Ethyl and ethanol. Ethanol: properties and applications

Ethanol - what is this substance? What are its uses and how is it produced? Ethanol is better known to everyone under a different name - alcohol. Of course, this is not an entirely correct designation. But meanwhile, it is by the word “alcohol” that we mean “ethanol”. Our ancestors also knew about its existence. They obtained it through a fermentation process. Various products were used, from cereals to berries. But in the resulting mash, which is what alcoholic drinks were called in the old days, the amount of ethanol did not exceed 15 percent. Pure alcohol could only be isolated after distillation processes were studied.

Ethanol - what is it?

Ethanol is a monohydric alcohol. Under normal conditions, it is a volatile, colorless, flammable liquid with a specific odor and taste. Ethanol has found wide application in industry, medicine and everyday life. It is an excellent disinfectant. Alcohol is used as a fuel and as a solvent. But most of all, the ethanol formula C2H5OH is known to lovers of alcoholic beverages. It is in this area that this substance has found wide application. But we should not forget that alcohol, as an active component of alcoholic drinks, is a strong depressant. This psychoactive substance can depress the central nervous system and cause severe addiction.

Nowadays, it is difficult to find an industry that does not use ethanol. It is difficult to list all the benefits of alcohol. But most of all its properties were appreciated in pharmaceuticals. Ethanol is the main component of almost all medicinal tinctures. Many “grandmother’s recipes” for treating human ailments are based on this substance. It draws out all the beneficial substances from plants, accumulating them. This property of alcohol has found application in the production of homemade herbal and berry tinctures. And although these are alcoholic drinks, they provide health benefits in moderation.

The benefits of ethanol

The ethanol formula is known to everyone since school chemistry lessons. But not everyone can answer right away what the benefits of this chemical are. In fact, it is difficult to imagine an industry that does not use alcohol. First of all, ethanol is used in medicine as a powerful disinfectant. They are used to treat the surgical surface and wounds. Alcohol has a detrimental effect on almost all groups of microorganisms. But ethanol is used not only in surgery. It is indispensable for the production of medicinal extracts and tinctures.

In small doses, alcohol is beneficial for the human body. It helps thin the blood, improve blood circulation and dilate blood vessels. It is even used to prevent cardiovascular diseases. Ethanol helps improve the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. But only in really small doses.

In special cases, the psychotropic effect of alcohol can drown out the most severe pain. Ethanol has also found application in cosmetology. Due to its pronounced antiseptic properties, it is included in almost all cleansing lotions for problematic and oily skin.

The harm of ethanol

Ethanol is an alcohol produced by fermentation. If consumed excessively, it can cause severe toxicological poisoning and even coma. This substance is part of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol causes severe psychological and physical dependence. Alcoholism is considered to be a disease. The dangers of ethanol are immediately associated with scenes of rampant drunkenness. Excessive consumption of drinks containing alcohol leads not only to food poisoning. Everything is much more complicated. Frequent drinking of alcohol affects almost all organ systems. From oxygen starvation, which ethanol causes, large numbers of brain cells die. Occurs In the first stages, memory weakens. Then the person develops diseases of the kidneys, liver, intestines, stomach, blood vessels and heart. Men experience loss of potency. In the final stages, mental deformation is revealed in an alcoholic.

History of alcohol

Ethanol - what is this substance and how was it obtained? Not everyone knows that it has been used since prehistoric times. It was included in alcoholic drinks. True, its concentration was small. But meanwhile, traces of alcohol were found in China on 9,000-year-old ceramics. This clearly suggests that people were drinking alcohol-containing drinks back in the Neolithic era.

The first case was recorded in the 12th century in Salerno. True, it was a water-alcohol mixture. Pure ethanol was isolated by Johann Tobias Lowitz in 1796. He used the activated carbon filtration method. Producing ethanol in this way remained the only method for a long time. The formula of alcohol was calculated by Nicolò-Theodore de Saussure, and described as a carbon compound by Antoine Lavoisier. In the 19th and 20th centuries, many scientists studied ethanol. All its properties have been studied. Currently, it has become widespread and is used in almost all areas of human activity.

Production of ethanol by alcoholic fermentation

Perhaps the most well-known method for producing ethanol is alcoholic fermentation. This is only possible when using organic products that contain large amounts of carbohydrates, such as grapes, apples, and berries. Another important component for fermentation to proceed actively is the presence of yeast, enzymes and bacteria. Processing of potatoes, corn, and rice looks the same. To obtain fuel alcohol, raw sugar is used, which is produced from cane. The reaction is quite complex. As a result of fermentation, a solution is obtained that contains no more than 16% ethanol. It is not possible to obtain a higher concentration. This is explained by the fact that yeast is not able to survive in more saturated solutions. Thus, the resulting ethanol must be subjected to purification and concentration processes. Distillation processes are commonly used.

To produce ethanol, the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae of various strains is used. In principle, they are all capable of activating this process. Sawdust can be used as a nutrient substrate or, as an alternative, a solution obtained from it.

Fuel

Many people know about the properties that ethanol has. It is also widely known that it is alcohol or a disinfectant. But alcohol is also a fuel. It is used in rocket engines. It is a well-known fact that during the First World War, 70% aqueous ethanol was used as fuel for the world's first German ballistic missile, the V-2.

Currently, alcohol has become more widespread. It is used as fuel in internal combustion engines and for heating devices. In laboratories it is poured into alcohol lamps. Catalytic oxidation of ethanol is used to produce heating pads, both military and tourist. Alcohol is used with restriction in mixtures with liquid petroleum fuel due to its hygroscopicity.

Ethanol in the chemical industry

Ethanol is widely used in the chemical industry. It serves as a raw material for the production of substances such as diethyl ether, acetic acid, chloroform, ethylene, acetaldehyde, tetraethyl lead, ethyl acetate. In the paint and varnish industry, ethanol is widely used as a solvent. Alcohol is the main component of windshield washers and antifreeze. Alcohol is also used in household chemicals. It is part of detergents and cleaning products. It is especially common as a component in cleaning fluids for plumbing fixtures and glass.

Ethyl alcohol in medicine

Ethyl alcohol can be classified as an antiseptic. It has a detrimental effect on almost all groups of microorganisms. It destroys the cells of bacteria and microscopic fungi. The use of ethanol in medicine is almost universal. This is an excellent drying and disinfectant. Due to its tanning properties, alcohol (96%) is used to treat operating tables and surgeon's hands.

Ethanol is a solvent for drugs. It is widely used for the production of tinctures and extracts from medicinal herbs and other plant materials. The minimum alcohol concentration in such substances does not exceed 18 percent. Ethanol is often used as a preservative.

Ethyl alcohol is also excellent for rubbing. During fever it produces a cooling effect. Very often, alcohol is used for warming compresses. At the same time, it is absolutely safe, there is no redness or burns on the skin. In addition, ethanol is used as an antifoam when artificially supplying oxygen during ventilation. Alcohol is also a component of general anesthesia, which can be used in case of shortage of medications.

Oddly enough, medical ethanol is used as an antidote for poisoning with toxic alcohols, such as methanol or ethylene glycol. Its action is due to the fact that in the presence of several substrates, the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase carries out only competitive oxidation. It is due to this that after immediate intake of ethanol following toxic methanol or ethylene glycol, a decrease in the current concentration of metabolites poisoning the body is observed. For methanol it is formic acid and formaldehyde, and for ethylene glycol it is oxalic acid.

Food industry

So, how to get ethanol was known to our ancestors. But it received its widest use only in the 19th and 20th centuries. Along with water, ethanol is the basis of almost all alcoholic beverages, primarily vodka, gin, rum, cognac, whiskey, and beer. Alcohol is also found in small quantities in drinks that are produced by fermentation, for example, kefir, kumis, and kvass. But they are not classified as alcohol, since the alcohol concentration in them is very low. Thus, the ethanol content in fresh kefir does not exceed 0.12%. But if it settles, the concentration can increase to 1%. Kvass contains slightly more ethyl alcohol (up to 1.2%). Kumis contains the most alcohol. In a fresh dairy product its concentration is from 1 to 3%, and in a settled one it reaches 4.5%.

Ethyl alcohol is a good solvent. This property allows it to be used in the food industry. Ethanol is a solvent for flavorings. In addition, it can be used as a preservative for baked goods. It is registered as food additive E1510. Ethanol has an energy value of 7.1 kcal/g.

The effect of ethanol on the human body

Ethanol production has been established all over the world. This valuable substance is used in many areas of human life. are medicine. Wipes soaked in this substance are used as a disinfectant. But what effect does ethanol have on our body when ingested? Is it beneficial or harmful? These issues require detailed study. Everyone knows that humanity has been consuming alcoholic beverages for centuries. But it was only in the last century that the problem of alcoholism became widespread. Our ancestors consumed mash, mead, and even the now so popular beer, but all these drinks contained a weak percentage of ethanol. Therefore, they could not cause significant harm to health. But after Dmitry Ivanovich Mendeleev diluted alcohol with water in certain proportions, everything changed.

Currently, alcoholism is a problem in almost all countries of the world. Once in the body, alcohol has a pathological effect on almost all organs without exception. Depending on the concentration, dose, route of exposure and duration of exposure, ethanol can exhibit toxic and narcotic effects. It can disrupt the functioning of the cardiovascular system and contribute to the occurrence of diseases of the digestive tract, including gastric and duodenal ulcers. The narcotic effect refers to the ability of alcohol to cause stupor, insensitivity to pain and depression of the functions of the central nervous system. In addition, a person becomes excited about alcohol and very quickly becomes dependent. In some cases, excessive consumption of ethanol can cause coma.

