This project was
originally conceived in 1995 as a collaborative endeavour between Tribhuvan
University, Kathmandu, Oxford Brookes
University and University College
Northampton to investigate the viability of meeting village-level
energy requirements from the oil of waste nuts and seeds and has been
supported with private funding since conception. The project envisaged
the construction of a pilot plant incorporating a locally produced screw-type
oil expeller driven by a compression-ignition engine fuelled on a portion
of the oil expelled and monitoring of the impacts of this new technology.
Although Rudolf Diesel originally envisaged his machine to run on pure plant oils, performance is poor in most contemporary engines designed to operate on diesel fuels and so laboratory facilities in Britain were modified to permit investigation of the performance of suitable engines fuelled on indigenous oils. The project attracted financial support from the British universities to conduct the above work in 1996.
Although Rudolf Diesel originally envisaged his machine to run on pure plant oils, performance is poor in most contemporary engines designed to operate on diesel fuels and so laboratory facilities in Britain were modified to permit investigation of the performance of suitable engines fuelled on indigenous oils. The project attracted financial support from the British universities to conduct the above work in 1996.
Mechanised Oil Expeller
During 1997 an academic
link was formed between the universities with financial support from the
UK Department for International Development (DFID) /the
British Council which has since enhanced the management, monitoring
and operation of the project and advanced collaboration in research, teaching,
curriculum development and technical transfer. There has been opportunity
for post-graduate degrees by
research as well as undergraduate dissertations.
A Biomass and Biofuels Group has been established recently to manage growth and developments in the botanical, agricultural, silvicultural, social and technical aspects of the work. The Group is accommodated in space provided by the RECAST at Tribhuvan University with financial support from the British Embassy and the DFID/the British Council for the purchase of associated machinery for an experimental test facility and a pilot plant.
Whilst fuel supply is recognised as a pressing imperative, in this project the supply of fuel from seeds and nuts is a single, albeit a vital, component in a fuel-producing system which addresses broader socio- and environmental-economic issues in an integrated and complementary way.
A Biomass and Biofuels Group has been established recently to manage growth and developments in the botanical, agricultural, silvicultural, social and technical aspects of the work. The Group is accommodated in space provided by the RECAST at Tribhuvan University with financial support from the British Embassy and the DFID/the British Council for the purchase of associated machinery for an experimental test facility and a pilot plant.
Whilst fuel supply is recognised as a pressing imperative, in this project the supply of fuel from seeds and nuts is a single, albeit a vital, component in a fuel-producing system which addresses broader socio- and environmental-economic issues in an integrated and complementary way.
As far as possible
locally-produced technology has been the preferred option in this project
and although our attention had been focused initially on a single pilot
plant, comparative and optimisation studies are now also being conducted
with other screw-type oil expellers and improved traditional devices supplied
by local manufacturers which have so far been used infrequently to expel
oil from the non-conventional seeds abundant in Nepal. Endurance testing
is being conducted under simulated field conditions using production engines
most suited to this type of fuel and the performance of soap making equipment
and cooking and lighting appliances is being evaluated using oil from
seeds collected in areas we have identified as potential sites for oil
expellers.
In Britain data obtained from a range of Nepali oils in our engine and fuel testing facilities suggest the suitability of using unrefined Jatropha curcas oil as a fuel in certain types of the Diesel engine. Diesel engines have performed perfectly in short term tests using unrefined oil with comparable combustion characteristics, efficiencies and power production to diesel fuelled engines. Work is currently focusing on fuel pre-treatment and the phenomenon of injector coking which is a major limitation to the long term performance of compression-ignition engines fuelled on pure plant oils.
In addition to the work conducted by the Group at the RECAST, a field site has also been established on marginal lands provided by the Institute of Forestry, Tribhuvan University in rural Nepal. This land is being utilised by the Group for experimental plantations focusing on cultivation techniques, species selection, soil erosion control etc. with the objectives of enhancing oil and biomass yields from the plants and monitoring their effects on soil integrity.
The project has been actively encouraging the involvement of women to promote their economic empowerment through cultivation and collection of seeds, soap production and marketing of oil and other by-products. The collection of seeds for research purposes, dissemination and other promotional work has been in progress in rural Nepal for some time now under the auspices of the Women's Development Section of the Ministry of Local Development. We are currently working together to provide 'hands-on action training' in the propagation, establishment and cultivation of an additional 120,000 oil-bearing plants (Jatropha curcas L.) on 20 ha of marginal land at our field site as well as training in the harvesting and post-harvest processing of seeds from mature plants in the District. The initiative provides for demonstration and dissemination of oil expelling techniques and end uses for the oil and process by-products and continues to provide encouragement for the marketing of the seeds and oil and soap and other by-products.
This is a novel approach to the management of energy resources in Nepal which is intended to demonstrate the potential of implementing complementary social, economic and environmental initiatives in parallel with fuel production. It is intended that related promotional activities will lead to further plantations on marginal lands in the future with the long-term objectives of promoting economic empowerment, improvements in health and agricultural production and reductions in the drudgery of the poorest women in the wider District. This latest initiative has financial support from the Embassy of Great Britain to Nepal and the DFID/British Council.
In Britain data obtained from a range of Nepali oils in our engine and fuel testing facilities suggest the suitability of using unrefined Jatropha curcas oil as a fuel in certain types of the Diesel engine. Diesel engines have performed perfectly in short term tests using unrefined oil with comparable combustion characteristics, efficiencies and power production to diesel fuelled engines. Work is currently focusing on fuel pre-treatment and the phenomenon of injector coking which is a major limitation to the long term performance of compression-ignition engines fuelled on pure plant oils.
In addition to the work conducted by the Group at the RECAST, a field site has also been established on marginal lands provided by the Institute of Forestry, Tribhuvan University in rural Nepal. This land is being utilised by the Group for experimental plantations focusing on cultivation techniques, species selection, soil erosion control etc. with the objectives of enhancing oil and biomass yields from the plants and monitoring their effects on soil integrity.
The project has been actively encouraging the involvement of women to promote their economic empowerment through cultivation and collection of seeds, soap production and marketing of oil and other by-products. The collection of seeds for research purposes, dissemination and other promotional work has been in progress in rural Nepal for some time now under the auspices of the Women's Development Section of the Ministry of Local Development. We are currently working together to provide 'hands-on action training' in the propagation, establishment and cultivation of an additional 120,000 oil-bearing plants (Jatropha curcas L.) on 20 ha of marginal land at our field site as well as training in the harvesting and post-harvest processing of seeds from mature plants in the District. The initiative provides for demonstration and dissemination of oil expelling techniques and end uses for the oil and process by-products and continues to provide encouragement for the marketing of the seeds and oil and soap and other by-products.
This is a novel approach to the management of energy resources in Nepal which is intended to demonstrate the potential of implementing complementary social, economic and environmental initiatives in parallel with fuel production. It is intended that related promotional activities will lead to further plantations on marginal lands in the future with the long-term objectives of promoting economic empowerment, improvements in health and agricultural production and reductions in the drudgery of the poorest women in the wider District. This latest initiative has financial support from the Embassy of Great Britain to Nepal and the DFID/British Council.
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