Camelina oil as feedstock for biodiesel

Biodiesel is defined by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) as “a fuel comprised of mono-alkyl esters of long-chain fatty acids” that meets the requirements of ASTM standard D6751. Biodiesel can be prepared from a wide variety of lipids. Advantages of biodiesel include positive energy balance, domestic and renewable origin, biodegradability, high flash point, excellent lubricity, low or no sulfur content, lower overall exhaust emissions versus petrodiesel, and miscibility with petrodiesel at all blend ratios.

Poor economics and insufficient supply of feedstock represent disadvantages of biodiesel along with relatively poor cold flow properties and oxidative stability as compared with petrodiesel, as well as dilution of engine oil and elevated nitrogen oxides in exhaust emissions. C.sativa is particularly attractive as an alternative feedstock for biodiesel production as a result of its low cost versus commodity oils coupled with its potential to significantly enhance domestic feedstock availability. Biodiesel is classically prepared by trans esterification of lipids in the presence of an homogenous alkali catalyst and excess methanol at elevated (60C) temperature.. Crude feedstocks that have low free fatty acid contents (less than 3.0 wt%) can be directly trans esterified without pretreatment, thereby eliminating a costly pretreatment step. 

 

C.sativa is one such crude oil and has been successfully converted to biodiesel (fatty acid methyl esters) by the classic method as well as with heterogeneous metal oxide catalysts both with and without microwave irradiation and at non-catalytic sub- and supercritical conditions employing co-solvents with methanol. The fuel properties (cold flow properties, oxidative stability, kinematic viscosity, cetane number, etc.) of camelina-based biodiesel are similar to those of biodiesel prepared from soybean oil, thus indicating its acceptability for use as biodiesel.

Additionally, fatty acid ethyl esters have been prepared from camelina oil and along with methyl esters were evaluated as blend components in petrodiesel. As was the case with the neat esters, camelina-based biodiesel blends in petrodiesel exhibited fuel properties comparable to the corresponding soybean-based blends. 

References:-

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/one-billion-gallons-in-camelina-biofuel-by-2025-89105252.html

http://biomassadvisors.com/blog/thinking/reports

Evaluation of alkyl esters from Camelina sativa oil as biodiesel and as blend Components in ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel.

By Bryan R. Moser *, Steven F. Vaughn 

Camelina (Camelina sativa L.) oil as a biofuels feedstock: Golden opportunity or false hope?

BY Bryan R. Moser