Jan 25 2009
West Central Ethanol
The first industry on the line going from west to east is West Central Ethanol. In Minnesota the ethanol industry is loved or hated depending on which side of the fence you fall on. But there is no doubt that for a short line, the ethanol business is welcome. The plants come in many shapes and sizes, From old breweries ( like in St. Paul MN) to new structures large and small. For my plant I used the kraft mill of the Walthers paper mill
The grain silos are tanks from the kit that are cut in half and stacked on top of each other. The truck unloading shed is from the Walthers grain elevator kit. The tower is also a Walthers kit with scratch built piping to the silos.
The loading platform is made from Evergreen shaped plastic and parts from my scrap box. There is also a track for the loading of the ddgs ( dried distillers grains). This is done inside the building. I made a roof over the ethanol loading area even though the plants around here have no roofs.
The main part of the building is the kraft mill kit that has been flattened out because the layout is only 8″ wide at this location. The tank on the corner is for gasoline. The plants ship out the ethanol with just enough gas mixed in so it can’t by consumed by humans. Along with the plant there is a small yard to store empty cars. Over all the plant takes up about 8′ of real estate and is a great source of traffic.
