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I Hope you enjoy shopping at the Racing Ahead store and that you find what you are looking for. From time to time, new additions will be made to departments so please do come back and look again.
SpiritEthanol SpiritEthanol spirit , also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid / spirit . It is a psychoactive drug, best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages and in thermometers. In common usage, it is often referred to simply as alcohol.Ethanol is abbreviated as EtOH, using the common organic chemistry notation of representing the ethyl group (C2H5) with Et. This designation is used both by EMS and Hospital ER staff when describing alcohol intoxication, and is found in most chemistry textbooks as well. Ethanol spirit is a straight-chain alcohol, and its molecular formula is C2H5OH. An alternative notation is CH3-CH2-OH, which indicates that the carbon of a methyl group (CH3-) is attached to the carbon of a methylene group (-CH2-), which is attached to the oxygen of a hydroxyl group (-OH). Its empirical formula is C2H6O, making it a constitutional isomer of dimethyl ether. Except for use of fire, the fermentation of sugar into ethanol spirit is one of the earliest organic reactions employed by humanity. The intoxicating effects of ethanol spirit consumption have been known since ancient times. In modern times, ethanol spirit intended for industrial use is also produced from by-products of petroleum refining. Ethanol spirit has widespread use as a solvent of substances intended for human contact or consumption, including scents, flavorings, colorings and medicines. In chemistry, it is both an essential solvent and a feedstock for the synthesis of other products. It has a long history as a fuel for heat and light and also as a fuel for internal combustion engines.
The History of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit has been used by humans since prehistory as the intoxicating ingredient of alcoholic beverages. Dried residues on 9000-year-old pottery found in China imply that alcoholic spirit beverages were used even among Neolithic people. Its isolation as a relatively pure compound was first achieved by Persian alchemist, Zakariya Razi who was renowned for his perfected methods of distillation and extraction. Other chemists who contributed to the development of spirit distillation techniques during the Abbasid caliphate other than Razi, include Jabir ibn Hayyan (Geber) and Al-Kindi (Alkindus).Writings attributed to Jabir ibn Hayyan (721–815) mention the flammable vapors of boiled wine spirit . Al-Kindi (801–873) unambiguously described the distillation of wine to spirit. In 1796, Johann Tobias Lowitz obtained pure ethanol by filtering distilled ethanol spirit through activated charcoal. Antoine Lavoisier described ethanol spirit as a compound of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen and in 1808 Nicolas-Theodore de Saussure determined ethanol's chemical formula. Fifty years later, Archibald Scott Couper published the structural formula of ethanol, which placed ethanol spirit among the first chemical compounds to have their chemical structure determined. Ethanol spirit was first prepared synthetically in 1827 through the independent efforts of Henry Hennel in Great Britain and S.G. Serullas in France. In 1828, Michael Faraday prepared ethanol spirit by acid-catalyzed hydration of ethylene, a process similar to that which is used today for industrial ethanol synthesis. Ethanol spirit was used as lamp fuel in the United States as early as 1840 but a tax levied on industrial alcohol during the Civil War made this use uneconomical. This tax was repealed in 1906 and from 1908 onward Ford Model T automobiles could be adapted to run on ethanol. With the advent of Prohibition in 1920 though, sellers of ethanol spirit fuel were accused of being allied with moonshiners and ethanol fuel again fell into disuse until late in the 20th century.
