra to offer 30,000 ha to pvt sector for jatropha cultivation
 
THE Maharashtra Government is planning to make available 30,000 hectares for jatropha cultivation to the private sector. It is learnt that Reliance Industries has already approached the State Government to get the land allocated for jatropha cultivation.

The Maharashtra Government's plan is to cultivate jatropha on 60,000 hectares in the State.

According to the sources in the Maharashtra Department of Non-conventional Energy, the State Government is likely bring out a Government Regulation by the year-end.

Cultivation of jatropha would be undertaken on wastelands, which are owned by the State Government. Poor and underprivileged sections of the society, women and self help groups would be given 50 per cent of the land for cultivation and management while rest of the land would be given to the private sector, the sources said.

The State Government not only wants to earn revenue through cultivation of jatropha but is also aiming to create rural employment and prevent soil erosion. It wants to create a model of energy self-sufficiency for the rural areas.

Earlier, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd had joined hands with Maharashtra State Farming Corporation Ltd (MSFCL), a State Government undertaking, for a jatropha seed based bio-diesel venture.

A pilot project has already been initiated, under which, jatropha would be cultivated in 500 acres in Nashik and Aurangabad.

According to the latest report on jatropha cultivation and processing, prepared by the State Agriculture Commissioner, Maharashtra plans to give a minimum of 10 hectares and a maximum of 25 hectares to NGOs involved in jatropha cultivation.

Individuals would get two hectares of land for 30 years. They would have to cultivate 1,600 jatropha trees per hectare of land. Out of the total revenue generated, 20 per cent would have to be given to the State Government.

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Oil from a Wasteland - The Jatropha Project in India
In a simple process plant oil is converted into bio diesel fuel. Crossing India a Mercedes-Benz C-Class tested the fuel on the road.
 
From Jatropha Oil to Biodiesel
Parallel to the search for the most effective way to cultivate the jatropha plant, the project partners are pursuing another important goal: the development of a simple and economical process for converting the plant oil extracted from the oilseed into high-quality biodiesel fuel. For this purpose, the scientists at CSMCRI have set up three small pilot plants in Bhavnagar that have a combined production capacity of 100 liters of biodiesel per day.

In these chemical mini-factories, the jatropha oil is subjected to a process called transesterification. Plant oils - those derived from jatropha as well as the oilseed rape and soya beans from which biodiesel is produced in Europe and the U.S. - consist mainly of triglycerides, the fatty acid esters of glycerin. They are extremely viscous and tend to resinification - qualities that are not desirable inside a fuel tank.
    
Transesterification, in which the glycerin is replaced by methanol, makes it possible to use the processed plant oil as fuels. However, that's only the first step in the transformation of plant oil into biodiesel. After transesterification, the resulting raw product is centrifuged and washed with water to cleanse it of impurities, such as glycerin and excess methanol. Only at the end of this process is the biodiesel of usable quality.

The CSMCRI team was not willing to wait until after the first harvest in order to start the search for the right process for refining jatropha oil, so it bought eight tons of jatropha nuts that farmers had gathered from wild plants in various parts of India. By spring 2004, the team had extracted a total of 1,300 liters of high-quality biodiesel from this raw material using a variety of processes. The biodiesel was passed to DaimlerChrysler India, which used it to fuel an eye-catching round trip through the country. A Mercedes-Benz C 220 CDI specially modified to use jatropha biodiesel toured the country between April and May 2004, covering around 5,900 kilometers and visiting 11 major cities on a route extending from Pune to Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.

Powered by diesel fuel made of jatropha seeds this Mercedes-Benz C 220 CDI covered a distance of 5900 kilometers across India.

The results of the experiment have been very satisfactory for two reasons. Firstly, it has revealed that jatropha-based biofuel can be used without any problems in modern CDI engines adapted for biodiesel. What's more, this fuel produces only half of the unburned hydrocarbon emissions and one-third of the particulate emissions produced by diesel fuel derived from crude petroleum.

Secondly, the team from DaimlerChrysler India received a tremendous amount of public interest. According to George Francis from the project team headed by Klaus Becker in Hohenheim, two more Indian states are now in the process of setting up and financing jatropha cultivation in wasteland areas.
 
The fuel specialists at DaimlerChrysler Research, under the leadership of Rudolf Maly, have now taken an in-depth look at the quality of biodiesel made from jatropha. "This fuel has not yet reached optimal quality, but it already fulfills the EU norm for biodiesel quality," says Maly. "That's a remarkable achievement, in view of the simple production processes involved." Maly's team subjected the emissions associated with jatropha biodiesel to tough laboratory tests that confirmed their Indian colleagues' observations of the advantages of this fuel. In addition, this renewable fuel's high cetane values, very low sulfur content and high oxygen content give it excellent combustion properties.

