Biofuel manufacturers could be ordering more belt conveyors after chemists from the US claimed a breakthrough that could increase production by 24 per cent.
According to the scientists from UC (University of California) Davis, yields from oilseed crops such as safflower could be enlarged using a new process.
The increased profitability of biofuel could encourage manufacturers to increase the amount of crop they handle with screw augers and chain conveyors in search of even greater profit margins.
Writing in the journal Energy & Fuels, Professor Mark Mascal explained that biofuel production conventionally sees plant oils extracted and converted into fatty acid esters, for use in engines.
However, the waste of this process – mainly in the form of plant carbohydrates – can also be turned into fuel if it is produced in a particular way that will also allow it to burn more efficiently at low temperatures, the team found.
Professor Mascal said: "Costs of the new process may be somewhat higher than for conventional biodiesel production, but should be offset by improved fuel yields and performance."
The UK’s biofuel industry was boosted by news last week that a new plant is to be built to provide British Airways with jet fuel derived from half a million tonnes of waste a year.