The Physical Properties of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid that has a strong characteristic odour. It burns with a smokeless blue flame that is not always visible in normal light.The physical properties of ethanol spirit stem primarily from the presence of its hydroxyl group and the shortness of its carbon chain. Ethanol’s hydroxyl group is able to participate in hydrogen bonding, rendering it more viscous and less volatile than less polar organic compounds of similar molecular weight. Ethanol spirit is a versatile solvent, miscible with water and with many organic solvents including acetic acid, acetone, benzene, carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, diethyl ether, ethylene glycol, glycerol, nitromethane, pyridine and toluene. It is also miscible with light aliphatic hydrocarbons such as pentane and hexane and with aliphatic chlorides such as trichloroethane and tetrachloroethylene. Ethanol’s miscibility with water contrasts with that of longer-chain alcohols (five or more carbon atoms), whose water miscibility decreases sharply as the number of carbons increases. Hydrogen bonding causes pure ethanol spirit to be hygroscopic to the extent that it readily absorbs water from the air. The polar nature of the hydroxyl group causes ethanol spirit to dissolve many ionic compounds, notably sodium and potassium hydroxides, magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, ammonium chloride, ammonium bromide, and sodium bromide. Sodium and potassium chlorides are slightly soluble in ethanol spirit . Because the ethanol molecule also has a nonpolar end, it will also dissolve nonpolar substances including most essential oils and numerous flavoring, coloring, and medicinal agents. Two unusual phenomena are associated with mixtures of ethanol spirit and water. Ethanol-water mixtures have less volume than the sum of their individual components. Mixing equal volumes of ethanol and water results in only 1.92 volumes of mixture. The addition of even a few percent of ethanol spirit to water sharply reduces the surface tension of water. This property partially explains the “tears of wine” phenomenon. When wine is swirled in a glass, the ethanol spirit evaporates quickly from the thin film of wine on the wall of the glass. As the wine’s ethanol spirit content decreases, its surface tension increases and the thin film “beads up” and runs down the glass in channels rather than as a smooth sheet. Mixtures of ethanol spirit and water that contain more than about 50% ethanol are flammable and easily ignited. An alcohol stove has been developed in India which runs on 50% ethanol/water mixture. Alcoholic spirit proof is a widely used measure of how much ethanol (i.e., alcohol) such a mixture contains. In the 18th century, proof was determined by adding a spirit (such as rum) to gunpowder. If the gunpowder still just exploded, that was considered to be “100 degrees proof” that it was “good” liquor — hence it was called “100 degrees proof.” Ethanol spirit - water solutions that contain less than 50% ethanol spirit may also be flammable if the solution is first heated. Some cooking methods call for wine to be added to a hot pan causing it to flash boil into a vapor, which is then ignited to burn off excess alcohol. Ethanol spirit is slightly more refractive than water, having a refractive index of 1.36242
The Chemical Properties of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit is classified as a primary alcohol, meaning that the carbon to which its hydroxyl group is attached has at least two hydrogen atoms attached to it as well.The chemistry of ethanol spirit is largely that of its hydroxyl group.
The Acid-Base Chemistry of Ethanol SpiritEthanol's hydroxyl causes the molecule to be slightly basic. It is however so very slightly basic it is almost neutral, like pure water. The pH of 100% ethanol spirit is 7.33, compared to 7.00 for pure water. Ethanol spirit can be quantitatively converted to its conjugate base, the ethoxide ion (CH3CH2O-) by reaction with an alkali metal such as sodium.
Halogenation of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit reacts with hydrogen halides to produce ethyl halides such as ethyl chloride and ethyl bromide: Ethyl halides can also be produced by reacting ethanol spirit with more specialized halogenating agents, such as thionyl chloride for preparing ethyl chloride or phosphorus tribromide for preparing ethyl bromide.
Ester Formation of Ethanol SpiritUnder acid-catalyzed conditions, ethanol spirit reacts with carboxylic acids to produce ethyl esters and water: Ethanol spirit can also form esters with inorganic acids. Diethyl sulfate and triethyl phosphate, prepared by reacting ethanol spirit with sulfuric and phosphoric acid respectively are both useful ethylating agents in organic synthesis. Ethyl nitrite, prepared from the reaction of ethanol spirit with sodium nitrite and sulfuric acid was formerly a widely-used diuretic.
Dehydration of Ethanol SpiritStrong acid desiccants, such as sulfuric acid, cause ethanol's dehydration to form either diethyl ether or ethylene.
Oxidation of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit can be oxidized to acetaldehyde and further oxidized to acetic acid. In the human body, these oxidation reactions are catalyzed by enzymes. In the laboratory, aqueous solutions of strong oxidizing agents, such as chromic acid or potassium permanganate oxidize ethanol spirit to acetic acid and it is difficult to stop the reaction at acetaldehyde at high yield. Ethanol spirit can be oxidized to acetaldehyde, without over oxidation to acetic acid by reacting it with pyridinium chromic chloride.
