When considering which chemical compound has been most beneficial to mankind, historical benefit and future uses, as well as current applications, must be considered. Ethyl alcohol has an incredible historical importance, stretching back to antiquity. It is an essential commodity in modern society, enhancing the quality of life for nearly all members of society, Furthernore, it holds great promise for the future with new uses being discovered every day.
Some time between 6000 and 8000 B.C., the Mesopotamians discovered that fruit juices or grain which had been stored under certain conditions, when drank, brought about a feeling of merriment. For Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Assyrians, Sumerians, and others, these drinks containing alcohol were an important food product - beer was invented before bread. It is thought that cities were first built in permanent locations so that grain could be grown, stored, and brewed into beer. Alcohol is an excellent source of food energy, preserves the food from decay, and "for hundreds of years ... thick, nourishing beer was an important item in the daily diet of Europeans. Water supplies were usually polluted in that era, and beer was a much safer drink." 1 Genghis Khan's armies were fed partly on fermented mare's milk as they rode throughout the Mongol Empire.
In the early 12th century, an unknown Italian alchemist first distilled pure ethanol. Though it looked like water, it tasted strongly and burned with a hot, blue flame. By the 16th century, the process of distilling alcohol was perfected. We owe the process of distillation, used to separate crude oil and many other vital compounds, to a process developed for alcohol. In 1828, Henry Hennel, and G. S. Sérullas (separately) produced an organic compound (ethyl alcohol) from non-organic compounds. This put an end to the theory of vitalism, which had been misleading scientists for centuries. During both World Wars, ethanol was an important chemical used for the production of explosives and as an emergency fuel.
Alcohol is the oldest and still the most common and widely used drug in the world. It was the only relief from agony for many surgery patients before anesthetics were invented. It also served as an antiseptic, and still does. Doctors have known for many years that moderate consumption of alcohol reduces LDL cholesterol, thereby lowering the risk of heart disease.
We have developed many uses for alcohol in industry. It is used in the production of explosives, plastics, dyes, industrial resins, drugs, cough syrup, mouthwash, furniture finish, adhesives, and cleaners. It is an excellent solvent, used in all laboratories, and will mix with water and oil. This makes it useful for extracting scents for perfume and flavouring for food. It is even used to produce rocket fuel, "Without alcohol man might not have reached the moon. Without the huge tax revenue gathered by governments from the sales of alcohol, he may not even have been able to afford the journey in the first place." 2
As we use up our limited supplies of petroleum, we are looking for a fuel to replace it. With only minor modifications, internal combustion engines will run on ethanol. Ethanol fuel is already available in Canada blended with gasoline. Other countries have already converted to ethanol or are trying to. Kenya and Brazit are examples, "in the face of the OPEC crisis, Brazil has adopted a policy of utilising surplus vegetable matter of all kinds to produce [alcohol] on a very large scale by fermentation." 3
Ethyl alcohol definitely deserves a place in the Chemistry Hall of Fame, just as it has created its place in history. As an important food product for most of history, a source of scientific discovery, an effective drug, an industrial chemical and solvent, a religious symbol, or a social tradition, ethanol is truly without equal.
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