16/02/2017, 14:30 — 15:30 — Room P3.10, Mathematics Building
Ezio Venturino, Universitá de Torino
Models for sustainable biodiesel production
Several countries have already begun to invest in alternative energies due to smaller and smaller fossil fuel resources. In particular, for biodiesel production the Jatropha curcas appears to be a possible resource, in that it thrives even in harsh and very dry conditions. From its seeds a relevant quantity of oil can be extracted, for production of high grade biodiesel fuel.
But this plant is subject to parasitism from a mosaic virus, the Begomovirus, that is carried by white-flies Bemisia tabaci. The talk is centered on the investigation of two models for the fight of this plant infection.
In the case of large plantations we investigate the optimal insecticide spraying policy. Here the most relevant parameters of the ecosystem appear to be the infection transmission rate from vectors to plants and the vector mortality. The results indicate that spraying should be administered only after 10 days of the epidemics insurgence, relentlessly continued for about three months, after which disease eradication is obtained, [2].
At the small scale instead, we consider possible production by individuals, that cultivate this plant in small plots that would be otherwise be left wild and unproductive, [1]. We consider the effects of media campaigns that keep people aware of this plant disease, and indicate means for fighting it. The model shows that awareness campaigns should be implemented rather intensively, in order to effectively reduce or completely eradicate the infection.
References
[1] Priti Kumar Roy, Fahad Al Basir, Ezio Venturino (2017) Effects of Awareness Program for Controlling Mosaic Disease in Jatropha curcas Plantations, to appear in MMAS.
[2] Ezio Venturino, Priti Kumar Roy, Fahad Al Basir, Abhirup Datta (2016) A model for the control of the Mosaic Virus disease in Jatropha Curcas plantations, to appear in Energy, Ecology and Environment, doi:10.1007/s40974-016-0033-8.
(work in collaboration with Fahad Al Basir and Priti K. Roy, Javadpur University, India)
