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Robin Shreeves

Drink more whisky. Save the Earth.

The Scottish are making a promising biofuel from what's left behind from the distillation process.

Wed, Aug 18 2010 at 2:26 PM EST
 48

Glasses of whisky Photo: sashafatcat/Flickr
When Scotch 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 Scotch whisky become the grains used in the biofuel, making this new type of biofuel more environmentally sustainable.
 
So, if we want to move away from fueling our cars with oil, perhaps we should start drinking more whisky. The more whisky we drink, the more waste there will be to create biofuel, right?
 
In all seriousness, this seems like a step in the right direction for finding alternatives to oil. The European Union has set a goal that biofuels will account for 10 percent of all fuel sales by 2020. Researchers say this new biofuel could contribute significantly to this goal. 
 
Also on MNN:
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  • EU report reveals the potential environmental damage of biofuels
  • Swipe, smile, blow: Pennsylvania offers wine vending machines
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Related Topics: Alternative Energy, Biofuels, Food, Sustainability

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anonymous
itisme61944 04/03/2011 16:31 PM

Ok well guess I should run out and buy some good old Jack then... We should have an incentive for americans to make biofuel from making Jack Daniels and other Whiskeys too here.. Drink up everyone... hahaha

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anonymous
Marbles In tact 04/01/2011 19:05 PM

Oh, yeah...you can drink and drive! whoo whooooooooooo!!!!!! great combo fresh meat of fodder for mother earth, thanks to drinking and driving!!!! seems like a winning combo all around!!!! NOT!!!!

amazing illogical drivel that emanates form libturds

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anonymous
Kate 08/05/2011 17:17 PM

Where, exactly, does this article promote drinking and driving at the same time? Read it again (or, apparently, for the first time). It's talking about using the waste already produced in the whiskey making process to create fuel. Not about buying a bottle, drinking half of it and dumping the other half into your tank then taking a cruise around town. If this could work, it would be a much better alternative to ethanol, just on the fact that it's using waste product instead of specially growing.... More

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anonymous
itisme61944 04/03/2011 16:36 PM

Okay come on... not everyone that drinks alcohol purchased by companies that make biofuel out of the waste products will drive. Hopefully the majority. We all KNOW not to drink and drive.
Hey :) smile

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anonymous
Epicurean 04/01/2011 18:58 PM

YEAH...............drink and drive real good for the earth!!!! fresh corpse is great fodder for mother earth.

Who comes up with this illogical drivel???

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anonymous
Nolahead 06/02/2011 15:28 PM

It would do you well to re-read this article. It doesn't not promote drinking and driving. Please, do yourself a favor and make sure you FULLY comprehend an idea before lashing out in childish behavior...it would do us all well.

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anonymous
mamamoon 05/13/2011 15:26 PM

no where in this article does it promote drinking and driving!! There are plenty of responsible drinkers myself included that would never ever consider driving after drinking. The people making these ridiculous statements are mostly likely those who are risking everyone on the road by texting and talking on their cell phones while driving!! See I jumped to a conclusion just as absurd as yours!

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anonymous
allegria 03/22/2011 17:45 PM

I can't believe all the snide commends alluding to drinking being so terrible and bad, such a sin! People, it's not the drink, it's the drinker. Not everyone abuses alcohol. It's a blessing! Let's try not to let our own personal fears get in the way of rational thinking.

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anonymous
Sippin Syrup 03/07/2011 01:38 AM

Brilliant. It really doesn't take a genius to find simple improvements in our lives and for our planet.

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anonymous
Tina 02/09/2011 19:44 PM

Now we all have meaningful reason to intoxicate or body day after day, LOL!. Great idea! It is what we call Corporate Social Responsibility. I really salute you guys!

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anonymous
kevin 01/23/2011 22:34 PM

finally a project that encourages drunk driving.

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anonymous
mama 05/13/2011 15:27 PM

please show us all where this project encourages drunk driving! Grow a brain would you!

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anonymous
Jesse 01/10/2011 18:30 PM

The Scottish have a ÂŁ4bn whisky industry, not habit. Ever heard of exports?

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anonymous
Gareth Amon 01/06/2011 11:47 AM

Sounds like a legitamate business, maybe www.FreeRecyclingQuotes.com should get involved.

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anonymous
Rediculous 12/21/2010 21:39 PM

So the average scot drinks about 12,000 dollars worth of scotch a year? How can they afford that, as they would be too drunk to work?

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anonymous
developtosustain 12/15/2010 14:48 PM

I'm sure similar techniques could be applied to hundreds if not thousands of other consumption-driven waste byproducts.

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anonymous
Juls 12/10/2010 03:49 AM

I'll drink to that

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anonymous
zuza 11/13/2010 17:39 PM

so, today I have saved a lots of .. whatever.. hik!
weill keep on doing dso :)

btw good site bookmarked ;)

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anonymous
rarakickmedown@yahoo.ca 12/06/2010 03:34 AM

ho ho ho

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anonymous
Riccardo Mancini 11/13/2010 14:14 PM

Of course, this isn't the only kind of productive process waste that's necessary to re-utilize to feed the energy we need: I agree the method inserting an existing process, (industrial, biologic or any) . But we're still too far from the total utilization of the secondary organic raw materials.

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anonymous
Skip Ryan 11/13/2010 13:28 PM

Secondary feature of draff used to feed cattle is capturing the methane released by the feeding cattle.

