Obiettivo
This is a continuing research project which commenced in January 1994 with the objective of further investigating a number of plant species which have been shown to have unusual specific fatty acids present in the feed oils. The group has selected five species after consultation with relevant industries. These are Dimorphotheca pluvialis and Lesquerella spp which contain hydroxy fatty acids; Euphorbia lagascae which contains epoxy fatty acids; Calendula officinalis; which contains fatty acids with conjugated double bonds; and Lunaria annua which contains long chain fatty acids. The fatty acids produced by these plants, all of which are suitable for cultivation under European climatic conditions, are of interest as synthetic intermediates for the chemical industry. It has been estimated that over 200,000 ha of these crops might be required to meet the potential market if suitable and effective methods of production and extraction can be developed. For this reason, the project is looking at the complete production chain from the field to the end user. This work has been divided into three section: primary production, processing and industrial applications.
A wide range of novel oilseed crops have been tested in Europe and the USA. The unusual specific fatty acids present in the seed oils have worldwide attracted interest of oleochemical industries and final users of vegetable oils. After consulting the industries, VOSFA selected five species producing fatty acids with specific functionalities: Dimorphoteca pluvialis and Lesquerella spp. (hydroxy fatty acids) Euphorbia lagascae (epoxy fatty acids) Calendula officinalis (conjugated double bounds) Lunaria annua (Long chain fatty acids)
The crops are suitable for cultivation under European climatical conditions and it is estimated that 200.000 HA can be commercialized in the future. To achieve the objectives of VOSFA the proposal includes 11 high competent partners necessary to conduct R&D in the total production chain. The R&D is divided over three areas of the production chain and can be summarized as follows:
Primary production (5 partners including agricultural cooperatives):
Emphasis on the breeding of D. pluvialis and initial breeding on Lesquerella spp., evaluation and optimization of cultivation practices of L. annua, E. lagascae, C. officinalis and Lesquerella spp. Commercial seed production will take place on farmers level (demonstration).
Processing (3 partners):
Oil extraction, both on laboratory and pilot plant scale, in order to obtain oils and by-products for respectively industrial application and evaluation of the meal for animal feed.
Industrial application (3 partners):
The vegetable oils will be processed, modified and tested for a range of environmental friendly products. Applications included in VOSFA are oleochemical products, coatings, lubricants and a range of additives for mentioned products.
VOSFA is a multidisciplinary R&D programme including five EC countries and a substantial input of private enterprises. The expected outcome is manifold and spreads over the entire production chain, it can result in the reduction of imports of vegetable oils and meal in the EC. The project is market orientated and has economic, technical, environmental and social impacts.
This project is investigating five species of novel plants capable of producing vegetable seed oils which have unusual specific fatty acids present in the feed oils: Dimorphoteca pluvialis and Lesquerella spp which contain hydroxy fatty acids; Euphorbia lagascae which contains epoxy fatty acids; Calendula officinalis, which contains fatty acids with conjugated double bonds; and Lunaria annua which contains long chain fatty acids. The fatty acids produced by these plants are of interest as synthetic intermediates for the chemical industry. The work has been divided into three section: primary production, processing and industrial applications. The objectives are to evaluate these plants and select the most promising for industrial use; to improve genetic stocks and cultivation practices; to optimise oil-recovery techniques and characterise by-products for animal feed; to evaluate and test the unusual oils for a range of industrial applications (oleochemistry, lubricants and coatings); to initiate an infrastructure for the commercialisation of selected novel oilseed crops.
