White Lightning White Lighting Cooper Hartzog (hartzogcd@appstate.edu) Justin Nichols (nicholsja1@appstate.edu) Summer Bridge 2013 Appalachian State University White Lighting

Overview This PowerPoint will be a brief overview of moonshine. We will focus on four main points: The History Of Moonshine How It’s Made Associated Dangers Why It Can’t Easily Be Stronger Than 190 Proof. Moonshine site from the 1960’s in Tazewell County Virginia. http://www.whitakerridge.us/moonshine.html

The History Of Moonshine How Moonshine Got Its Name It came from the British vocabulary It comes from the fact that work was done at night underneath the moon light Start of NASCAR Bootleggers souped-up their cars They did this to outrun the police The winner of the first official NASCAR Race was a bootlegger He used his car hours before the race to make a delivery

What is Moonshine? Moonshine is liquor made illegally avoiding federal taxes The production also is not overseen by health organizations Ethanol is the key ingredient Ethanol alcohol is what all liquor, wine, and beer is made from http://thejumellesproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/moonshine_bottle.jpg

Moonshine Distillation Process http://static.ddmcdn.com/gif/moonshine-diagram.gif http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2011/06/tva-to-build-nukelettes.html

Dangers Methanol Exposure Always a chance that a batch could contain methanol Discard the foreshot to eliminate any potential methanol Do this because methanol has a lower boiling point than ethanol Severe exposure can cause death Methanol exposure is linked to the loss of vision and sometimes blindness

Often used Additives For Kick For Color Carbide Chlorine bleach Embalming fluid Lye Rubbing Alcohol Wood Alcohol Burnt sugar Charred oak Charred peach pits Iodine Poke root berries Tobacco Leaves or spit

Why It Can’t Easily Be Stronger Than 190 Proof In mixtures of water and ethanol an Azeotrope is formed An azeotrope is when the mixture of the two molecules has a lower boiling point than the two molecules independently This happens at a mixture of 95.5% ethanol and 4.5 % water An azeotrope can be broken by using different methods By using a MSA (Material Separation Agent) Pressure swinging Other dissolvable agents (calcium oxide and potassium acetate) http://www.chemguide.co.uk/physical/phaseeqia/nonideal.html

So, Why not? This is to much work for moonshiners for and extra 4.5% ethanol This would also cause the price of the moonshine to increase drastically If moonshiners did use MSAs or the other dissolvable agents buying enough for large batches would cause suspicions by the government

References Grabianowski, Ed.  "How Moonshine Works"  11 November 2004.  HowStuffWorks.com. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible- innovations/moonshine.htm>  23 July 2013. "How to Make Moonshine Safely." 10 Most Important Safety Tips for Moonshiners. Clawhammer Supply, 15 Jan 2012. Web. 28 Jul. 2013. <http://www.clawhammersupply.com/blogs/moonshine- still-blog/5204442-10-most-important-safety-tips-for- moonshiners>. Kosaric, Naim, Zdravko Duvnjak, Adalbert Farkas, Hermann Sahm, Stephanie Meyer, and Dieter Mayer. "Ethanol." Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. 2002. Rowley, Matthew. Moonshine!. New York: Lark Books, 1997. 1-174. Print.