What happens in our body when we drink alcoholic beverages? The ethanol molecule can damage the central nervous system. Under the influence of alcohol, the hormone endorphin is released in the nucleus accumbens, and in people with pronounced alcoholism, in the orbitofrontal cortex. But, nevertheless, despite this, ethanol is not recognized as a narcotic substance, although it exhibits all the relevant actions. Ethyl alcohol was not included on the international list of controlled substances. And this is a controversial issue, because in certain doses, namely 12 grams of the substance per 1 kilogram of body weight, ethanol first leads to acute poisoning and then death.

What diseases does ethanol cause?

The ethanol solution itself is not a carcinogen. But its main metabolite is acetaldehyde, a toxic and mutagenic substance. In addition, it also has carcinogenic properties and provokes the development of cancer. Its qualities were studied in laboratory conditions on experimental animals. These scientific works led to very interesting, but at the same time alarming results. It turns out that acetaldehyde is not just a carcinogen, it can damage DNA.

Long-term consumption of alcoholic beverages can cause diseases in humans such as gastritis, cirrhosis of the liver, duodenal ulcers, cancer of the stomach, esophagus, small intestine and rectum, and cardiovascular diseases. Regular exposure to ethanol in the body can cause oxidative damage to brain neurons. Due to damage they die. Abuse of drinks containing alcohol leads to alcoholism and clinical death. In people who regularly drink alcohol, the risk of developing a heart attack and stroke increases significantly.

But this is not all the properties of ethanol. This substance is a natural metabolite. In small quantities it can be synthesized in the tissues of the human body. It is called true. It is also produced as a result of the breakdown of carbohydrate foods in the gastrointestinal tract. This ethanol is called “conditionally endogenous alcohol.” Can a regular breathalyzer detect alcohol that has been synthesized in the body? Theoretically this is possible. Its amount rarely exceeds 0.18 ppm. This value is at the lower limit of the most modern measuring instruments.

Ethanol(ethyl alcohol, methyl carbinol, wine alcohol or alcohol, often colloquially simply “alcohol”) - a monohydric alcohol with the formula C2H5OH (empirical formula C2H6O), another option: CH3-CH2-OH, the second representative of the homologous series of monohydric alcohols, under standard conditions volatile, flammable, colorless transparent liquid.

The active component of alcoholic beverages is a depressant - a psychoactive substance that depresses the human central nervous system.

Ethyl alcohol is also used as a fuel, as a solvent, as a filler in alcohol thermometers, and as a disinfectant (or as a component thereof).

• 1 Receipt
  • 1.1 Fermentation
    • 1.1.1 Industrial production of alcohol from biological raw materials
    • 1.1.2 Hydrolysis production
  • 1.2 Ethylene hydration
  • 1.3 Ethanol purification
  • 1.4 Absolute alcohol
• 2 Properties
  • 2.1 Physical properties
  • 2.2 Chemical properties
  • 2.3 Fire properties
• 3 Application
  • 3.1 Fuel
  • 3.2 Chemical industry
  • 3.3 Medicine
  • 3.4 Perfumery and cosmetics
  • 3.5 Food industry
  • 3.6 Other
• 4 World ethanol production
• 5 Use of ethanol as automobile fuel
  • 5.1 Vehicle fleet running on ethanol
  • 5.2 Cost-effectiveness
  • 5.3 Environmental aspects
• 6 Safety and regulation
• 7 The effect of ethanol on the human body
• 8 Types and brands of ethanol
• 9 Etymology of names
  • 9.1 Etymology of the term "ethanol"
  • 9.2 Etymology of the name "alcohol"
  • 9.3 Etymology of the word "alcohol"
• 10 Notes
• 11 See also
• 12 Links

Receipt

There are 2 main ways to produce ethanol - microbiological (alcoholic fermentation) and synthetic (ethylene hydration):

Fermentation

The method of producing ethanol, known since ancient times, is the alcoholic fermentation of organic products containing carbohydrates (grapes, fruits, etc.) under the action of yeast and bacteria enzymes. The processing of starch, potatoes, rice, corn looks similar; the source of fuel alcohol is raw sugar produced from cane, etc. This reaction is quite complex, its diagram can be expressed by the equation:

C6H12O6 → 2C2H5OH + 2CO2.

The solution obtained as a result of fermentation contains no more than 15% ethanol, since yeast is not viable in more concentrated solutions. The ethanol thus produced needs to be purified and concentrated, usually by distillation.

To produce ethanol by this method, various strains of yeast of the species Saccharomyces cerevisiae are most often used, pre-treated sawdust and/or a solution obtained from them are used as a nutrient medium.

Industrial production of alcohol from biological raw materials

Modern industrial technology for producing ethyl alcohol from food raw materials includes the following stages:

• Preparation and grinding of starchy raw materials - grain (primarily rye, wheat), potatoes, corn, apples, etc.
• Fermentation. At this stage, the enzymatic breakdown of starch into fermentable sugars occurs. For these purposes, recombinant alpha-amylase preparations obtained by bioengineering are used - glucamylase, amylosubtilin.
• Fermentation. Due to the fermentation of sugars by yeast, alcohol accumulates in the mash.
• Bragorectification. It is carried out on accelerating columns.

Fermentation waste includes carbon dioxide, stillage, ether-aldehyde fraction, fusel alcohol and fusel oils.

The alcohol coming from the bragon rectification unit (BRU) is not anhydrous; the ethanol content in it is up to 95.6%. Depending on the content of foreign impurities in it, it is divided into the following categories:

• Alpha
• Extra
• basis
• highest purification
• 1st grade

The productivity of a modern distillery is about 30,000-100,000 liters of alcohol per day.

Hydrolysis production

On an industrial scale, ethyl alcohol is produced from raw materials containing cellulose (wood, straw), which is preliminarily hydrolyzed. The resulting mixture of pentoses and hexoses is subjected to alcoholic fermentation. This technology was not widespread in the countries of Western Europe and America, but in the USSR (now in Russia) there was a developed industry of feed hydrolytic yeast and hydrolytic ethanol.

Ethylene hydration

In industry, along with the first method, ethylene hydration is used. Hydration can be carried out according to two schemes:

• direct hydration at a temperature of 300 °C, a pressure of 7 MPa, orthophosphoric acid deposited on silica gel, activated carbon or asbestos is used as a catalyst:

• hydration through the stage of intermediate sulfuric acid ester, followed by its hydrolysis (at a temperature of 80-90 ° C and a pressure of 3.5 MPa):

This reaction is complicated by the formation of diethyl ether.

Ethanol purification

Ethanol, produced by hydration of ethylene or fermentation, is a water-alcohol mixture containing impurities. For its industrial, food and pharmacopoeial use, purification is necessary. Fractional distillation produces ethanol with a concentration of about 95.6% (wt.); this azeotrope, inseparable by distillation, contains 4.4% water (wt.) and has a boiling point of 78.15 °C.

Distillation frees ethanol from both volatile and heavy fractions of organic substances (bottom residue).

Absolute alcohol

Absolute alcohol is ethyl alcohol containing virtually no water. It boils at 78.39 °C, while rectified spirit containing at least 4.43% water boils at 78.15 °C. It is obtained by distillation of aqueous alcohol containing benzene and other methods, for example, the alcohol is treated with substances that react with water or absorb water, such as quicklime CaO or calcined copper sulfate CuSO4.

Properties

Physical properties

Appearance: under normal conditions it is a colorless volatile liquid with a characteristic odor and pungent taste. Ethyl alcohol is lighter than water. It is a good solvent for other organic substances. A popular mistake should be avoided: the properties of 95.57% alcohol and absolutized alcohol are often mixed. Their properties are almost the same, but the values ​​begin to differ, starting from the 3rd - 4th significant digit.

A mixture of 95.57% ethanol + 4.43% water is azeotropic, that is, it does not separate during distillation.

Chemical properties

A typical representative of monohydric alcohols.

Flammable Highly flammable. With sufficient air access, it burns (due to its oxygen) with a light bluish flame, forming terminal oxidation products - carbon dioxide and water:

C2H5OH + 3O2 → 2CO2 + 3H2O

This reaction proceeds even more vigorously in an atmosphere of pure oxygen.

Under certain conditions (temperature, pressure, catalysts), controlled oxidation (both with elemental oxygen and many other oxidizing agents) to acetaldehyde, acetic acid, oxalic acid and some other products is possible, for example:

3C2H5OH + K2Cr2O7 + 4H2SO4 → 3CH3CHO + K2SO4 + Cr2(SO4)3 + 7H2O

It has mild acidic properties, in particular, like acids, it interacts with alkali metals, as well as magnesium, aluminum and their hydrides, releasing hydrogen and forming salt-like ethylates, which are typical representatives of alcoholates:

2C2H5OH + 2K → 2C2H5OK + H2. C2H5OH + NaH → C2H5ONa + H2

Reacts reversibly with carboxylic and some inorganic oxygen-containing acids to form esters:

C2H5OH + RCOOH ⇄ RCOOC2H5 + H2O C2H5OH + HNO2 ⇄ C2H5ONO + H2O

With hydrogen halides (HCl, HBr, HI) it enters into reversible nucleophilic substitution reactions:

C2H5OH + HX ⇄ C2H5X + H2O

Without catalysts, the reaction with HCl is relatively slow; much faster - in the presence of zinc chloride and some other Lewis acids.

