Does Biodiesel from Jatropha Curcas Represent a Sustainable Alternative Energy Source.docVIP

Sustainability 2009, 1, 1035-1041; doi:10.3390/su1041035 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 /journal/sustainability Article Does Biodiesel from Jatropha Curcas Represent a Sustainable Alternative Energy Source? Isidro Ovando-Medina 1,4,*, Francisco Espinosa-García 2, Juan Nú?ez-Farfán 3 and Miguel Salvador-Figueroa 1 1 Centro de Biociencias, Universidad Autónoma de Chiapas, Carretera a Puerto Madero Km 2.0, Tapachula, 30700, Chiapas, Mexico 2 Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico; E-Mail: espinosa@oikos.unam.mx 3 Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, México, D.F., Mexico; E-Mail: farfan@servidor.unam.mx 4 Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D.F., Mexico; E-Mail: msalvad@ * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: ibtmedina@; Tel.: +52-962-6427972; Fax: +52-962-6427972. Received: 13 October 2009 / Accepted: 6 November 2009 / Published: 16 November 2009 Abstract: Various government agencies around the world have proposed vegetable oils and their conversion to biodiesel as a renewable alternative to fossil fuels. Due to its adaptability to marginal soils and environments, the cultivation of Jatropha curcas is frequently mentioned as the best option for producing biodiesel. In the present work the current situation of proven and potential reserves of fossil fuel, and the production and consumption model for the same are analyzed, in order to later review the sustainability of the production process which begins with the cultivation of J. curcas, and culminates with the consumption of biodiesel. A review of the following topics is proposed in order to improve the sustainability of the process: areas destined for cultivation, use of external (chemical) inputs in cultivation, processes for converting the vegeta