Researchers in Edinburgh are either trying to fight climate change and make the UK energy independent, or they're striving to give scotch drinkers a reason to tipple with altruistic abandon — or maybe a bit of both. The whisky you take home in a bottle is less than 10 percent of what distilleries put out, Prof. Martin Tangney tells Reuters. The rest is waste, and two of those byproducts, pot ale and barley, make great fuel. Tangney's company, Celtic Renewables, processes those byproducts into biobutanol, which the company says is like bioethanol only more powerful. Unlike the weaker bioethanol, biobutanol is almost as powerful as gasoline, Tangney says, and it can be used in gas engines with no modifications. The whisky fuel is being mass produced in Belgium and will soon be distilled in the UK, says Jim Drury, likely to be mixed with regular gas. For more information, watch the Reuters report below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'Criminal trail?'Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
-
Grindr 'shared user HIV status' with ad firms, lawsuit claimsSpeed Read LGBTQ dating app accused of breaching UK data protection laws in case filed at London's High Court
-
The best dog-friendly hotels around the UKThe Week Recommends Take a break with your four-legged friend in accommodation that offers you both a warm welcome
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homesSpeed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bidSpeed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
-
Disney and DeSantis reach detenteSpeed Read The Florida governor and Disney settle a yearslong litigation over control of the tourism district
-
Visa and Mastercard agree to lower swipe feesSpeed Read The companies will cap the fees they charge businesses when customers use their credit cards
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billionSpeed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
-
Feds cap credit card late fees at $8speed read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to save households an estimated $10 billion a year
