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Articles on Future Fuels-Jatropha

Jatropha is primarily a tropical genus of approximately 175 succulent plants, shrubs and trees (some are deciduous, like Jatropha curcas L.), from the family Euphorbiaceae. Jatropha is indigenous to Central America, but has been raised in other tropical and subtropical areas such as India, Africa, and North America. Jatropha was initially used as a valuable hedge plant and was exported to Africa and Asia by Portuguese traders. The flowers and stem of Jatropha curcas have well-known medicinal properties, and the leaves are used for dressing wounds. The oil has been used as an organic insecticide as well as an effective treatment for snake bites and other ailments. Learn more: http://www.terasollabs.com/jatropha.htm Use as Biofuel: Jatropha from Wikipedia.org 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 (press cake) can also be processed and used as biomass feedstock to power electricity plants or used as fertilizer (it contains nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium).[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] Learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jatropha_oil

• SG Biofuels Launches First Elite Jatropha Cultivar
  Mar 19, 2010 - RenewableEnergyWorld.com
  
  SG Biofuels said that it has launched its first JMax 100 cultivar, a proprietary cultivar of Jatropha optimized for growing conditions in Guatemala with yields 100 percent greater than existing varieties.
  
  
• Jatropha revival: SG releases first elite cultivar; 350 gallons per acre at $1.39/gallon, optimized for Guatemala
  Feb 22, 2010 - biofueldigest.com
  
  In California, SG Biofuels announced the launch of JMax 100, billed as the “world’s first elite jatropha cultivar”, optimized for production in Guatemala with yields, based on trialing of the cultivar on several thousand acres, of 350 gallons per acre and a production cost of $1.39 per gallon for jatropha oil.
  
  
  
• First Passenger Flight Powered by Biofuel--But Are the Petroleum Alternatives Ready to Takeoff?
  Dec 3, 2009 - David Biello - Scientific American
  
  Test flight results have been good, but questions remain whether jet biofuel be produced in large quantities--and sustainably
  
  
• Jatropha fuels can benefit economies & ecosystems
  Jun 9, 2009 - Renewable Eneregy World.com
  
  Stephen Lacey talks with Irenee Songsare Shevy of Venture Energy about his experience with jatropha based biofuels and the impact they could have on African economies.
  
  
• Wartsila engines running on biofuels
  Jun 1, 2009 - Renewable Eneregy World.com
  
  In recent tests conducted at the VTT technical research centre in Espoo, Finland, a Wärtsilä Vasa 4R32 engine was operated on jatropha oil, fish oil and chicken oil, the company says.
  
  
• Jet biofuel ready for takeoff
  May 29, 2009 - Katie Howell - Scientific American
  
  Jet fuels derived from algae, camelina and jatropha -- plants that pack an energy punch, are not eaten as food and do not displace food crops -- could be approved and replacing petroleum fuels in commercial flights as early as next year, a Boeing executive said yesterday.
  
  
• Air New Zealand declares first jatropha biofuel flight a success
  Jan 5, 2009 - Tom Young - Business Green
  
  Air New Zealand last week successfully completed the world's first test flight of a commercial airliner running on a jatropha-based biofuel, and immediately announced that it would now begin work to have the fuel certified for use in passenger jets.
  
  
• Biofuel for jumbo jets: Kiwis take to the sky on jatropha
  Dec 30, 2008 - David Biello - Scientific American
  
  Fuel from the weed jatropha powered an Air New Zealand jet on a two-hour flight today—the world's second flight of a commercial jet on biofuel. One out of the four Rolls Royce engines on an Air New Zealand Boeing 747-400 burned a 50-50 blend of regular jet fuel and a bio-version made from jatropha.
  
  
• An additional 1.6 million hectares for biodiesel: Jatropha cultivation to be expanded in Indian state of uttar pradesh
  Aug 18, 2008 - Mattew Mcdermott - Treehugger
  
  The Indian National Mission on Biodiesel may have been quietly shelved recently, but that doesn’t mean that state governments aren’t continuing forward with their plans to cultivate Jatropha for biodiesel.
  
  
• Jatropha plant's oil studied as biofuel for jets
  Jun 5, 2008 - Los Angeles Times
  
  The easily grown weed produces oil that is about a third the cost of crude and doesn't have the environmental drawbacks of ethanol. Air New Zealand plans test flights this summer.
  
  
• Toxic jatropha not magic biofuel crop, experts warn
  Sept 12, 2007 - Reuters
  
  GUANGZHOU, China, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Oilseed plant jatropha does not offer an easy answer to biofuels problems as some countries hope, because it can be toxic and yields are unreliable, experts and industry officials warned on Wednesday.
  
  
• Jatropha tree could be a biodiesel boon for Florida farmers, UF researcher says
  Aug 29, 2007 - University of Florida News
  
  Growing plants for fuel might be an engine-revving idea for some South Florida farmers who feel their crops have stalled, a University of Florida researcher says.
  

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