Scots team develops whisky fuel

SCIENTISTS said today they had created a new biofuel made from whisky by-products which could be used to power cars.

Edinburgh Napier University has filed a patent for the product, which can be used in ordinary cars without any special adaptations, scientists said.

The biofuel has been developed by Edinburgh Napier University’s Biofuel Research Centre.

As part of the research the centre was provided with samples of whisky distilling by-products from Diageo’s Glenkinchie Distillery in Tranent, East Lothian.

The biofuel uses the two main by-products from the whisky production process – “pot ale”, the liquid from the copper stills, and “draff”, the spent grains, as the basis to produce the butanol that can then be used as fuel.

Edinburgh Napier University now plans to create a company to take the new fuel to the marketplace.

Professor Martin Tangney, director of the Biofuel Research Centre, said: “The new biofuel is made from biological material which has been already generated.

“Theoretically it could be used entirely on its own but you would have to find a company to distribute it.

“This is a more environmentally sustainable option and potentially offers new revenue on the back of one Scotland’s biggest industries.”

The £260,000 Edinburgh Napier University research project was funded by Scottish Enterprise’s Proof of Concept programme.

Scottish Government Energy Minister Jim Mather said: “This is an innovative development, and I am delighted to see Edinburgh Napier University once again display its expertise in this field by bringing this biofuel to market.”