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anonymous
Folkdeals.com 11/13/2010 02:58 AM

Letus start sharing your reviews, news about moncler jackets, and how to clues- (www.folkdeals.com)this community here for everybody to use! we collect all moncler down jackets and famous moncler vests - moncler doudoun, by the way,
Discount moncler clothes collection is also my.... More

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anonymous
Allegria 03/22/2011 17:48 PM

Excuse me, you sound like a moron. If you're going to post on English sites, you need to learn to write in English.

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anonymous
PJ 11/12/2010 08:30 AM

If this actually works, what an amazing idea. One question though...what kinds of emissions would result from using this new biofuel in cars? Just wondering.

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anonymous
Riccardo Mancini 11/13/2010 14:30 PM

The crops are feed by the same CO2 emitted burnig, and according whith some researches, the oxigen contained reduces the presence of non-burned substances at the waste. The lower combustion temperature of this class of fuels reduces drastically the presence of nitrogen, so no nitric acid, and there's no sulphur, so neither sulphurious acid, nor hidrogen sulfide: No acid rains. Personally, I'm satisfied.

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rshreeves
rshreeves 11/12/2010 11:02 AM

I can't find any specifics about the emissions except, but articles like one on BBC News (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-10998281) say it will "help Scotland reduce its emissions from road transport."

I suppose until there's science on it, we should keep underage kids away from the tailpipes of cars that use the whisky biofuel, huh?

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anonymous
shapewear 11/02/2010 13:02 PM

yeah, this is one way people who drink could help contribute to the environment.

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anonymous
Susan 10/08/2010 18:21 PM

Not only do I love this I really Love this a lot
Just remeber not to drink and drive !

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mnnmoderator
mnnmoderator 11/02/2010 13:06 PM

Absolutely... no drinking and driving! Glad you liked the article, Susan.

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anonymous
Thomas Camargo 09/28/2010 10:28 AM

You got to love Whiky hĂŁ???? I will increase my drinking efforts as soon as today!!!!!!!! We got to save the planet!!!!!

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anonymous
Derek Wilson 09/15/2010 06:57 AM

Fekin Merkins

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nightowl22366
nightowl22366 08/27/2010 20:34 PM

What a great way to use something that would have been waste to make something usable!
Oh, and...
Here's mud in your eye ;-)
(in case that doesn't translate to other areas of the world, it's a drinking salutation)

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mnnmoderator
mnnmoderator 11/02/2010 13:08 PM

Wonder how that salutation came to be - interesting trivia!

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anonymous
will engel 08/27/2010 09:15 AM

Great Idea!
come to our site www.splitzvillefarms.com and check out some of the planet saving stuff we are doing! also our blog at howtogogreen@wordpress.com contains some of the best idea we have combed from the net!

cheers
Will

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anonymous
cassandra Today 19:51 PM

whiskey*

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anonymous
Correction fail 08/27/2010 12:21 PM

Scotch Whisky is spelled without an E.

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anonymous
Lilly P. 08/27/2010 15:12 PM

It's Whisky (Scottish English) or whiskey (Irish English), according to which you follow.

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anonymous
WTF 11/03/2010 10:21 AM

"Scottish English"? There's no such thing. Scots is not a derivation of English. Scots and English evolved side by side.

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anonymous
MNN User 08/24/2010 23:36 PM

My grandfather became a millionaire selling brewers grains to farmers.We wont stop people drinking, but if we can make the air quality better and stop sucking the earth dry- why not? Please make your whisky organic like in the old days, and I'd fuel my car and drink the whisky any day- go the Scotts!

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anonymous
MNN User 08/24/2010 18:37 PM

Please come up with something serious, it's not funny anymore, this wouldn't even dent the oil market. Get off you fat arses and walk more. Using less is going to be the only option so grow up.

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anonymous
Allegria 03/22/2011 17:54 PM

You're a minor. Goodnight! Big kids don't sign their name "Anonymous" on ANY site. Stand up for what you believe! You'll be amazed how much you'll change for the better.

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anonymous
JustAKid 10/03/2010 01:11 AM

Yah he's right.Thats one way to put it bluntly. In the end, the real solution is just going to come from limiting population growth and consuming less.
But it is still a fun/interesting idea. :)

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anonymous
JustAKid 10/03/2010 01:11 AM

Yah he's right.Thats one way to put it bluntly. In the end, the real solution is just going to come from limiting population growth and consuming less.
But it is still a fun/interesting idea. :)

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anonymous
MNN User 08/25/2010 07:49 AM

It's people like you who make the world an unpleasant place to be.

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anonymous
Allegria 03/22/2011 17:57 PM

Goodnight!

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anonymous
geriann 08/23/2010 19:37 PM

a great reason to drink.

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anonymous
Helle Hansen 08/23/2010 15:36 PM

When everybody have had enough whisky who cares about fuel for the cars. Drunk driving is forbidden almost everywhere in the world,

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anonymous
Uncle B 08/22/2010 16:36 PM

Canadians, proud possessors of the TarSands - more oil than all Saudi Arabia1 We only need to apply Saskatchewan's Nuclear fuels to melt the oil and we have copious product to sell the Yankees! In exchange, our Stephan Harper wants corporate power to have the profits but Socialists in Canada see this as an opportunity to have as well as the best medical care in the world, a free ticket for all for dental care, drug plans and secondary education - all paid by governments who will tax the Hell.... More

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