Iranian researchers have produced biodiesel from flixweed as a potential renewable energy substitute for fossil fuels. Under a project to deliver a new generation of green transport fuel, researchers at the Islamic Azad University (IAU) produced 2 litres of biomass which could be turned into biofuel. ‘Engine and field tests of the synthetic green fuel are currently being evaluated,’ says Mehdi Alami, an analytical chemistry graduate of the IAU. He says flixweed needs no cultivation, attention, herbicides, or irrigation, and therefore it lends itself well for use as an oilseed crop for fuel production. Moreover, the plant grows in various climates and is non-edible, making it an ideal choice given the fuel-versus-food debate weighing on the viability of biofuels. Flixweed, also known by the names of herb-Sophia and tansy mustard, is a member of mustard family, which includes other popular oilseed crops, such as canola. Alami says the experiments with the crop revealed it contained a 22% oil and a fatty acid composition which makes it well-suited for biofuel and biodiesel conversion. The experiments also led the researchers to discover oxygenated chemical components in flixweed biomass. ‘This issue is important because the atomic oxygen in the fuel of a car directly cuts exhaust and the dangerous carbon monoxide and cancerous particles suspended in air,’ Alami adds. The sulfur rate in biodiesel is also 500 times less than the diesel used in Iranian cars. Air pollution is a major problem in Iran’s major cities due to the large number of private fossil fuel-powered cars. Alami says biofuels will make up 5% of the overall transport fuels use by 2030.
Researchers in Iran have produced biodiesel using flixweed as alternate green transport fuel. Some of the benefits of using flixweed include not having to rely on cultivation and irrigation as the plant can grow untouched in a variety of climates. The researchers say that they are working with Iranian authorities to develop an alternative biofuel for use by farmers who cannot afford expensive fertilizer.