Category: ethanol

The process of ethanol distillation is one which is rather complex and yet one which can be easily explained; ethanol is a chemical that is produced either synthetically from ethylene or from the fermentation of grain or sugar; during the ethanol distillation process, or more specifically, during the synthesis of ethanol, the product stream may be contaminated by acidic impurities, and/or sulfurous impurities.

Additionally, during the ethanol distillation process, in the presence of O2, a small part of the ethanol stream may be oxidized into various carbonyl impurities, of which acetaldehyde is the most probable one; the above impurities may cause such effects as odor, discoloration, inefficient distillation, or poor UV transmission.

More About Ethanol Distillation and Ethanol in General

In regards to learning more about ethanol distillation and ethanol in general, there are many things that should be taken seriously into consideration. For instance, there is the fact that ethanol is also known as ethyl alcohol, and that it is a flammable, colorless, mildly toxic chemical compound with a distinctive perfume-like odor, and it is the alcohol that is found in alcoholic beverages.

Ethanol is something which has actually been used by humans since prehistory as the intoxicating ingredient in alcoholic beverages, and as well, its isolation as a basically and relatively pure compound was in fact first achieved by Persian alchemists who developed the art of distillation during the Abbasid caliphate, the most notable of whom was Al-Razi.

Furthermore, ethanol is an incredibly versatile solvent, as it is soluble in water and with most organic liquids as well, and also, ethanol is used as a solvent in dissolving medicines, food flavorings and colorings that do not otherwise dissolve easily in water.

In regards to its use in fuel and alcoholic beverages, this is produced by fermentation: which is when certain species of yeast metabolize the sugar in the absence of oxygen, and they then produce ethanol and carbon dioxide. Then, the overall chemical reaction that is conducted by the yeast may then be represented by a chemical equation.

Overall it is quite easy to see the multitude of information that sounds ethanol as a whole, and therefore why it is often considered as being a rather complex matter to discuss; however, once you have even a basic grasp on the matter of ethanol overall, then you will be able to come to a better and more knowledgeable understanding overall.

Although homemade ethanol can certainly be a dangerous thing, it can also be a rather intriguing thing, and so in order to be able to understand everything about homemade ethanol in general, one must learn about how to make it, what is involved in the process, and more, as well as what the dangers are of homemade ethanol; only when all of these matters are discussed can a proper viewpoint be taken on the subject matter.

About Homemade Ethanol

In regards to the matter of homemade ethanol, basically there are several facts that should be taken into consideration, such as: the level of interest in using alcohol as motor fuel has followed cycles of fuel shortages and/or low feed-grain prices; alcohols burn more completely, thus increasing combustion efficiency; and that there are many disadvantages to using alcohols, particularly methyl and ethyl alcohol.

As well, ethanol, which is grain alcohol, can be made out of straw; and in fact the ability to make ethanol from straw rice straw, wheat straw, oat straw, etc.- is truly the modern day equivalent of the Holy Grail or the Philosopher s Stone, as in a time when barely any new oil fields have been discovered in the past ten years, and a war in Iraq rages with such madness that it seems unlikely that anyone will be able to pump oil for the next several years.

As well, intensive research on cellulose conversion to ethanol previously focused on that of mechanical, heat and acid hydrolysis techniques, all of which are expensive, and as well, it should be known however that cellulose ethanol truly has two unique advantages over conventional alcohol.

The first is that the greenhouse gas emission reductions from cellulose ethanol are three times greater than those from grain based ethanol on a life cycle basis, and second, cellulose ethanol is made from a plentiful and renewable resource, which is the non-food portion of agriculture crops.

The ethanol industry in general is truly growing at an incredible pace, and in fact, production was up nearly 23 percent compared to just last June when 180,000 b/d of ethanol was produced; the ethanol industry is also expected to produce more than 3.3 billion gallons in 2004, up from 2.81 gallons in 2003.

Overall it is quite easy to see that there is much to know about ethanol in general, and also that in order to be able to have a proper viewpoint on it altogether, we need to try and understand as much about it in general as we can.