Whisky lovers have another excuse to enjoy a dram -- scientists in Scotland on Tuesday unveiled a biofuel to help power cars developed from the by-products of the distillation process.

Researchers at Edinburgh Napier University have developed the biofuel and filed a patent for the product, which they said could be used to fuel ordinary cars without any special adaptations.

The biofuel, which has been developed during a two-year research project, uses the two main by-products from the whisky production process.

These are "pot ale", the liquid from the copper stills, and the spent grains called "draff", as the base to produce butanol which can then be used as fuel.

"The new biofuel is made from biological material which has been already generated," said Martin Tangney, who is leading the research.

"Theoretically it could be used entirely on its own but you would have to find a company to distribute it."

He added the most likely way the biofuel would be used was by blending five or 10 percent of the product with petrol or diesel.

"Five or 10 percent means less oil which would make a big, big difference," he said.

The biofuel "potentially offers new revenue on the back of one Scotland's biggest industries," added Tangney.

Richard Dixon, the Scotland director of environmental campaign group WWF, praised the new product, saying unlike other biofuels it could be made without causing "massive environmental damage to forests and wildlife.

"Whisky-powered cars could help Scotland avoid having to use those forest-trashing biofuels."

earlier related report
1,000 fuel-efficient Volvo buses to Panama
Panama City (UPI) Aug 17, 2010 - Panama has ordered 1,000 fuel-efficient Volvo buses in a major revamp of its urban transport system aimed at cutting congestion and air pollution.

Celebrated in 2003 as the American Capital of Culture along with Curitiba in Brazil, the capital city is now described by residents as a ghost of its former self because of heavy environmental degradation, auto traffic chaos, crime and other urban problems.

The order for the Volvo was seen by analysts as part of a plan to discourage residents from bringing their cars into the overcrowded downtown.

Volvo said in a statement it won the contract because its B7RLE bus chassis is noted for low fuel consumption. A high level of availability of the model was also a decisive factor in Panama's decision to purchase as many as a thousand of the buses.

"This large contract is evidence of the superior quality of the brand's vehicles, and reinforces our leadership in organized urban mass-transit systems, known as Bus Rapid Transit," said Luis Carlos Pimenta, president of Volvo Bus Latin America.

Panama City is implementing a program to modernize the city's transportation system, and the 1,000 Volvo buses will operate on routes in all city districts. Panama has more than one million inhabitants, and more than a tenth of them live in the city.

Panama's transport consortium Transmassivo signed the order which involves partnership with Colombia's Fanalca Group. Fanalco owns bus operators in several Latin American countries and represents one of Volvo Buses' largest customers.

The chassis for the city bus will be built in Boras, Sweden, while the bodies will be manufactured in Colombia by Superpolo, a joint venture between Marcopolo and Fanalca.

Pimenta said the buses will be equipped with an automated gearbox, automatic braking system, air conditioning, disk brakes and electronic suspension - an advanced kneeling system that lowers the bus side to facilitate boarding and disembarking for passengers.

"Our vehicles' low fuel consumption and the high level of availability logged by the B7RLE fleet purchased by the Fanalca Group in previous years in other cities of Latin America were decisive in the company's decision to once again purchase Volvo chassis," Pimenta said.

Production of the chassis will commence this month and will continue till the second half of 2011. The first complete buses will be ready for delivery to Panama City at the end of this year, Volvo said.

Volvo Bus Corp. is one of the world's largest manufacturers of large buses and coaches. It is part of the Volvo Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks, buses and construction equipment, drive systems for marine and industrial applications, aerospace components and services.