Although ethanol is produced by the fermentation of biomass-derived sugars, the ethanol in the fermentation broth (roughly about 3% to 10% by volume) must be ultimately separated and purified in a water-free form (99.99% purity), in order to be used in gasoline blends. Traditionally, the separation of ethanol from the fermentation broth involves an energy-intensive step of distillation. During distillation (a major cost component in ethanol production), the broth is heated to boiling to vaporize the ethanol and the ethanol vapor goes to a condenser where it it condensed back to its liquid form. The use of membranes to separate ethanol from fermentation broths, are said to have lower energy costs compared to distillation, but its major drawbacks are the durability and stability of the membranes. Conventional inorganic ceramic membranes are said to be easily degraded on long exposure to water. Recently however, a new type of hybrid inorganic-organic type of ceramic membrane has been developed from scientists at the University of Twente (Netherlands). The membranes were found to be effective in separating and drying biofuels with “unprecedented hydrothermal stability”, enabling “energy-efficient” molecular separations up to 150 ^oC. A report about the description and performance of the membrane can be found at the Chemical Communications website (URL above)..