Alcohol from Wheat

Prior to the emergency situation brought about by the war, wheat had not been used to any significant extent as a raw material for the production of industrial alcohol. Consequently, when the Federal Government decided to use surplus stocks of wheat in the alcohol program as a basic material in lieu of corn, it was necessary to devise methods of processing 

Thorne et al. (129) reported a method for the evaluation of malts for the production of alcohol from wheat. The interesting feature of their paper is the conclusion that malt is best evaluated by an actual fermentation test. They support this by showing that there is only a limited correlation between the conventional Lintner values and actual alcohol production. While it is helpful to know the Lintner value, a precise evaluation of the malt can be made only from the fermentation itself. Details of a suitable test are given in the publication. 

It is generally felt that the most desirable way to use wheat is in admixture with corn or milo. Mixtures of grains lessen the difficulties peculiar to wheat, and plant operation on such mixtures is not significantly different from that on corn alone. 

Disposal of Spent Grains from Wheat Fermentation and Value as Compared with Corn 

Since disposal of spent grains is so important in the operation of a distillery, the use of wheat required investigation of feeding value of residues from the fermentation. Corn residues have had a place in mixed feed for many years and may be taken as a standard by which to evaluate other distillers grains. 0. P. R. D. therefore sponsored a study by the University of Wisconsin (contract W. P. B. 70) to demonstrate the comparative value of wheat and corn distillery residue grains. 

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Gliadins or Prolamins.— These are peculiar to plants, and occur largely in the seeds of cereals. They are insoluble in water and in 90 per cent, alcohol, but have the special property of being soluble in 70-80 per cent, aqueous alcohol. They are not coagulated by heat. Important prolamins are hordein, from barley zein, from maize and gliadin, from wheat and rye. 

Glutelins.— Vegetable proteins found chiefly in cereal grain. They are insoluble in water and aqueous alcohol in all concentrations, but may be dissolved by dilute acids or alkalies. They are not coagulated by heat. Glutenin, from wheat, and oryzenin, from barley, are the most definite members of the class. 

By eombining fatty alcohol from vegetable oil (e.g. from palm kernel or coconut) and glucose from starch (e.g. from potato, wheat or corn) as raw materials it has for the first... 

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