Jatropha oil

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Jatropha oil is vegetable oil produced from the seeds of the Jatropha curcas, a plant that can grow in wastelands. Jatropha curcas grows almost anywhere, even on gravelly, sandy and saline soils. It can thrive on the poorest stony soil and grow in the crevices of rocks.

Contents 1 Usage as biodiesel 2 Usage by country 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Usage as biodiesel

When jatropha seeds are crushed, the resulting jatropha oil can be processed to produce a high-quality biodiesel that can be used in a standard diesel car, while the residue can also be processed into biomass to power electricity plants.^[1]

The plant yields more than four times as much fuel per hectare as soybean, and more than ten times that of maize (corn). A hectare of jatropha produces 1,892 litres of fuel.^[2]

Researchers at Daimler Chrysler Research explored the use of jatropha oil for automotive use, concluding that although jatropha oil as fuel "has not yet reached optimal quality, ... it already fulfills the EU norm for biodiesel quality". Three Mercedes cars powered by Jatropha diesel have already put some 30,000 kilometres behind them. The project is supported by DaimlerChrysler and by the German Association for Investment and Development (Deutschen Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft, DEG).^[3][4]

Goldman Sachs recently cited Jatropha curcas as one of the best candidates for future biodiesel production.^[5] However, despite its abundance and use as an oil and reclamation plant, none of the Jatropha species has been properly domesticated and, as a result, its productivity is variable, and the long-term impact of its large-scale use on soil quality and the environment is unknown.^[6] However, because jatropha is not edible, and because it can grow in harsh climates, it can be planted in areas where it won't compete for resources needed to grow food.^[7]

[edit] Usage by country

See also: Jatropha incentives in India

Developed in India as a fuel oil, it has received wide attention, particularly in Asia (e.g. Indonesia^[8] and the Philippines,^[9]) as a source of biodiesel.

Myanmar is also actively pursuing the use of jatropha oil. On 15 December 2005, Head of State, Senior General Than Shwe, said “the States and Divisions concerned are to put 50,000 acres (200 km²) under the physic nut plants [Jatropha] each within three years totalling seven hundred thousand acres (2,800 km²) during the period”. On the occasion of Myanmar’s Peasant Day 2006, Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Senior General Than Shwe described in his a message that “For energy sector which is an essential role in transforming industrial agriculture system, the Government is encouraging for cultivation of physic nut plants nationwide and the technical know how that can refine physic nuts to bio diesel has also identified.” He would like to urge peasants to cultivate physic nut plants on a commercial scale with major aims for emergence of industrial agriculture system, for fulfilling rural electricity supply and energy needs, for supporting rural areas development and import substitute economy.^[10] In a meeting in January 2006, Minister of Industry Aung Thaung spoke of using biodiesel from jatropha oil to meet Myanmar's fuel needs.^[11] More recently, plans have been made to cultivate 700,000 acres (2,800 km²),^[12] and the project is said to be going forward.^{[citation needed]}

On 2008-May-09, in the wake of Cyclone Nargis, “Agriculture Policies Worsen Food Shortages” by James Hookway in The Wall Street Journal on May 9, 2008 at Page A10 $ubscription Link reported:

Myanmar's badly conceived agricultural policies are compounding the country's already dire food situation. In recent years, Myanmar's reclusive military rulers have plowed large tracts of rice- and vegetable-growing land to plant jatropha -- an inedible plant used for making biodiesel. ...

United Nations World Food Program officials say the storm wiped out much of Myanmar's midyear rice harvest and add that grain stockpiles are dwindling because of the military's jatropha drive. That makes it likely Myanmar's plans to export rice this year to other needy nations such as Bangladesh will be scrapped.

The military regime's opaque decision-making and often bizarre policies could jeopardize prospects for Myanmar's longer-term recovery, analysts and diplomats suggest. In particular, the regime's mismanagement of agriculture has badly eroded the country's food-security cushion -- despite claims by the government, before the cyclone struck, that Myanmar would produce enough rice this year to double its exports. ...

The most notorious example of errant policy making reflects the fascination of 75-year-old junta leader Senior-Gen. Than Shwe with biodiesel as a way to break the country's dependence on expensive imported oil. In December 2005, the battle-hardened commander kicked off a nationwide campaign to grow jatropha, a squat, hardy bush that yields golf-ball-sized fruit containing a sticky, yellow liquid that can be made into fuel. His drive was similar to initiatives in other parts of the world, including the U.S., which encouraged farmers to grow corn, palm oil or other crops for biofuel and which are now facing criticism for driving up the price of food.

India, China and other countries grow jatropha on scrubby land where food crops can't survive. But researchers say that in Myanmar, some of the country's most fertile land has been converted to cultivating the shrub. "This was the whitest of the junta's white elephants," says Monique Skidmore, a professor at the Australian National University and an author of two books on Myanmar. "It goes to show how [the generals] have no concept of how to properly run the country, especially in the aftermath of this cyclone."

It isn't clear how much of Myanmar's arable land has been converted to jatropha cultivation. Organizations such as the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization warned the government about the risks of farming jatropha on land that could be used to grow food. But Gen. Than Shwe's goal was to set aside an area the size of Belgium to grow jatropha -- a huge commitment for Myanmar, which is roughly the size of France.

In 2006, the chief research officer at state-run Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise said Myanmar hoped to completely replace the country's oil imports of 40,000 barrels a day with home-brewed, jatropha-derived biofuel. Other government officials declared Myanmar would soon start exporting jatropha oil. Despite the military's efforts, the jatropha campaign apparently has largely flopped in its goal of making Myanmar self-sufficient in fuel.

In many places, the farmers didn't understand what it was they were supposed to be farming, and the crops failed. What's more, jatropha turned out to be harder to refine into biofuel than the junta expected. Faced with a shortfall of fuel, Myanmar began stepping up its conventional oil imports last year just as global crude prices began to spike. That led to rising food and transport costs and, ultimately, contributed to a pro-democracy revolt led by Buddhist monks, which the military brutally crushed last September, killing at least 31 people.

If just 3% of Africa was planted with this crop, the revenue would easily run into tens of billions of euros.^[13] India is now preparing for the planting of 40 million hectares with Jatropha, and has done intensive testing of this biofuel.^[14]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Jatropha plantation from 'Soil to Oil'
• A Self-help Assistance Program's Jatropha Tree Planting Project
• Jatropha Curcas Plantations - Articles and information on Jatropha cultivation
• Jatropha Plant power can solve fuel problem
• BBC report of Jatropa Biofuel
• The worldwide online Jatropha Portal
• Size does matter - The possibilities of cultivating Jatropha curcas for biofuel production in developing countries. Case study report on the relationship with food security. Contains lots of references and background information.
• "Mali’s Farmers Discover a Weed’s Potential Power", New York Times, September 9, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-09-09. 
• Fatty acid composition and properties of Jatropha seed oil and its methyl ester

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