
Powdered Alcohol  - pwg
http://www.bevlaw.com/bevlog/alcohol-beverages-generally/powdered-alcohol
======
chm
Under atmospheric pressure, ethanol melts at -114C. One way to "powderize" it
is to make it into an ester, which in this case would be an ethyl ester[1,2].
Hydrolysis of the ester will occur under acidic conditions which would be
brought about by dissolution of carbonic acid. The latter decomposes in acidic
conditions to form CO2 and 2 protons. Ester hydrolysis in acidic conditions is
reversible. This would explain why they claim their product to contain ~50%
ethanol by weight: they need a lot so that the equilibrium concentration is at
around 5%.

Assuming my guessing is correct, the innovation here is in the ester. They
must have used a "safe, food grade" carboxylic acid to pass certifications.
All the powder contains is probably:

\- Food dye

\- Flavor

\- Carbonic acid

\- Some ethyl ester

EDIT: A human stomach is also acidic. Ester hydrolysis in alkaline conditions
isn't reversible (saponification). If our stomach were alkaline, drinking
Palcohol would be very dangerous. The alcohol content in the stomach would
skyrocket even if it were low in the drink.

[1]: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ester](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ester)
[2]:
[http://www.chemguide.co.uk/organicprops/esters/hydrolysis.ht...](http://www.chemguide.co.uk/organicprops/esters/hydrolysis.html)

~~~
chm
I can't re-edit my post. Here's a related patent[1] which they might own. The
ethanol is apparently trapped by cyclodextrins, I was wrong.

[1]:[http://www.google.com/patents/US3795747](http://www.google.com/patents/US3795747)

~~~
aray
I'd doubt this because the rate of de-complexation is usually pretty low
(which is why it's useful as a mechanism for slowed drug delivery -- the
cyclodextrin-complexed compounds move around much more easily than the
usually-hydrophobic drug de-complexes from the cyclodextrin).

Edit: reading the application -- this doesn't appear to be cyclodextrins, but
some configuration of small-chain length glucose polymers (mentioned 1-20 with
an average of 10).

~~~
bertm
It looks like the powder is made by a physical process. Just as water absorbs
into a towel. Ethanol apparently absorbs into dextrin powder and stays as a
dry solid.

From the patent:

EXAMPLE II A 150 g. amount of the bulked 5 DE. MOR-REX dextrin of Example I
was blended with 250 g. of 90% by weight water) ethanol in a Hobart mixer at
speed No. 2 with a wire whisk for 2 minutes. A dry-tothe-touch free flowing
powder was obtained that contained 56.2% ethanol and 8.3% moisture. The bulked
ethanol containing flowable powder was packaged in air-tight foil envelopes
and after 6 months storage had retained its flowability characteristics and
its original alcohol content.

EXAMPLE III A teaspoonful (3 g.) of the product of Example II, when added to
10 ml. of water produced a clear, sparkling low-viscosity alcoholic solution
with a nonsweet strong alcohol taste.

------
beloch
I confess, I've accidentally inhaled a bit too hard from a glencairn glass
full of scotch tilted a bit too far towards my nose. That sucked pretty hard,
but inhaling this powder would probably be a _lot_ worse. Also, this product
seems to be targeted at the same demographic that posts youtube videos of
themselves trying to snort cinnamon.

I predict hilarity.

~~~
zymhan
I predict overdoses. Something tells me that it'd be way easier to consume too
much alcohol too quickly if it's in powdered form.

~~~
gus_massa
The concentration of alcohol in the common beverages is approximately: beer:
5%, wine 15%, vodka 50% (the exact numbers varies a lot).

It’s not possible to “dehydrate” the pure 100% alcohol to reduce its volume.
It must be trapped with some kind of additive to make it look like a powder.
Also, the powder has small holes, so it’s ¿20%? air and a few % of additives
and the rest is alcohol. Let’s just assume that it’s 100% alcohol to simplify
the discussion.

So, 1 glass full of “powdered alcohol” will be equivalent to at most 2 glasses
of vodka (3 glasses of weak vodka, 1.5 glasses of strong vodka). It will not
be equivalent to 10 glasses of vodka.

(With the same calculation, it will be equivalent to 7 glasses of wine or 20
glasses of beer. But people usually drink vodka in smaller glasses and beer in
bigger glasses.)

Anyway, given the abundance of morons, I also predict that there will be
overdoses, but this “powdered alcohol” is roughly as dangerous as vodka.

~~~
habosa
The added danger comes from the inhalation risk. Alcohol straight to the lungs
will get into your blood stream easier and it takes surprisingly little
alcohol in your blood to kill you. If you calculate the lethal BAC (0.4)
against your body mass/volume you'll see its a very small quantity of alcohol
in the blood.

~~~
peejaybee
I think the inhalation risk is overstated here. This stuff is 12% alcohol by
volume according to the label. You've got about 5 liters of blood. If all the
alcohol goes straight to the bloodstream, to get a BAC of .4% (.004) you're
going to need to snort (5000 * .004 / .12) = 166 milliliters of this stuff.

------
politician
From Palchohol's FAQ, "5\. How is it made? If we told you, we'd have to shoot
you. We are in the process of patenting it and it is currently patent
pending."

So, guess I'll just wait to read the patent then.

This product is way too "bro" for me. It's like Soylent for Jocks.

~~~
gadders
But drug legalisation is a good thing?

------
mrmondo
Website is down - From wikipedia:
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_powder](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_powder)

~~~
nitrogen
I've wondered if a similar process could produce "dehydrated water". Powdered
water that could be liberated by adding a small amount of some catalyst could
be better for transportation since it wouldn't slosh around in a storage tank.

~~~
arjn
What ? Are you serious or is this some kind of joke that I'm missing.

"dehydrated water" !!

~~~
Dylan16807
I see you ignored the second sentence of the post. Try reading it, it answers
your question.

~~~
zymhan
No, it just states a scientific sounding premise for the idea, but it doesn't
make the concept any less absurd.

~~~
Dylan16807
The idea of trapping water is not absurd. The name is intentionally absurd as
a joke. The joke name is explicitly overruled by the description. All you need
is a chemical that holds water in some manner and releases it in the presence
of a catalyst. How is that concept absurd?

~~~
zymhan
Hydrous compounds have existed for ever, but that doesn't mean they're "dry
water."

------
knodi123
I read a summary of this product somewhere else. "For when you're going into a
place that doesn't allow you to bring alcohol from outside, but doesn't mind
large quantities of mysterious white powder."

~~~
M2Ys4U
I'm sure that it'd be way easier to conceal half a dozen sachets of this stuff
than a six pack of beer.

------
drakaal
They should Call it VIP.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN635IDZcrU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sN635IDZcrU)