"What's more, the CO2 balance of fuels derived from renewable energy sources is much better than that of fuels based on crude oil," Maly adds. After all, the combustion of biodiesel releases only the amount of CO2 that the plant removed from the atmosphere when it was growing. Only the amount of energy used for the cultivation, harvesting and transport of the plants plus the energy needed to produce biodiesel affects the CO2 balance. And in principle, it is possible to significantly reduce that energy figure.

Source: DaimlerChrysler, Reuters, Wiki, DNA, Jatropha World, Jatropha Bio Diesel

What is biodiesel?

 

Biodiesel is a vegetable oil-based fuel that runs in unmodified diesel engines - cars, buses, trucks, construction equipment, boats, generators, and oil home heating units. Biodiesel is usually made from soy or canola oil, and can also be made from recycled fryer oil (yes, from McDonalds or your local Chinese restaurant). You can blend biodiesel with regular diesel or run 100% biodiesel.

 

What are the benefits?

1) National security. Since biodiesel is made domestically, biodiesel reduces our dependence on foreign oil. That's good.

2) National economy. Using biodiesel keeps our fuel buying dollars at home instead of sending it to foreign countries. This reduces our trade deficit and creates jobs.

3) It's sustainable & non-toxic. Face it, we're going to run out of oil eventually. Biodiesel is 100% renewable... we'll never run out of biodiesel. And if biodiesel gets into your water supply, there's no problem - it's just modified veggie oil! Heck, you can drink biodiesel if you so desire, but it tastes nasty (trust us).
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4) Emissions. Biodiesel is nearly carbon-neutral, meaning it contributes almost zero emissions to global warming! Biodiesel also dramatically reduces other emissions fairly dramatically. We like clean air, how about you? Plus, the exhaust smells like popcorn or french fries!
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5) Engine life. Studies have shown biodiesel reduces engine wear by as much as one half, primarily because biodiesel provides excellent lubricity. Even a 2% biodiesel/98% diesel blend will help.
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6) Drivability. We have yet to meet anyone who doesn't notice an immediate smoothing of the engine with biodiesel. Biodiesel just runs quieter, and produces less smoke.

Are there any negatives?
Of course. There is no perfect fuel.
1) Primarily that biodiesel is not readily available in much of the nation, YET ( click here for a map of locations), although availability has jumped considerably in the last five years. Commercial consumption of biodiesel jumped from 500,000 gallons in 2000 to 15 million gallons in 2001 to 75 million gallons in 2006. And there's no measure how much home-produced biodiesel there is.

2) Biodiesel will clean your injectors and fuel lines. If you have an old diesel vehicle, there's a chance that your first few tanks of biodiesel could free up all the accumulated crud and clog your fuel filter. But this is a GOOD thing... think of it as kicking up dust around the house when you clean.

3) Biodiesel has a higher gel point. B100 (100% biodiesel) gets slushy a little under 32°F. But B20 (20% biodiesel, 80% regular diesel - more commonly available than B100) has a gel point of -15°F. Like regular diesel, the gel point can be lowered further with additives such as kerosene (blended into winter diesel in cold-weather areas).

4) Old vehicles (older than mid-90s) might require upgrades of fuel lines (a cheap, easy upgrade), as biodiesel can eat through certain types of rubber. Almost all new vehicles should have no problem with biodiesel.

5) Finally, the one emission that goes up with biodiesel is NOx. NOx contributes to smog. We feel that a slight increase (up to 15%) in NOx is greatly offset by the reduction in all other emissions and the major reduction in greenhouse gasses.

Jatropha For Biodiesel Figures

Jatropha is seen by many to be the perfect biodiesel crop. It can be grown in very poor soils actually generating top soil as it goes, is drought and pest resilient, and it has seeds with up to 40% oil content.

Here are some facts and figures about Jatropha relating to its growth as an oil product:

- Jatropha grows well on low fertility soils however increased yields can be obtained using a fertilizer containing small amounts of magnesium, sulphur, and calcium.
- Jatropha can be intercropped with many cash crops such as coffee, sugar, fruits and vegetables with the Jatropha offering both fertilizer and protection against livestock.
- Jatropha needs at least 600mm of rain annually to thrive however it can survive three years of drought by dropping its leaves.
- Jatropha is excellent at preventing soil erosion, and the leaves it drops act as a wonderful soil enriching mulch.
- Jatropha prefers alkaline soils.

