Hydration of ethene :
The fermentation of sucrose is slow and does not produce enough ethanol. That’s why we need a different process.
Ethene is mixed with steam and passed over a catalyst consisting of solid silicon dioxide coated with phosphoric(V) acid. The temperature used is 300°C and the pressure is about 60 to 70 atmospheres.

CH2=CH2(g) + H2O(g) → CH3CH3(g