Chlorination of Ethanol SpiritWhen exposed to chlorine, ethanol spirit is both oxidized and its alpha carbon chlorinated to form the compound chloral.
Combustion of Ethanol SpiritCombustion of ethanol spirit forms carbon dioxide and water.
Production of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit is produced both as a petrochemical, through the hydration of ethylene and biologically, by fermenting sugars with yeast. Which process is more economical is dependent upon the prevailing prices of petroleum and of grain feed stocks.
Ethylene Hydration of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit for use as industrial feedstock is most often made from petrochemical feed stocks, typically by the acid-catalyzed hydration of ethylene.
The Fermentation of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit for use in alcoholic beverages and the vast majority of ethanol spirit for use as fuel is produced by fermentation. When certain species of yeast, most importantly, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, metabolize sugar in the absence of oxygen, they produce ethanol spirit and carbon dioxide. The process of culturing yeast under conditions to produce alcohol is called fermentation. Ethanol's toxicity to yeast limits the ethanol spirit concentration obtainable by brewing. The most ethanol-tolerant strains of yeast can survive up to approximately 15% ethanol spirit by volume.The fermentation process must exclude oxygen. If oxygen is present, yeast undergo aerobic respiration which produces carbon dioxide and water rather than ethanol spirit . In order to produce ethanol spirit from starchy materials such as cereal grains, the starch must first be converted into sugars. In brewing beer, this has traditionally been accomplished by allowing the grain to germinate or malt which produces the enzyme, amylase. When the malted grain is mashed, the amylase converts the remaining starches into sugars. For fuel ethanol spirit , the hydrolysis of starch into glucose can be accomplished more rapidly by treatment with dilute sulfuric acid, fungally produced amylase or some combination of the two.
Cellulosic Ethanol SpiritSugars for ethanol spirit fermentation can be obtained from cellulose. Until recently however, the cost of the cellulase enzymes capable of hydrolyzing cellulose has been prohibitive. The Canadian firm Iogen brought the first cellulose-based ethanol spirit plant on-stream in 2004. Its primary consumer so far has been the Canadian government which along with the United States Department of Energy, has invested heavily in the commercialization of cellulosic ethanol spirit . Deployment of this technology could turn a number of cellulose-containing agricultural by-products such as corncobs, straw and sawdust, into renewable energy resources. Other enzyme companies are developing genetically engineered fungi that produce large volumes of cellulase, xylanase and hemicellulase enzymes. These would convert agricultural residues such as corn stover, wheat straw and sugar cane bagasse and energy crops such as switchgrass into fermentable sugars.Cellulose-bearing materials typically also contain other polysaccharides including hemicellulose. When hydrolyzed, hemicellulose decomposes into mostly five-carbon sugars such as xylose. S. cerevisiae, the yeast most commonly used for ethanol spirit production cannot metabolize xylose. Other yeasts and bacteria are under investigation to ferment xylose and other pentoses into ethanol spirit . On January 14, 2008, General Motors announced a partnership with Coskata, Inc. The goal is to produce cellulosic ethanol spirit cheaply with an eventual goal of US$1 per U.S. gallon ($0.30/L) for the fuel. The partnership plans to begin producing the fuel in large quantity by the end of 2008. By 2011 a full-scale plant will come on line capable of producing 50 to 100 million gallons of ethanol spirit a year (200–400 ML/a).
Prospective Technologies for Ethanol Spirit ProductionThe anaerobic bacterium Clostridium ljungdahlii, recently discovered in commercial chicken wastes, can produce ethanol spirit from single-carbon sources including synthesis gas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen that can be generated from the partial combustion of either fossil fuels or biomass. Use of these bacteria to produce ethanol spirit from gas synthesis has progressed to the pilot plant stage at the BRI Energy facility in Fayetteville, Arkansas.Another prospective technology for Ethanol spirit production is the closed-loop ethanol spirit plant. Ethanol spirit produced from corn has a number of critics who suggest that it is primarily just recycled fossil fuels because of the energy required to grow the grain and convert it into ethanol spirit . There is also the issue of competition with use of corn for food production. However, the closed-loop ethanol spirit plant attempts to address this criticism. In a closed-loop plant, the energy for the distillation comes from fermented manure produced from cattle that have been fed the by-products from the distillation. The leftover manure is then used to fertilize the soil used to grow the grain. Such a process is expected to lower the fossil fuel consumption used during conversion to ethanol spirit by 75%. Although energy can be created from the collection of methane from livestock manure, this can be mutually exclusive to the production of ethanol spirit and should not be tagged on to it to make ethanol spirit production seem more efficient or enviromentally friendly. Though in an early stage of research, there is some development of alternative production methods that use feed stocks such as municipal waste or recycled products, rice hulls, sugarcane bagasse, small diameter trees, wood chips and switchgrass.