- The cost of 1000 jatropha saplings (enough for one acre) in Pakistan is around 5000PKR (equiv to around £50 or just 5p each).
- The cost of 1kg of jatropha seeds in India is 6 Rupees (equiv to around £0.07).
- Each jatropha seedling should be given a 2m x 2m area to grow into.
- 20% of seedlings planted will not survive.
- Jatropha seedlings yield seeds in the first year after plantation.

- After the first five years, the typical annual yield of a jatropha tree is 3.5kg of beans.
- Jatropha trees are productive for up to 30-40 years.
- 2,200 trees can be planted per hectare (approx 1,000 per acre).
- 1 hectare should yield around 7 tonnes of seeds per year.
- The oil pressed from 4kg of seeds is needed to make 1 litre of biodiesel.
- 91%+ of the oil can be extracted with cold pressing.
- 1 hectare should yield around 2.2-2.7 tonnes of oil.
- Press cake (seedcake) is left after the oil is pressed from the seeds. This can be composted and used as a high grade nitrogen rich organic fertilizer ( green manure). The remaining oil can be used to make skin friendly soap.

- One job is created for each 4 hectares of jatropha plantation.
- The average Indian agricultural worker earns less than $40 per month.
- Biodiesel costs around 16-20p per litre to grow and refine in India.
- Glycerol, a biproduct of biodiesel refinement, can be sold in India for around 45-70p per kilogram.
- One hectare of jatropha plantation yields 25,000 Rupees / year (around £300) in India.

The following stats come from D1 Oils - the UK's biggest biodiesel company:
- Crushing 1 tonne of Jatropha seeds costs around $40 (£23).
- 1 tonne of seedcake (the leftovers after pressing) can be sold for $100 (£55).
- The transport costs of shipping 1 tonne of jatropha from India to Northern Europe is $100 (£55).
- The landed cost of 1 tonne of jatropha oil to Northern Europe is between $348 and $500 for oil contents of 29% to 40% (£180 to £260). - Refining jatropha oil into biodiesel costs less than $125 (£65) per tonne.

- Filtered jatropha oil can be used as is in many diesel vehicles (as SVO) with only small modifications required to the engine.
- Jatropha oil can be used as a kerosene substitute for heating and lamps.
- Jatropha oil burns with a clear smokeless flame.

Jatropha turns cash crop for farmers

12 Jul, 2007, 0145 hrs IST,Tapash Talukdar, TNN

 

RAJKOT: Jatropha farming has now caught the attention of foreign companies for contract farming. Dwarka-based P Manek Biofarms, manufacturer of various essential oils, has been getting enquiries from a few UK-based companies for contract farming. The firm is engaged in developing nursery and irrigation development facility to help farmers. The crop requires less water, grows in arid region and can be used as an alternative to costlier fuels.

Nearly 5,000 farmers will join hands for the project which would enable the farmers to double their income. "We have been approached by a few UK-based companies to take up contract farming in jatropha cultivation. The future of jatropha seems to be bright and our focus is on increasing domestic as well as overseas marketing of the crop," says P Manek Biofarms CEO Manish Asawa. The firm has recently tied up with Tata Chemicals to grow jatropha in a total area of 2,000 acres. As per the agreement, Tata Chemicals will buy the whole production and use it for its own manufacturing purposes. The total investment for the project would be around Rs 400 crore over the next four to five years.

Bank of Baroda would finance a portion of the project, which is in the form of a joint agreement between Tata Chemicals and P Manek Biofarms. Gujarat government's "Green Revolution" scheme for jatropha plantation would grant a 50% subsidy to the project.

Initially, the project will be started on 500 acres where nearly 200 farmers would grow the crop. Next year, the production will rise to another 500 acres or as per the requirement of Tata Chemicals. The demand for jatropha has been growing in the domestic market and now overseas companies are also exploring options to make efficient use of the crop.

The firm will facilitate technical know-how and provide backlog systems to the farmers to grow good quality jatropha.
Interestingly, the firm has received inquiries for its lemongrass crop which is used in making herbal tea. "We have received first order of 20-25 metric tonnes of supplying lemongrass to a UK-based company," says Asawa.

Could jatropha be a biofuel panacea?

By Alison Hinds BBC Radio 4's Jatropha, the Wonder Plant

There is a bush which has grown across the Americas, Africa and Asia for centuries.

Could jatropha solve India's energy problems? (All pictures copyright D1 Oils plc)

It has been used to make soap and candles, or as a remedy for constipation, high fevers and even malaria.

It is also highly toxic. Just four seeds from its plum-sized fruit is enough to kill, while the milky sap from its bark can stain the skin and irritate it for days.

But the wild jatropha bush - spread across the world from Central America by Portuguese settlers in the 16th century - is now being seen as one solution to the world's desperate search for new sources of energy.