Instead of hydrogen halides, phosphorus halides and halide oxides, thionyl chloride and some other reagents can be used to replace the hydroxyl group with a halogen, for example:

3C2H5OH + PCl3 → 3C2H5Cl + H3PO3

Ethanol itself also has nucleophilic properties. In particular, it attaches relatively easily to activated multiple bonds, for example:

C2H5OH + CH2=CHCN → C2H5OCH2CH2CN,

reacts with aldehydes to form hemiacetals and acetals:

RCHO + C2H5OH → RCH(OH)OC2H5 RCH(OH)OC2H5 + C2H5OH → RCH(OC2H5)2 + H2O

When moderately (not exceeding 120 °C) heated with concentrated sulfuric acid or other acidic water-removing agents, it forms diethyl ether:

2С2Н5OH ⇄ С2Н5-O-С2Н5 + H2O

With stronger heating with sulfuric acid, as well as when passing vapors over aluminum oxide heated to 350÷500 °C, deeper dehydration occurs. This produces ethylene:

CH3CH2OH ⇄ CH2=CH2 + H2O

When using catalysts containing, along with aluminum oxide, highly dispersed silver and other components, the dehydration process can be combined with the controlled oxidation of ethylene with elemental oxygen, as a result of which it is possible to implement a one-stage process for the production of ethylene oxide with satisfactory yield:

2CH3CH2OH +O2 → 2C2H4O + 2H2O

In the presence of a catalyst containing oxides of aluminum, silicon, zinc and magnesium, it undergoes a series of complex transformations with the formation of butadiene as the main product (Lebedev reaction):

2C2H5OH → CH2=CH-CH=CH2 + H2O + H2

In 1932, based on this reaction, the world's first large-scale production of synthetic rubber was organized in the USSR.

In a slightly alkaline environment it forms iodoform:

C2H5OH + 4I2 + 6NaHCO3 → CHI3 + HCOONa + 5NaI + 5H2O + 6CO2

This reaction is of some importance for the qualitative and quantitative determination of ethanol in the absence of other substances that give a similar reaction.

Fire properties

Highly flammable colorless liquid; saturated vapor pressure, kPa: log p = 7.81158-1918.508/(252.125+t) at temperatures from −31 to 78°C; heat of combustion - 1408 kJ/mol; heat of formation -239.4 kJ/mol; flash point 13°C (in a closed crucible), 16°C (in an open crucible); ignition temperature 18°C; auto-ignition temperature 400°C; concentration limits of flame spread 3.6 - 17.7% of volume; temperature limits for flame propagation: lower 11°C, upper 41°C; minimum phlegmatizing concentration, % volume: CO2 - 29.5, H2O - 35.7, N2 - 46; maximum explosion pressure 682 kPa; maximum rate of pressure rise 15.8 MPa/s; burnout rate 0.037 kg/(m2 s); maximum normal flame propagation speed - 0.556 m/s; minimum ignition energy - 0.246 MJ; The minimum explosive oxygen content is 11.1% volume.

Application

Fuel

The first to use ethanol as a motor fuel was Henry Ford, who in 1880 created the first car running on ethanol. The possibility of using alcohols as motor fuel was also shown in 1902, when more than 70 carburetor engines running on ethanol and ethanol-gasoline mixtures were exhibited at a competition in Paris.

Ethanol can be used as fuel, including for rocket engines (for example, 70% aqueous ethanol was used as fuel in the world's first serial ballistic missile - the German V-2), internal combustion engines, household, camping and laboratory heating devices (so-called “alcohol lamps”), heating pads for tourists and military personnel (catalytic auto-oxidation on a platinum catalyst). It is used to a limited extent (due to its hygroscopicity) in a mixture with classic petroleum liquid fuels. It is used to produce high-quality fuel and a gasoline component - ethyl tert-butyl ether, which is more independent of fossil organic matter than MTBE.

Chemical industry

• serves as a raw material for the production of many chemicals, such as acetaldehyde, diethyl ether, tetraethyl lead, acetic acid, chloroform, ethyl acetate, ethylene, etc.;
• widely used as a solvent (in the paint and varnish industry, in the production of household chemicals and many other areas);
• is a component of antifreeze and windshield washers;
• In household chemicals, ethanol is used in cleaning products and detergents, especially for the care of glass and plumbing. It is a solvent for repellents.

Medicine

• In terms of its action, ethyl alcohol can be classified as an antiseptic;
• as a disinfectant and drying agent, externally;
• the drying and tanning properties of 96% ethyl alcohol are used to treat the surgical field or in some techniques for treating the surgeon’s hands;
• solvent for medicines, for the preparation of tinctures, extracts from plant materials, etc.;
• preservative for tinctures and extracts (minimum concentration 18%);
• defoamer when supplying oxygen, artificial ventilation;
• in warm compresses;
• for physical cooling during fever (for rubbing);
• component of general anesthesia in situations of drug shortage;
• as an antifoam for pulmonary edema in the form of inhalation of a 33% solution;
• ethanol is an antidote for poisoning with certain toxic alcohols such as methanol and ethylene glycol. Its action is due to the fact that the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, in the presence of several substrates (for example, methanol and ethanol), carries out only competitive oxidation, due to which, after timely (almost immediate, following methanol/ethylene glycol) intake of ethanol, the current concentration of toxic metabolites decreases (for methanol - formaldehyde and formic acid, for ethylene glycol - oxalic acid).

Perfumes and cosmetics

It is a universal solvent of various substances and the main component of perfumes, colognes, aerosols, etc. It is part of a variety of products, including even such: toothpastes, shampoos, shower products, etc.

Food industry

Along with water, it is the main component of alcoholic beverages (vodka, wine, gin, beer, etc.). It is also found in small quantities in a number of drinks obtained by fermentation, but not classified as alcoholic (kefir, kvass, kumiss, non-alcoholic beer, etc.). The ethanol content in fresh kefir is negligible (0.12%), but if it has stood for a long time, especially in a warm place, it can reach 1%. kumiss contains 1-3% ethanol (in strong ethanol up to 4.5%), kvass - from 0.5 to 1.2%.

Solvent for food flavorings. Can be used as a preservative for bakery products, as well as in the confectionery industry.

Registered as a dietary supplement E1510.

The energy value of ethanol is 7.1 kcal/g.

Other

Used for fixing and preserving biological preparations.

World ethanol production

Ethanol production by country, million liters. Data from ethanolrfa.org.

The use of ethanol as automobile fuel

Fuel ethanol is divided into bioethanol and ethanol obtained by other methods (from plastic waste, synthesized from gas, etc.).

Bioethanol is a liquid ethanol-containing fuel produced by special plants from starch, cellulose or sugar-containing raw materials using a short distillation system (allows us to obtain a quality sufficient for use as fuel). Contains methanol and fusel oils, which makes it completely undrinkable. It is used in its pure form (more precisely as a 96.6% azeotrope), and more often in a mixture with gasoline (the so-called gasohol) or diesel fuel. The production and use of bioethanol is increasing in most countries around the world as a greener and more renewable alternative to oil.

Only cars with an appropriate engine or with a universal Flex-Fuel (capable of consuming gasoline/ethanol mixtures with any ratio) are capable of fully using bioethanol. A gasoline engine is capable of consuming gasoline with an ethanol addition of no more than 30%; it is also possible to convert a conventional gasoline engine, but this is not economically feasible.

The problem is the insufficient miscibility of gasoline and diesel fuel with ethanol, which is why the latter often flakes off (always at low temperatures). This problem is especially relevant for Russia. No solution has been found to this problem at the moment.

The advantage of mixtures of ethanol with other types of fuel over “pure” ethanol is better ignitability due to low moisture content, while “pure” ethanol (grade E100, with a practical C2H5OH content of 96.6%) is an azeotrope that cannot be separated by distillation. Division in other ways is unprofitable. When ethanol is added to gasoline or diesel, water separates out.

The following government programs for the use of ethanol and mixtures containing it in vehicles with internal combustion engines are in effect in different countries:

In the United States, the Energy Bill, signed by President Bush in August 2005, provides for the annual production of 30 billion liters of ethanol from grain and 3.8 billion liters from cellulose (corn stalks, rice straw, forest waste) by 2012.

The introduction of biofuel production is a costly process, but provides benefits to the economy later. For example, the construction of an ethanol plant with a capacity of 40 million gallons gives the economy (using the example of the USA):

• $142 million investment during construction;
• 41 jobs at the plant, plus 694 jobs throughout the economy;
• Increases local grain prices by 5 to 10 cents per bushel;
• Increases local household income by $19.6 million annually;
• Generates an average of $1.2 million in taxes;
• Return on investment 13.3% per annum.

In 2006, the ethanol industry contributed to the US economy:

• 160,231 new jobs in all sectors, including 20,000 jobs in construction;
• Increased household income by $6.7 billion;
• Generated $2.7 billion in federal taxes and $2.3 billion in local taxes.

In 2006, 2.15 billion bushels of corn were processed into ethanol in the United States, representing 20.5% of annual corn production. Ethanol has become the third largest consumer of corn, after livestock and exports. 15% of the US sorghum crop is processed into ethanol.

U.S. ethanol industry stillage production, metric tons by dry weight.

Stillage is a secondary feed raw material and can also be used to produce biogas.

Vehicle fleet running on ethanol

A mixture of ethanol and gasoline is designated by the letter E. The number next to the letter E indicates the percentage of ethanol. E85 means a mixture of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.

Blends up to 20% ethanol can be used on any vehicle. However, some car manufacturers limit the warranty when using blends containing more than 10% ethanol. Blends containing more than 20% ethanol in many cases require modifications to the vehicle's ignition system.

Automakers produce cars that can run on both gasoline and E85. Such cars are called "Flex-Fuel". In Brazil, such cars are called “hybrid”. There is no name in Russian. Most modern cars either natively support the use of such fuel, or optionally, upon request.

