How to Make Biofuel From Corn
If gas prices get too high for you, and your automobile can run on E-85 ethanol, you can try making your own biofuel from corn. The process is complicated, and there are a few safety precautions you need to be aware of; however, almost anyone can make fuel for their car (or anything else) right in their own backyard.If gas prices get too high for you, and your automobile can run on E-85 ethanol, you can try making your own biofuel from corn. The process is complicated, and there are a few safety precautions you need to be aware of; however, almost anyone can make fuel for their car (or anything else) right in their own backyard.
- Step 1
Grind the corn into granules, similar to the consistency of corn grits.
- Step 2
Add water (not the corn, yet) to the cooker in the still and bring the temperature up to 170 degrees (F). You will need roughly 30 gallons of water per bushel of corn.
- Step 3
Slowly add the ground corn meal to the water being careful not to cause "lumps."
- Step 4
Add three measuring spoons (provided with the enzyme) worth of the alpha amylase enzyme to the mixture.
- Step 5
Agitate the solution at this temperature for 15 minutes.
- Step 6
Raise the temperature of the mixture to boiling and allow it to hard boil for 30 minutes.
- Step 7
Reduce the temperature after 30 minutes to 170 degrees.
- Step 8
Add three more measuring spoonfuls of the enzyme and agitate for 30 minutes.
- Step 9
Reduce the temperature to 85 degrees (F) and add six more spoonfuls of the enzyme.
- Step 10
Hold at 85 degrees for 48 to 72 hours to complete the fermentation process.
- Step 11
After the fermentation process is complete, use the screening mill to filter the mixture. What you will be left with is E85 ethanol.
Energy-use associated with the production of sugarcane ethanol derives from three primary sources: the agricultural sector, the industrial sector, and the distribution sector. In the agricultural sector, 35.98 GJ of energy are used to plant, maintain, and harvest one hectare (10,000 m2) of sugarcane for usable biofuel. This includes energy from numerous inputs, including nitrogen, phosphate, potassium oxide, lime, seed, herbicides, insecticides, labor and diesel fuel. The industrial sector, which includes the milling and refining sugarcane and the production of ethanol fuel, uses 3.63 GJ of energy and generates 155.57 GJ of energy per hectare of sugarcane plantation. Scientists estimate that the potential power generated from the cogeneration of bagasse could range from 1,000 to 9,000 MW, depending on harvest and technology factors. In Brazil, this is about 3% of the total energy needed. The burning of bagasse can generate 18 kilowatt-hours, or 64.7 MJ per Mg of sugarcane. Distillery facilities require about 45 MJ to operate, leaving a surplus energy supply of 19.3 MJ, or 5.4 kWh. In terms of distribution, researchers calculates sugarcane ethanol’s transport energy requirement to be .44 GJ per cubic-meter, thus one hectare of land would require 2.82 GJ of energy for successful transport and distribution. After taking all three sectors into account, the EROEI (Energy Return over Energy Invested) for sugarcane ethanol is about 8.[75]
There are several improvements to the industrial processes, such as adopting a hydrolysis process to produce ethanol instead of surplus electricity, or the use of advanced boiler and turbine technology to increase the electricity yield, or a higher use of excess bagasse and harvest trash currently left behind in the fields, that together with various other efficiency improvements in sugarcane farming and the distribution chain have the potential to allow further efficiency increases, translating into higher yields, lower production costs, and also further improvements in the energy balance and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.[70]
