Anyone know how to make to Ethanol in a classroom? eg the Distillation process etc as I have a student who wants to make some so that they can power a engine with it. Am not sure if I should be allowing this to happen or not.
Thanks
Ethanol
Re: Ethanol
Questions:
Is the aim here to distill, or to power an engine? If you just want to get a little motor going, then just get Meths.
Is the engine a toy or a full sized engine, ie someone's HSV? I don't think one should be distilling that much ethanol!
Is it really for an engine?
How reliable is said student? 
If you are going to distill large amounts of ethanol, make sure you get a cut in the profits, and watch out for the excise men!
Cheers, K
Is the aim here to distill, or to power an engine? If you just want to get a little motor going, then just get Meths.
Is the engine a toy or a full sized engine, ie someone's HSV? I don't think one should be distilling that much ethanol!
Is it really for an engine?
How reliable is said student? If you are going to distill large amounts of ethanol, make sure you get a cut in the profits, and watch out for the excise men!
Cheers, K
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cactus155
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Re: Ethanol
It is for an engine, not sure if it will be a toy engine or a old lawn mower engine yet.
Student is pretty reliable, so I am sure it is for the said purpose. Purpose is to distill it and then power an engine, I mean if it was just to power the engine then I could use some of the Ethanol I have in the Flammable liquids cabinent.
Student is pretty reliable, so I am sure it is for the said purpose. Purpose is to distill it and then power an engine, I mean if it was just to power the engine then I could use some of the Ethanol I have in the Flammable liquids cabinent.
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Slartibartfast
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Re: Ethanol
Methylated spirits is 95% ethanol - 5% methanol. I ran pure ethanol in a race motorcycle for a bit. Shot nice flames from the exhaust but not much power increase.
Chemwatch: Do not heat ethanol in a container over an open flame; use a water bath. Any experiments involving the combustion of ethanol are potentially hazardous. Ethanol (or other alcohols) may be used in small quantities in burners to measure heats of combustion, and for reaction with alkanoic acids to form esters. Oxidised to form ethanoic acid.
Note: Aqueous solutions of ethanol have a much lower flammability, where:
ethanol >70% (PG II)
24% < ethanol <70% (PG III)
ethanol <24% Not a dangerous good.
** 2 strokes don't like such a dry fuel so keep away from mowers, whipper snippers etc.
Chemwatch: Do not heat ethanol in a container over an open flame; use a water bath. Any experiments involving the combustion of ethanol are potentially hazardous. Ethanol (or other alcohols) may be used in small quantities in burners to measure heats of combustion, and for reaction with alkanoic acids to form esters. Oxidised to form ethanoic acid.
Note: Aqueous solutions of ethanol have a much lower flammability, where:
ethanol >70% (PG II)
24% < ethanol <70% (PG III)
ethanol <24% Not a dangerous good.
** 2 strokes don't like such a dry fuel so keep away from mowers, whipper snippers etc.
Richard Hollinworth
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DPI&F
Biosecurity Sciences Laboratory
Disease diagnosis and extension services
DPI&F
Biosecurity Sciences Laboratory
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Xenon
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Re: Ethanol
You'd need to do several distillations because of the small differential in boiling points (ethanol 78.5degC, water 100degC) and you'll get a tiny yield from typically school fermented sucrose solution. Maybe start with a high gravity sucrose solution and ferment with a good fresh wine yeast to get the initial EtOH% over 10% might help.
Xe, SD, KOPR
