Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1906-10-17

1t Is important that this process shall
be carried on under exact tempera-
ture conditions, for, on this point de-
pends the relative amounts of maltese
and dextrin formed, and it is very
important to produce as much NAL
tose as possible, in order to get sat
isfactory yield of alcohol. When
small amount of the solution, tested
with iodine shows that the starch has
all been acted upon, the solution is
cooled to about 70 degrees f. For
this purpose air. water, or combin-
alton of the two, may be used.
When the proper temperature has
been reached, little yeast is added
and the solution is allowed to fer
ment. 1t seems scarcely correct to
say allowed" here, for the ferment.
alton must be carefully controlled,
and it is here that the experienced
manufact urer has the great advantage.
He has found, by careful expert
ment the most satisfactory conditions
for producing the largest yield of al
cohol. The yeast he uses is pure
culture which produces more alcohol
and fewer by-products, fusil oil, etc.,
than ordinary yeasts. In some cases,
he even employs a zymotoloist, yeast
expert. If he uses pure yeats cul-
ture. he keeps his fermentation watts,
and the room containing them, scru-
pulously clean, to prevent the intro
duction of wild yeasts. Since alcohol
is lighter than water, the progress of
the fermentation may be kept track
of by means of hydrometer, an in
strument for showing the weight of
the liquor.
The fermentation is usually com.
pleted in from 80 to 40 hours. By
this time the sugar and much OF the
dextrin, has been converted into alcO-
hol and carbon dioxide. The carbon
dioxide gas given off during the fer
mentation is occasionally collected,
under pressure, in large tubes, and
used for soda fountains, ETC.. but this
has not proved very profitable, and is
very seldom done. The liquor now
contains from 8 to IL per cent of alco-
hOl which must be separated from the
solid unfermented materials and
from the water and the by-products of
fermentation. The separation is
effected by distillation. The alcohol
bOils at a lower temperature than the
water, aud begins to distill over first.
The process is not simple, however,
for mixtures of liquids are hard t.
separate even when their boiling
points lie far apart, as in the case of
a little higher than the boiling point
of alcohol mixture containing much
alcohol and very little water dlstiils
over, but, as the temperature in
creases, the amount of alcohol in the
distilate gradually decreases, and the
amount of water increases, until the
UOiiluS Dolut VI WdtSi lS IedCiieus ny
which time the alcohol has all dis
titled over, leaving the solid matter,
some water. behind. The solid ma
terial is either dried and sold for cat
tie food, or is fed to cattle at the dis
tillery, in wet state. The distillate
is now much richer in alcohol than
the original solution, but is not yet
marketable. Formerly, it was redis-
titled until it was of the desi red
strength.
The modern distiller, however,
has rather complicated form of still
which produces 30 per cent alcohol by
single distillation. This still is too
complicated TO admit of description
here. but its principle is the con-
densation of the vapors within the APP
paratus, and their re-evaporation by
hot ascending vapors, so obtaining
repeated distilation in single still.
The distilate is an alcohol of 80 to %
per cent strength.
Such, in brief, is the method of
making alcohol from corn. There
are, of course, many details which it
is impossible to consider in an article
of this length, but this description
covers the essential points of the pro-
cess. The yield will average about
21s gal. of 30 per cent alcohol, and
approximately 10 lb. of feed from
bushel of corn. This feed is worth,
roughly, cent pound, so that the
alcohol can be produced at a
cost of IA cents gallon for raw ma
terial, when corn is 90 cents per
bushel. The expense of production
will vary with the size of the plant,
price of labor, etc, SO il is variously
estimated at from to cents per
gallon. In Germany. potatoes are
largely used for the manufacture of
alcohol and the process is almost
Identical with the process for corn.
In this country, unless the price of
potatoes drops materially. they can
not compete with corn as source of
alcohol
Molasses and the residues from beet
sugar are much more likely to be
pro table for this purpose than pota.