Biodiesel production and its development strategy

Biodiesel, an environmentally friendly biofuel with similar flow and combustion properties as petroleum-based diesel and low emission profile, which is commonly prepared from triglyceride （TG） sources such as vegetable oils, animal fats, and waste greases, holds good promises as an alternative to diesel fuel. Alternate fuels for diesel engines have become increasingly important due to diminishing petroleum reserves and awareness of the increased environmental consequences of emissions from petroleum-fuelled engines, as the world is confronted with an energy crisis. Currently, the production of methyl or ethyl esters from edible oils is much more expensive than that of diesel fuels due to the relatively high costs of vegetable oils （about four times the cost of diesel in China）. Methyl esters produced from such oils can be expected to compete economically with diesel fuels, and there is a need to explore low cost alternate feedstocks for the production of biodiesel. Rapeseed is little sensitive to crop input levels, allowing reduction of tillage, irrigation, and weed control. Significant yield increases will be attained using new hybrids and better crop management. Rapeseed cultures in seasonal set-aside lands such as Dongting Lake surroundings can significantly decreases the amount of subsides spent for agricultural overproduction in China, which leads to an increase in farmer incomes as well as the creation of new employment. This significantly lowers production costs, reduces environmental impact, and increases final energy gains. Our rapeseed oil is good source for biodiesel with respect to high oil content and proper fatty acid composition.

Effects of Main Cultivation Factors on Rapeseed Oil Yield

[Objective] This study aimed to analyze the influence of six cultivation fac- tors： sowing date, plant density, nitrogen fertilizer amount, phosphate fertilizer amount, potash fertilizer amount and boron fertilizer amount on seed oil yield of Brassica napus. [Method] Statistical analysis was carried out based on the data from previous studies and our work. [Result] Oil yield shared a negative correlation with sowing date, a parabolic relationship with plant density mostly, parabolic rela- tionships with amount of applied nitrogen fertilizer and amount of applied boron fer- tilizer, straight-line relationships with amount of applied phosphate fertilizer and amount of applied potash fertilizer. The average amount of applied nitrogen fertilizer required to obtain the highest oil yield was 185.18 kg/hm2 for high-oil rape varieties （with oil content above 44.00%）, and under this condition, the average oil yield of low-oil rape varieties （with oil content below 42.00%） was 1 247.84 kg/hm2, while that of high-oil rape varieties was 1 442.60 kg/hm2, which was 15.61% more than the former. The average amount of applied nitrogen fertilizer required to obtain the highest oil yield for lower-oil rape varieties was 286.28 kg/hm2, and under this con- dition, the average oil yield of the low-oil rape varieties was 1 350.57 kg/hm2, while that of the high-oil varieties was 6.81% higher than it. There was a significant neg- ative correlation between rapeseed oil yield and the amount of applied nitrogen fer- tilizer to obtain the highest oil yield （0.980 0）. The optimum amount of applied ni- trogen, phosphate, potash and boron fertilizer were 187.5-195, 187.5-195, 105-120, 135-150 and 15-22.5 kg/hm2 for high-oil B. napus varieties. [Conclusion] This study determined the influence of sowing date, plant density and amount of applied nitro- gen fertilizer on oil yield of B. napus, and proposed an optimum cultivation pattern for high-oil varieties.

A Study on Triacylglycerol Composition and the Structure of High-Oleic Rapeseed Oil

The composition of fatty acids in triacylglycerides （TAGs） and their position on the glycerol backbone de- termine the nutritional value of vegetable oil. In this study, gas chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry （HPLC-MS/MS） were used to analyze the compo- sition and distribution of fatty acids in TAGs of different rapeseed oils. Our results show the content of oleic acid in higb-oleic-acid rapeseed oil to be about 80%. In terms of the number of acyl carbon atoms （CN）, TAGs with CN52-54 were most abundant, with a maximum concentration at CN54 （80%）. The main type of TAG was oleic-oleic-oleic （OOO）, accounting for 71.75%, while oleic-oleic-linoleic （OOL） accounted for ？.56%, oleic-oleic-linolenic （OOLn） accounted for 4.81%, and stearic-oleic-oleic （SO0） accounted for 4.74%. Oleic acid in high-oleic-acid rapeseed oil was distributed in the following order of preference： sn-2 〉 sn-1/3. In high-erucic-acid rapeseed oil, however, oleic acid was enriched at the sn-1/3. These data show that the content of oleic acid can be as high as about 80% in high-oleic-acid material. This finding suggests that high-oleic-acid rapeseed oil has high nutritional value.

Friction and Wear Performance of Magnesium Alloy against Steel under Lubrication of Rapeseed Oil with BN-containing Additive

A BN-containing additive,the boron and nitrogen modified rapeseed oil (abbreviated as BNR),was prepared by chemical modification of rapeseed oil with boric and nitrous compounds.The friction and wear performances of the AZ91D magnesium alloy against the GCr15 bearing steel under lubrication of rapeseed oil containing BNR were evaluated on a SRV tribotester.The topography and chemical species of the worn surfaces of magnesium alloy were analyzed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and an X-ray photoelectron spectroscope (XPS),respectively.The test results indicated that the friction and wear of the magnesium alloy-steel tribomates could be effectively reduced by incorporating BNR into the rapeseed oil lubricant.The friction coefficients and the wear scars of magnesium alloy decreased with an increasing content of BNR.The surface lubricated with the BNR-doped rapeseed oil demonstrated less wear as compared with that lubricated with neat rapeseed oil.The enhanced anti-wear and friction-reducing abilities of rapeseed oil provided by BNR in the lubrication of magnesium alloy against steel were ascribed to the formation of a composite boundary lubrication film due to the strong adsorption of BNR and rapeseed oil onto the lubricated surfaces and their tribochemical reactions with magnesium alloy.

Isolation and Characterization of Microorganisms for Degradation of Minimal Oils and Fats at Low Temperatures

The isolation of microorganisms for biodegradation of minimal fats and oils at low temperatures was reported. By using rapeseed oil as a sole carbon source, six strains were isolated from five kinds of oils/fats-contaminated wastewater, soil, and active sludge. Among them, two strains which show the highest oil removal ratios were identified as Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes and Pseudomonas mendocina, respectively. The experiments of orthogonal impact conditions show that the optimal oil degradation condition is at pH 8.0, 5 ℃ and 100 mg/L oil. Under this condition, the rapeseed oil degradation ratios of two strains after 24 hours amount to 92.6% and 92.0% respectively, whereas the removal ratios of lard decrease to 39.5% and 54.3%.

Local Cooking Oil Faces Foreign Challenges

Alarming local oil industry This year,the purchasing price of rapeseed from China＇s major production bases has gone up due to the decline in planting area of oil-bearing crops.

Tribological Behavior of Benzothiazoline Derivative as Additive in Rapeseed Oil

A novel lubricating oil additive 3-((2-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1,3,2,6-dioxazaborocan-6-yloxy)methyl) benzo[d] thiazole-2(3H)-thione(BTD) was synthesized.The product was characterized by FTIR,elemental analysis,and thermogravimetric analysis(TGA).Four-ball tribological tests showed that the addition of a definite concentration of this additive to rapeseed oil could effectively increase both the load-carrying capacity,resistance to wear,and friction-reducing abilities of the oil.Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) observations have confirmed that the additive could result in a reduced diameter of the wear scar.