4. Conclusions
This study was designed to identify specific steps in the drygrind
ethanol process, which cause significant changes in mineral
composition and phosphorus profile. Compared with ground corn,
all minerals increased in concentrations in downstream products,
but the extent of increase varied greatly with individual streams
and minerals. Fermentation caused most dramatic changes due
to starch depletion, but other steps, such as slurring/cooking, centrifuging,
and evaporation, also led to significant changes. However,
changes brought by these other steps were mostly physical
in nature. Among downstream products, thin stillage had the highest
concentrations of all minerals while distillers wet grains had
the lowest.