In 2005, more than 5 million cars in the United States had hybrid engines. At the end of 2006, 6 million cars with such engines were in use in the United States. The total vehicle fleet is 230 million vehicles.

1200 gas stations sell E85 (May 2007). In total, about 170,000 gas stations sell automobile fuel in the United States.

Economical

The cost of Brazilian ethanol (about US$0.19 per liter in 2006) makes its use economically viable.

Environmental aspects

Bioethanol as a fuel is often described as “neutral” as a source of greenhouse gases. It has a zero carbon dioxide balance because its production through fermentation and subsequent combustion releases the same amount of CO2 as was previously taken from the atmosphere by the plants used to produce it. However, rectification of ethanol requires additional energy consumption, generated by one of the “traditional” methods (including the combustion of fossil fuels).

In 2006, the use of ethanol in the United States reduced emissions of about 8 million tons of greenhouse gases (CO2 equivalent), which is approximately equal to the annual emissions of 1.21 million cars.

Safety and Regulation

• Ethanol is a flammable substance; a mixture of its vapors and air is explosive.
• Synthetic ethyl alcohol, technical and food grade, unsuitable for the production of alcoholic beverages, is included in the list of toxic substances for the purposes of Article 234 and other articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
• Since 2005, the retail sale of alcohol in Russia has been prohibited (with the exception of the Far North).

The effect of ethanol on the human body

Ethanol in alcoholic beverages is a carcinogen with a proven ability to cause cancer. Depending on the dose, concentration, route of entry into the body and duration of exposure, ethanol can also have narcotic and toxic effects. Narcotic action refers to its ability to cause coma, stupor, insensitivity to pain, depression of central nervous system functions, alcohol arousal, addiction, as well as its anesthetic effect. Under the influence of ethanol, endorphins are released in the nucleus accumbens (Nucleus accumbens), and in those suffering from alcoholism, also in the orbitofrontal cortex (field 10). However, from a legal point of view, ethyl alcohol is not recognized as a drug, since this substance is not included in the international list of controlled substances of the 1988 UN Convention. certain doses to body weight and concentrations lead to acute poisoning and death (lethal single dose - 4-12 grams of ethanol per kilogram of body weight).

The main metabolite of ethanol, acetaldehyde, is toxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic. There is evidence of the carcinogenicity of acetaldehyde in animal experiments; In addition, acetaldehyde damages DNA.

Long-term consumption of ethanol can cause diseases such as liver cirrhosis, gastritis, stomach ulcers, stomach and esophageal cancer, and cardiovascular diseases.

Ethanol consumption can cause oxidative damage to brain neurons, as well as their death due to damage to the blood-brain barrier.

Alcohol abuse can lead to clinical depression and alcoholism.

Ethanol is a natural metabolite of the human body and can be synthesized in small quantities in the tissues of the body (true endogenous alcohol) or in the gastrointestinal tract as a result of fermentation processes of carbohydrate foods (conditional endogenous alcohol). The amount of endogenous alcohol rarely exceeds 0.18 ppm, which is at the limit of sensitivity of the most modern instruments. A regular breathalyzer cannot determine such quantities.

Types and brands of ethanol

• Rectified alcohol (more precisely, rectified alcohol) is ethyl alcohol purified by rectification, contains 95.57%, chemical formula C2H5OH. Can be produced in accordance with GOST 18300-72 (Gosstandart of the USSR, rectified ethyl alcohol, technical conditions) and GOST 5964-82; GOST 5964-93. Depending on the degree of purification, rectified technical ethyl alcohol is produced in the “Extra” grade and in two grades: premium and first

• Absolute ethyl alcohol - alcohol content >99.9%.

• Medical alcohol - alcohol content 96.4-96.7%.

Etymology of names

Several names are used to refer to this substance. Technically, the most correct term is ethanol or ethyl alcohol. However, the names alcohol, wine spirit, or simply alcohol have become widespread, although alcohols, or alcohols, are a broader class of substances.

Etymology of the term "ethanol"

The names ethanol and ethyl alcohol indicate that this compound contains ethyl, the ethane radical. Moreover, the word alcohol (suffix -ol) in the name indicates the content of the hydroxyl group (-OH), characteristic of alcohols.

Etymology of the name "alcohol"

The name alcohol comes from Arabic. الكحل‎‎ al-kuhul, meaning fine powder obtained by sublimation, powdered antimony, powder for tinting eyelids.

The word “alcohol” came into Russian through its German variant. alkohol. However, in the Russian language it has been preserved in the form of an archaism, apparently, as a homonym for the word “alcohol” in the meaning of “fine powder”.

Etymology of the word "alcohol"

The name ethanol wine alcohol comes from the Latin. spiritus vini (spirit of wine). The Russian word “alcohol” came through the English version. spirit.

In English, the word “alcohol” in this sense was already used in the middle of the 13th century, and only starting from 1610 the word “alcohol” began to be used by alchemists to designate volatile substances, which corresponds to the basic meaning of the word “spiritus” (evaporation) in Latin. By the 1670s, the word's meaning had narrowed to "liquids with a high percentage of alcohol," and the volatile liquids were called ethers.

See also Etymology of the name in the article “Alcohols”.

Notes

1. European chemical Substances Information System Retrieved December 8, 2013.
2. Chastain G (2006). "Alcohol, neurotransmitter systems, and behavior." The Journal of general psychology 133 (4). DOI:10.3200/GENP.133.4.329-335. PMID 17128954.
3. Article “Absolute alcohol” in TSB.
4. Preparation of absolute alcohol
5. Ethyl alcohol: chemical and physical properties
6. V.G. Kozin, N.L. Solodova, N.Yu. Bashkirtseva, A.I. Abdullin. Modern technologies for the production of motor fuel components. Tutorial. - Kazan: KSTU, 2009. - 327 p.
7. Drugs affecting the central nervous system
8. Flomenbaum, Goldfrank et al. Goldfrank's Toxicologic Emergencies. 8th Edition. - McGraw Hill, 2006. - P. 1465. - 2170 pp. - ISBN 0071437630.
9. Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology. GOST R 52409-2005 (full text)
10. Russell, Nicholas J. Food preservatives. - New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 2003. - P. 198. - ISBN 0-306-47736-X.
11. E1510 - ethyl alcohol
12. 2008 Ethanol Production Exceeds 9 Billion Gallons
13. Ethanol World Production Statistics
14. National Program.rf - Alternative fuels
15. 1 2 Bioethanol: overview of the world and Russian markets. Cleandex.
16. Information and analytical agency "INFOBIO"
17. ECOTOC
18. 1 2 Russia and America in the 21st century
19. The European Union is abandoning traditional gasoline from January 1 /12/16/2010
20. bioethanol, biogasoline, alternative fuel INNOVATIVE E 95 problem of use application
21. Ottawa to push ethanol, despite concerns (inaccessible link since 05/23/2013 (793 days) - history, copy)
22. Interfax West
23. India Sets Target of 20% Biofuels by 2017
24. Ivan Castano Mexican Biofuels Seen Meeting 3% Blending Target In 2012 May 2, 2011
25. National Biofuels Association

Alcohols(or alkanols) are organic substances whose molecules contain one or more hydroxyl groups (-OH groups) connected to a hydrocarbon radical.

Classification of alcohols

According to the number of hydroxyl groups(atomicity) alcohols are divided into:

Monatomic, For example:

Diatomic(glycols), for example:

Triatomic, For example:

According to the nature of the hydrocarbon radical The following alcohols are released:

Limit containing only saturated hydrocarbon radicals in the molecule, for example:

Unlimited containing multiple (double and triple) bonds between carbon atoms in the molecule, for example:

Aromatic, i.e. alcohols containing a benzene ring and a hydroxyl group in the molecule, connected to each other not directly, but through carbon atoms, for example:

Organic substances containing hydroxyl groups in the molecule, connected directly to the carbon atom of the benzene ring, differ significantly in chemical properties from alcohols and therefore are classified as an independent class of organic compounds - phenols.

For example:

There are also polyatomic (polyhydric alcohols) containing more than three hydroxyl groups in the molecule. For example, the simplest hexahydric alcohol hexaol (sorbitol)

Nomenclature and isomerism of alcohols

When forming the names of alcohols, the (generic) suffix is ​​added to the name of the hydrocarbon corresponding to the alcohol. ol.

The numbers after the suffix indicate the position of the hydroxyl group in the main chain, and the prefixes di-, tri-, tetra- etc. - their number:

In the numbering of carbon atoms in the main chain, the position of the hydroxyl group takes precedence over the position of multiple bonds:

Starting from the third member of the homologous series, alcohols exhibit isomerism of the position of the functional group (propanol-1 and propanol-2), and from the fourth, isomerism of the carbon skeleton (butanol-1, 2-methylpropanol-1). They are also characterized by interclass isomerism - alcohols are isomeric to ethers:

Let's give a name to the alcohol, the formula of which is given below:

Name construction order:

1. The carbon chain is numbered from the end closest to the –OH group.
2. The main chain contains 7 C atoms, which means the corresponding hydrocarbon is heptane.
3. The number of –OH groups is 2, the prefix is ​​“di”.
4. Hydroxyl groups are located at 2 and 3 carbon atoms, n = 2 and 4.

Alcohol name: heptanediol-2,4

Physical properties of alcohols

Alcohols can form hydrogen bonds both between alcohol molecules and between alcohol and water molecules. Hydrogen bonds arise from the interaction of a partially positively charged hydrogen atom of one alcohol molecule and a partially negatively charged oxygen atom of another molecule. It is thanks to hydrogen bonds between molecules that alcohols have abnormally high boiling points for their molecular weight. Thus, propane with a relative molecular weight of 44 under normal conditions is a gas, and the simplest of alcohols is methanol, having a relative molecular weight of 32, under normal conditions it is a liquid.

