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Sawgrass as a renewable resource: Camelina Sativa(L)
C. sativa has been traditionally cultivated as an oilseed crop to produce vegetable oil and animal feed. Ample
archeological evidence shows it has been grown in Europe for at least 3,000 years. The earliest findsites include the Neolithic levels at Auvernier, Switzerland (dated to the second millennium BC), the Chalcolithic level at Pefkakia in Greece (dated to the third millennium BC), and Sucidava-Celei, Romania (circa 2200
BC).[1] During the Bronze age and Iron age, it was an important agricultural crop in northern Greece
beyond the current range of the olive.[2][3] It apparently continued to be grown at the time of the Roman Empire, although its Greek and Latin names are not known.[4] As early as 600 BC, it was being sown as a monoculture around the Rhine River Valley, and was thought to have spread mainly by coexisting as a weed with flax monocultures.
Until the 1940s, camelina was an important oil crop in eastern and central Europe, and currently has continued to be cultivated in a few parts of Europe for its seed oil. Camelina oil was used in oil lamps (until the modern
harnessing of natural gas, propane, and electricity) and as an edible false flax oil.[5] It was possibly brought to North America unintentionally as a weed with flaxseed, and has had limited commercial importance until modern times. Currently, the breeding potential is unexplored compared to other oilseeds commercially grown around the world.[6] Today, camelina is found, wild or cultivated, in almost all regions of Europe, Asia, and North America, but also in South America, Australia, and New Zealand.[7] Camelina seems to be particularly adapted to cold semiarid climate zone (steppes and prairies).[8] As a summer or winter annual plant, camelina grows to heights of 30 to 120 cm, with branching stems which become woody at maturity. The leaves are alternate on the stem, lanceolate with a length from 2 to 8 cm and a width of 2 to 10 mm. Leaves and stems may be partially hairy. Its abundant, four-petaled flowers are pale yellow in color.
Human food
The crop is now being researched due to its exceptionally high levels (up to 45%) of omega-3 fatty acids, which is uncommon in vegetable sources. seeds contain 38 to 43% oil and 27 to 32% protein.[9] Over 50% of the fatty acids in cold-pressed camelina oil are polyunsaturated. The oil is also very rich in natural antioxidants, such as tocopherols, making this highly stable oil very resistant to oxidation and rancidity. It has 1 - 3% erucic acid. The vitamin E content of camelina oil is approximately 110 mg/100 g. It is well suited for use as a cooking oil. It has an almond-like flavor and aroma. Because of its apparent health benefits and its technical stability, camelina oils are being added to the growing list of foods considered as functional foods.
Biodiesel and jet fuel
The US state of Montana has recently been growing more camelina for its potential as a biofuel and biolubricant.[10] Plant scientists at the University of Idaho, Washington State University, and other institutions also are studying this emerging biodiesel.[11] Studies have shown camelina-based jet fuel reduces net carbon emissions by about 80%. The United States Navy chose it as the feedstock for their first test of aviation biofuel,[12] and successfully operated a static F414 engine (used in the F/A-18) in October 2009 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.[13] The US Air Force also began testing the fuel in its aircraft in March 2010.[14] In March, 2011, the US Air Force successfully tested a 50/50 mix of jet propellent 8 (JP-8) and camelina-derived biofuel in an F-22 Raptor, achieving a speed of Mach 1.5.[15] On September 4, 2011, the Navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron would be using a 50/50 blend of camelina biofuel and jet fuel at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Air Expo. This event marked the first time an entire military aviation unit has flown on a biofuel mix.[16] The Navy plans to deploy a "Great Green Fleet" by 2016, a carrier battle group powered entirely by nonfossil fuels.[17] The Air Force is also planning on using 50% biofuels in its aircraft by 2016. As such, the Air Force announced that by 2016, 50% of the fuel it consumes will be from biofuels, as well.[18] KLM, the Royal Dutch Airline, was the first airline to operate a passenger-carrying flight using biofuel. On 23 November 2009, a Boeing 747 flew, carrying a limited number of passengers, with one of its four engines running on a 50/50 mix of biofuel and kerosene.[19][20] In June, 2011, a Gulfstream G450 became the first business jet to cross the Atlantic ocean using a blend of 50/50 biofuel developed by Honeywell derived from camelina and petroleum-based jet fuel.[21] The Dutch biofarming company Waterland International and a Japanese federation of farmers made an agreement in March 2012 to plant and grow camelina on 2000 to 3000 ha in Fukushima Prefecture. The seeds were to be used to produce biofuel, that could be used to produce electricity. According to director William Nolten, the region had a big potential for the production of clean energy. Some 800.000 ha in the region could not be used to produce food anymore, and after the nuclear disaster because of fears for contamination, the Japanese people refused to buy food produced in the region, anyway. Experiments would be done to find out whether camelina was capable of extracting radioactive caesium from the soil. An experiment with sunflowers had no success.[22]
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camelina_sativa )
archeological evidence shows it has been grown in Europe for at least 3,000 years. The earliest findsites include the Neolithic levels at Auvernier, Switzerland (dated to the second millennium BC), the Chalcolithic level at Pefkakia in Greece (dated to the third millennium BC), and Sucidava-Celei, Romania (circa 2200
BC).[1] During the Bronze age and Iron age, it was an important agricultural crop in northern Greece
beyond the current range of the olive.[2][3] It apparently continued to be grown at the time of the Roman Empire, although its Greek and Latin names are not known.[4] As early as 600 BC, it was being sown as a monoculture around the Rhine River Valley, and was thought to have spread mainly by coexisting as a weed with flax monocultures.
