Stabilisation of camelina oil methyl esters through selective hydrogenation

Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz in the last few years is garnering a lot of attention as a biofuel and as raw material for the chemical industry due to its high oil productivity. However the high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids of camelina oil (over 50%), which is rich in linolenic acid (37-40%) limits its commercial value and large-scale production. To improve the oil quality and its oxidative stability the methyl esters have been selectively hydrogenated using a non-toxic and non-pyrophoric heterogeneous copper catalyst (Cu/SiO2 or Cu/Al2O3). Our results showed that both catalysts are able to reduce the linolenic acid content below 1% while selectively increasing the monounsaturated one.