The lower and middle members of a series of saturated monohydric alcohols containing from 1 to 11 carbon atoms are liquids. Higher alcohols (starting from C12H25OH) at room temperature - solids. Lower alcohols have an alcoholic odor and a pungent taste; they are highly soluble in water. As the carbon radical increases, the solubility of alcohols in water decreases, and octanol no longer mixes with water.

Chemical properties of alcohols

The properties of organic substances are determined by their composition and structure. Alcohols confirm the general rule. Their molecules include hydrocarbon and hydroxyl groups, so the chemical properties of alcohols are determined by the interaction of these groups with each other.

The properties characteristic of this class of compounds are due to the presence of a hydroxyl group.

1. Interaction of alcohols with alkali and alkaline earth metals. To identify the effect of a hydrocarbon radical on a hydroxyl group, it is necessary to compare the properties of a substance containing a hydroxyl group and a hydrocarbon radical, on the one hand, and a substance containing a hydroxyl group and not containing a hydrocarbon radical, on the other. Such substances can be, for example, ethanol (or other alcohol) and water. The hydrogen of the hydroxyl group of alcohol molecules and water molecules is capable of being reduced by alkali and alkaline earth metals (replaced by them)
2. Interaction of alcohols with hydrogen halides. Substitution of a hydroxyl group with a halogen leads to the formation of haloalkanes. For example:
   This reaction is reversible.
3. Intermolecular dehydrationalcohols- splitting off a water molecule from two alcohol molecules when heated in the presence of water-removing agents:
   As a result of intermolecular dehydration of alcohols, ethers. Thus, when ethyl alcohol is heated with sulfuric acid to a temperature of 100 to 140°C, diethyl (sulfur) ether is formed.
   
4. The interaction of alcohols with organic and inorganic acids to form esters (esterification reaction)
   
   The esterification reaction is catalyzed by strong inorganic acids. For example, when ethyl alcohol and acetic acid react, ethyl acetate is formed:
   
5. Intramolecular dehydration of alcohols occurs when alcohols are heated in the presence of water-removing agents to a higher temperature than the temperature of intermolecular dehydration. As a result, alkenes are formed. This reaction is due to the presence of a hydrogen atom and a hydroxyl group at adjacent carbon atoms. An example is the reaction of producing ethene (ethylene) by heating ethanol above 140°C in the presence of concentrated sulfuric acid:
   
6. Oxidation of alcohols usually carried out with strong oxidizing agents, for example, potassium dichromate or potassium permanganate in an acidic environment. In this case, the action of the oxidizing agent is directed to the carbon atom that is already bonded to the hydroxyl group. Depending on the nature of the alcohol and the reaction conditions, various products can be formed. Thus, primary alcohols are oxidized first into aldehydes, and then into carboxylic acids: When secondary alcohols are oxidized, ketones are formed:
   
   Tertiary alcohols are quite resistant to oxidation. However, under harsh conditions (strong oxidizing agent, high temperature), oxidation of tertiary alcohols is possible, which occurs with the rupture of carbon-carbon bonds closest to the hydroxyl group.
7. Dehydrogenation of alcohols. When alcohol vapor is passed at 200-300 °C over a metal catalyst, such as copper, silver or platinum, primary alcohols are converted into aldehydes, and secondary alcohols into ketones:
   
   
8. Qualitative reaction to polyhydric alcohols.
   The presence of several hydroxyl groups in the alcohol molecule at the same time determines the specific properties of polyhydric alcohols, which are capable of forming bright blue complex compounds soluble in water when interacting with a freshly obtained precipitate of copper (II) hydroxide. For ethylene glycol we can write:
   
   Monohydric alcohols are not able to enter into this reaction. Therefore, it is a qualitative reaction to polyhydric alcohols.
   

Preparation of alcohols:

Use of alcohols

Methanol(methyl alcohol CH 3 OH) is a colorless liquid with a characteristic odor and a boiling point of 64.7 ° C. Burns with a slightly bluish flame. The historical name of methanol - wood alcohol is explained by one of the ways of its production by distilling hard wood (Greek methy - wine, get drunk; hule - substance, wood).

Methanol requires careful handling when working with it. Under the action of the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase, it is converted in the body into formaldehyde and formic acid, which damage the retina, cause death of the optic nerve and complete loss of vision. Ingestion of more than 50 ml of methanol causes death.

Ethanol(ethyl alcohol C 2 H 5 OH) is a colorless liquid with a characteristic odor and a boiling point of 78.3 ° C. Flammable Mixes with water in any ratio. The concentration (strength) of alcohol is usually expressed as a percentage by volume. “Pure” (medicinal) alcohol is a product obtained from food raw materials and containing 96% (by volume) ethanol and 4% (by volume) water. To obtain anhydrous ethanol - “absolute alcohol”, this product is treated with substances that chemically bind water (calcium oxide, anhydrous copper (II) sulfate, etc.).

In order to make alcohol used for technical purposes unsuitable for drinking, small amounts of difficult-to-separate toxic, bad-smelling and disgusting-tasting substances are added to it and tinted. Alcohol containing such additives is called denatured or denatured alcohol.

Ethanol is widely used in industry for the production of synthetic rubber, medicines, is used as a solvent, is part of varnishes and paints, and perfumes. In medicine, ethyl alcohol is the most important disinfectant. Used for preparing alcoholic drinks.

When small amounts of ethyl alcohol enter the human body, they reduce pain sensitivity and block inhibition processes in the cerebral cortex, causing a state of intoxication. At this stage of the action of ethanol, water separation in the cells increases and, consequently, urine formation accelerates, resulting in dehydration of the body.

In addition, ethanol causes dilation of blood vessels. Increased blood flow in the skin capillaries leads to redness of the skin and a feeling of warmth.

In large quantities, ethanol inhibits brain activity (inhibition stage) and causes impaired coordination of movements. An intermediate product of ethanol oxidation in the body, acetaldehyde, is extremely toxic and causes severe poisoning.

Systematic consumption of ethyl alcohol and drinks containing it leads to a persistent decrease in brain productivity, death of liver cells and their replacement with connective tissue - liver cirrhosis.

Ethanediol-1,2(ethylene glycol) is a colorless viscous liquid. Poisonous. Unlimitedly soluble in water. Aqueous solutions do not crystallize at temperatures significantly below 0 °C, which makes it possible to use it as a component of non-freezing coolants - antifreeze for internal combustion engines.

Prolactriol-1,2,3(glycerin) is a viscous, syrupy liquid with a sweet taste. Unlimitedly soluble in water. Non-volatile. As a component of esters, it is found in fats and oils.

Widely used in cosmetics, pharmaceutical and food industries. In cosmetics, glycerin plays the role of an emollient and soothing agent. It is added to toothpaste to prevent it from drying out.

Glycerin is added to confectionery products to prevent their crystallization. It is sprayed onto tobacco, in which case it acts as a humectant that prevents the tobacco leaves from drying out and crumbling before processing. It is added to adhesives to prevent them from drying out too quickly, and to plastics, especially cellophane. In the latter case, glycerin acts as a plasticizer, acting like a lubricant between polymer molecules and thus giving plastics the necessary flexibility and elasticity.

Ethyl alcohol (“ethanol” according to the international chemical classification) is widely used in medicine, as a disinfectant, and also in some areas of industry as a solvent, fuel, and antifreeze component. In addition, ethanol is the main active component of alcoholic beverages.

Why is the structural formula of ethanol not precise enough?

The formula of any chemical substance must contain information about which atoms are contained in it. Ethyl alcohol consists of three elements: carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O). Moreover, each ethanol molecule includes 2 carbon atoms, 6 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom. Therefore, the empirical (simplest) of this chemical compound is thus: C2H6O. It would seem that this is quite enough.

However, using only one empirical formula will lead to error. The fact is that the exact same formula is C2H6O for another substance - dimethyl ether, which is in a gaseous state under normal conditions, and not in a liquid like ethanol. And, of course, the chemical properties of this substance also differ from the properties of ethyl alcohol.

Therefore, it is impossible to use only one empirical formula to describe ethyl alcohol.

What is the structural formula of ethanol

In such cases, more accurate structural formulas come to the rescue, which contain information not only about the number and type of atoms of elements in the molecule, but also about their location and mutual connections. The structural formula of ethanol is: C2H5OH or even more precisely - CH3-CH2-OH. This formula indicates that the ethanol molecule consists of two main parts: the ethyl radical C2H5 and the hydroxyl radical (called hydroxyl group) OH.

Using the structural formula, one can draw a conclusion about the chemical properties of a substance due to the presence in its composition of a very active hydroxyl-, towards which, due to the oxygen atom, the second most electronegative element (after fluorine), the electron density of the molecule is shifted.

For comparison, the structural formula of the mentioned dimethyl ether is CH3-O-CH3. That is, it is a symmetrical molecule.

The formula C2H5OH is very simple and is usually very easy to remember; it reads as “Tse two ash five o ash.”

The main raw material for the production of vodka is rectified ethyl alcohol. Rectified ethyl alcohol is a transparent, colorless liquid without foreign odors or tastes; the specific gravity of anhydrous alcohol at 20 °C is 0.78927 g/cm 3 . The name of the class of organic compounds - alcohols - comes from the English "spirt" and the Latin "spirtus", or otherwise alcohols - from the Arabic "al-kuhl". Ethyl alcohol or ethanol (according to the International Classification and Nomenclature of Chemical Compounds) was first synthesized from ethylene in 1855.

