A review on assessment of biodiesel production methodologies from Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil

In recent times, the world has been confronted with an energy crisis due to the depletion of fossil resources and increased environmental problems. Such a situation has led to an increased research for alternative energy sources such as biofuels from sustainable biomass resources. Tree seed oils are considered as a source of renewable fuels for diesel engine usage, which are presently making its way to becoming a mainstream transportation fuel at the commercial level worldwide. Currently, non-edible tree seed oil resources are gaining worldwide attention because they can be found easily in many parts of the world, especially in wastelands that are not appropriate for cultivating food crops. Important use of non-edible oil resources for biodiesel production alleviates the use of food crops, which leads to reduction of competition in the food market. This paper investigates the potential of Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil, which is found available in plenty in different forest belts of the world, as a promising feedstock for biodiesel production. The main advantages of this crop include its high survival potency in nature which is productive up to 50 years, does not compete with other food crops, it has a high heating value and produces more oil yield than widely used non-edible seed oil, Jatropha curcas. Additionally, C. inophyllum biodiesel so produced, has shown to have very good compatibility with petroleum fuels and has better lubricating capabilities than jatropha. Moreover, the biodiesel fuel produced from the C. inophyllum oil through a multi-step process has the properties in the range of ASTM and EN standards and when blended with diesel fuel gives better engine performance and emission characteristics as compared to diesel fuel. Thus, the biodiesel produced from non-edible Calophylkun inophyllum seed oil could be used as a plausible alternative to diesel fuel in the commercial market.