Moti, just to add an idea to get cheaper vacuum, to use the gravity not
only a big vacuum pump.
In industry, to keep under vacuum something the usual way is to use a 11 ö
11.5 meter tall cylinder full of slow running water (called here "water
leg") usually a steel tube of 1 to 5 inches in diameter with a box or tray
full of water at the bottom and some vacuum device connected to the head
(with valves) to eliminate the non condensing gases ( CO2, air ) usually a
vacuum pump or steam operated ejector, with running water inside tubes as
heat exchanger conneted to the "water leg", to condense the water/ethanol
vapours. The ejector is a Venturi's pipe, that could work with any running
fluid even with cold water from a small centrifugal pump.
The level of vacuum obtained depends on the water temperature used for
cooling (the lower the better) and the pump's or ejector's flow rate
capacity, I add a kind of drawing, hope it goes fine.
Best regards
Juan
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De: motie_d <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
A: biofuel@yahoogroups.com
Asunto: [biofuel] Re: ethanol distillation
Fecha: S‡bado 9 de Febrero de 2002 2:43 PM
--- In [EMAIL PROTECTED], "kirk" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >Are you pumping the liquid solution, or
> just the vapors?
>
> Just the vapor is moving across. You have space over the liquid and
the
> "air" is connected to a cold space that is lower so the cold air is
stable.
> As the alcohol becomes "dew" the partial vapor pressure renews the
> concentration. A refrigeration system has its evaporator as the
insulated
> trap and the condenser heat is put back into the brew. Or the cold
trap is
> cooled by ambient or cold water.
I have a big 2 cylinder air compressor I'm thinking of using. It has
an upright 60 gallon pressure tanks, that I think would be an
adequate condensor. I'll draw the suction from above the liquid in
the fermenter, possibly through another tank(propane) then through
the compressor itself, to the pressure tank. I will have one tank
under vacuum, and the other pressurized. The vacuum tank(propane
tank) should catch mostly water vapor. The rest should condense under
pressure in the air tank. Liquids will go to the bottom, and
compressed CO2 should remain a gas in the top. The CO2 can be routed
back into the fermenter.
Any further distilling can be done with either a Potstill or Reflux
column.
In my neck of the woods the great outdoors
> gets very cold in winter. Enormous heat sink.
I'm in Minnesota, so I know what you mean there. It's too cold to
start this project this winter. It gets cool enough at night in the
summer time.
Thanks for your input!
Motie
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