ARS | Publication request: RHEOLOGICAL AND DENSITY CHARACTERIZATION OF PEANUT OILS FOR BIODIESEL APPLICATIONS

Submitted to: American Peanut Research and Education Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: July 9, 2006
Publication Date: July 9, 2007
Citation: Davis, J.P., Dean, L.L., Holbrook Jr, C.C., Faircloth, W.H., Sanders, T.H. 2007. Rheological and density characterization of peanut oils for biodiesel applications. American Peanut Research and Education Society Abstracts.

Technical Abstract: Peanut oil may be used directly, or converted into methyl esters, i.e. biodiesel, for use as an alternative fuel source in conventional diesel engines. For biodiesel applications, oils with low viscosities are desirable to deliver superior cold flow performance. Accordingly, peanut oils were expressed from various commercial lines and from the core of the core germplasm collection, and subsequently screened for natural variation in both viscosity and density. Viscosity was measured via a stress-controlled rheometer across a range of temperatures. Oil density was measured across a range of temperatures using a high precision density meter equipped with a viscosity correction card. Fatty acid profiles of the oils were determined by GC analyses to help explain viscosity differences among oil samples. All viscosity measurements were highly temperature dependent with measurements at cool temperatures (< 10°C) best differentiating samples. Differences in density between samples were minor. The data generated from this work will aid the decisions necessary for breeding a peanut line with oil that has desirable biodiesel properties, or aid the selection of a peanut line that could be genetically engineered to produce high quality biodiesel oil.