Experts may extract fuel from papaya seed

By WAINAINA NDUNG’U

Researchers at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) are experimenting to see whether papaya seed oil could be Kenya’s answer to fuel crisis.

Researchers at the Juja-based university have extracted oil from the seeds which are usually discarded after consuming the fruit.

"Oil comprises 10 per cent of the papaya seed and this is a very good quantity for commercial exploitation," said Francis Kimuyu, a technologist at the JKUAT Department of Horticulture.

According to Dr Fredah Rimberia Wanzala, a senior lecturer in the department, the extraction process involves crushing the seed using a solvent to isolate the oil which she describes as "having very good density like that of water."

Dr Wanjala who is the principal researcher in the JKUAT Papaya Improvement Project says they will refine the extraction process. They believe the seed oil has a potential of making body lotions and and are finding out whether it can be used as cooking oil and fuel.

The university is also working on patenting their discoveries to pre-empt the exploitation of the idea by others.

Already, a United Kingdom company imports the seeds from Kenya for use in manufacture of high-end natural oil body lotions.

The crude oil extracted by the JKUAT scientists which was on display at the university stand at the Central Kenya Agricultural Society of Kenya (ASK) Show in Nyeri town last week, has a strong smell similar to that of diesel and this has prompted interest among the scientists on whether it can be used to power machines.

According to Kimuyu, the papaya tree is one of the most economical fruit plants in Kenya. It is fast maturing with a one-year reproductive cycle and none of its products is wasted.

Prunes after every few months and stems of mature trees at the end of their lifespan are composted for use in the farm while peelings from the fruits could be used as livestock feed. Seeds are now on the way to becoming a major source of income for producers and consumers.

Under the project, the university has also continued to apply tissue culture to breed pawpaw seedlings, which assures the farmer that he plants the sex of the plant that he wishes.

Papaya trees, which have a lifespan of six years, do well in altitudes of over 1,500, especially in moderately dry areas like Machakos and Makueni.