Why No Electric Schwimmwagen

[freebeard]

Low maintenance, silent power and duck boards. What's not to like?

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by freebeard

What's not to like?

Had it been EV-only, range anxiety would be a matter of concern. Who knows if some random wild fruits would be totally unsuitable to brew moonshine and use it as an alternate fuel if need arises?

[Piotrsko]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

Had it been EV-only, range anxiety would be a matter of concern. Who knows if some random wild fruits would be totally unsuitable to brew moonshine and use it as an alternate fuel if need arises?

Cheaper and easier to use grain with higher yeild. Not as tasty however in the first pass through the still. Fuel can also use the methanol first pass instead of discarding it and the tails collection of assorted flammable esters. Shouldn't drink that though.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by Piotrsko

Cheaper and easier to use grain with higher yeild.

Not sure if finding a suitable stock of grain on the wild would be so easier than finding some random berries or other fruits suitable for alcoholic fermentation.

Not as tasty however in the first pass through the still. Fuel can also use the methanol first pass instead of discarding it and the tails collection of assorted flammable esters.

Some mistakes while doing an alcoholic fermentation can lead to the methanol being produced instead of ethanol.

Shouldn't drink that though.

If I were considering it as an attempt to make an alcoholic beverage, I'm sure I would do it with proper care to prevent methanol contamination, which wouldn't bother me to the same extent in case of usage as a motor fuel during an emergency.

[Piotrsko]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

Some mistakes while doing an alcoholic fermentation can lead to the methanol being produced instead of ethanol.
If I were considering it as an attempt to make an alcoholic beverage, I'm sure I would do it with proper care to prevent methanol contamination, which wouldn't bother me to the same extent in case of usage as a motor fuel during an emergency.

If you make alcholic beverages, you always get methanol and other esters, every time. Wine has a small methanol component in every bottle, just small enough to not do much harm drinking a liter or so. Some of the plant products contain a sugar that yeast makes into it.

In the wild, anything with a sugar component (tastes sweet) will make it if you aren't worried if its methanol or ethanol. Straw bales comes to mind.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by Piotrsko

If you make alcholic beverages, you always get methanol and other esters, every time.

I'm aware of this happening with distillated beverages such as whisky, rhum and cachaça.

Wine has a small methanol component in every bottle, just small enough to not do much harm drinking a liter or so.

Maybe it's so low that the substantially higher ethanol content prevents it to do actual harm. Once a chemistry teacher said drinking ethanol was actually the best way to reduce the damage caused by an accidental intoxication with methanol.

Some of the plant products contain a sugar that yeast makes into it.

Maltodextrin?

In the wild, anything with a sugar component (tastes sweet) will make it if you aren't worried if its methanol or ethanol.

That's exactly why I was considering fruits as a feedstock, since most taste quite sweet. I have even seen some industrialized foods and beverages with apple juice added in order to decrease the usage of refined sugar.

Straw bales comes to mind.

The so-called 2nd-generation ethanol is often pointed out to require more processing in order to break down some of its polysaccharides in order to brew ethanol out of them.