Whiskey Wednesday

overthetrail:

Drink more whiskey - Save the earth

When whisky is distilled, it leaves behind two main waste products — a liquid called pot ale and draff, the remains of the grains used in the distilling method. These two waste products are being used by researchers at Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland to create a new biofuel.

According to the Guardian, the Scottish have a £4 billion ($6.2 billion) a year whisky habit, and that habit leaves “copious quantities” of both pot ale and draff that in the past has gone unused. This biofuel can be used in regular cars — meaning there’s no need to adapt the engine as there is with some other biofuels. Researchers also say it’s possible the biofuel could be used to fuel planes.

The biofuel, called butanol, gives 30 percent more power output than ethanol. With ethanol, corn crops are specifically grown to produce the biofuel. With the whisky waste butanol, no new crops are necessary. The grains grown for the whisky become the grains used in the biofuel, making this new type of biofuel more environmentally sustainable.


Good to know I’m doing my part.


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(via maltyk)