You could probably just do a thin layer of the pellets at the bottom of the cage and then do the rest Fitch or another safe paper substrate
Just out of curiosity,about how big is the wheel?It depends on how big Emily is,but for the average Syrian a 12 inch wheel(30.48 cm)is best.Basically,you just take her length overall and multiply it by 2 and that is about what size wheel you need at least.However,a larger wheel can be nice if possible but particularly large Syrians won't likely be able to get something that gives them much wiggle room at all.