Scottish distiller uses whisky to power electric car
A Scottish distiller is using whisky waste products to make a form of biofuel, which he is using to create electricity for his Nissan Leaf.
We've long believed alcohol was the solution to all society's ills and suddenly we have the proof to substanti... sumstanti.... to back these views up. Hic! Last week we learned that tequila could be used to power petrol cars and today our tiny minds were blown by word that a Scottish man is using whisky to power his Nissan Leaf.
The man behind this booze-related miracle is Mark Reynier, managing director of the Bruichladdich whisky distillery on the Hebridean island of Islay. He uses the distillery's waste products -- pot ale liquid and draff -- to make a form of biofuel, according to WhatCar, which he then uses to power an electric generator.
The generator produces enough electricity to run his entire distillery -- and there's enough spare juice to charge his Leaf. The best news of all: not a drop of whisky is wasted in the process. Oh, and it's really good for the environment, or something.
Prior to this awesome use of booze, Reynier had used a diesel-powered car, whose fuel had to be imported from the mainland at extra cost. These days, however, his eco distillery lets him live the carbon-neutral, zero-emissions dream. "Every day I drive 8 miles along the Atlantic coast in total silence on a single charge," he said. "It's glorious."
Although this is one of the first instances of a private individual using whisky to power an electric car, it may not be too long before we're all using the by-products of a fine single malt to fuel our petrol cars. The Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland has been given a UK government research grant of £500,000, plus another £260,000 from the Proof of Concept programme of Scottish Enterprise, to investigate the possibility of making the fuel available at gas pumps across the UK.
Now, if only someone could turn hangovers into free parking. Can we get a grant to research that please?