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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Bio-oils Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #293199

Title: Kenaf methyl esters

Author
item Knothe, Gerhard
item RAZON, LUIS - De La Salle University
item BACANI, FLORINDA - De La Salle University

Submitted to: Industrial Crops and Products
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/4/2013
Publication Date: 7/4/2013
Citation: Knothe, G.H., Razon, L.F., Bacani, F.T. 2013. Kenaf methyl esters. Industrial Crops and Products. 49:568-572.

Interpretive Summary: An alternative to diesel fuel obtained from petroleum is biodiesel. Biodiesel is usually produced from vegetable oils such as soybean oil or other sources such as animal fats and waste frying oils. Since there are not enough oils and fats available for biodiesel production to replace all diesel fuel obtained from petroleum, oils that not have been commonly studied or used for biodiesel production are of significant interest. In this connection, the seed oil of the kenaf plant was used for producing biodiesel and the fuel properties studied. Generally, the biodiesel produced from kenaf seed oil has acceptable fuel properties. The use of kenaf seed oil is also of additional interest because the fiber of the kenaf plant itself has been used for pulp and paper production. Producing biodiesel or another industrial product from kenaf seed oil is attractive under the aspect of full industrial utilization of this plant.

Technical Abstract: Additional or alternative feedstocks are one of the major areas of interest regarding biodiesel. In this paper, for the first time, the fuel properties of kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) seed oil methyl esters are comprehensively reported. This biodiesel is also relatively unique by containing small amounts of cyclic fatty acid methyl esters and methyl epoxyoleate. Biodiesel from kenaf seed oil generally meets fuel property specifications in biodiesel standards. No influence of the methyl esters of epoxyoleic acid and the cyclic fatty acids on fuel properties was detected at the levels present in kenaf; however, the kinematic viscosity was moderately higher than could be expected, indicating that cyclic moieties increase viscosity. The 1H- and 13C-NMR spectra of kenaf seed oil methyl esters are also discussed.