THE ALCOHOL INDUSTRY. PART IL. oF 
practice of removing a considerable amount of heads and tails 
will affect the composition of the distillates in a manner similar 
to that indicated by the results obtained at Nagcarlan, and the 
question of the disposal of these fractions must receive con- 
sideration. 
If these are returned to the following charge of tuba for 
redistillation, it is evident that the ester and to a lesser degree 
the higher alcohol and aldehydes content of the charge will be 
raised and the ensuing distillate will be somewhat higher in 
those constituents. This effect would be in a certain degree 
cumulative, and in actual practice the distillates would become 
more and more impure, although probably a point would be 
reached beyond which the contamination would not increase. 
With regard to, the esters, the consideration of which is of more 
importance than the other constituents, this difficulty could 
easily be remedied by the treatment of the heads with an alkali. 
Under normal conditions when 15 liters of heads are taken from 
a distillation of from 1,100 to 1,300 liters, this fraction con- 
tains about 25 grams of acids and 350 grams of esters, and 
would theoretically require about 123 grams of lime to effect 
the neutralization of the acid and the hydrolysis of the esters. 
For practical purposes a partial saponification, by which the 
major portion of the esters are eliminated, would be sufficient 
to prevent any increase of esters. We are of the opinion that 
were some such treatment given to the heads, this practice of 
returning considerable amounts of heads and tails to the next 
charge would work out in a satisfactory manner, and the desired 
_ result to be secured by a partial rectification of the vino de coco 
would not in any considerable degree be sacrificed, but this could 
only be proved by the results of continued distillery practice. 
The better procedure would be for the distiller to dispose of 
his heads to the rectifier, either directly or by working them 
into distillates to be sold as crude alcohol rather than vino de 
coco. 
A second distillation was made with 1,140 liters of fermented coco sap, 
15 liters of heads, 45 liters of tails, and 117 liters of residue in the still from 
the previous charge, making a total of 1,317 liters. The heads had been 
treated with 150 grams of lime and allowed to stand over night before 
introduction into the still. 
The following fractions were taken: 
Heads 15 
Beverage No. 1 165 
Beverage No. 2 (inclusive of Beverage No.1) 174 
Tails 37 
