ETHANOL

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•  Ethanol (ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol) is a clear, colorless liquid with a characteristic, agreeable odor.

• In dilute aqueous solution, it has a somewhat sweet flavor, but in more concentrated solutions it has a burning taste.

• Ethanol, the word, alcohol derives from Arabic al-kuhul, which denotes a fine powder of antimony used as an eye makeup. Alcohol originally referred to any fine powder, but medieval alchemists later applied the term to the refined products of distillation, and this led to the current usage.

 

MISSOURI ETHANOL PLANTS

   Company Location Current Capacity Under Construction/ MG/YR Expansions

Golden Triangle Energy, LLC Craig, MO 20.0 NA   

Mid-Missouri Energy, Inc. Malta Bend, MO 45.0 NA   

Missouri Ethanol Laddonia, MO NA 45.0   

Northeast Missouri Grain, LLC Macon, MO 45.0 NA

 Missouri Total 110.0 45.0 

• Ethanol can enter the environment as emissions from its manufacture, use as a solvent and chemical intermediate, and release in fermentation and alcoholic beverage preparation.

• It naturally occurs as a plant volatile, microbial degradation product of animal wastes, and in natural fermentation of carbohydrates. Produced naturally from a wide range of microbiological processes (by fungi, bacteria, etc), and possibly some plants.

• When spilled on land it is apt to volatilize, biodegrade, and leach into the ground water, but no data on the rates of these processes could be found. Its fate in ground water is unknown.

Ethanol is a clean-burning, high-octane fuel that is produced from

renewable sources.

At its most basic, ethanol is grain alcohol, produced from crops

such as corn.

A bushel of corn weighs 56 pounds and will produce at least 2.8 gallons of ethanol , 17 pounds of distillers

grain & 18 Pounds of CO2

• In 2005, 97 ethanol plants in 21 states produced a record 3.904 billion gallons of ethanol

NATIONAL CORN GROWERS ASSOCIATION

• Ethanol is Safe in Soil and Groundwater

Ethanol is non-toxic, water soluble and is the most harmless and biodegradable component of gasoline. In fact, ethanol occurs naturally during the fermentation of organic matter.

• When gasoline is spilled on land or in water, ethanol is the first component to quickly, safely and naturally degrade. More important, the presence of ethanol in gasoline means the reduced presence of other more toxic components such as benzene—so gasoline spills are less threatening to the environment.

Last reviewed June 10, 2005

• Ethanol can be made by a dry mill process or a wet mill process.

• Most of the ethanol in the U.S. is made using the dry mill method. In the dry mill process, the starch portion of the corn is fermented into sugar then distilled into alcohol.

• The major steps in the dry mill process are:

• 1. Milling. The feedstock passes through a hammer mill which grinds it into a fine powder called meal.

• 2. Liquefaction. The meal is mixed with water and alpha-amylase, then passed through cookers where the starch is liquefied. Heat is applied at this stage to enable liquefaction. Cookers with a high temperature stage (120-150 degrees Celsius) and a lower temperature holding period (95 degrees Celsius) are used. High temperatures reduce bacteria levels in the mash.

3. Saccharification. The mash from the cookers is cooled and the secondary enzyme (gluco-amylase) is added to convert the liquefied starch to fermentable sugars (dextrose).

4. Fermentation. Yeast is added to the mash to ferment the sugars to ethanol and carbon dioxide. Using a continuous process, the fermenting mash is allowed to flow through several fermenters until it is fully fermented and leaves the final tank. In a batch process, the mash stays in one fermenter for about 48 hours before the distillation process is started.

5. Distillation. The fermented mash, now called beer, contains about 10% alcohol plus all the non-fermentable solids from the corn and yeast cells. The mash is pumped to the continuous flow, multi-column distillation system where the alcohol is removed from the solids and the water. The alcohol leaves the top of the final column at about 96% strength, and the residue mash, called stillage, is transferred from the base of the column to the co-product processing area.

6. Dehydration. The alcohol from the top of the column passes through a dehydration system where the remaining water will be removed. Most ethanol plants use a molecular sieve to capture the last bit of water in the ethanol. The alcohol product at this stage is called anhydrous ethanol (pure, without water) and is approximately 200 proof.

