THE EFFECTS OF MICROGRAVITY ON THE FERMENTATION OF HONEY USING YEASTCO-PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS: JACOB BOESCHEL, ELIZABETH BATES, PEYTON ADELMANN

CO-INVESTIGATORS: DEANDRE CURRY, ALEX MARTIN, ANTHONY WATSON, LANCE WINEMILLER, JAYCEE VANCE

COLLABORATORS: BRITTANY JARBOE, MIRANDA STRANE-HARRIS

Practical Uses of Alcohol

AntisepticsBeveragesFuel

Can alcohol be made in space?

Yes, previous successful experiments have used grape juice in microgravity fermentation.However, no significant difference in alcohol production was observed between microgravity and Earth's gravity.Our experiment uses honey in hopes of a greater difference between earth-bound and microgravity alcohol production.

Why Honey?

Grape juice has low viscosity, which may explain why there were inconclusive results. Since honey is very viscous, it should show more of a significant difference in the production of alcohol in the two environments.

Experimental Design

Independent Variable: amount of gravityDependent Variable: percentage alcohol content by volumes (%ABV) Constants: contents of tube

Basic MethodologyA 1:1 honey/deionized water solution was heated to ensure it was homogenized.Clamp A was clamped to the FME tube. Yeast was placed in the FME tube's center section. Next, we clamped Clamp B to the tube, sealing off the center section. Then, we placed the honey/water solution in the tube on one side of the yeast. That side was then sealed off with a stopper. Lastly, formalin was placed in the other side, with a stopper placed on that side as well.

FME Tube

• Volume 1: honey/water solution

• Volume 2: yeast

• Volume 3: formalin

Clamp A will be unlatched upon arrival. The FME tube will then be shaken vigorously, mixing the honey/water solution and yeast.Two days before departure, Clamp B will be unlatched. The contents will then be shaken vigorously, mixing the formalin with the rest of the contents.

Data Collection and Analysis

The diluted product will be analyzed using a refractometer.% of Alcohol by volume will be determined by using Brix scale.

Data Collection and Analysis

Previous trials produced %ABV that was immeasurable by refractometer.10-fold dilution will be used to create samples that are measurable by the refractometer.

Acknowledgments