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Earlier this century, jatropha was hailed as a "miracle" biofuel. An unassuming shrubby tree belonging to Central America, it was extremely promoted as a high-yielding, drought-tolerant biofuel feedstock that might grow on degraded lands throughout Latin America, Africa and Asia.
A jatropha rush took place, with more than 900,000 hectares (2.2 million acres) planted by 2008. But the bubble burst. Low yields caused plantation failures almost all over. The consequences of the jatropha crash was polluted by allegations of land grabbing, mismanagement, and overblown carbon decrease claims.
Today, some researchers continue pursuing the evasive guarantee of high-yielding jatropha. A return, they say, is reliant on breaking the yield issue and addressing the harmful land-use concerns intertwined with its original failure.
The sole staying big jatropha plantation remains in Ghana. The plantation owner declares high-yield domesticated ranges have been achieved and a new boom is at hand. But even if this comeback fails, the world's experience of jatropha holds essential lessons for any promising up-and-coming biofuel.
At the start of the 21st century, Jatropha curcas, a simple shrub-like tree native to Central America, was planted throughout the world. The rush to jatropha was driven by its promise as a sustainable source of biofuel that could be grown on degraded, unfertile lands so as not to displace food crops. But inflated claims of high yields fell flat.

Now, after years of research and development, the sole remaining large plantation concentrated on growing jatropha remains in Ghana. And Singapore-based jOil, which owns that plantation, declares the jatropha resurgence is on.

"All those companies that failed, adopted a plug-and-play design of hunting for the wild varieties of jatropha. But to commercialize it, you need to domesticate it. This is a part of the procedure that was missed [throughout the boom]," jOil CEO Vasanth Subramanian informed in an interview.

Having found out from the mistakes of jatropha's previous failures, he states the oily plant could yet play a crucial function as a liquid biofuel feedstock, decreasing transportation carbon emissions at the worldwide level. A new boom might bring fringe benefits, with jatropha also a potential source of fertilizers and even bioplastics.

But some researchers are hesitant, noting that jatropha has actually currently gone through one hype-and-fizzle cycle. They caution that if the plant is to reach complete capacity, then it is vital to learn from past errors. During the first boom, jatropha plantations were obstructed not just by bad yields, however by land grabbing, deforestation, and social issues in nations where it was planted, including Ghana, where jOil runs.

Experts likewise suggest that jatropha's tale uses lessons for researchers and entrepreneurs checking out appealing new sources for liquid biofuels - which exist aplenty.

Miracle shrub, major bust

Jatropha's early 21st-century appeal stemmed from its guarantee as a "second-generation" biofuel, which are sourced from grasses, trees and other plants not originated from edible crops such as maize, soy or oil palm. Among its numerous purported virtues was a capability to prosper on abject or "marginal" lands