Biodiesel is an alternative to petroleum-based conventional diesel fuel and is defined as the mono-alkyl esters of vegetable oils and animal fats. Biodiesel has been prepared from numerous vegetable oils, such as canola (rapeseed), cottonseed, palm, peanut, soybean and sunflower oils as well as a variety of less common oils. In this work, Moringa oleifera oil is evaluated for the first time as potential feedstock for biodiesel. After acid pre-treatment to reduce the acid value of the M. oleifera oil, biodiesel was obtained by a standard transesterification procedure with methanol and an alkali catalyst at 60 °C and alcohol/oil ratio of 6:1. M. oleifera oil has a high content of oleic acid (>70%) with saturated fatty acids comprising most of the remaining fatty acid profile.
As a result, the methyl esters (biodiesel) obtained from this oil exhibit a high cetane number of approximately 67, one of the highest found for a biodiesel fuel. Other fuel properties of biodiesel derived from M. oleifera such as cloud point, kinematic viscosity and oxidative stability were also determined and are discussed in light of biodiesel standards such as ASTM D6751 and EN 14214. The 1H NMR spectrum of M. oleifera methyl esters is reported. Overall, M. oleifera oil appears to be an acceptable feedstock for biodiesel
The many uses for Moringa products are intriguing, says Glen Meier, manager of research and development for the Renewable Energy Group Inc. In contrast to the toxic jatropha oil and meal, Moringa leaves can be used in salads, or dried and powdered for sauces and baby formula. The immature seed pods—known as drumsticks in India—are harvested and eaten like asparagus. An extract from the leaves can act as a plant growth hormone and it boosted corn yields in the South American country where that research was conducted.
Indeed, Moringa wasn’t considered as an oil source because it has so many food uses, says K. Shaine Tyson, a strategic planning, biodiesel technology evaluation and market development consultant for Rocky Mountain Biodiesel Consulting LLC. “Everybody knows it in India as the drumstick tree,” she says. “They don’t see it as an oilseed crop.”
Tyson, former director of the biodiesel program for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, began to research Moringa after she received a call from Meier wondering what she knew about the tree. For more than six months she searched for data to back up the multiple claims she found on the Internet.
The Moringa tree is native to India and grown in tropical and subtropical regions across Asia, Africa and South America. It is also grown as an ornamental tree in the southern United States. Because the tree is easy to establish and grows rapidly, it might lead some to question its invasive tendencies.
Moringa is grown as a forage crop just for animal grazing. Another reason Moringa hasn’t developed into a weed is that the seed pods aren’t dispersed by the wind. “The pods drop below the tree, get bugs and
decompose.
Considering Moringa’s potential as an oilseed feedstock for biodiesel raises some questions for which there are currently no answers. For example, how are the Moringa seeds harvested? “It has not been optimized as an oilseed crop, and there is no really easy harvest technique right
now. Presently, the leaves and pods are harvested by hand like jatropha. Mechanical seed harvesting equipment needs to be developed to commercially produce Moringa as an oilseed feedstock. Also, there’s not a lot of good seed yield data on
Moringa. The literature search indicates yields of about 3 tons of seed per hectare (1.37 tons per acre), a bit less than what is currently reported as potential jatropha yields. The seeds contain 30 percent to 40 percent oil that is high in oleic acid. The meal yields about 61 percent protein. “The data on the oil quality is excellent,” she says. “It’s better than sunflower
oil. Preliminary analysis shows biodiesel made from Moringa has better oxidative stability than biodiesel made with most other feedstocks, although the cloud point is similar to tallow and thus rather high. On the plus side, the seeds are relatively easy to crush using nonsolvent-based crushing
techniques.
The crop’s multiple dimensions would make it attractive to farmers in
our country. Some countries may have a sufficient food supply but lack an economical fuel source. Moringa could be grown initially as a feedstock for biodiesel production until it caught on as a food source.
It does produce a lot of seed, and it produces well in areas that need
income. It merits further research and study to see if it is a viable alternative fuel and to see if a market could be developed. From my perspective anything that gets people thinking more about the Moringa tree is good because it is an incredible tree.
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