Reviewing Ethanol Distillation

One of the main points – Ethanol Distillation

Ethanol is one of the newest and most controversial trends in the automotive industry. It has supporters who claim it to be a savior and it has its opponents. Though generally, it is agreed that ethanol fuel is a renewable source of energy that burns cleaner and has less of a negative impact on the environment. This fuel is created in a similar way to alcoholic beverages.

The first step in ethanol distillation is the milling process. During this step, the grains are ground up in hammer mills, producing powdery meal. The next step involves hydrating the meal in a process called liquefaction. The meal is mixed with water or a water substitute and will cook. The starches in the grains become liquid at high temperatures (about 120-150 C). The high temperatures also remove any dangerous and corrosive bacteria that may be in the meal.

The next step in ethanol distillation involves isolating the saccharine in the ground meal. The mash is cooled and enzymes are added, converting the starches to simple and complex sugars. Fermentation comes next. Yeast is added to the mixture and is fully integrated into the meal. This can be done in a continual process or a batch process, depending on the time restraints involved.

The ethanol distillation process is nearly complete at this point. Initially, the mass contained an alcohol content of about ten percent. After the solids are removed and the alcohol is separated though a venting system via heat and pressure, the alcohol will have a purity of ninety-five percent or better. Then, later in the ethanol distillation process, the alcohol is further purified by dehydration, or removing of any excess water. At this point, the alcohol becomes 100% pure, also known as 200 proof. The ethanol is then denatured with gasoline to make it unfit for human consumption.