 Gen info
- Pittosporum resiniferum, the resin cheesewood or petroleum nut, is a tree that grows in the Philippines and Malaysia, particularly the wilderness surrounding Mayon volcano and in the Cordilleras of the Philippines and Mount Kinabalu of Sabah, Malaysia.
- The name petroleum nut derives from the resemblance of the odor emitted by the
fruit to petroleum-based fuels. The fruit burns brightly when ignited. It is also suitable for biofuel. (see Others and Additional Info below)
Botany
Abkel is an epiphyte or pseudoepiphyte. Leaves crowded toward the ends of the branchlets, leathery, smooth, oblanceolate, averaging about 15 centimeters long and 4 centimeters wide, pointed at both ends. Flowers are fragrant, short-pedicelled, smooth, and borne in clusters on the stems. Calyx is thin and cupular. Petals are oblong. Fruit is yellow, ellipsoid, 3 to 3.5 centimeters long, and dehiscent at the apex. Seeds are shiny and black, an average of 30 in each fruit.
 Distribution
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Grows as an epiphyte or pseudoepiphyte on trees in mossy forests at altitudes of 900 to 2,400 meters in Bontoc to the Sorsogon Provinces in Luzon, particularly in the wilderness surrounding the Mayon Volcano; and in Mindanao and Catanduanes.
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Grown in the Kapangan and Kibungan towns of Benguet as a potential alternative source of fuel.
- Also found in Malaysia, in the Mount Kinabalu of Sabbah.
Constituents
- The volatile oil of the fruit is reported to contain dihydroterpene and heptane, which is a cardiac glycoside.
- The essential oil if 8-10% of fruit weight, 40% myrcene, 38% α-pinene, n-heptane and n-nonane are minor components.
- The oil can be distilled into a very pure form of n-heptane.
- Dichlormethane extract of leaves yielded a mixture of uvaol (1) and erythrodiol (2). (7)
- GC-MS analysis of oil of ripe fruit of P. resiniferum yielded n-heptane (5%),
n-nonane (7%), three isomeric monoterpenes (85%) and six minor sesquiterpenes (6%). Preparative GC isolated and identified two major monoterpenes, α-pinene (38%) and myrcene (40%), while catalytic hydrogenation yielded pinane and 2,6-dimethyloctane. Volatile oil of fruit contained dihydroterpene and heptane. Essential oil makes up 8-10% of the fruit weight - 40% myrcene, 38% α-pinene, with n-heptane and n-nonane as minor components. (7)
Properties
- Fruit is known as petroleum nut, even the green, fresh fruit will burn brilliantly when ignited. The fresh fruit has an odor resembling that of petroleum.
- The oil from the nut contains considerable quantities of normal heptane, which has been found only once before in nature, occurring in the bigger pine of California's Pinus sabiniana. It also yields a dihydroterpene, C10H18.
- The oil is colorless with an orange-like odor and
burns with a strong, sooty flame.
- The oil is quite sticky, and in a thin layer rapidly becomes resinous. In an open dish, it burns strongly, with a sooty flame. It distills unchanged up to 165 degrees, then with decomposition yields a resin oil.
- The nut has a carbon rating of 54, much higher than Jatropha curcas which has 41.
- Studies have suggest muscle pain relieving and antimicrobial properties.
Parts used
Fruit, oil, leaves.
 Uses
Folkloric
- Curanderos use the petroleum nut as a universal medicine.
- Infusion of the fruit is used as a remedy for intestinal and stomach pains.
- Fruit reportedly used as aphrodisiac.
- The oleoresin is used as a cure for leprosy and other skin diseases; also, as a relief for muscular pains and skin diseases.
- Nut decoction used for colds.
- Crushed nuts, mixed with coconut oil, used as relief for myalgia.
- Fruit is cut open and rubbed into skin to relieve aches and pains.
- Decoction of leaves, taken orally, used for cough.
- Sap used to treat tinea flava.
- Petroleum gas extracted from the fruit is used for stomachache and cicatrizant.
- In Kabayan, Benguet province, decoction of leaves given for diarrhea, cough, colds, fever and asthma, stomach-related ailments, muscle pain and inflammation. Also used for washing wounds. (16)
Others
- Lighting: Used as torch nuts or candlenuts for illumination in the bush. Fruits, even the green ones, burn brilliantly.
