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News tagged with ethanol

High-purity hydrogen generated from a single device

(PhysOrg.com) -- There are many ways to generate hydrogen, such as water electrolysis and steam reforming of gas, but the hydrogen produced by these methods tends to be combined with other byproduct and residual ...

Physics / Condensed Matter

created Oct 07, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (15) | comments 17 | with audio podcast feature

Tiny amounts of alcohol dramatically extend a worm's life, but why?

(PhysOrg.com) -- Minuscule amounts of ethanol, the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, can more than double the life span of a tiny worm known as Caenorhabditis elegans, which is used frequently ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jan 20, 2012 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (18) | comments 13 | with audio podcast

Supercritical water could lead to biomass-to-fuel conversion on a large scale

(PhysOrg.com) -- Converting agricultural waste into vehicle fuel has so far been an enticing yet elusive endeavor, at least on the industrial scale. But recently the Georgia-based company Renmatix has taken ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Oct 03, 2011 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (10) | comments 8 | with audio podcast weblog

Company that transforms garbage into ethanol attracts big investors

(PhysOrg.com) -- For the past several years, Montreal-based company Enerkem has been working on a way to make ethanol from old utility poles and household garbage. Earlier this week, the company announced ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Jun 03, 2011 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (13) | comments 15 | with audio podcast weblog

Turning bacteria into butanol biofuel factories

(PhysOrg.com) -- While ethanol is today's major biofuel, researchers aim to produce fuels more like gasoline. Butanol is the primary candidate, now produced primarily by Clostridium bacteria. UC Berkeley chemist ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Mar 02, 2011 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (4) | comments 4 | with audio podcast

US looks ahead after ethanol subsidy expires

After a series of bitter political fights, the US Congress allowed a subsidy for ethanol fuel to expire at the end of 2011, ending a program harshly criticized by environmentalists and others.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Jan 15, 2012 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (7) | comments 36

Researchers demonstrate use of proteins as raw material for biofuels, biorefining

Two types of raw materials are currently used for biorefining and biofuel production: carbohydrates and lipids. Biofuels like ethanol are derived from carbohydrate raw materials such as sugars and lignocellulose, while biodiesels ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Mar 06, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Scientists overcome major obstacles to cellulosic biofuel production

A newly engineered yeast strain can simultaneously consume two types of sugar from plants to produce ethanol, researchers report. The sugars are glucose, a six-carbon sugar that is relatively easy to ferment; ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Dec 27, 2010 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (21) | comments 13 | with audio podcast

Making nature's best better to produce biofuels

If a tree falls in the forest and there are no enzymes to digest it, does it break down?

Biology / Biotechnology

created Feb 01, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Alcohol withdrawal symptoms caused by molecules in the brain

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers in Britain have discovered the molecular basis of some of the symptoms of hangover and alcohol withdrawal that appear as the body attempts to adapt to reduced levels of alcohol.

Medicine & Health / Neuroscience

created May 12, 2010 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 0 | with audio podcast report

Binge drinking adolescent monkeys' brains seriously damaged by alcohol

(PhysOrg.com) -- Binge drinking is increasing in adolescents, and new research has shown long-lasting damage to an important area in the brains of adolescent monkeys after binge alcohol consumption, and suggests binge drinking ...

Medicine & Health / Neuroscience

created Jun 02, 2010 | popularity 5 / 5 (7) | comments 3 | with audio podcast report

New catalyst for hydrogen fuel cells resists CO contamination

(PhysOrg.com) -- Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles promise faster refueling and the ability to travel longer distances before refueling than battery-powered cars, but they are susceptible to poisoning by carbon ...

Chemistry / Materials Science

created Jul 19, 2010 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (11) | comments 56 | with audio podcast report

Grass to gas: Researchers' genome map speeds biofuel development

Researchers at the University of Georgia have taken a major step in the ongoing effort to find sources of cleaner, renewable energy by mapping the genomes of two originator cells of Miscanthus x giganteus, a large perenn ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Feb 10, 2012 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (6) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New study explores proteins in Yellowstone bacteria for biofuel inspiration

Studies of bacteria first found in Yellowstone's hot springs are furthering efforts at the Department of Energy's BioEnergy Science Center toward commercially viable ethanol production from crops such as switchgrass.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Feb 14, 2012 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Research finds kava is safe and effective

(PhysOrg.com) -- UQ research has found a traditional extract of kava, a medicinal plant from the South Pacific, to be safe and effective in reducing anxiety.

Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry

created May 11, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (12) | comments 1

Ethanol

Ethanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug, best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages and in modern thermometers. Ethanol is one of the oldest recreational drugs. In common usage, it is often referred to simply as alcohol or spirits.

Ethanol is a straight-chain alcohol, and its molecular formula is C2H5OH. Its empirical formula is C2H6O. An alternative notation is CH3-CH2-OH, which indicates that the carbon of a methyl group (CH3-) is attached to the carbon of a methylene group (-CH2-), which is attached to the oxygen of a hydroxyl group (-OH). It is a constitutional isomer of dimethyl ether. Ethanol is often abbreviated as EtOH, using the common organic chemistry notation of representing the ethyl group (C2H5) with Et.

The fermentation of sugar into ethanol is one of the earliest organic reactions employed by humanity. The intoxicating effects of ethanol consumption have been known since ancient times. In modern times, ethanol intended for industrial use is also produced from by-products of petroleum refining.

Ethanol has widespread use as a solvent of substances intended for human contact or consumption, including scents, flavorings, colorings, and medicines. In chemistry, it is both an essential solvent and a feedstock for the synthesis of other products. It has a long history as a fuel for heat and light and also as a fuel for internal combustion engines.

For more information about Ethanol, read the full article at Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.