Fuel from Farms - A- -Guide to Small-Scale NOTICE This guide was prepared as a result of work sponsored by the United States Government. Neither the United States nor the United States Department of Energy, nor any of their employees, nor any of their contractors, subcontractors, or their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Copies may be purchased from the following sources: The National Technical Information Service U.S. Department of Commerce 5285 Port Royal Road Springfield, Virgjnia 22 161. Please specify report number SERI/SP-45 1-5 19 when ordering. The Superintendent of Government Documents U. S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 FUEL FROM FARMS A Guide to Small-Scale Ethanol Produ.ction Second Edition Sponsored by National Agricultural Library U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Office of Alcohol Fuels, U.S. Department of Energy Published by Technical Information Office Solar Energy Research lnstitute 1617 Cole Blvd., Golden, CO 80401 Operated for U.S. Department of Energy by the Midwest Research Institute May 1982 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page I . Introduction ....................................................................... 1 Objective ...................................................................... 2 Perspective .................................................................... 2 Issues ......................................................................... 3 Guide to the Document .......................................................... 5 I1. Decision to Produce ................................................................. Benefits ....................................................................... Marketsanduses ............................................................... Market Assessment ............................................................. Production Potential ............................................................ Equipment Selection ............................................................ Financial Requirements .......................................................... Decision Process ................................................................ 111. Basic Ethanol Production ............................................................ Preparation of Feedstocks ....................................................... Fermentation .................................................................. Distillation .................................................................... IV . Feedstocks and Coproducts .......................................................... TypesofFeedstocks ............................................................. Coproduct Yields ............................................................... Agronomic Considerations ....................................................... Feedstock Considerations ........................................................ V . Plant Design ....................................................................... Overall Plant Considerations ..................................................... Individual System Considerations ................................................. Process Control ................................................................ Representative Ethanol Plant ..................................................... Maintenance Checklist .......................................................... VI . Business Plan ...................................................................... Analysis of Financial Requirements ............................................... Organizational Form ............................................................ Financing ..................................................................... Case Study .................................................................... Appendix A Summary of Legislation ..................................................... Appendix B Bureau of Alcohol. Tobacco. and Firearms Permit Information .................... Appendix C Environmental Considerations ................................................ Appendix D Reference Information ...................................................... Appendix E Resource People and Organizations ............................................ Appendix F Bibliography ............................................................... Appendix C Glossary .................................................................. TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Tables Page IV-1 Summary of Feedstock Characteristics ................................................. 29 IV-2 Representative Yields of Some Major Domestic Feedstocks ................................ 31 V- 1 Heat Source Selection Considerations .................................................. 36 V-2 Ethanol Plant Hazards .............................................................. 38 V-3 Equipment For Representative Plant ................................................... 49 V-4 Features of Major Plant Components .................................................. 51 V-5 Maintenance Checklist .............................................................. 57 VI-1 Case Study Assumptions ..............................................; .............. 61 A-1 Summary of State Alcohol Fuel Exemptions ............................................ A-7 Figures 111-1 Ethanol Production Flow Diagram .................................................... 111-2 Basic Process of Successive Distillation to Increase Concentration of Ethanol ................ 111-3 Schematic Diagram of Sieve Tray Distillation of Ethanol .................................. 111-4 Enlarged Illustration of Sieve Tray .................................................... V-1 Anhydrous Ethanol Production Flow Chart ............................................ V-2 Generic Anhydrous Ethanol Plant ..................................................... V-3 Cooker/Fermenter .................................................................. V-4 Beer/Stillage Heat Exchanger ........................................................ V-5 Beer Pump ........................................................................ V-6 Beer Still .......................................................................... V-7 Rectifying Column Rotameter ........................................................ V-8 Rectifying Column Sight-Glass ....................................................... V-9 Molecular Sieves ................................................................... D-1 Ethanol Production System Block Diagram ............................................. FUEL FROM FARMS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First Edition The second edition was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the guidance of Wally Olsen, chief, Field and Special Programs Division. This edition was reviewed by W. C. Fairbank, Northern Agricultural Energy Center and Paul Hersch, SERI Technical Information Office. Publication of this edition was coordinated by Don Petty of the Technical Information Office. Second Edition Mr. Ted D. Tarr, of the U.S. Department of Energy's Division of Distributed Solar Technology, has provided overall policy guidance and direction in the development of Fuel from Farms -A Guide to Small-Scale Ethanol Production. The Solar Energy Research Institute's Solar Energy Information Data Bank (SEIDB) staff was requested to prepare on a quick-return basis this guide on the small-scale production and use of fermentation ethanol. The effort at SEIDB was directed by Mr. Paul Notari and coordinated by Mr. Stephen Rubin of the Information Dissemination Branch. The team created by SEIDB represented a cross-section of knowledgeable individuals and consultants familiar with small-scale fermentation ethanol techniques. The team consisted of the following individuals: Project Manager Project Editor Project Technical Director Mr. V. Daniel Hunt Doann Houghton-Alico Mr. Steven J. Winston TRW Energy Systems Group Technical Information Services Energy Incorporated Consultants Dr. Billy R. Allen Mr. Pincas Jawetz Battelle Columbus Laboratories Consultant on Energy Policy Mr. Jerry Allsup Mr. Donald M. LaRue Bartlesville Energy Technology Center EG & G Idaho, Inc. Dr. Mani Balasubramaniam Mr. Robert A. Meskunas TRW Energy Systems Group Environmental Group Mr. William P. Corcoran Dr. Thomas Reed Solar Energy Research Institute Solar Energy Research Institute Mr. David Freedman Mr. Jim Smrcka Center for the Biology of Natural Systems Galusha, Higgins and Galusha Mr. William S. Hedrick Dr. Ruxton Villet Consulting Engineer Solar Energy Research Institute Mr. Jack Hershey Dr. Harlan L. Watson Environmental Group TRW Energy Systems Group This document greatly benefited from the many previous efforts in alcohol fuels including working groups at universities and colleges (such as Colby Community College), private marketing efforts, private research and development projects, and individual efforts to collect and organize information pertinent to alcohol fuels. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Photographs The agricultural photographs are reprinted through the courtesy of Grant Heilman Photography. The photograph on page 9 appears courtesy of the Iowa Development Commission. Reviewers We acknowledge the following individuals for their helpful reviews of the draft of Fuel from Farms -A Guide