Until the 1940s, camelina was an important oil crop in eastern and central Europe, and currently has continued to be cultivated in a few parts of Europe for its seed oil. Camelina oil was used in oil lamps (until the modern
harnessing of natural gas, propane, and electricity) and as an edible false flax oil.[5] It was possibly brought to North America unintentionally as a weed with flaxseed, and has had limited commercial importance until modern times. Currently, the breeding potential is unexplored compared to other oilseeds commercially grown around the world.[6] Today, camelina is found, wild or cultivated, in almost all regions of Europe, Asia, and North America, but also in South America, Australia, and New Zealand.[7] Camelina seems to be particularly adapted to cold semiarid climate zone (steppes and prairies).[8] As a summer or winter annual plant, camelina grows to heights of 30 to 120 cm, with branching stems which become woody at maturity. The leaves are alternate on the stem, lanceolate with a length from 2 to 8 cm and a width of 2 to 10 mm. Leaves and stems may be partially hairy. Its abundant, four-petaled flowers are pale yellow in color.
Human food
The crop is now being researched due to its exceptionally high levels (up to 45%) of omega-3 fatty acids, which is uncommon in vegetable sources. seeds contain 38 to 43% oil and 27 to 32% protein.[9] Over 50% of the fatty acids in cold-pressed camelina oil are polyunsaturated. The oil is also very rich in natural antioxidants, such as tocopherols, making this highly stable oil very resistant to oxidation and rancidity. It has 1 - 3% erucic acid. The vitamin E content of camelina oil is approximately 110 mg/100 g. It is well suited for use as a cooking oil. It has an almond-like flavor and aroma. Because of its apparent health benefits and its technical stability, camelina oils are being added to the growing list of foods considered as functional foods.
Biodiesel and jet fuel
The US state of Montana has recently been growing more camelina for its potential as a biofuel and biolubricant.[10] Plant scientists at the University of Idaho, Washington State University, and other institutions also are studying this emerging biodiesel.[11] Studies have shown camelina-based jet fuel reduces net carbon emissions by about 80%. The United States Navy chose it as the feedstock for their first test of aviation biofuel,[12] and successfully operated a static F414 engine (used in the F/A-18) in October 2009 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.[13] The US Air Force also began testing the fuel in its aircraft in March 2010.[14] In March, 2011, the US Air Force successfully tested a 50/50 mix of jet propellent 8 (JP-8) and camelina-derived biofuel in an F-22 Raptor, achieving a speed of Mach 1.5.[15] On September 4, 2011, the Navy's Blue Angels flight demonstration squadron would be using a 50/50 blend of camelina biofuel and jet fuel at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River Air Expo. This event marked the first time an entire military aviation unit has flown on a biofuel mix.[16] The Navy plans to deploy a "Great Green Fleet" by 2016, a carrier battle group powered entirely by nonfossil fuels.[17] The Air Force is also planning on using 50% biofuels in its aircraft by 2016. As such, the Air Force announced that by 2016, 50% of the fuel it consumes will be from biofuels, as well.[18] KLM, the Royal Dutch Airline, was the first airline to operate a passenger-carrying flight using biofuel. On 23 November 2009, a Boeing 747 flew, carrying a limited number of passengers, with one of its four engines running on a 50/50 mix of biofuel and kerosene.[19][20] In June, 2011, a Gulfstream G450 became the first business jet to cross the Atlantic ocean using a blend of 50/50 biofuel developed by Honeywell derived from camelina and petroleum-based jet fuel.[21] The Dutch biofarming company Waterland International and a Japanese federation of farmers made an agreement in March 2012 to plant and grow camelina on 2000 to 3000 ha in Fukushima Prefecture. The seeds were to be used to produce biofuel, that could be used to produce electricity. According to director William Nolten, the region had a big potential for the production of clean energy. Some 800.000 ha in the region could not be used to produce food anymore, and after the nuclear disaster because of fears for contamination, the Japanese people refused to buy food produced in the region, anyway. Experiments would be done to find out whether camelina was capable of extracting radioactive caesium from the soil. An experiment with sunflowers had no success.[22]
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camelina_sativa )