Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
rapeseed oil. Ever since the opening in 1988 of first biodiesel plant in Austria, canola/rapeseed oil
has become the feedstock foundation of biodiesel in Europe. Many EU countries such as France,
Germany, Italy, and the Czech Republic have developed biodiesel plants over the past decade and
approximately 4 million tons of rapeseed went into biodiesel in 2006 making the EU a global leader
in oilseed biodiesel. Presently, Germany is the largest producer of biodiesel in Europe (http://www.
ebb-eu.org/stats.php) with a production capacity of 2.89 million tons (2007 data) which is almost
50% of the total biodiesel production in Europe. Other EU countries with significant biodiesel
production include France, Italy, and Austria producing 872,000, 363,000, and 267,000 thousand
metric tons based on 2007 data (European Biodiesel Board). The EU is heavily subsidizing canola/
rapeseed cultivation to meet its carbon dioxide reduction targets and production will need to be
doubled by the year 2020 to fulfill its mandate of using 10% of all vehicle fuel from biofuels.
According to Klaus Thuneke (Thuneke 2007), 13 industrial and over 300 oil mills in Germany
produce rapeseed oil for mainly energetic uses. Germany also has 1,800 CHP plants running on
agro-fuels. The plants were initially intended to be run by home-grown canola/rapeseed oil but the
majority of these plants gradually shifted to use of cheaper palm oil whereas canola/rapeseed is now
mostly used for producing biodiesel.
18.2
characterIzatIon oF
BrASSicA
sPecIes
18.2.1 m
aJor
b
rAssicA
o
ilSEEd
S
pEciES
and
t
hEir
h
aBit
The family Brassicaceae (Cruciferae), commonly known as the mustard family, is a large group of
about 338 genera and 3,709 species (Warwick and Hall 2009).
Brassica
is a genus within this family
comprising about 100 species and includes not only ornamental, vegetable, and weed species but also
crops which are an important source of edible and industrial oil. The major species which are widely
cultivated as oil seed crops in various parts of the world are
Brassica napus
,
Brassica rapa
,
Brassica
juncea
, and
Brassica carinata
, although
Brassica nigra
and the closely related
Sinapis alba
are also
used in India for oil extraction. Several varieties of these species are also used as mustard or vegetable
crops, but when grown for oilseed the species are generally termed as “rapeseed” or “oil rape.”
Because of the economic importance of rapeseed,
Brassica
species have been extensively studied
and characterized in terms of their history, botanical features, geographical distribution, and growth
habits. A summary extracted from various sources (Hedge 1976; Parkash 1980; Parkash and Hinta
1980; Downny 1983; Kazalowaska 1990; Yan 1990; Downey and Rimmer 1993; Callihan et al.
2000; Martin et al. 2006) is presented here. In general, rapeseed production has an ancient history.
Artifacts dating to more than 2,500 YBP and bearing the Chinese word for “rapeseed” are known,
and Sanskrit literature from India dating back to 3,500 YBP mentions rapeseed (
B. rapa
). Seeds of
B. juncea
also have been found in Indian archaeological sites from 2,300 YBP.
Cultivation of
B. carinata
A. Braun (Ethiopian mustard) is mainly confined to North East Africa
or the Ethiopian Plateau which may be its region of origin. It is a slow growing annual species which
is mainly used as a leafy vegetable but also harvested for seed oil.
Brassica juncea
L. appears to have originated in the Near East and in southern Iran. Two forms
of this annual species are known and can be distinguished by seed size, color, and country of
cultivation. Indian mustard, brown mustard, or oriental mustard is grown in India, where the larger
brown seeds are used for oil extraction. Yellow mustard, grown mainly in China, has smaller, yellow
seeds. The Indian or yellow mustard in China is used as a leafy vegetable, but it is used as an oilseed
crop in the Ukraine. The use of
B. juncea
(brown mustard) in western countries is mainly for the
production of table mustard, especially in western Canada.
The species
B. rapa
L. (syn.
B. campestris
), also known as field mustard, rapeseed, turnip rape
and polish rape, seems to have the widest distribution of the Brassica oilseeds. The primary center of
diversity for this species is the Himalayan region but it spread to Europe, Asia, India, and northern
Africa about 2000 years ago as turnip, turnip rape, and mustard. It thrives in temperate climates
