Camelina sativa

Kingdom         : Plantae

 

Order               : Brassicales

 

Family             : Brassicaceae

 

Genus              : Camelina

Species            : C. sativa

Basic Information

Camelina sativa is a flowering plant in the family of Brassicaceae which include mustard, cabbage, rapeseed, broccoli, cauliflower. This plant is native to Eastern Europe and Southwest Asia. C. sativa does not need more water and fertilizers. It can be grown in marginal agricultural lands and does not compete with food crops. It is used as a rotational crop with heat and cotton in order to enrich the soil condition.C. sativa has been cultivating since many years as a vegetable oils and animal feeds. During the Bronze Age and Iron Age C. sativa has had a main agricultural crop in Greece.

Plant Characteristics

C. sativa is an annual plant which grows about one to three feet. This is a short season crop and reaches to its maturity in 85 to 100 days. C. sativa has a branching stem and at the mature stage it is woody. The leaves are pointed with smooth edges and grow at about three inches long.  The flower has 4 pale yellow petals. The seeds which are in orange color seed pods contain about 40% of oil content. The seeding rate is at about 6-14kg/ha.

 

 

"Biodiesel"..... as a Renewable fuel source....

Biodiesel is alternative fuel which use alternative to the ordinary petroleum based fuel. It contains no petroleum but it can be blended with petroleum at any level in order to produce a biodiesel blend. It can be successfully used for diesel engine with little or no modifications. Comparing to the ordinary petroleum based fuel it is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, and essentially free of sulfur and aromatics. So using Biodiesel is more environmental friendly rather than using petroleum based fuel. Not only the environmental friendly but also it is a solution to petroleum fuels because these fuels are not longer exist in the future. So if we can develop the biodiesel as alternative to the petroleum based fuel, it will be a great finding for the next generation.

Some rating system according to the blend with the Petroliam based fuel.

• 100% biodiesel is referred to as                 B100
• 20% biodiesel, 80% petrodiesel is labeled B20
• 5% biodiesel, 95% petro diesel is labeled  B5
• 2% biodiesel, 98% petro diesel is labeled  B2

If we use blends less than B20, the engine modification is not required. But for the B100 little engine modification may require.

Biodiesel is made through a chemical process and the process is called “trans esterification”. In this process glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. Tow products are produced through this process and they are Methyl esters and glycerin. Methyl ester is called as Biodiesel.

Several plant species can be used for the Biodiesel production process. As example soybean, mustard seed, camelina, sesame, sunflowers, peanuts, olives, jatropha, coconut, oil palm. Among these plants species Camelina (camelina sativa) is one of a famous plant species which use for preparing Biodiesel. It has been cultivating for many years for the purpose of oil and food for live stock. Evidence says that C.sataiva has been grown in Europe for at least 3000 years.

Advantages of using C. sativa.

·       C. sativa is a high amount of Omega-3 fatty acids which makes it a good food for livestock.

·       More cold-resistant than other plants used for bio-fuels.

·       Can be used in crop rotation with wheat & cotton.

·       When Camelina is rotated with wheat, the wheat sees a 15% increase in yield.

·       It has about twice the yield of soy crops.

·       The plant grows where others would die from drought conditions.