[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by whereisbrianV.

Grey Wolf, how exactly are you venting all of the gas pressure from the dry ice? The alcohol will burn through dry ice quickly creating a great deal of pressure.

Through the three way valves to atmosphere with the design posted.

[whereisbrianV.]

Those PRV'S are going to see some work. Hope everything is vented to outside the extraction room.

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by whereisbrianV.

Those PRV'S are going to see some work. Hope everything is vented to outside the extraction room.

Good point. All vents to the exhaust system, including the three way vent valves and the PRV's.

Ostensibly with the open three way valves venting any pressure, the PRV's won't activate.

[whereisbrianV.]

That's good to know. We have had issues with sharing vent valves with process valves in the past. Some inspectors will look right over it while other will demand a dedicated vent circuit. Regardless with a competent operator it will never be a issue.

[einsteinlady]

how Many same gallons of ethanol will you wash different material with?

Ie.. you start with 5 gallons ethanol. Wash 5lbs material with it, squeeze material to reclaim ethanol.

Now whatever ethanol’s lost, would you top off to make 5 gallons ethanol again and wash another different 5 lbs material in same ethanol? How many times can you do this? 2:1 5:1 10:1?

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by einsteinlady

how Many same gallons of ethanol will you wash different material with?

Ie.. you start with 5 gallons ethanol. Wash 5lbs material with it, squeeze material to reclaim ethanol.

Now whatever ethanol’s lost, would you top off to make 5 gallons ethanol again and wash another different 5 lbs material in same ethanol? How many times can you do this? 2:1 5:1 10:1?

ASSuming a practical saturation of 33%, and a 25% yield from prime bud, 5 lbs of material would yield about 567.5 grams of oil.

5 gallons of ethanol with a specific gravity of .79, would weigh about 14,954 grams, so that would be about 3.8% saturation.

That suggest about 8.7 times, but consider loss of efficiency as the ethanol saturates and the target material left behind in remaining alcohol unless you are following with a clear rinse.

[duke0fdank]

have u considered saturating ur cold ethanol with co2? it can make the ethanol less polar and less viscous. colder would be better lik -70c

[Gray Wolf]

Originally Posted by duke0fdank

have u considered saturating ur cold ethanol with co2? it can make the ethanol less polar and less viscous. colder would be better lik -70c

The dry ice is bubbling CO2 through the ethanol and saturates it.

-50C is a minimum and when chilling ethanol directly with dry ice, the temperature is typically closer to -70C. Unless the column of material is at -70C or below, the temperature won't stay that low once the flow starts.

Attached is a chart showing dielectric constant of ethanol at temperature.

[WaterFarmFan]

Originally Posted by Gray Wolf

The dry ice is bubbling CO2 through the ethanol and saturates it.

-50C is a minimum and when chilling ethanol directly with dry ice, the temperature is typically closer to -70C. Unless the column of material is at -70C or below, the temperature won't stay that low once the flow starts.

Attached is a chart showing dielectric constant of ethanol at temperature.

Hey GW. I have always tried to avoid getting dry ice directly in etoh wash and instead chilled glass or stainless containers. Do you think there are any direct benefits to extract terpenes with using carbonated ethanol? Since I bulk remove etoh under vacuum with a mantle and condensers, I always thought the bubbles from c02 would cause more violent blow back, where liquid from boiling flask can enter receiver flask.

[WaterFarmFan]

Originally Posted by einsteinlady

how Many same gallons of ethanol will you wash different material with?

Ie.. you start with 5 gallons ethanol. Wash 5lbs material with it, squeeze material to reclaim ethanol.

Now whatever ethanol’s lost, would you top off to make 5 gallons ethanol again and wash another different 5 lbs material in same ethanol? How many times can you do this? 2:1 5:1 10:1?

I personally use fresh ethanol for all flower runs. Reclaimed alcohol from flower run is used for trim run. Reclaimed alcohol from trim run is used for cooling baths and cleaning glassware. You certainly can use it more but I am pretty anal. I think GW previously described the process (of repeatedly reusing reclaimed alcohol) as slowly making canna-flavored (terpenes and other organics with a boiling point less than etoh) Gin.

If you are wanting to do runs of 5 gallons, which is a lot, you should be looking at the rotovaps, for safety alone. The big ones are expensive, but efficient. It is either more money or more labor depending on process.