Testing Ethanol SpiritBreweries and biofuel plants employ two methods for measuring ethanol spirit concentration. Infrared ethanol spirit sensors measure the vibrational frequency of dissolved ethanol spirit using the CH band at 2900 cm-1. This method uses a relatively inexpensive solid state sensor that compares the CH band with a reference band to calculate the ethanol spirit content. The calculation makes use of the Beer-Lambert law. Alternatively, by measuring the density of the starting material and the density of the product, using a hydrometer, the change in specific gravity during fermentation indicates the alcohol content. This inexpensive and indirect method has a long history in the beer brewing industry.
Ethanol Spirit PurificationEthylene hydration or brewing produces an ethanol spirit – water mixture. For most industrial and fuel uses, the ethanol spirit must be purified. Fractional distillation can concentrate ethanol spirit to 95.6% by volume. This mixture is an azeotrope with a boiling point of 78.1 °C, and cannot be further purified by distillation.In one common industrial method to obtain absolute alcohol, a small quantity of benzene is added to rectified spirit and the mixture is then distilled. Absolute alcohol is obtained in the third fraction which distills over at 78.3 °C. Because a small amount of the benzene used remains in the solution, absolute alcohol produced by this method is not suitable for consumption as benzene is carcinogenic. There is also an absolute alcohol production process by desiccation using glycerol. Alcohol produced by this method is known as spectroscopic alcohol — so called because the absence of benzene makes it suitable as a solvent in spectroscopy. Other methods for obtaining absolute ethanol spirit include desiccation using adsorbents such as starch or zeolites which adsorb water preferentially as well as azeotropic distillation and extractive distillation.
Grades of Ethanol Spirit
Use of Ethanol SpiritThe largest single use of ethanol spirit is as a motor fuel and fuel additive. The largest national fuel ethanol spirit industries exist in Brazil (gasoline sold in Brazil contains at least 25% ethanol spirit and anhydrous ethanol spirit is also used as fuel in more than 90% of new cars sold in the country). The Brazilian production of ethanol spirit is praised for the high carbon sequestration capabilities of the sugar cane plantations thus making it a real option to combat climate change.Henry Ford designed the first mass-produced automobile, the famed Model T Ford, to run on pure anhydrous ( ethanol spirit ) alcohol — he said it was "the fuel of the future". Today, however, 100% pure ethanol spirit is not approved as a motor vehicle fuel in the U.S. Added to gasoline, ethanol spirit reduces ground-level ozone formation by lowering volatile organic compound and hydrocarbon emissions, decreasing carcinogenic benzene and butadiene, emissions and particulate matter emissions from gasoline combustion. Combustion of ethanol spirit in an internal combustion engine yields many of the products of incomplete combustion that are produced by gasoline and significantly larger amounts of formaldehyde and related species such as formalin and acetaldehyde. This leads to a significantly larger photochemical reactivity that generates much more ground level ozone. This data has been assembled into The Clean Fuels Report comparison of fuel emissions and shows that ethanol spirit exhaust generates 2.14 times as much ozone as does gasoline exhaust. When this is added into the custom "Localised Pollution Index (LPI)" of The Clean Fuels Report the local pollution, i.e. that which contributes to smog, is 1.7 on a scale where gasoline is 1.0 and higher numbers signify greater pollution. This issue has been formalised by the California Air Resouces Board in 2008 by recognising control standards for formaldehydes as an emissions control group much like the conventional NOx and Reactive Organic Gases (ROGs). Prior to the development of electronic fuel injection (EFI) and computerized engine management, the lower energy content of ethanol spirit required that the engine carburetor be rejetted to permit a larger volume of fuel to mix with the intake air. EFI is able to actively compensate for varying fuel energy densities by monitoring the oxygen content of exhaust gases. However, a standard EFI gasoline engine can typically only tolerate up to 10% ethanol spirit and 90% gasoline. Higher ethanol spirit ratios require either larger-volume fuel injectors or an increase in fuel rail pressure to deliver the greater liquid volume needed to equal the energy content of pure gasoline. World production of ethanol spirit in 2006 was 51 gigalitres (1.3×1010 US gal), with 69% of the world supply coming from Brazil and the United States. More than 20% of the Brazilian fleet of cars on the streets are able to use 100% ethanol spirit as fuel, which includes ethanol spirit - only engines and flex-fuel engines. Flex-fuel engines in Brazil are able to work with all ethanol spirit , all gasoline or any mixture of both. In the US flex-fuel vehicles can run on 0% to 85% ethanol spirit (15% gasoline) since higher ethanol spirit blends are not yet allowed. Brazil supports this population of ethanol spirit - burning automobiles with large national infrastructure that produces ethanol spirit from domestically grown sugar cane. Sugar cane not only has a greater concentration of sucrose than corn (by about 30%) but is also much easier to extract. The bagasse generated by the process is not wasted but is utilized in power plants as a surprisingly efficient fuel to produce electricity. The United States fuel ethanol spirit industry is based largely on corn. