Fuel Alternative

One unintended side effect of developing fuels agriculturally has been an attendant increase in the price of those crops we depend on to feed the planet. While largely a result of futures speculations and commodity trading, the alarming spike in the cost of essential food products has dimmed the enthusiasm of many biofuel advocates.

Water requirements, fertilizer contamination, and competition for prime farmland all combine to render corn and soybean models of biofuel unsustainable for the future, despite government mandates and a strong public impetus toward green vehicle alternatives.

Others have turned their sights on sources which are not a part of the food supply. While the dietary needs of humans and other animals require nutritious seeds grown on premium land, some species of oily plants promise much higher yields without impacting the food supply.

In fact, the Jatropha tree, common in parts of Africa and Asia, is a hardy desert brush that is drought resistant and thus can be cultivated on lands which are otherwise barren. Hailed as a boon to poverty-stricken farmers of the Third World, the oil-rich seed of the obscure Jatropha may turn out to be an answer not only to the ever-growing energy needs of the Industrial west, but to the struggling inhabitants of arid regions the world over.

Estimates for the potential yield of large-scale production efforts vary greatly, but in all events show a steep improvement over the cultivation of current sources. In addition to providing one of the most efficient sources of seed oil to date, Jatropha, which bears seeds for five decades, also promises to ease soil degradation and help restore fallow lands.

Byproducts of biodiesel production include glycerin, which has many applications in industry and consumer products such as soap, biomass for cellulose alcohol, and nutrient-rich natural fertilizer from the pressed seed pulp. The extracted seed can also be used in a secondary cycle as methane.

Overall, estimates indicate that Jatropha yields will be up to four times greater than soy on the same acreage-causing farmers and governments to leap into production on this little-known tree which may someday power most of the diesel engines on Earth.