Eco-friendly fuel to be made from malt whisky

While drivers can't drink before getting behind the wheel, the same may not be true of the car itself in the future after scientists in Scotland discovered a way to turn by-products from the whisky industry into eco-friendly fuel.

Celtic Renewables plans to use substances that would otherwise have been wasted in malt whisky distillation to create bio-butanol, which is a viable alternative to petrol. The new fuel would require no modification to the engine, making it a direct swap for current environmentally-harmful fuels.

The company will now look to produce the biofuel on an industrial scale, exploiting the two main waste products from distillation: pot ale and spent grains. Scotland produces 1,600 million litres of pot ale, and 500,000 tonnes of the spent grains, known as 'draff' in the distillation business.

Professor Martin Tangney, founder of Celtic Renewables and director of the Biofuel Research Centre, said: “The pot ale and draff could be converted into biofuel as a direct substitute for fossil-derived fuel, which would reduce oil consumption and C02 emissions while also providing energy security, particularly in the rural and remote homelands of the whisky industry.”

There has been a big drive in using waste to create fuel recently, with scientists looking to find the most renewable and effective form of biofuel. The local economic stimulation of economies based around malt whisky distilleries will be most welcomed by the Scottish government.

Posted by Lauren Steadman