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, as of October 30th 2007, 131 grain ethanol spirit bio-refineries in the United States have the capacity to produce 7.0 billion US gallons (26 GL) of ethanol spirit per year. An additional 72 construction projects underway (in the U.S.) can add 6.4 billion gallons of new capacity in the next 18 months. Over time, it is believed that a material portion of the 150 billion gallon per year market for gasoline will begin to be replaced with fuel ethanol spirit . The Energy Policy Act of 2005 requires that 4 billion gallons of "renewable fuel" be used in 2006 and this requirement will grow to a yearly production of 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. In the United States, ethanol spirit is most commonly blended with gasoline as a 10% ethanol spirit blend nicknamed "gasohol". This blend is widely sold throughout the U.S. Midwest, and in cities required by the 1990 Clean Air Act to oxygenate their gasoline during the winter. Ethanol spirit and isobutene are also the feedstocks for ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE), an oxygenate antiknock additive. The use of ethanol spirit makes ETBE partially a biofuel but also more expensive than the similar additive methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), made from methanol and isobutene.
Food versus Fuel Debate of Ethanol SpiritIt is disputed whether corn ethanol spirit as an automotive fuel results in a net energy gain or loss. As reported in "The Energy Balance of Corn Ethanol Spirit: an Update," the energy returned on energy invested (EROEI) for ethanol spirit made from corn in the U.S. is 1.34 (it yields 34% more energy than it takes to produce it). Input energy includes natural gas based fertilizers, farm equipment, transformation from corn or other materials and transportation. However, other researchers report that the production of ethanol spirit consumes more energy than it yields. In comparison, it is assumed that sugar cane ethanol spirit EROEI is at around 8 (it yields 8 joules for each joule used to produce it). Recent research suggests that cellulosic crops such as switchgrass provide a much better net energy production than corn, producing over five times as much energy as the total used to produce the crop and convert it to fuel. If this research is confirmed, cellulosic crops will most likely displace corn as the main fuel crop for producing bioethanol spirit .Michael Grunwald reports that one person could be fed 365 days "on the corn needed to fill an ethanol spirit - fueled SUV". He further reports that though "hyped as an eco-friendly fuel, ethanol spirit increases global warming, destroys forests and inflates food prices." Environmentalists, livestock farmers and opponents of subsidies say that increased ethanol spirit production won't meet energy goals and may damage the environment, while at the same time causing worldwide food prices to soar. Some of the controversial subsidies in the past have included more than $10 billion to Archer-Daniels-Midland since 1980. Critics also speculate that as ethanol spirit is more widely used, changing irrigation practices could greatly increase pressure on water resources. In October 2007, 28 environmental groups decried the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), a legislative effort intended to increase ethanol spirit production and said that the measure will "lead to substantial environmental damage and a system of biofuels production that will not benefit family farmers, will not promote sustainable agriculture and will not mitigate global climate change." Recent articles have also blamed subsidized ethanol spirit production for the nearly 200% increase in milk prices since 2004 although that is disputed by some especially since the price of fuel has driven up the costs to cultivate, grow, harvest, ship, refine and bring to market all commodities including; but not limited to, milk. Not to mention the presence of speculators and the recent growing interest in the commodities market by investors who have been scared away from a falling stock market. Ethanol spirit production uses the starch portion of corn but the leftover protein can be used to create a high-nutrient, low-cost animal feed. In 2007 the United Nations' independent expert on the right to food, called for a five-year moratorium on biofuel production from food crops, to allow time for development of