Low-Temperature Processing of Wheat for Bioethanol Production: Part II. Exploitation of Endogenous Wheat Enzymes (1). Michaela Miedl and Susanne Cornfine, The International Centre for Brewing and Distilling, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland; Kenneth A. Leiper, The North British Distillery Co. Ltd., Edinburgh, Scotland; Malcolm Shepherd, Green Spirit Fuels Ltd., Templecombe, Somerset, England; and Graham G. Stewart (2), The International Centre for Brewing and Distilling, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland. (1) Some of the data contained in this article were presented at the World Grains Summit: Food and Beverages held in San Francisco, CA, September 17–20, 2006. (2) Corresponding author. The International Centre for Brewing and Distilling, Heriot-Watt University, Riccarton, Edinburgh, EH14 4AS, Scotland. E-mail: <G.G.Stewart@hw.ac.uk> J. Am. Soc. Brew. Chem. 65(4):192-196, 2007.

There is still great scope for developing an efficient and inexpensive pro­duction process for bioethanol. This article describes the further develop­ment of a production process for bioethanol using wheat as a feedstock. Development of the process followed mashing and fermentation experiments using wheat with and without the use of added enzymes. These studies were supported with industrial-scale trials. Results showed that exogen­ous enzymes are not required when producing bioethanol from wheat and that this process can be scaled up without difficulty. These findings have allowed the further development of a proposed low-cost production process with wheat as the raw material that will be of use in the United Kingdom and other parts of Northern Europe. Keywords: Bioethanol, Enzymes, Fermentation, Mashing, Wheat