The general chemical formula C 2 H 6 0, reflecting the composition of ethyl alcohol, was established earlier, in 1807. At first, ethanol was considered as ethylene hydrate C 2 H 4. H 2 0, but then they discovered the presence of a C 2 H 5 radical and an OH group in it. Therefore, many scientists classified it as a type of water. Only after it was possible to synthesize the alcohol, its structural formula was proposed:

which is written CH 3 CH 2 OH.

The molecular weight of ethyl alcohol is 46.07. As can be seen from the formula, ethanol is a saturated alcohol, a carbon derivative of the aliphatic series - ethane, in which one hydrogen atom is replaced by a hydroxyl group OH.

Since ethanol contains one OH group, it is classified as a monohydric alcohol. The presence of a hydroxyl group largely determines the chemical properties and reactivity of ethyl alcohol.

Ethanol is a hygroscopic substance, therefore, when stored in insufficiently sealed containers, not only does it evaporate, but also absorbs moisture from the air, resulting in a decrease in strength. Ethanol mixes with water in any ratio. This property is explained by the fact that ethyl alcohol contains a small number of carbon atoms and has a structure close to the structure of water. Ethyl alcohol can be considered both as a derivative of the hydrocarbon ethane and as a derivative of water, in the molecule of which the H atom is replaced by a hydrocarbon radical (H-OH and C 2 H 5 -OH).

The reaction of chemically pure ethyl alcohol is neutral, in contrast to rectified ethyl alcohol obtained in industrial conditions, which contains a small amount of organic acids and has a weakly acidic reaction.

Ethyl alcohol is a highly flammable liquid; when it burns, it produces carbon dioxide and water. The fire hazard of ethanol is characterized by a flash point (13 ° C) and temperature explosion limits - lower, equal to 11 ° C, and upper, equal to 41 ° C. The boiling point of ethanol is +78.3 ° C, the freezing point is -117 ° C. Freezing point water-alcohol mixture with an alcohol content of 40% vol. -28 ° C. Alcohol vapor is harmful to human health. The maximum permissible concentration of alcohol in the air is 1 mg/dm 3.

Requirements for grain quality in alcohol production

One of the most important tasks facing Russian alcohol producers is the production of high-quality ethyl alcohol. In accordance with regulatory documents and state standards, high requirements are imposed on the quality of ethyl alcohol, which relate to physicochemical and organoleptic indicators.

The production of rectified ethyl alcohol from agricultural raw materials is a biotechnological production that uses microorganisms first to convert the substrate, and then, with complex biochemical transformations of metabolic products, into the finished product - ethanol.

At all stages of the technological process, starting from grain acceptance and ending with the rectification process, mechanical and chemical processes occur, each of which has its own effect on the organoleptic characteristics of ethyl alcohol.

Factors influencing the organoleptic characteristics of ethyl alcohol include:

♦ raw materials (types of grain, its condition, smell, storage conditions, etc.);

♦ method of part-time work (in a warehouse, in production, degree of grinding);

♦ technological scheme for preparing grain for saccharification (traditional, mechanical-enzymatic);

♦ process of starch hydrolysis (saccharifying materials, their dosage, condition);

♦ introducing yeast (yeast race);

♦ fermentation process (increase in acidity, duration of fermentation);

♦ auxiliary materials (disinfectants and antiseptics);

♦ sanitary condition of equipment (pipelines, heat exchangers, evaporation chamber, transfer tank).

One of the main factors influencing the production of high-quality alcohol is the quality of raw materials. The situation with raw materials is quite difficult, since there is no government supply of grain, and the bulk goes to enterprises under contracts concluded with different suppliers at an agreed price.

In accordance with the technochemical control scheme, moisture, dirtiness and starch content in grain are determined, without taking into account indicators such as glassiness, the presence of gluten, acidity, etc.

Until now, there is no regulatory and technical documentation (no state standard) for grain used for the production of edible alcohol. However, certain requirements for raw materials are reflected in the “Regulations for the production of alcohol from starch-containing raw materials”, in particular - establishing contamination, the content of toxic impurities (weeds, seeds, disinfectants, etc.), and pest infestation of cereals.

The quality of grain primarily affects the organoleptic properties of the alcohol produced from it. One of the most significant indicators of grain quality is its smell. Grains and seeds of all crops are capable of absorbing (sorbing) vapors of various substances and gases from the environment, which is explained by the capillary-porous structure of each grain and the porosity of the grain mass. Grain infected with barn pests can also be infected with their metabolic products.

Thus, if there are mites in the grain, a specifically unpleasant odor is formed, which impairs the taste and color of the grain. As a result of damage to the grain shell, conditions are created for the development of microorganisms, which can contribute to the accumulation of mycotoxins. Processing such grain does not cause difficulties, but the presence of a large number of insects can negatively affect the organoleptic characteristics of alcohol.

To obtain alcohol, low-quality, defective grain is often used:

♦ with increased contamination (content of organic and mineral impurities from 5% and above);

♦ freshly harvested and unripe;

♦ subjected to self-warming;

♦ damaged by drying;

♦ affected by smut and ergot;

♦ affected by fusarium.

Processing of freshly harvested and unripe grain without holding it for ripening often occurs with a violation of technology, which is expressed in intense foaming of the mash due to the increased content of soluble substances (sugars, amino acids) and the reduced content of starch and proteins. This often leads to difficulty in brewing and, naturally, to a decrease in the productivity of the fermentation department.

In addition to unripe, freshly harvested grain, grain that is often received for processing is damaged by drying, infected with harmful impurities and agricultural pests, yellowed, overwintered in the field, affected by fusarium, etc.

The color of the endosperm of grains damaged by drying can change from cream to light brown and black. When analyzing grains with black endosperms, they are classified as impurities, since burnt grain in the field or during storage accumulates butyric and other organic acids, which negatively affect the quality of yeast and alcohol, which acquires bitterness and an unpleasant odor. Burnt grain contains an increased content of carcinogenic substances, in particular benzopyrene, the concentration of which, according to research by the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Plant Health, can reach 2.2 µg/kg, which negatively affects the vital activity of yeast. Therefore, it is processed only in a mixture with

healthy grain, and there should be no more than 8...10% burnt grains.

Very often, enterprises receive grain affected by smut, ergot and other harmful impurities, the quantity of which must necessarily be limited, since they negatively affect organoleptic characteristics - taste, smell, especially taste, giving the alcohol bitterness, harshness and pungency.

Grain infected with smut and ergot contains toxic alkaloids (ergotamine, ergobozyme, argonine, cornutine), and itself becomes toxic. Such grain can only be processed in a mixture with healthy grain (there should be no more than 10% of contaminated grain). Harmful impurities contained in grain and not disposed of during processing are extremely undesirable, as they give the alcohol sharpness, pungency and, very often, bitterness.

The grain used for the production of alcohol contains not only starch, the content of which on an absolutely dry basis is 65...68%. The rest of the dry matter includes protein, fats, minerals, non-starchy polysaccharides, free sugars, and dextrins.

B shows the average content of grain components. All of these compounds participate in a variety of biochemical reactions at all stages of the technological process for producing alcohol.

At the first stages of production, physical and chemical transformations of starch and its components occur - swelling and gelatinization. At all subsequent stages - heat treatment, saccharification and fermentation - enzymatic processes are carried out, leading to a chemical change in starch and all the constituent parts of the grain - sugars, non-starchy polysaccharides, pectins, nitrogenous and fatty substances.

The main reaction of the decomposition of sugars (fructose, sucrose) during heat treatment is the formation

Chemical composition of grain used in the production of alcohol

hydroxymethylfurfural, which in turn decomposes to levulinic and formic acids. A similar decomposition of pentoses occurs with the formation of furfural. Some of the hydroxymethylfurfural condenses, forming coloring matter (yellow-brown).

The second most intense reaction of the decomposition of sugars during heat treatment is the reaction of the formation of melanoidins (colored compounds), the so-called sugaramine reaction, which occurs in a very complex way - transamination. It is initiated by the glycosidic hydroxyl of the sugar and the amine group of amino acids. Among the products of the melanoidin reaction, aliphatic aldehydes, furfural and its derivatives—formaldehyde, methylglyoxal, and acetoin—were found.

The next factor influencing the organoleptic properties of the finished product is saccharifying materials - malt and enzyme preparations of microorganism cultures. Sugaring materials can also

indirectly influence the organoleptic characteristics of alcohol. If infected enzyme preparations or with insufficient enzymatic activity are supplied for saccharification (and these circumstances are not uncommon), this usually leads to an infected fermentation process. As a result, undesirable waste products of yeast accumulate with the substrate, leading to the accumulation of secondary metabolites that accompany the formation of ethanol - organic acids and unsaturated compounds.

When the fermenting liquid sours, the oxidability of the alcohol decreases, and at the same time the smell and taste of the alcohol deteriorate. This occurs as a result of the formation of unsaturated compounds (crotonaldehyde, acrolein), and it is they that affect the oxidation index. Their quantity is small, but their influence on the tasting qualities of the alcohol is very large. Unsaturated compounds in an amount of 1.0...1.4 mg/l already give alcohol bitterness and an unpleasant odor.

The appearance of infection in grain (mainly in the form of lactic and acetic acid bacteria) is one of the reasons for the production of alcohol of poor quality in terms of organoleptic indicators. When fermenting infected wort, waste products of infecting microorganisms and yeast autolysis accumulate in alcohol. When the mash sours, about 20 organic acids are formed (butyric, isobutyric, acetic, etc.), which give the alcohol an unpleasant smell of rancid oil, as well as esters, oxidation products of alcohol and organic acids. In addition to the deterioration of the smell and taste of alcohol, the appearance of infection leads to loss of carbohydrates and a decrease in alcohol yield.

