Ahh screw it, it is too cold outside to do anything, and what fun is only testing a middle of road application, so I will go straight to the hard stuff - 190 proof grain alcohol. A torture test of -78C(ish) will soon commence...
Just curious, when did own/use a chugger? Was yours inline or center input? I read center has better flow than inline. I have seen two versions used on ebay, and I wonder if you had an earlier model? No idea if it will last or replicate results at higher viscosity.
This is the first external fluid pump that I have ever owned, but I have gone through more a dozen of the submersible ones for hydroponic applications. This thing puts all of those to shame.
I had the in-line model CPSS-IN-1 (115v) from Amazon. I ordered it sometime around July/August 2017
what kind of setup are you using for the terpene evaporation? Vacuum steam distillation? rotovap?
Typically a flooded section pump, that requires liquid in it to function.[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Interesting. I wonder if the inline is more difficult to prime? For initial testing, I added a clear piece of silicone tubing to the top of the output, so that I could see when primed. I had to slightly lift my reservoir, but the air inside the pump immediately cleared.
Interesting. I wonder if the inline is more difficult to prime? For initial testing, I added a clear piece of silicone tubing to the top of the output, so that I could see when primed. I had to slightly lift my reservoir, but the air inside the pump immediately cleared.
After a quick ponder of using 190 proof alcohol next to motor with open slots spinning at 3500 RPM, I decided that some basic precautions were in order. First, I secured the pump and raised it ~2" on a footer board to be more inline with the reservoir output. With a bit of spare aluminum sheeting and some foil tape, I made a covering that should prevent any accidental etoh from directly entering the motor.
I need to properly secure my hose fittings, but it is ready to test, and I will be straight to a torture test of 4-6 hours at -78C. If it is going to break/fail, I want it to happen sooner than later.
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Hey GW. Not sure how it is technically cooled, but I can see lots of copper through wide slits along the back, and there is a fan at the very end to blow heat away from unit.
I did do some testing over the weekend, and it was not a success, but the pump did not fail (yet). The simple answer is that this pump is a bitch to prime. I had etoh with dry ice chilled down to -75C, but it simply would not prime. It would cycle 10-20ml every time that I turned pump on, but that its, and it would bubble after shut off indicating not being primed. The -75C temps did not seem to impact pump versus -50C.
My solution is to raise the reservoir around ~18 inches and really create some pressure that will force any trapped air to clear pump and thus prime. Need to be confident in my fittings to avoid leaking. Will pick up more dry ice and test tomorrow.
Hey GW. Not sure how it is technically cooled, but I can see lots of copper through wide slits along the back, and there is a fan at the very end to blow heat away from unit.
I did do some testing over the weekend, and it was not a success, but the pump did not fail (yet). The simple answer is that this pump is a bitch to prime. I had etoh with dry ice chilled down to -75C, but it simply would not prime. It would cycle 10-20ml every time that I turned pump on, but that its, and it would bubble after shut off indicating not being primed. The -75C temps did not seem to impact pump versus -50C.
My solution is to raise the reservoir around ~18 inches and really create some pressure that will force any trapped air to clear pump and thus prime. Need to be confident in my fittings to avoid leaking. Will pick up more dry ice and test tomorrow.
Good luck getting it to prime when the alcohol is carbonated. The CO2 bubbles will make it next to impossible to prime. I use a chugger pump to push ethanol through a coil submerged in dry ice and alcohol. It takes longer to get down to temperature but it keeps those pesky bubbles out of my coolant.
Now that makes some sense about the co2 bubbles. Will try to see if additional head pressure can overcome it. Thanks.
Good luck getting it to prime when the alcohol is carbonated. The CO2 bubbles will make it next to impossible to prime. I use a chugger pump to push ethanol through a coil submerged in dry ice and alcohol. It takes longer to get down to temperature but it keeps those pesky bubbles out of my coolant.
Put a lid on whatever vessel you are using to mix the dry ice and alcohol, and the CO2 will give you whatever pressure you need. However, that is only good for filling your column, not continuously recirculating, which you need to get down to temperature. Trust me on this one. All you need is a 1/2" x 50' coil, a chugger max pump, igloo drink cooler, and dry ice. This will get a 6" x 48" jacketed column down to -40 easily.