non-food sources. He called recent increases in food costs because of fuel production, such as the quadrupling of world corn price in one year, a growing "catastrophe" for the poor. In February 2007, riots occurred in Mexico because of the skyrocketing price of tortillas. Ethanol spirit has been credited as the reason for this increase in food prices. The demand for corn has had a rippling effect on many corn-based products like tortillas. The effects of ethanol spirit and the increasing cost of food have also been felt in Pakistan, Indonesia, and Egypt. Oil has historically had a much higher EROEI than corn produced ethanol spirit according to some. However, oil must be refined into gasoline before it can be used for automobile fuel. Refining, as well as exploration and drilling, consumes energy. The difference between the energy in the fuel and the energy needed to produce it is often expressed as a percent of the input energy and called net energy gain or loss. Several studies released in 2002 estimated that the net energy gain for corn ethanol spirit is between 21 and 34 percent. The net energy loss for MTBE is about 33 percent. When added to gasoline, ethanol spirit can replace MTBE as an anti-knock agent without poisoning drinking water as MTBE does. In Brazil, where the broadest and longest ethanol spirit producing experiment took place, improvements in agricultural practices and ethanol spirit production improvements led to an increase in ethanol spirit net energy gain from approximately 300% to over approximately 800% in recent years. It must be noted that Brazil produces ethanol spirit more efficiently because its primary input is the sugar from sugar cane rather than starches from corn. Consuming known oil reserves is increasing oil exploration and drilling energy consumption which is reducing oil EROEI (and energy balance) further. Opponents claim that corn ethanol spirit production does not result in a net energy gain or that the consequences of large scale ethanol spirit production to the food industry and environment offset any potential gains from ethanol spirit . It has been estimated that "if every bushel of U.S. corn, wheat, rice and soybean were used to produce ethanol spirit , it would only cover about 4% of U.S. energy needs on a net basis." Many of the issues raised could likely be fixed by techniques now in development that produce ethanol spirit from agricultural waste such as paper waste, switchgrass and other materials but EIA Forecasts Significant Shortfall in Cellulosic Biofuel Production Compared to Target Set by Renewable Fuel Standard. Proponents cite the potential gains to the U.S. economy both from domestic fuel production and increased demand for corn. Optimistic calculations project that the United States is capable of producing enough ethanol spirit to completely replace gasoline consumption. In comparison, Brazil's ethanol spirit consumption today covers more than 50% of all energy used by vehicles in that country. In the United States, preferential regulatory and tax treatment of ethanol spirit automotive fuels introduces complexities beyond its energy economics alone. North American automakers have in 2006 and 2007 promoted a blend of 85% ethanol spirit and 15% gasoline, marketed as E85, and their flex-fuel vehicles, e.g. GM's "Live Green, Go Yellow" campaign. The apparent motivation is the nature of U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards which give an effective 54% fuel efficiency bonus to vehicles capable of running on 85% alcohol blends over vehicles not adapted to run on 85% alcohol blends. In addition to this auto manufacturer-driven impetus for 85% alcohol blends, the United States Environmental Protection Agency had authority to mandate that minimum proportions of oxygenates be added to automotive gasoline on regional and seasonal bases from 1992 until 2006 in an attempt to reduce air pollution, in particular ground-level ozone and smog. In the United States, incidents of methyl tert(iary)-butyl ether (MTBE) groundwater contamination have been recorded in the majority of the 50 states and the State of California's ban on the use of MTBE as a gasoline additive has further driven the more widespread use of ethanol spirit as the most common fuel oxygenate. A February 7th 2008 Associated Press article stated, "The widespread use of ethanol spirit from corn could result in nearly twice the greenhouse gas emissions as the gasoline it would replace because of expected land-use changes, researchers concluded Thursday. The study challenges the rush to biofuels as a response to global warming." One acre of land can yield about 7,110 pounds (3,225 kg) of corn, which can be processed into 328 gallons (1240.61 liters) of ethanol spirit . That is about 26.1 pounds (11.84 kg) of corn per gallon. Much overlooked in most discussions about ethanol spirit from corn are the by-products from the production of ethanol spirit . Depending on the way it is processed, the processing yields several beneficial products some of which are used for food production and feedstocks.
