The University of Central Florida has taken a leap through time and devised a method of harvesting ethanol from garbage items. Sound familiar? Yes, this scenario is not unlike the DeLorean in the popular science fiction movie, Back to the Future. It may be true that the future of clean ethanol lies in vehicles fueled by trash, except perhaps without the flux capacitor.

The method was developed by Henry Daniell and is expected to be significantly less expensive than current ethanol production methods. The process involves the use of naturally derived enzyme “cocktails” to break down non-food products such as orange peels, sugar cane, switch grass and even straw into sugar, which is then fermented into ethanol. This process will emit a much lower percentage of greenhouse gases during production and use than running vehicles on corn ethanol, gasoline or even electricity.

The benefits of this method are plentiful; it sides-steps many concerns over decreasing food-supplies by only using waste products. According to Daniell, “In Florida alone, discarded orange peels could create about 200 million gallons of ethanol each year.”

Additionally, the enzymes used to break down the waste products are all found in nature and can be harnessed in order to facilitate the breakdown process. Daniell has thoughtfully incorporated the use of Tobacco plants for the production of the enzymes necessary for the process. He stated that this was done because Tobacco is a non-food crop which has a high per acre energy yield and also because he hopes that increased demand for the plant from the auto-industry will decrease the demand for its recreational use in cigarettes and other tobacco products.

While the system needs further evaluation and testing before it can become fully commercialized, it does suggest a revolutionary trend in powering vehicles in the near future.

Discussion question:What other kinds of plentiful waste products might this system be able to use for the creation of ethanol?

News Article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100218090814.htm

Science Article : https://www.researchgate.net/publication/41012234_Chloroplast-derived_enzyme_cocktails_hydrolyse_lignocellulosic_biomass_and_release_fermentable_sugars