Potato entrepreneur plans ‘vodka’ petrol

Mr Chase, the creator of Tyrrells Crisp and Chase Vodka brands, believes that waste from his Herefordshire vodka distillery cold be used to make a high grade vehicle fuel.

‘We have known for a long time that potato starch is an excellent source of bioethanol but this new scheme will tap the resources left behind in distillery waste,’ said Mr Chase. It is hoped that the fluid left behind in the coppers after Chase Vodka’s high grade spirit has been distilled are still fermentable along with the potato waste.

‘There has been research completed at Edinburgh Napier University that has demonstrated that ‘pot ale’ (the fluids left behind from the distilling process) can be fermented into biobutanol. I don’t see why we can’t do the same in Herefordshire,’ Said Mr Chase.

Biobutanol is believed to be the next generation biofuel. It gives internal combustion engines 30% more output power than ethanol. And more importantly it can fuel ordinary cars without the need for expensive adaptations to the engine.

‘We would need local partners to create enough biomass to make the project commercially viable,’ said Mr Chase, ‘but I firmly believe that vegetable matter will provide the world with the next generation of fuels.’

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/25082010/potato_entrepreneur_plans_vodka_petrol/