DaveM

Jatropha Being Developed as a New Biodiesel Source

Jatropha is a great plant - it has been known for a while in the biodiesel industry that it's seeds can be very helpful in the quest to create biodiesel. However, before buying equipment manufacturers who could 'harvest' this plant, we might want to study how it grows. To my knowledge, it is more like a tree, making it difficult to harvest without a huge amount of manual labor. Fine for SE Asia, but not so great for SW USA. Also I've heard that the fruits / seeds ripen at various times, making it difficult to go through the fields once to pick - often requiring sevral trips.

This is a huge opportunity for US biodiesel production, though. If we can solve these issues, it'll have a huge impact on our quest for a fuel that is not a food. Of course, there is inherent value in having uncultivated land in the Southwest, which means we should proceed with caution.