ACTIVITIES
Primary production:
Germplasm regeneration and evaluation was carried out in the Netherlands on Calendula officinalis, Dimorphotheca pluvialis, Lesquerella spp. and Lunaria annua. Considerable variation was recorded between accessions of C. officinalis for many characteristics including earliness, seed shape and seed yield. The establishment of Lesquerella spp. was slow and suffered severe weed competition. Seed yields of L. grandiflora were, at 700-1400 kg/ha, superior to L. gordonii and showed a positive relationship to plant density. Hybridisation of annual and biennial accessions of L. annua was used to produce annual types. Satisfactory types were selected from F2 lines, but none of the F3 lines showed acceptable characteristics. Studies on the production potential and agronomy of C. officinalis, D.pluvialis E. lagascae, L. grandiflora and L. annua were carried out in the United Kingdom. C. officinalis established satisfactory and matured more uniformly than in 1994. There were significant differences in growth, yield and oil content between accessions The maximum yield in 1995 was 2.5 t/ha. A number of crop safe and effective pre-emergence herbicides were identified, but the only potential post-emergence herbicide caused crop damage. Seed yields of D. pluvialis ranged from 790 to 910 kg/ha. The seed yield of E. lagascae ranged from 940 to 1360 kg/ha with high levels of oil and verdinic acid. The growth and yield of L. grandiflora was poor. L. annua established satisfactory in the summer of 1994, but suffered continuous plant loss throughout the year, there was no relationship between plant density and seed yield. Production potential was modest, differences between accessions were recorded. Metazachlor was identified as a crop safe and effective pre-emergence herbicide. The crop sown during the summer of 1995 suffered serious establishment problems. Studies on the production potential and agronomy of E. lagascae and Lesquerella fendleri were carried out in Spain. L. fendleri did not establish under field conditions, laboratory investigations are in progress to define its optimum establishment requirements. E. lagascae had sufficient winter hardness to grow and produce mature seeds as a winter crop and as a spring crop, provided it was sown in early spring.
Processing:
Various oil recovery process steps for Euphorbia lagascae have been established, each with a typical oil and by-product quality. Dehulling after soaking, partial germination and drying of the seeds resulted in a decrease in cell wall material and an increase in oil and protein content. To date, the only technically feasible way of obtaining oil has been by hydraulic box pressing; extrusion failed. Enzymatic treatment of the E. lagascae seeds indicated the potential of this method. With C officinalis, cleaning seeds prior to a solvent extraction gave high seed losses. 265 kg oil of E. lagascae has been produced in a pilot plant, reflecting the technical ease of processing this seed. The quality of the recovered oil is good. However, the seeds and the transformation products are irritants so that specific safety measures have to be initiated. The pilot pressing plant will be equipped with dust and vapour removing devices. 44 kg oil of C. officinalis have also been produced in the pilot plant from flakes in a stainless steel facility. Work on feed properties of residues has been initiated in respect of anti-nutritional/skin irritating factors in Euphorbia.
Industrial Application:
The possibility of replacing tung oil by Calendula oil, or other highly unsaturated oils, in existing formulations and the suitability of replacing mineral solvents by the alkylesters of unsaturated oils in paint were investigated. Two initial extractions of Calendula (containing 9.1% and 16.2% calendic acid) could not meet the required specifications. However, further extracts with 53.9 and 35.1 % calendic acid gave good results in styrenated resin. From both low calendic acid-containing oils, methylesters have been prepared and tested as reactive diluent in comparison with the methylester of tung oil. The drying characteristics of the Calendula methylesters were inferior to the tung oil methylester. A shortage of Lesquerella oil prevented its testing as replacement for castor oil in binders. After the addition of antioxidants and antiwear components E. lagascae oil has been tested using several standardised chemical and physical tests and found to be comparable with rapeseed oil, having some advantageous properties in respect of oxidation stability and load carrying capacity. C. officinalis oil studied in the pure form without additives did not perform very well.
Campo scientifico (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifica i progetti con EuroSciVoc, una tassonomia multilingue dei campi scientifici, attraverso un processo semi-automatico basato su tecniche NLP. Cfr.: Il Vocabolario Scientifico Europeo.
CORDIS classifica i progetti con EuroSciVoc, una tassonomia multilingue dei campi scientifici, attraverso un processo semi-automatico basato su tecniche NLP. Cfr.: Il Vocabolario Scientifico Europeo.
- scienze naturali scienze biologiche biochimica biomolecole lipidi
- scienze agricole agricoltura, silvicoltura e pesca agricoltura cereali e semi oleosi semi oleosi
- scienze agricole agricoltura, silvicoltura e pesca agricoltura orticoltura coltivazione di ortaggi
- scienze agricole agricoltura, silvicoltura e pesca agricoltura colture industriali
- scienze agricole scienze veterinarie e della produzione lattiero-casearia animali domestici zootecnia mangimi
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Coordinatore
6700 AA WAGENINGEN
Paesi Bassi
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