Journal of Energy Bioscience 2025, Vol.16, No.2, 75-84 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/jeb 81 7 Global Trends and Market Opportunities 7.1 Rapeseed oil production in key biodiesel markets Rapeseed oil is one of the main raw materials for biodiesel, especially in Europe, where it is most widely used. In some places with suitable climates, such as Iran, the area of rapeseed cultivation has increased significantly. By improving planting and processing methods, local yields and efficiency have also increased (Almasi et al., 2019). In high-altitude areas such as the Qinghai Plateau in China, rapeseed yields are also relatively high due to the special climate and environment. Therefore, these areas have become one of the important production areas of rapeseed oil (Xiong et al., 2022). The energy efficiency of using rapeseed oil to make biodiesel varies greatly in different regions of Europe. Some places are highly efficient, while others have more serious energy waste. This shows that in some areas, better technology is needed to reduce losses and make this production method more feasible (Duren et al., 2019). 7.2 Policy incentives and challenges The EU has introduced a number of policies to promote the use of clean energy. For example, they stipulate that by 2020, at least 10% of the energy used in the transportation industry must come from renewable energy (Herrmann et al., 2013). Such policies encourage sustainable agriculture and provide economic support for some small-scale biodiesel projects. Take Italy as an example. Conservation agriculture is promoted locally, which allows small farmers to participate in biofuel production while taking into account economic benefits and environmental protection (Viccaro et al., 2019). But this road is not without difficulties. Extreme weather such as drought will affect the yield and stability of rapeseed supply (Yang et al., 2021). Moreover, to start large-scale biodiesel production, it takes a lot of money and an efficient supply chain to cooperate. These have become important obstacles to the promotion of biodiesel (Viccaro et al., 2019). 7.3 Future prospects in sustainable energy Rapeseed oil has a lot of room for development in the future biodiesel sector, and many current studies are focusing on optimizing processing and increasing crop yields. New technologies have emerged, including ultrasound-assisted methods and enzyme-catalyzed in situ transesterification, which can make the production process more efficient and less polluting (Almasi et al., 2019). Scientists use breeding methods to develop higher-yielding rapeseed varieties, and planting high-yield rapeseed varieties in special ecological environments can further increase yields (Abbadi and Leckband, 2011; Xiong et al., 2022). With strong policy support for renewable energy research and practice, rapeseed oil is expected to play an important role in the future energy transition. 8 Conclusion There have been many studies that have yielded important findings and insights into achieving sustainable biodiesel production by increasing rapeseed oil yields. Experiments have shown that the use of compound fertilizers when growing rapeseed can significantly increase rapeseed and oil yields. To a certain extent, the more compound fertilizers are used, the higher the rapeseed oil yield, which is critical to increasing biodiesel yields. In terms of processing, researchers have optimized transesterification technology to achieve higher biodiesel yields and quality. Under appropriate optimal conditions, the base-catalyzed method can achieve a biodiesel yield of 95% to 96%; the ultrasound-assisted method can reach 87.175%. Another method, heterogeneous catalysis using sodium-modified fluoroapatite as a catalyst, can even achieve a biodiesel yield of 98%. These research results make rapeseed oil a promising biodiesel feedstock with high yield and good quality. Looking forward, we believe that research on rapeseed can focus on optimizing fertilization programs. While working to increase rapeseed yields, it is also necessary to control the pressure on the environment caused by the rapeseed planting process. Excessive use of fertilizers can cause varying degrees of pollution to soil and water sources. Greener, more environmentally friendly and sustainable catalysts and reaction conditions can be studied to make the production process of biodiesel more efficient and environmentally friendly. We also need to understand clearly what positive and negative effects long-term use of biodiesel will have on engines, and
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