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.
-
Thawing permafrost unleashes toxic legacy of miningUnder the Radar Rising temperatures could release huge levels of toxic materials from sealed-off mines into waterways
-
Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning: an 'awe-inspiringly bananas' conclusionThe Week Recommends Tom Cruise undertakes 'death-defying' stunt set pieces in this 'dazzlingly ambitious' finale
-
Could medics' misgivings spell the end of the assisted dying bill?Today's Big Question The Royal College of Psychiatrists has identified 'serious concerns' with the landmark bill – and MPs are taking notice
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
-
Chinese AI chatbot's rise slams US tech stocksSpeed Read The sudden popularity of a new AI chatbot from Chinese startup DeepSeek has sent U.S. tech stocks tumbling
-
US port strike averted with tentative labor dealSpeed Read The strike could have shut down major ports from Texas to Maine
