Biodiesel from Camelina sativa: A comprehensive characterisation

In order to evaluate the Camelina sativa biodiesel (CSB) as a viable biofuel alternative, a comprehensive characterisation was performed based on the European and the American standards (EN 14214 and ASTM D6751). For the first time, more than thirty parameters was analysed. The results show that C. sativa oil contains approximately 90% unsaturated fatty acids. This unusual fatty acid pattern is the result of the abundance of C18:1 (12.8–14.7%), C18:2 (16.3–17.2%), C18:3 (36.2–39.4%) and C20:1 (14.0–15.5%) fatty acids. The high C18:3 content is incompatible with EN 14214 specifications and negatively affects biodiesel properties such as the cetane number, the iodine value, the oxidation stability and the linolenic acid methyl ester content. Other critical parameters are the atmospheric equivalent temperature (AET, 90% recovered) and the polyunsaturated (⩾4 double bonds) methyl ester content. For these reasons, C. sativa biodiesel presents serious drawbacks for biodiesel applications, although could be good biodiesel feedstocks if the high degree of unsaturation and the molecular weight of the oil are reduced.