7. Denaturing. Ethanol that will be used for fuel must be denatured, or made unfit for human consumption, with a small amount of gasoline (2-5%). This is done at the ethanol plant.

8. Co-Products. There are two main co-products created in the production of ethanol: distillers grain and carbon dioxide. Distillers grain, used wet or dry, is a highly nutritious livestock feed. Carbon dioxide is given off in great quantities during fermentation and many ethanol plants collect, compress, and sell it for use in other industries.

Distillers grain can be fed to livestock wet or dry. Dried distillers grain (DDG) is the most common variety. Drying the distillers grain increases its shelf life and improves its ability to be transported over longer distances. If a consistent nearby market can be secured, ethanol producers can supply the feed as wet distillers grain (WDG). The wet form is not as easily transportable, but the cost of drying the product is removed.

• Dried distillers grain with solubles (DDGS) is the form available to the feed industry. The liquid that is separated from the mash during the distilling process is partially dehydrated into a syrup, then added back onto the dried distillers grain to create DDGS.

• DDGS is a high quality feedstuff ration for dairy cattle, beef cattle, swine, poultry, and aquaculture. The feed is an economical partial replacement for corn, soybean meal, and dicalcium phosphate in livestock and poultry feeds. Historically, over 85% of DDGS has been fed to dairy and beef cattle, and DDGS continues to be an excellent, economical feed ingredient for use in ruminant diets.

The personal care products industry is one of the largest users of industrial ethanol, or ethyl alcohol.

Check the labels – hairspray, mouthwash, aftershave, cologne, and perfume all contain large amounts of alcohol by volume. Ethanol is also used in many deodorants, lotions, hand sanitizers, soaps,

and shampoos.

• Carbon dioxide is used to carbonate beverages, to manufacture dry ice, and to flash freeze meat. CO2 is also used by paper mills and other food processors.

• A project is underway in Kansas to use carbon dioxide to recover oil from marginal oil fields. Using this miscible CO2 flooding, carbon dioxide from a nearby ethanol plant is injected into oil-producing rocks about 3,000 feet underground. The carbon dioxide mixed with oil that has collected in hard-to-reach spots in the rock, forcing it into nearby production wells.

• Ethanol melts at –114.1°C, boils at 78.5°C, and has a density of 0.789 g/mL at 20°C.

• Its low freezing point has made it useful as the fluid in thermometers for temperatures below –40°C, the freezing point of mercury, and for other low-temperature purposes.

• Pure, 100% ethanol is not generally used as a motor fuel; instead, a percentage of ethanol is combined with unleaded gasoline. This is beneficial because the ethanol:

• decreases the fuel's cost

• increases the fuel's octane rating

• decreases gasoline's harmful emissions

BLENDING WITH GASOLINE

• Any amount of ethanol can be combined with gasoline, but the most common blends are:

• E10 - 10% ethanol and 90% unleaded gasoline

• E10 is approved for use in any make or model of vehicle sold in the U.S. Many automakers recommend its use because of its high performance, clean-burning characteristics. In 2004, about one-third of America's gasoline was blended with ethanol, most in this 10% variety.

• E85 - 85% ethanol and 15% unleaded gasoline

• E85 is an alternative fuel for use in flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs). There are currently more than 4 million FFVs on America's roads today, and automakers are rolling out more each year. In conjunction with more flexible fuel vehicles, more E85 pumps are being installed across the country. When E85 is not availible, these FFVs can operate on straight gasoline or any ethanol blend up to 85%.

ETHANOL

Physical properties:

• Colorless liquid. • Pleasant alcoholic odor detectable at 49 to 716

ppm. • Miscible with water and most organic solvents.• Melting Point (°C): -114.1• Boiling Point (°C): 78.3• Specific Gravity: 0.789• Vapor Density: 1.6

• When released into water it will volatilize and probably biodegrade.

• It would not be expected to adsorb into sediment or bio-accumulate in fish.

• Although no data on its biodegradation in natural waters could be found, laboratory tests suggest that it may readily biodegrade and its detection in water systems may be due in part to its extensive use in industry with possible relatively steady and large levels of discharges.

• When released to the atmosphere it will photodegrade to carbon dioxide and water in hours (polluted urban atmosphere) to an estimated range of 4 to 6 days in less polluted areas.