- Oils / Dihydroterpene / n-Heptane: The oil from the fruit contains a dihydroterpene (C10H18) is used in perfumes and medicines. It also contains considerable amount of normal heptane, which had only once been found in nature, occurring in the Grey Pine (Pinus sabiniana) of California. The oil can be distilled into a very pure form of n-Heptane.
- Heptane: A component of gasoline, and suggested as a possible component of paint and varnish.
- Biofuel: Tree produces a high octane oil that can directly be used as fuel. During WWII, it was used by the Japanese to fuel their tanks. It is estimated six trees can produce 320 liters of oil per year. (4)
 Additional info
• Plant was discovered as a hydrocarbon source just after 1900.
• Petroleum nut is at the top of a long list of potential oil seeds including Pongamia pinnata, Sterculia foetida, Terminalia catappa, Sindora supa, Canarium luzonicum, Calophyllum inophyllum, Jatropha curcas, Euphorbia philippensis.
• The flammable element in petroleum nut is volatile, quickly evaporating like acetone.
• The fruit contains 46% of gasoline type components (heptane, dihydroterpene, etc).
• The oil comes from the fruit, not the seed.
• Yield: (1) Planting gives an estimated yield of 45 tons of fruit or 2500 gallons of "gasoline" per acre per year. (2) A single fruit yields 0.1-3.3 ml, averaging about 1.1 ml; the bigger the fruit, the larger the seed, the greater the oil content. (3) Another reports a single tree yielding 15 kg green fruits, which yielded 80 cm3 of coil. The residue, ground and distilled, yielded 73 cm3 more. (4) Another report gave 68 g per kg fresh nuts, suggesting about 1 kg oil per tree yielding 15 kg. (5) Tree bears fruit in five years, one tree yields an average 250 to 300 kg. !5 kg of fresh fruit yields 1 liter of high flammable oil.(1)
• By chemical analysis, petroleum nut is better than India's Jatropha curcas. J. curcas has a low octane rating of 43. Octane is a hydrocarbon of the alkane series obtained from petroleum refining. The Octane Rating is how much fuel can be compressed before it ignites spontaneously. Petroleum nut has a carbon rating of 54. Fossil fuel has an octane rating of 91. Tested as a blend with fossil fuel, it can replace fossil fuel to as high as 20% to run gasoline engines. (3)(5)
Studies
• Hanga Nut Ointment / Muscle Pain Reliever: Study evaluated an ointment prepared from the extract of hanga nut for muscle pain relief. The experimental ointment showed relief of muscle pain although less than the leading brand, Omega pain killer. (6)
• Biodiesel Production by Transesterification Process / Fruit Pulp: Study explored the sustainable production of biodiesel from fruit pulp The biodiesel production was carried out by transesterification. Results showed a good quality biodiesel oil and suggests the fruit pulp can be feasible feedstock for biodiesel production. (10)
• Biodiesel from Crude Oil Using Heterogenous Solid Base Catalyst / Seed: P. resiniferum oil was extracted from the seed and the oil together with methanol was used for production of biodiesel through transesterification process using novel solid base catalyst (K2CO3 supported on MgO). The 16:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio, 5% catalyst loading amount, a reaction time of 2.0h and reaction temperature of 60°C were sufficient for a maximum yield of 97.4%. With relative high activity, the catalyst can perhaps be used again for five times. The biodiesel product characteristics were consistent with national standards. (12)
• Sequential Solvent Extraction of Oil Using Ethanol and Hexane: Study evaluated the sequential solvent extraction of petroleum nut oil using hexane and ethanol as solvents at varying solvent-to-fruit ratio, agitation time, and solvent sequence. Drying and milling the fruits prior to extraction resulted in higher oil yields. Results showed higher oil recovery by sequential solvent extraction by 5.17% and 27.35% as compared to using ethanol and hexane as single solvents, respectively. However, cost was 19.61% and 7.41% higher compared to ethanol and hexane as single solvents, respectively. (13)
• Antimicrobial / Bark: Study evaluated bark extract of P. resiniferum for antimicrobial properties using disk diffusion method. Ten fractions were found soluble in both dichloromethane (DCM) and petroleum ether. On phytochemical screening, only terpenoid was present in all the isolates. Of the ten dichloromethane fractions of DCM bark extract, the 70% acetone in DCM showed best antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli while the 90% acetone showed best activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. (14)
Availability
Wild-crafted.
Cultivated.
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