Pine Tree, a non-government organization (NGO) in Benguet, is paving the way for the mass propagation of the petroleum nut whose fruit is a good source of biofuel.
Petroleum nut grows abundantly in Benguet and the borders of Mountain Province, Ifugao and Nueva Vizcaya area.
Dr. Michael Bengwayan, director of Pine Tree, said about 30,000 petroleum nut seedlings have been produced and are ready for distribution.
The fruit of the petroleum nut, Bengwayan said, has an octane rating of 54, which is higher than that of India’s jatropha.
The oil produced by the petroleum nut fruits is intended for lighting and cooking purposes. When mixed with kerosene on a 3:1 ratio, 20 centiliters of the petroleum nut oil could burn for up to four hours.
A study by the Forest Research Institute of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) claimed petroleum nut oil contains 46 percent of gasoline-type components such as heptane (45 percent) and dihydroterpene.
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