Energy giant BP has just announced it is investing almost £32m in a jatropha joint venture with UK biofuels firm D1 Oils.

Diesel plans

India is leading the way when it comes to cultivating jatropha on an industrial scale.

"There is no doubt about it," says Sanju Khan, a site manager for D1 Oils.

"Those who are working with jatropha, are working with the new generation crop, developing a crop from a wild plant - which is hugely exciting."

Although Indians have known about jatropha's more day-to-day uses, and its dangers, for years, the interest now is in its potential to transform the lives of millions of poverty-stricken farmers who are struggling to survive.

The key is in growing jatropha to be used as a biofuel. Once dried out and crushed, these poisonous seeds yield oil which can be burned in almost any diesel engine - with no modification.

Growing anywhere

With the impacts of global warming becoming ever more apparent, countries all over the world are seeking out alternatives to fossil fuels.

The seeds are poisonous - but with rich energy potential

Biofuel plants like jatropha absorb carbon-dioxide while they are growing, effectively cancelling out the carbon dioxide they release when they burn.

What's more, they could allow developing countries like India - where more than a million new cars were sold last year - to be self-sufficient rather than depending on oil and gas imports in a politically unstable world.

India invests more than $300m a year in researching biofuels - more than many developed nations. - and Jatropha is just one of a number of possible biofuel plants.

But the bush's attraction lies in the fact that it can grow anywhere, even in the poorest soil, needs very little water to survive and will yield seeds for more than half a century.

Even jatropha's keenest supporters acknowledge that there remains much work to be done to find out which varieties of jatropha will thrive best in a whole range of climatic conditions.

But the most optimistic assessments suggest that one day, as much as half India's 63 million hectares of wasteland could be suitable for the plant.

Export hopes

Already in India, 11 million hectares have been earmarked for jatropha growing.

Some see a danger that in a country where subsistence farming - growing food to eat - is still a widespread activity, jatropha could replace much-needed food crops, turning India into a monoculture.

The Indian government believes not. Its plans call for cutting down conventional diesel use over the next six years by blending the fuel with 13 million tonnes of biodiesel.

That would be enough to power half a million cars to drive the length of India. With jatropha, officials believe that might be possible.

Jatropha's proponents say its oil can easily be blended with diesel

Moreover, it might help India become a leading world producer of biodiesel - although that would depend on whether India's farmers could grow enough for both domestic use and for export.

Ambitions

Jatropha's proponents have no doubt that the potential is there.

The European Union, for instance, wants 5% of all fuel sold for use in transport to be biofuels by the end of this decade.

D1 Oils chairman Lord Oxborough believes that jatropha will be part of this.

When does he think we will be using jatropha biodiesel in our cars?

"In two years," he says - just in time to meet the EU's target.

Jatropha the wonder plant is on BBC Radio 4 at 2100 BST on Monday 9 July, then online for seven days at Radio 4's Listen again page.

BP and D1 Oils to jointly develop jatropha biodiesel feedstock

2nd July 2007

By Clare Watson

UK oil giant BP and UK biofuels producer D1 Oils are forming a 50/50 joint venture, to be called D1-BP Fuel Crops Limited, to accelerate the planting of jatropha curcas in order to make more sustainable biodiesel feedstock available on a larger scale.

Jatropha curcas is a drought-resistant, inedible oilseed-bearing tree that does not compete with food crops for good agricultural land or adversely impact the rainforest, and will also provide employment for local communities, BP said.

Under the terms of the agreement, BP and D1 Oils intend to invest around $160 million over the next five years. D1 Oils will contribute into its 172,000 hectares of existing plantations in India, southern Africa and southeast Asia, and the joint venture will have exclusive access to the elite jatropha seedlings produced through D1 Oils's plant science program.

The joint venture will focus on jatropha cultivation in southeast Asia, southern Africa, Central and South America and India. It is anticipated that some one million hectares will be planted over the next four years, with an estimated 300,000 hectares per year thereafter.

Jatropha oil produced from the plantations will be used to meet both local biodiesel requirements and for export to markets such as Europe, where domestic feedstock produced from rapeseed and waste oil is unlikely to be sufficient to meet anticipated regulatory led demand for biodiesel of around 11 million tonnes a year from 2010.

"Once all the planned plantations are established, the joint venture is expected to become the world's largest commercial producer of jatropha feedstock, producing up to two million tonnes of jatropha oil a year," said Phil New, head of BP Biofuels.

"As this hardy crop can be grown on a wide range of land types, it can make a significant impact on employment in rural areas of developing countries where planting takes place, a benefit which fits well with BP's aspiration to pursue relationships which are mutually advantageous," Mr New continued.