Ethanol Spirit Fuel CellsEthanol spirit may be used as a fuel to power Direct - ethanol spirit fuel cells (DEFC) in order to produce electricity and the by-products of water (H2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Platinum is commonly used as an anode in such fuel cells in order to achieve a power density that is comparable to competing technologies. Until recently the high price of platinum has been cost prohibitive. A company called Acta Nanotech has created platinum free nanostructured anodes using more common and therefore less expensive metals. A vehicle using a DEFC and non-platinum nanostructured anodes was used in the Shell Eco-Marathon 2007 by a team from Offenburg Germany which achieved an efficiency of 2716 kilometers per liter (6388 miles per gallon).
Ethanol Spirit as a Rocket FuelEthanol spirit was commonly used as fuel in early bipropellant rocket vehicles in conjunction with an oxidizer such as liquid oxygen. The German V-2 rocket of World War II, credited with beginning the space age, used ethanol spirit mixed with water to reduce the combustion chamber temperature. The V-2's design team helped develop U.S. rockets following World War II, including the ethanol spirit - fueled Redstone rocket which launched the first U.S. satellite. Alcohols fell into general disuse as more efficient rocket fuels were developed.
Ethanol Spirit as an Alcoholic BeverageEthanol spirit is the principal psychoactive constituent in alcoholic beverages with depressant effects on the central nervous system. It has a complex mode of action and affects multiple systems in the brain, most notably ethanol spirit acts as an agonist to the GABA receptors. Similar psychoactives include those which also interact with GABA receptors such as gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB). Ethanol spirit is metabolized by the body as an energy-providing carbohydrate nutrient, as it metabolizes into acetyl CoA, an intermediate common with glucose metabolism that can be used for energy in the citric acid cycle or for biosynthesis.Alcoholic beverages vary considerably in their ethanol spirit content and in the foodstuffs from which they are produced. Most alcoholic beverages can be broadly classified as fermented beverages, beverages made by the action of yeast on sugary foodstuffs or as distilled beverages, beverages whose preparation involves concentrating the ethanol spirit in fermented beverages by distillation. The ethanol spirit content of a beverage is usually measured in terms of the volume fraction of ethanol spirit in the beverage, expressed either as a percentage or in alcoholic proof units. Fermented beverages can be broadly classified by the foodstuff from which they are fermented. Beers are made from cereal grains or other starchy materials, wines and ciders from fruit juices, and meads from honey. Cultures around the world have made fermented beverages from numerous other foodstuffs and local and national names for various fermented beverages abound. Distilled beverages are made by distilling fermented beverages. Broad categories of distilled beverages include whiskeys, distilled from fermented cereal grains; brandies, distilled from fermented fruit juices, and rum, distilled from fermented molasses or sugarcane juice. Vodka and similar neutral grain spirits can be distilled from any fermented material (grain or potatoes are most common); these spirits are so thoroughly distilled that no tastes from the particular starting material remain. Numerous other spirit s and liqueurs are prepared by infusing flavors from fruits, herbs and spices into distilled spirit . A traditional example is gin which is created by infusing juniper berries into a neutral grain alcohol. In a few beverages, ethanol spirit is concentrated by means other than distillation. Applejack is traditionally made by freeze distillation by which water is frozen out of fermented apple cider, leaving a more ethanol spirit - rich liquid behind. Eisbier (more commonly, eisbock) is also freeze-distilled, with beer as the base beverage. Fortified wines are prepared by adding brandy or some other distilled spirit to partially-fermented wine. This kills the yeast and conserves some of the sugar in grape juice; such beverages are not only more ethanol spirit - rich, but are often sweeter than other wines. Alcoholic beverages are sometimes used in cooking, not only for their inherent flavors but also because the alcohol dissolves hydrophobic flavor compounds which water cannot.