The quality of alcohol is also influenced by the use of different yeast races. The correct choice of yeast races and their fermentation parameters ensures the production of alcohol with a low content of major impurities (acetaldehyde, methyl acetate, ethyl acetate, propanol, isopropanol, isobutanol, butanol, isoamylol).

Yeast causes a specific breakdown of amino acids present in the alcoholic fermentation medium, converting them into primary alcohols:

♦ from leucine - isoamyl (CH 3) 2 CHCH2CH 2 OH;

♦ from isoleucine - amyl C 2 H 5 CH (CH 3) CH 2 OH;

♦ from valine - isobutyl (CH 3) 2 CHCH 2 OH.

These three alcohols are part of fusel oil and come from proteins that are usually contained in the raw material and are fermented.

In the production of alcohol, water is a very important component, since it is part of the substrate for preparing the wort, and the quality of the product depends on the purity of the water used (i.e., the number of microorganisms present in it, dissolved chemicals, etc.). At some factories, water is taken from reservoirs that receive wastewater, which may contain acrolein, propyl alcohol, and crotonaldehyde. In this regard, it is better to use water from artesian sources. Studies have shown that the higher the dry residue in alcohol (and this is more often observed at an increased pH of alcohol - 7.8...9.0), the worse its organoleptic assessment. The dry residue at an alcohol pH of 7.8...9.0 ranges from 0 to 24 mg/dm 3 . In alcohol obtained from molasses, the dry residue is higher due to the nutrient salts added to the syrup.

After distillation, toxic impurities remain in ethyl alcohol, which are determined in accordance with the standard for ethyl alcohol from food raw materials - acetaldehyde, ethers (ethyl acetate, methyl acetate), fusel oils (1-propanol, 2-propanol, 1-butanol, isoamylol, isobutyl alcohol) and methanol. At the same time, more than 200 more chemical compounds have been discovered in alcohol using different methods and methods, the concentration of which is very difficult and difficult to establish using existing methods used to analyze alcohol. Thus, higher esters, which are sometimes present in alcohol, give it a subtle

fruity smell. Diethyl ether, which has a putrid odor, gives the alcohol a bitter taste. Higher alcohols (heptyl, nonyl) reduce the oxidation rate by 5...7 minutes, and also give the alcohol a pungent and bitter taste and the smell of rancid oil.

The quality and, first of all, the organoleptic characteristics of alcohol can be affected by atypical impurities, pesticides, microbial and other toxins, crown ethers, etc.

Alcohol technology

Ethyl alcohol is produced in three ways: enzymatic (or biochemical), chemical and synthetic.

In the first case, sugar is fermented under the action of enzymes and yeast:

In the second case, industrial alcohol is produced from plant raw materials with a high fiber content by non-hydrolyzable enzymes of yeast cells (sawdust, straw, peat, moss, etc.) and from sulfite liquors (pulp and paper production waste) containing up to 1.5% sugar, chemically affecting the raw materials with mineral acids.

In the third case, technical synthetic alcohol is obtained by adding water to ethylene in the presence of a catalyst:

Rectified food grade ethyl alcohol is obtained only from food raw materials. The main raw materials for the production of alcohol are potatoes, grain, and molasses.

The production of rectified ethyl alcohol consists of the following stages:

♦ preparatory - purification of raw materials from impurities, preparation of malt;

♦ main - boiling starchy raw materials, saccharification of starch, fermentation of the saccharified mass, distillation of mash and production of crude alcohol;

♦ final - rectification (repeated distillation to purify ethyl alcohol from impurities).

The best type of plant material for the production of alcohol is potatoes. For processing into alcohol, high-yielding technical varieties of potatoes are used, which have high starchy content and are stable during storage.

Grain is used as a raw material and for the production of malt - sprouted grain, which is a source of enzymes that break down starch into fermentable sugars. Various grain crops are used as starch-containing raw materials; The quality of grain in this case is not regulated. Molasses is a waste product from sugar production. Its main component is sucrose, which, under the conditions of alcohol production, is completely fermented and converted into alcohol.

A number of distilleries use enzymatic preparations of microbial origin and containing amylolytic and dextrinolitic enzymes instead of malt. They are prepared from the moldy mushrooms Aspergillus soris and Aspergillus awamori, grown on bran. Enzyme preparations are used to completely replace malt, as well as in a mixture with malt in various proportions.

Auxiliary materials in the production of alcohol are acids - sulfuric, hydrochloric and orthophosphoric, salts - superphosphate, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate; antiseptics - formaldehyde and bleach.

two or more components boiling at different temperatures. In alcohol production, distillation is the separation of ethyl alcohol from the mash along with volatile impurities. With simple distillation, that is, boiling the mixtures and condensing the released vapors, a distillate strength of 55.4% vol. can be achieved. To obtain condensate of a higher strength, it is necessary to carry out repeated (multiple) distillation.

To separate raw alcohol from the mash, columns equipped with plates are used, on each of which the mash is digested in countercurrent with steam.

Raw alcohol contains a number of impurities that differ in boiling point. Esters, aldehydes, methyl alcohol have a boiling point lower than ethyl alcohol, and esters and higher alcohols have a higher boiling point.

Impurities are secondary and by-products of alcoholic fermentation. Most of them have a harmful effect on the human body, and therefore the residual amount and composition of impurities affect the quality of rectified alcohol and liquor products produced from it. With a total content of impurities in raw alcohol up to 6 g/l, more than 50 compounds have been identified in their composition, which can be classified into one of four groups of chemicals: aldehydes and ketones, ethers, higher alcohols (fusel oils) and acids.

The production of rectified alcohol from raw alcohol is carried out in multi-column plants. Each column has its own temperature and pressure regime and performs a specific function of separating the water-alcohol mixture.

Wash distillation installation (consists of a column, a reflux condenser and a refrigerator. The column is divided by horizontal partitions (plates) connected to each other by overflow glasses. The column consists of two parts: the lower - mash A, the upper - alcohol B. The installation works as follows -

Scheme of the distillation plant:

/ - mash pump; 2— inspection lamp; 3 - capacitor; 4— mash separator; 5 - reflux condenser; 6 - refrigerator; 7— alcohol filter 8— rotameter; 9— control lamp; 10 — steam regulator; // - Column; 12 — stillage regulator

The mature mash is pumped into the reflux condenser 5, where it is heated to 70...75°C with alcohol vapor rising from the alcohol column, and flows by gravity to the upper plate of the mash column. Each plate maintains a layer of mash of 50...60 mm. Steam enters the column from below, which heats the mash to a boil, and the resulting mash vapors rise upward. Flowing from plate to plate, the mash gives off alcohol and, leaving column 72, does not contain alcohol and is called stillage. To completely evaporate the alcohol, the temperature in the lower part of the column is maintained at 103...104 °C.

Water-alcohol vapors rise up into the alcohol column, on the plates of which they are gradually enriched with alcohol. The vapors leaving the upper plate of the alcohol column enter the reflux condenser, where they partially condense, heating the mash. Liquid (phlegm)

returns to the column, and the vapors rise to separator 4 and condenser 3, the strongest - to refrigerator 6, where they are cooled to a temperature of 15...2 CGS, representing raw alcohol. The condensate is sent back through sight lantern 2 to column 77. The refrigerator and condenser are cooled with water. Raw alcohol from the refrigerator, passing through filter 7, control lamp 9, rotameter 8, enters the control device and then into the tanks of the alcohol receiving department.

Typical mash distillation units (BRU), used to separate ethyl alcohol from mash, include a number of technical solutions that do not allow deep purification of the final product from methyl, propyl, isopropyl, isobutyl, isoamyl alcohols, crotonaldehyde and some other impurities that have an extremely negative effect. on the organoleptic characteristics of alcoholic beverages and human health. Such solutions include the return of fusel alcohol and fusel oil wash water to the original mash, the supply of unpasteurized alcohol to the 37th plate of the epuration column, the use of Lutheran water for hydroselection and some others.

Several new technological schemes for liquor rectification have been developed and patented, allowing to significantly improve the organoleptic and analytical characteristics of rectified alcohol. At the same time, the productivity of the BRU increases by 10...15%, and the yield of the final product is 98...98.5%.

These indicators are achieved through the use of the method of deep hydroselection, preliminary purification of the mash distillate (before it is fed into the epuration column), distillation of intermediate fractions in the mash rectification system with the selection of the head fraction concentrate (0.4...0.6%), propyl alcohol concentrate (0.3...0.4%), the use of new BRU columns and other technological methods.

The proposed BRUs are successfully operating at several alcohol factories in Russia. A schematic diagram of one of these BRUs is presented in

Schematic diagram of the BRU for deep purification of alcohol

The installation includes a mash column 7 with a mash heater 4, a water section of a reflux condenser 5, a condenser 6, a carbon dioxide separator 2, a carbon dioxide separator condenser 3 and a dirty alcohol trap (not shown); epuration column 8 with reflux condenser 9, condenser 10, boiler 77 and softened hot water tank for hydroselection 7; alcohol column 77 with a reflux condenser, including mash 18 and water 19 sections, a condenser 20 and a fusel oil vapor condenser 27; methanol column 22 with reflux condenser 23, condenser 24 and boiler 25; accelerating column 12 with a reflux condenser 13, a condenser 14, a fusel oil vapor condenser 15 and a fusel washer 16.

