Linseed oil as a potential resource for bio-diesel: A review

The energy crisis contributed to the development of bio-diesel production. Petroleum, charcoal and natural gas sources are limited and will be exhausted by the next century. Thus, looking for alternative source of energy is of vital importance Vegetable oils are a renewable and potentially inexhaustible source of energy with an energetic content close to diesel fuel. In recent years, bio-diesel has become more attractive as an alternative fuels for diesel engine because of its environmental benefits and it is made from renewable resource. Since edible oil demand is higher than its domestic production; there is no possibility of diverting this oil for production of bio-diesel in India. Being a tropical country, India is rich in forest resources having a wide range of trees, which yield a significant quantity of oilseeds. India is importing crude petroleum & petroleum products from Gulf countries. Indian scientists searched for an alternate to diesel fuel to preserve global environment and to withstand economical crisis. This review paper describes the production of linseed oil, its properties, composition and future potential for bio-diesel. Linseed plant contains high amount of oil in its seeds which can be converted to bio-diesel. Fatty acid compositions of linseed reported in literature are provided in this review. In this study the properties of methyl ester of linseed oil are compared with the properties of fossil diesel. The objective of this review is to give an update on the linseed plant, the production of bio-diesel from the linseed oil and research attempts to improve the technology of converting linseed oil to bio-diesel and the fuel properties of linseed bio-diesel. The technological methods that can be used to produce bio-diesel are presented together with their advantage and disadvantages. Many other areas that need to be researched on linseed oil are pointed out in this review.