The project IsoSens “Isotopic Fingerprint of Oil Samples: Can remote sensing help to verify the origin of biofuels?” is the first collaborative research project between the two FB 13 departments FG SuR and FG FuB and an extension project of the project FindHerO.

Large-scale deforestation to obtain new cultivation areas and the associated release of carbon affect ecosystems and the climate. For proof of origin of plant products (such as oils and biofuels), analytical detection methods are needed for control in addition to institutional certification systems. Within the framework of the ongoing FindHerO project, funded by the Fritz and Margot Faudi Foundation, an approach is therefore to be developed for determining the “fingerprint” of oil plants with regard to their geographical origin. For this purpose, rapeseed samples and soil samples from different cultivation areas in Hesse will be examined.

The aim is to determine the various site-specific, independent variables and their influence on the isotopic composition i.e. the “isotopic fingerprint” of rapeseed oil.

In IsoSens, we evaluate the influence of two new site-specific independent variables (soil moisture and land cover) on the hydrogen isotope ratio (δ2H) of fatty acids in canola oil. In parallel, the influence of soil properties and climatic parameters (e.g., temperature and precipitation) on soil moisture is being investigated. The FG SuR is concerned with the determination of soil sample properties and isotopic analysis of fatty acids using a rapid sample preparation method recently published by colleague Lili Xia et al. The FG FuB (Remote Sensing and Image Analysis) focuses on deriving land cover and soil moisture information using various remote sensing data and image processing methods.

Subsequent analysis of the relationship between site-specific variables, hydrogen isotope ratio, and land cover and soil moisture information will answer the question of the suitability of remote sensing products as an additional source of information for fuel origin verification. More information can be found on the project website.

The project IsoSens is funded with a duration from 01.05. to 31.10.2021 for the FG SuR and from 01.04. to 30.09.2021 for the FG FuB by internal funds of the research funding program at the FB13 of the TU Darmstadt (FORIN).

Contact persons at the FG SuR Lili Xia, M.Sc. and Dr.-Ing. Kaori Sakaguchi-Söder

Contact person at FG FuB Sebastian Hunger, M.Sc. and Lina Emilie Budde, M.Sc.