Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Conference Proceedings and Presentations 6-2008 Ethanol production, purification, and analysis techniques: a review Shinnosuke Onuki Iowa State University Jacek A. Koziel Iowa State University, [email protected] Johannes van Leeuwen Iowa State University, [email protected] William S. Jenks Iowa State University David A. Grewell Iowa State University, [email protected] SeFoe nelloxtw pa thige fors aaddndition addal aitutionhorsal works at: http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/abe_eng_conf Part of the Agriculture Commons, Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons, Environmental Engineering Commons, and the Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons The ompc lete bibliographic information for this item can be found at http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ abe_eng_conf/68. For information on how to cite this item, please visit http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ howtocite.html. This Conference Proceeding is brought to you for free and open access by the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Conference Proceedings and Presentations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Ethanol production, purification, and analysis techniques: a review Abstract World ethanol production rose to nearly 13.5 billion gallon in 2006. Ethanol has been part of alcoholic beverages for long time, but its application has expanded much beyond that during the 20th Century. Much of the recent interest is in the use of ethanol as fuel. In this paper, we have reviewed published literature on current ethanol production and separation methods, and chemical and sensory analysis techniques. Ethanol produced by fermentation, called bioethanol, accounts for approximately 95% of the ethanol production. It is recently widely used as an additive to gasoline. Corn in the Unites States and sugarcane in Brazil are widely used as raw materials to produce bioethanol. Cellulosic materials are expected to be the ultimate major source of ethanol and also represent a value-adding technology for agricultural coproducts. While bioethanol is considered as a sustainable energy source, it requires further purification for uses other than fuel. The most common purification technique utilized in the ethanol industry is rectification by further distillation. However, distillation has critical disadvantages including high cost and limited separation capacity. Several alternatives have been proposed to replace distillation such as non-heating fractional distillation by ultrasonic irradiation, oxidation of impurities by ozone, and adsorption of impurities by activated carbon or zeolite. Chemical and sensory analyses are used to determine the quality of alcohol and to optimize various steps in production. Near-infrared (NIR) spectrometry, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and mass spectrometry (MS), have been developed for chemical analyses. Also, olfactometry is common for sensory analysis. This paper summarizes the state-of-the art of ethanol production, purification, and analytical techniques. Keywords Civil Construction and Environmental Engineering, activated carbon, chemical analysis, ethanol, ozone, production process, purification, renewable fuels, substrates Disciplines Agriculture | Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering | Environmental Engineering | Oil, Gas, and Energy Comments This is an ASABE Meeting Presentation, Paper No. 085136. Authors Shinnosuke Onuki, Jacek A. Koziel, Johannes van Leeuwen, William S. Jenks, David A. Grewell, and Lingshuang Cai This conference proceeding is available at Iowa State University Digital Repository: http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/abe_eng_conf/68 An ASABE Meeting Presentation Paper Number: 085136 Ethanol production, purification, and analysis techniques: a review Shinnosuke Onuki, M.S. Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, 3122 NSRIC, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) Jacek A. Koziel, Ph.D., Associate Professor Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, 3103 NSRIC, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) J.(Hans) van Leeuwen, Ph.D., Professor Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, 376 Town Engineering, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) William S. Jenks, Ph.D., Professor Department of Chemistry, 3760 Gilman Hall, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) David Grewell, Ph.D., Assistant Professor Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, 132A Davidson, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) Lingshuang Cai, Ph.D., Assistant Scientist Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, 1230 NSRIC, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa, 50011 ([email protected]) Written for presentation at the 2008 ASABE Annual International Meeting Sponsored by ASABE Rhode Island Convention Center The authors are solely responsible for the content of this technical presentation. The technical presentation does not necessarily reflect the official position of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE), and its printing and distribution does not constitute an endorsement of views which may be expressed. Technical presentations are not subject to the formal peer review process by ASABE editorial committees; therefore, they are not to be presented as refereed publications. Citation of this work should state that it is from an ASABE meeting paper. EXAMPLE: Author's Last Name, Initials. 2008. Title of Presentation. ASABE Paper No. 08----. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASABE. For information about securing permission to reprint or reproduce a technical presentation, please contact ASABE at [email protected] or 269-429-0300 (2950 Niles Road, St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659 USA). Providence, Rhode Island June 29 – July 2, 2008 Abstract. World ethanol production rose to nearly 13.5 billion gallon in 2006. Ethanol has been part of alcoholic beverages for long time, but its application has expanded much beyond that during the 20th Century. Much of the recent interest is in the use of ethanol as fuel. In this paper, we have reviewed published literature on current ethanol production and separation methods, and chemical and sensory analysis techniques. Ethanol produced by fermentation, called bioethanol, accounts for approximately 95% of the ethanol production. It is recently widely used as an additive to gasoline. Corn in the Unites States and sugarcane in Brazil are widely used as raw materials to produce bioethanol. Cellulosic materials are expected to be the ultimate major source of ethanol and also represent a value-adding technology for agricultural coproducts. While bioethanol is considered as a sustainable energy source, it requires further purification for uses other than fuel. The most common purification technique utilized in the ethanol industry is rectification by further distillation. However, distillation has critical disadvantages including high cost and limited separation capacity. Several alternatives have been proposed to replace distillation such as non-heating fractional distillation by ultrasonic irradiation, oxidation of impurities by ozone, and adsorption of impurities by activated carbon or zeolite. Chemical and sensory analyses are used to determine the quality of alcohol and to optimize various steps in production. Near-infrared (NIR) spectrometry, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and mass spectrometry (MS), have been developed for chemical analyses. Also, olfactometry is common for sensory analysis. This paper summarizes the state-of-the art of ethanol production, purification, and analytical techniques. Keywords. activated carbon, chemical analysis, ethanol, ozone, production process, purification, renewable fuels, substrates The authors are solely responsible for the content of this technical presentation. The technical presentation does not necessarily reflect the official position of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE), and its printing and distribution does not constitute an endorsement of views which may be expressed. Technical presentations are not subject to the formal peer review process by ASABE editorial committees; therefore, they are not to be presented as refereed publications. Citation of this work should state that it is from an ASABE meeting paper. EXAMPLE: Author's Last Name, Initials. 2008. Title of Presentation. ASABE Paper No. 08----. St. Joseph, Mich.: ASABE. For information about securing permission to reprint or reproduce a technical presentation, please contact ASABE at [email protected] or 269-429-0300 (2950 Niles Road, St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659 USA). 1. Introduction World ethanol production rose to nearly 13.5 billion gallon in 2006. Today, various kinds of crops are utilized for ethanol production. In the United States, the world biggest ethanol producer, ethanol is mainly produced corn. Brazil, the second biggest ethanol producer, utilizes sugarcane as the ethanol substrate. European countries produce ethanol from beet. Also, intensive studies are going on ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass. Ethanol production from lignocellulosic