POWER ALCOHOL: ITS POSITION AND PROSPECTS. 
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The value of any field crop for the production of alcohol is dependent 
upon the proportion of starch and sugar which it contains. Starch and 
sugar are indispensable elements of the food of man, both directly and 
indifectly, in the shape of animal foodstuffs. It has been rather aptly 
stated that alcohol is a parasite on the food supply, and if that is the 
case when the comparatively limited quantity required for potation is 
under consideration, the effect might well be very serious if for any 
reason alcohol had to be relied upon to replace any considerable propor- 
tion of the world’s supply of petrol. That aspect may, however, be 
neglected in favour of the more practical consideration of cost. 
Grain crops are the principal raw material for the production of 
alcohol at the present time. In the United States of America no less 
than seven-ninths of the aleohol produced is made from maize, and most 
of the remainder from molasses. In Germany, potatoes are principally 
used; in France, beetroots. The quantity of alcohol that any material 
will produce may be very easily calculated if the starchy or saccharine 
contents are known. While theoretically 169 imperial gallons of 95 per 
cent. alcohol (the strongest that can be obtained by distillation, and the 
strength most suitable for engine use) should be obtained from a ton of 
starch, and 159 gallons from a ton of sugar, the actual yield is only from 
85 to 90 per cent. of that quantity. The number of imperial gallons 
that any material will actually yield per ton may be ascertained approxi- 
mately by multiplying the percentage of starch and sugar contained in it 
by 1.43. Most grains contain about 65 per cent. of starch, and will yield 
at the rate of about 93 gallons per ton, or 2.5 gallons per bushel. 
Potatoes, according to their starch contents, will yield from 22 to 29 
gallons per ton. These figures give a basis for calculating the cost of 
alcohol, as far as the principal raw materials are concerned. 
It is very certain that if any great quantity of alcohol is to be pro- 
duced here, the only material which will be available without special 
cultivation is wheat, for the reason that it is very widely grown; and 
may be preserved indefinitely in good condition without greater care 
than dryness and protection from rats, mice, and insect pests, while all 
root crops are available for a short portion of the year only, and, after 
maturity, rapidly deteriorate, even when carefully stored. The same 
applies to fruits. Moreover, the cultivation of root and fruit crops 
involve greater cost for the quantity of starch and sugars produced. 
In all probability the price which has been current for some time 
past for wheat may be looked upon as the lowest that is likely to rule 
here for a very considerable time to come, viz., 5s. 6d. per bushel. © That 
price is much lower than the world’s parity has been. Producers are 
naturally not very well content to have to sell their produce, even for 
food purposes, at a lower price locally than they could obtain from 
others, and they probably would most strenuously oppose being com- 
pelled to subsidise in a similar way users of liquid fuel. 
Take, however, the price of wheat at 5s. 6d. per bushel. Wheat con- 
tains about 65 per cent. of starch, and will yield about 93 imperial 
gallons of alcohol per ton. This gives 2.2 shillings as the cost of one 
gallon of alcohol for wheat alone. Making will cost at least 4d., even 
for production on a large seale. Denaturing will cost 3d., at the least, 
making the total cost, without anything for deterioration of plant or 
other overhead charges, or profit, 2.78 shillings per gallon: 
C.2007.—4. : 97 