The initial mash is heated in mash heaters 18 and 4 to 80...85 °C and fed into separator 2, where carbon dioxide containing vapors of volatile substances from the mash is separated from it. Carbon dioxide is purified by condensation of vapors in condenser 3 and removed from the distillation unit, and the resulting condensate is sent together with the liquid from the dirty distillate alcohol trap to the feed plate of the epuration column 8.

The separated mash is fed to the upper plate of the mash column 7, where ethyl alcohol and volatile impurities are boiled out of it. Steam from the upper plate of the mash column 1 is directed to the mash 4 and water 5 sections of its reflux condenser. A mash distiller from heat exchangers 4, 5, 6 feeds the epuration column 8, into the upper part of which hot water is supplied from tank 7 in such an amount that the alcohol concentration in the epurator is 16...22% vol.

This provides a strong increase in the evaporation coefficients of all ethyl alcohol impurities. The components of fusel oil and other intermediate impurities acquire a head character on all plates of the hydroselection zone of column 8 and are removed with a fraction taken from the liquid phase of the tray above the entry point of hydroselection water and directed to the lower, feed plate of the accelerating column 12. The fraction of head impurities is taken from the condenser 10 , is supplied to the upper power plate of the accelerating column 12.

The epurate is removed from the cube of column 8, which is sent to the feed plate of the alcohol column 17. In the column, the epurate is concentrated and the alcohol is purified from accompanying impurities. From the vapor phase of the lower 5...11th plates of column 17, a fraction of fusel oil is selected and sent to condenser 21.

The fraction of unpasteurized alcohol is removed from the condenser 20 and transferred to the upper feed plate of the accelerating column 12.

Rectified alcohol is taken from the liquid phase of the upper plates of the strengthening part of the column /7 and sent to the feed plate of the methanol column 22, which is intended for deep purification of the alcohol from methanol and head impurities. These impurities are taken with the methanol fraction from the condenser 24 and supplied to the upper feed plate of the accelerating column 12.

The accelerating column 12 has two feed plates, onto the top of which fractions from condensers 10, 20, 24 and alcohol traps of clean distillates are introduced, methanol and head impurities are boiled from them, concentrated in the concentration part of column 12, its reflux condenser 13 and taken from condenser 14 in the form of a head fraction concentrate (CHF). The fusel oil fraction from the condenser 21 and wash water from the fusel washer 16 are supplied to the lower feed plate of column 12, and intermediate impurities are separated from them by selecting fusel oil from the vapor phase of the lower 5...11 plates of column 12 and propyl alcohol concentrate from the liquid phase 18...20th plates of this column. From the liquid phase of the plates in the middle zone of column /2, a fraction of ethyl alcohol, purified from head impurities, is removed and returned to the mash.

Purification of raw alcohol from impurities to obtain rectified alcohol is carried out in rectification units.

Rectification is a multi-stage distillation. It is carried out with steam in columns consisting of multi-cap plates, which are more efficient in terms of sampling separation ability. Rectified alcohol, ethyl alcohol (head fraction), containing the main part of esters and aldehydes, that is, highly volatile components, and fusel oil, a mixture of higher alcohols that boil at a higher temperature, are obtained in rectification plants. In accordance with the progress of rectification, these impurities are called head, intermediate and tail.

Head impurities boil at a temperature below the boiling point of ethyl alcohol. These are aldehydes (formic, acetic, etc.), esters (ethyl formic, methyl acetate, ethyl acetate, etc.), methyl alcohol.

Tail impurities include impurities that boil at a temperature higher than the boiling point of ethyl alcohol. These are mainly fusel oils, that is, higher alcohols: propyl, isopropyl, butyl, isobutyl, amyl, isoamyl, etc. Tail impurities also include furfural, acetals and some other substances.

Intermediate impurities are the most difficult to separate groups of compounds. Depending on the distillation conditions, they can also be both head and tail. This group of impurities includes isobutyric ethyl, isovalerianoethyl, acetic isoamyl, isovaleric isoamyl ethers and other compounds.

Currently, the bulk of rectified alcohol is produced in continuous distillation plants, which consist of distillation and continuous distillation plants (three-, four- and five-column plants are used).

According to their purpose, columns are called:

♦ mash - for boiling down alcohol and mash;

♦ epuration - to isolate the head fraction;

♦ rectification - for purification and separation of rectified alcohol;

♦ fusel - for concentration and isolation of higher alcohols (fusel oil);

♦ final purification column - to obtain rectified alcohol of the highest quality.

Depending on the degree of purification, rectified ethyl alcohol is divided into:

♦ 1st grade (not used in the production of alcoholic beverages)

♦ "Basis"

♦ "Extra"

♦ "Lux"

♦ "Alpha"

Rectified ethyl alcohol must be produced in accordance with the requirements of GOST R 51652-2000.

In terms of organoleptic indicators, rectified ethyl alcohol must meet the requirements specified in Table 2.

Organoleptic characteristics of retified ethyl alcohol

To produce vodka, the quality of which meets modern requirements, with minimal costs for technological processes, it is necessary to use rectified ethyl alcohol with the absence of toxic impurities. In terms of physical and chemical indicators, rectified ethyl alcohol must meet the requirements specified in Art.

“Lux” and “Extra” alcohols are produced from various types of grain and a mixture of grain and potatoes (the amount of potato starch in the mixture should not exceed 35% when producing “Lux” alcohol and 60% when producing “Extra” and “Basis” alcohol) . “Extra” alcohol is intended for the production of vodka for export; it is obtained from grain in a healthy state.

Alcohol "Alpha" is produced from wheat, rye or a mixture of wheat and rye. It is allowed to establish requirements for the ratio of the composition of raw materials during production

Physico-chemical quality indicators of rectified ethyl alcohol in accordance with GOST R 51652-2000

alcohol for export in accordance with the terms of the contract.

Highly purified and 1st grade alcohol, depending on the raw material, is produced:

♦ from grain, potatoes or grain and potatoes;

♦ from a mixture of grain, potatoes, sugar beets and molasses, raw sugar and other sugar- and starch-containing raw materials in various proportions;

♦ from molasses;

♦ from the head fraction of ethyl alcohol obtained during the production of alcohol from food raw materials (OST 10-217-98 “Head fraction of ethyl alcohol”).

Alcohol accounting is carried out in anhydrous alcohol. The calculation is carried out as follows - the volume and temperature of the alcohol in the measuring cup is determined. A special hydrometer (alcohol meter) is used to measure the density corresponding to a certain strength. Using special alcohol meter tables, based on the alcohol meter readings and temperature, the alcohol strength (in % vol.) and the multiplier by which the volume is multiplied are found, and the amount of anhydrous alcohol contained in it is obtained.

GOST standardizes six main physical and chemical safety indicators, and the limit values ​​of mass concentrations of toxic elements are regulated by SanPiN.

GOST standardizes the maximum values ​​of mass concentrations (in terms of anhydrous alcohol) of acetaldehyde, fusel oil, esters, free acids, furfural and methyl alcohol.

The presence of furfural is not allowed at all, and the value of methyl alcohol in terms of anhydrous alcohol should be no more than 0.05%.

The shelf life of alcohol is not limited, but the conditions for its storage must be observed in accordance with the instructions for acceptance, storage, dispensing, transportation and accounting of ethyl alcohol, approved in the prescribed manner.

Authenticity and safety indicators are determined according to GOST R 51786-2001 “Vodka and ethyl alcohol from food raw materials. Gas chromatographic method for determining authenticity."

Packaging, labeling and storage of ethyl alcohol

Rectified ethyl alcohol is poured into specially equipped tanks or containers, barrels, bottles, canisters, which are closed with lids or stoppers that ensure tightness, sealed or sealed. Bottles are packaged in special boxes or baskets. The use of galvanized steel containers is prohibited.

The following markings are applied to the transport container: name of the manufacturer, its address; name of alcohol; volume, gave; gross weight in kg; barrel, bottle, canister and batch number; the inscription “Flammable liquid”; danger sign; classification code 3212, UN number-1170; designation of the standard.

Ethyl drinking alcohol 95% is poured into glass bottles with a capacity of 1.0, 0.5 and 0.25 dm 3, which are sealed with a cork stopper with a parchment paper lining or a polyethylene stopper, and then with an aluminum cap, on which the manufacturer’s stamp is applied and volume fraction of alcohol.

A label indicating the name of the product is placed on the bottle; brand; name and location (addresses) of the manufacturer, packer, exporter, importer; name of the country and place of origin of the goods; manufacturer's trademark (if available); strength (volume fraction of ethyl alcohol); volume, l; bottling date (on the back or front side of the label, on

caps or back labels or directly on consumer packaging in places that are easy to read); designations of regulatory or technical documentation in accordance with which the product is manufactured and can be identified; certification information.

Bottles of alcohol are placed in wooden boxes, on which the following information is applied with indelible paint: name of the manufacturer; name of alcohol; number and capacity of bottles; gross weight; bottling date, standard designation; "Flammable", "Top" and "Caution - Glass" signs.

Rectified ethyl alcohol in tanks and reservoirs is stored outside production premises, and in barrels, bottles and canisters - in an alcohol storage facility. Bottles and canisters are placed in one row, and barrels - no more than two in width and height in each stack. Ethyl alcohol is a volatile, flammable liquid, and according to the degree of impact on the human body, it belongs to the 4th hazard class. The maximum permissible concentration of alcohol vapor in indoor air should not exceed 1000 mg/m 3 . To avoid explosion, tanks, equipment related to the technology, storage and movement of ethyl alcohol must be protected from static electricity.

The shelf life of alcohol is unlimited.