Ethanol Spirit as a FeedstockEthanol spirit is an important industrial ingredient and has widespread use as a base chemical for other organic compounds. These include ethyl halides, ethyl esters, diethyl ether, acetic acid, butadiene and ethyl amines.
Antiseptic Use of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit is used in medical wipes and in most common antibacterial hand sanitizer gels at a concentration of about 62% (percentage by volume, not weight) as an antiseptic. Ethanol spirit kills organisms by denaturing their proteins and dissolving their lipids and is effective against most bacteria, fungi and many viruses but is ineffective against bacterial spores.
Antidote Use of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit can be used as an antidote for poisoning by other toxic alcohols, in particular methanol and ethylene glycol. Ethanol spirit competes with other alcohols for the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme preventing metabolism into toxic aldehyde and carboxylic acid derivatives.
Other Uses of Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit is easily miscible in water and is a good solvent. Ethanol spirit is less polar than water and is used in perfumes, paints and tinctures. Ethanol spirit is also used in design and sketch art markers, such as Copic and Tria.
Effects of Ethanol Spirit on HumansThe National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism maintains a database of alcohol-related health effects.BAC (mg/dL) Symptoms:
Effects of Ethanol Spirit on the Central Nervous SystemEthanol spirit is a central nervous system depressant and has significant psychoactive effects in sublethal doses; Based on its abilities to change the human consciousness, ethanol spirit is considered a drug. Death from ethyl alcohol consumption is possible when blood alcohol level reaches 0.4%. A blood level of 0.5% or more is commonly fatal. Levels of even less than 0.1% can cause intoxication with unconsciousness often occurring at 0.3–0.4%.The amount of ethanol spirit in the body is typically quantified by blood alcohol content (BAC), the milligrams of ethanol spirit per 100 milliliters of blood. Small doses of ethanol spirit generally produce euphoria and relaxation; people experiencing these symptoms tend to become talkative and less inhibited and may exhibit poor judgment. At higher dosages (BAC > 100 mg/dl), ethanol spirit acts as a central nervous system depressant, producing at progressively higher dosages, impaired sensory and motor function, slowed cognition, stupefaction, unconsciousness and possible death. In America, about half of the deaths in car accidents occur in alcohol-related crashes.There is no completely-safe level of alcohol for driving; the risk of a fatal car accident rises with the level of alcohol in the driver's blood. However, most drink driving laws governing the acceptable levels in the blood while driving or operating heavy machinery set typical upper limits of blood alcohol content (BAC) between 0.05% to 0.08%.
Effects of Ethanol Spirit on MetabolismEthanol spirit within the human body is converted into acetaldehyde by alcohol dehydrogenase and then into acetic acid by acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. The product of the first step of this breakdown, acetaldehyde, is more toxic than ethanol spirit . Acetaldehyde is linked to most of the clinical effects of alcohol. It has been shown to increase the risk of developing cirrhosis of the liver, multiple forms of cancer and alcoholism.
Drug Interactions with Ethanol SpiritEthanol spirit can intesify the sedation caused by other central nervous system depressant drugs such as barbiturates, benzodiazepines, opiates and phenothiazines.
Magnitude of Effects with Ethanol Spirit UseSome individuals have less-effective forms of one or both of the metabolizing enzymes and can experience more-severe symptoms from ethanol spirit consumption than others. Conversely, those who have acquired alcohol tolerance have a greater quantity of these enzymes, and metabolize ethanol spirit more rapidly.
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