Artificial Sweetener Has Higher Ethanol Production Compared to Organic Carbohydrates

Abstract

Yeast is used in industrial settings for baking and brewing. Carbohydrate type can be an important factor in ethanol production. The purpose of this study is to determine the best carbohydrate for ethanol production in brewing industries. We hypothesize that dextrose will be the carbohydrate that it is most efficient at producing ethanol due to the fact that it is the most accessible for cell use. We tested four different sugar substances: sucrose, dextrose, fructose, and Sweet’N’Low artificial sweetener to see which one produced the most ethanol.  We tested the efficiency of ethanol production in different types of sugars to see which one would be best for use in brewing and baking. With an ethanol probe we tested the amount of ethanol over durations of 5 minutes. We found that the artificial sweetener created the most amount of ethanol. This does not support our hypothesis.