Jojoba oil seen as alternative to diesel fuel
Date: 07-Mar-03
Country: UK
Researchers at Helwan University in Cairo and the United Arab Emirates University in Al-Ain have tested jojoba oil in engines and say that not only does it work as well as diesel, but the engines spew out fewer pollutants.
"Engineers think the oil has potential as a motor fuel because it releases a lot of energy when it burns and is chemically stable at the high temperatures and pressures in a working engine," New Scientist magazine said this week.
Until now the oil derived from the nut of the jojoba, a desert shrub, has been used in facial and hair products and as a base for make-up.
Mohamed Selim, who headed the research team, thinks it has potential as an alternative fuel because it contains less carbon than diesel, so there are lower emissions of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and soot.
But he added that producing sufficient amounts of jojoba oil to use as an alternative fuel could be a problem.
"The use of jojoba as a fuel needs huge quantities of seeds, which needs large investment, probably by the government or private sector," he said.
New Scientist said farmers in Egypt are already planting jojoba shrubs with the idea of providing the oil for fuel.
