The environmental impacts and limited reserves of fossil fuels have increasingly highlighted the importance of alternative fuel sources. In this study, the effects of a sunflower oil biodiesel–diesel blend on the performance, fuel consumption, and exhaust emissions of a single-cylinder diesel engine were experimentally investigated. During the tests, pure diesel fuel (B0) and a blend containing 90% diesel and 10% sunflower biodiesel (B10) were evaluated under various load conditions. After the engine reached steady-state operating temperature, power output, fuel consumption, and exhaust emissions were measured. The findings indicate that the biodiesel blend does not adversely affect engine power and provides performance comparable to pure diesel at all load levels. While fuel consumption was similar at low and medium loads, a measurable reduction was observed at high loads when using the biodiesel blend, which is attributed to the improved combustion associated with the fuel’s higher oxygen content. Regarding exhaust emissions, the addition of biodiesel resulted in reductions in CO and HC emissions, whereas a slight increase in NOₓ emissions was observed. This increase is attributed to higher combustion temperatures and is considered manageable through appropriate emission-control strategies. In conclusion, the sunflower biodiesel blend enhances fuel efficiency while maintaining engine performance and offering environmental benefits; however, additional measures may be required to mitigate elevated NOₓ emissions.

Sunflower is a vital oilseed crop, and enhancing its yield and oil content through heterosis breeding is crucial for food security and agricultural sustainability. The present study entitled, “Evaluation of Combining Ability and Heterosis for Yield and Oil content in Sunflower hybrids: Line x Tester Approach was aimed to study combining ability and heterosis.The experiment was conducted in a Randomized Block Design (RBD) with two replications. Using a Line × Tester mating design, four female lines were crossed with five male lines, resulting in 20 hybrids. The combining ability analysis indicated that CMS 10 A and CMS 112 A were good general combiners for seed yield per plant (g). CMS 234 A and PET 2-7-1-A showed good general combining ability for oil content (%). Among the restorer lines, EC 601924 exhibited good general combining ability for all traits except seed yield per plant (g) and volume weight (g/100ml). Out of the 20 hybrids, three hybrids CMS 234 A x EC 279309-1, CMS 112 A x RHA 138-2 and PET 2-7-1 A x EC 601924 were identified as particularly significant in terms of seed yield/plant(g), as well as other yield- related traits, recorded in a desirable direction, indicating that the crosses had high performance. The hybrids CMS 10 A x RHA 138-2, CMS 10 A x EC 399600, CMS 112 A x EC 75717, and CMS 112 A x RHA 138-2 exhibited significant heterosis for all measured traits, excluding plant height, in comparison to both checks LSFH 171 and KBSH 44. It was concluded that CMS 10 A, CMS 112 A, and their tester line RHA 138-2 were regarded as effective combiners in terms of seed yield and associated yield-contributing traits.

This study aims to examine changes in sunflower production, cultivated area, yield, nominal price and real price indicators in Türkiye over the period 2007–2024. Sunflower is one of the products of strategic importance in Türkiye in terms of vegetable oil supply and the structure of agricultural production. However, production volume, yield levels and price movements vary in different directions over time, creating a significant structure that requires evaluation in terms of both producer decisions and agricultural policy. Data from TÜİK and TEPGE were used in the scope of the research. Sunflower production for oil and seeds, along with indicators of cultivated area and yield, were examined on an annual basis; nominal prices were converted to real prices to enable a more accurate assessment of price changes. Descriptive statistics, annual rates of change and inter-period comparisons were used in the analysis of the data. An attempt was made to determine the temporal relationship between key indicators through correlation analysis. The analyses indicate that sunflower production in Türkiye was volatile but generally on an upward trend during the period under review. It is observed that the increase in production is related not only to the expansion of cultivated area but also, in particular, to yield increases. However, significant declines in production and yield indicators were experienced in some years. Real price indicators, on the other hand, reveal that nominal price increases do not always translate into the same level of income growth for producers. The findings of the study suggest that the structure of sunflower production in Türkiye should be assessed not solely on the basis of production volume, but in conjunction with productivity and real price indicators.

To develop competitive sunflower hybrids, a sufficient number of parental components with agronomically valuable traits and a high level of combining ability is required. This study determined the general and specific combining ability of 40 inbred sunflower lines from the breeding programme of The Plant Breeding and Genetics Institute - National Center of Seed and Cultivar Investigation (Ukraine) that are resistant to sulfonylurea herbicides, with respect to seed yield under unstable moisture conditions in the Southern Steppe of Ukraine. The goal was to identify water-stress-adapted donors and to form highly productive hybrid combinations. Combining ability was evaluated in 2020–2023 for the trait “seed yield”. Significant variability in general and specific combining ability was observed depending on hydrothermal conditions and genotype. Statistical analysis of seed yield identified seven lines that consistently showed high combining ability and can be recommended for further breeding studies.

Common sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is a pivotal oilseed crop for global food security, yet sunflower broomrape (Orobanche cumana) poses a major threat to its yields. This study presents a bibliometric analysis of 337 publications from the Scopus database (1960–2025) using Biblioshiny and VOSviewer. The temporal evolution of publishing activity follows an atypical 4th-degree polynomial model, with a general decline in mean total citations per article. Key contributors were identified: Spain is the leading country; CSIC - Instituto de Agricultura Sostenible (IAS) (Spain), the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops (Serbia), and Northwest A&F University (China) are the most productive institutions. Helia is the core journal, while Pérez-Vich B., Velasco L., and Fernández-Martínez J.M. are the most prolific authors. Collaboration networks are described based on connection maps. Analysis of keywords identified research priorities: “plant breeding”, “physiology”, and “genetics” emerged as Motor Themes; “sunflower” and “broomrape” as Basic Themes; and chemistry or “sesquiterpene” and “lactones” as Niche Themes. “Combining ability”, “mutant line”, and “new breeding material” represent Emerging or Declining Themes. Furthermore, the five most influential publications were distinguished and discussed. These findings provide insights into the current research status and outline emergent trends in addressing the broomrape challenge in sunflower cultivation.