Scottish scientists turn whisky by product into sustainable fuel

By Shubhangi Singh

January 4, 2024, 10:19 am SGT

2 min read

Scottish scientists turn whisky by product into sustainable fuel

Picture Credit: Pinterest

A breakthrough discovery at Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh Campus in Scotland has potentially revolutionized the future of sustainable fuel production by utilizing wastewater from the whisky industry to generate green hydrogen.

This innovation, spearheaded by a team of scientists, introduces a method to convert distillery wastewater into an eco-friendly energy source, unlike fossil fuels, which emit carbon upon combustion.

The researchers’ development involves specialized materials capable of harnessing wastewater from distilleries to produce green hydrogen, an environmentally friendly alternative fuel.

Typically, green hydrogen is generated using freshwater, consuming a staggering estimated 20.5 billion liters annually. However, the team aims to leverage the roughly one billion liters of wastewater generated yearly by the distilling industry for green hydrogen production.

Dr. Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu, a materials scientist from the School of Engineering and Physical Sciences at Heriot-Watt University, highlighted the critical need to reduce freshwater consumption and other natural resources.

Explaining their research focus, he emphasized the use of distillery wastewater for green hydrogen production, employing a straightforward process to eliminate waste materials present in the water.

Their pioneering work centers on a nanoscale material, a nickel selenide particle, roughly one ten-thousandth the width of a human hair. This particle facilitates the substitution of distillery wastewater for freshwater in the green hydrogen production process.

Pitchaimuthu revealed that the nanoparticle treated the wastewater, yielding quantities of green hydrogen comparable to or slightly higher than those produced using freshwater in research experiments.

The research, featured in the Royal Society of Chemistry journal, Sustainable Energy & Fuels, and authored by Pitchaimuthu’s PhD student, Michael Walsh, underlines the colossal potential of using distillery wastewater for sustainable hydrogen production.

Highlighting the substantial impact of their innovation, Pitchaimuthu emphasized that utilizing industry wastewater could significantly diminish the substantial freshwater footprint linked with green hydrogen production.

He further stressed the importance of employing global resources more sustainably to foster the creation of clean energy.

Looking ahead, the research team at Heriot-Watt University aims to advance their research by developing their electrolyser prototype and scaling up the production of nickel selenide nanoparticles, marking significant strides toward a greener, more sustainable energy future.