• At low concentrations and amounts, ethanol is rapidly metabolised without apparent harm. At high concentrations, such as in leaks or spills, ethanol can have substantial acute effects on a wide range of biota, while it can cause death to many microbes. ETHANOL is used as both a food and a disinfectant

• Gasoline -40 F (1.4 – 7.4 %), • Ethanol 55 F (3.3 - 24.5 %)• Ethanol, in general, has a higher flash point than

gasoline, thus posing less risk, but 

• At low temperatures (< 32 degrees), E85 vapor is more flammable than gasoline vapor

• E85 vapor is less flammable than gasoline at higher temps. 

• The lower vapor pressure and lower heat of combustion of E85 reduce risk of fire compared to gasoline.  In the event of a fire, the flame is less bright than a gasoline flame, but is visible in daylight. 

FLAMMABILITY ???

Ethanol burns in air with a clear blue flame that is very faint in bright daylight conditions.

PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: The flames you see are only about 5% of the actual fire.

What is the difference in putting out an ethanol fire versus putting out a gasoline

fire?

• NFPA 30 and 30A recommend that the same form of fire fighting chemicals and techniques be used on E85 as is used to fight fires fueled with unleaded gasoline. 

• The NFPA does not require different fire fighting for ethanol in comparison to gasoline.

The results of fire fighting tests conducted at Iowa State University indicates that in the case of gasoline alcohol blend fires:

• For spill fires - preferred foams are polymer “alcohol type”, fluoroprotein, and AFFF in that order for permanence of blanket and security of the area. “Alcohol type” and AFFF will produce more rapid fire knockdown, while the “alcohol type” and fluoroprotein will give the best protection against reflash.

• Small spill fires can be extinguished with BC extinguishers.

ETHANOL / WATER SOLUTION FLAMMABILITIES

ALCOHOL ROOM TEMPERATURE :TEMPERATURE 1 SECOND FLAME APPLICATION

• 55 % CONTINUOUED BURNING• 46 – 55 % MOMENTARY FLASH• < 46 % NO IGNITION

HEATED TO BOILING POINT:

1 SECOND FLAME APPLICATION

20 % CONTINUED BURNING

BOTH TEMPERATURE AND CONCENTRATION DEPENDENT

FOR TANK FIRES –

• For over the top application use “alcohol type” foam or Light Water AFFF. For subsurface application, the “alcohol type” foam is the preferred agent.

• Burn back resistance in these applications is sometimes lowered and therefore, additional foam application after fire extinguishment is recommended.

• In the case of smaller ethanol spill fires (thin - less than one inch deep):

Spills can be controlled and extinguished by dilution with water.

Denatured fuel ethanol is a flammable liquid having a Reid vapor pressure of 3.0 psi and

its flash point is ~55°F.

Use Class C Fire Extinguisher

TRANSPORTATION

• All safety precautions applicable to loading gasoline or other Class I Flammable Liquids into a transport truck would also be applicable to fuel grade ethanol. The truck should be grounded and bonded when loading/unloading.

HOW IT’S TRANSPORTED:

Rail: DOT111A100W1 Tank Car (unit train)

Highway: MC306 or DOT406 cargo tank

Pipe Line: none now, none planned

PLACARDS ?

• Ethanol (up to 5% gasoline Mixed)  =  UN 1987 Denatured Alcohol

• E85  (ethanol up to 85%)     =  UN 1993

Flammable liquid, n.o.s. (ethanol, gasoline)

• Gasohol  (up to 20% ethanol blend) =  NA 1203

Compatabilities

• Steel tanks and nearly all fiberglass tanks are compatible with gasoline/ethanol blends. In some instances, tanks may have been relined with polyester or epoxy linings to prevent leakage. Although many of these lining materials are compatible with gasoline/ethanol blends not all are.

MATERIALS THAT DEGRADE WITH E-85:

Zinc, Brass, Lead, and Aluminum

Natural Rubber, Polyurethane, cork, leather, PVC, Polyamides, methyl-methacrylates

ACCEPTABLE MATERIALS TO USE:

Buna-N, Neoprene, Polypropylene, Nitrile, Viton, Teflon