Bentonite clay

Makes sense… i didnt really like the t5 or ac with celite funneled … and that was when waxplug was only letting out small hints… i tried few different combos before he dropped b80 and celite as his go to…

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What is the exact process of swelling the bentonite clay? Anyone have any videos or literature?

Would be cool to be able to buy any old food grade bentonite and prepare the clay at home.

It seems that the most common way to activate the clay is to mix it into an organic acid, allow it it to react for some amount of time (24 hours in this literature), followed by removing and heating the clay to 200C to dry it out. It is then ground to appropriate size. This literature says that various acids can be used, acetic, phosphoric, oxalic, but that oxalic acid creates the most active sites. Doesn’t seem like its too hard to do, as long as you source your starting clay responsibly. here is the article

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/306346539_Surface_activation_of_fuller’s_earth_bentonite_clay_using_organic_acids

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So I have been offered the following options for bentonite:

-Activated Bentonite
AC Bent Oeno J is a sodium-calcium bentonite,
with extremely low iron content, to be used
especially for the treatment of grape must. It gives
an early and lasting protein stabilization in the must
stage and could be fermented together with the wine
easily.
Main characteristics
• Best protein absorption action from the beginning
• Remains in the must during fermentation.
• Easy and quick dispersion
• Low inert matter content
• Deposit volumes reduced to a minimum
• Extreme low iron and arsenic content
The high quality of the bentonite used ensures
protein stabilization and proper clarification.
The low iron content doesn’t lead to an additional
blue finishing demand.

-Bentonite for ultra filtration
AC BE N T O E NO UF is a sodium-calcium bentonite,
with the following characteristics:
• good deproteinising action
• easy dispersion
• low inert matter content
• deposit volumes reduced to a minimum
• the smell and taste of the wine are
not affected

-Natural Sodium Bentonite
Didn’t get more information on this

It’s from a company that supplies the food and wine industry.

The information doc which I received for 2 of the variants doesn’t mention anything about the PH, so I’m not sure about that.

Does anyone have any idea which one will be most applicable for to use as a adsorbent to remove water solubles?
The end product is crude.

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This is the way.

Any acid works, it is just important to control the pH and not going below pH 4 (or not to far for no too long, followed by convenient washing).

But what is difficult in this process is recollecting the clay at the end. At small scale, centriguation works well, but high force are needed to separate well the clay from the solution.

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I think I have described the big lines of the process in this thread.

But this is starting with a spent activated bentonite.

If starting from the natural one,one needs to get rid of the accessory minerals as well (bentonites are generally 70-80% clay). There are various methods, including physical and chemical treatments. In addition to saline and acid treatment, reducer and oxidants may also be used to get rid of oxides or organics and carbonates…

At small scale, a “simple” elutriation is, I think, the best method (and very underground in that topic). This is not difficult at all, and not tedious. It is also only physical. Still, I only did small scale (system for 10-20g/week) for month, running parallel systems. I find it much superior that iterative centrifugation or simple sedimentation to get pure clay minerals, efficiently, and with much less work (once set, it kinda works alone in the background). This is something still to be developed at mid-large scale…

It depends also on what is in the starting bentonite. There are different sorts. One should prefer to start from Fe poor and clay rich ones. The Wyoming type (not necessary from Wyoming, the greek ones are similar) seems to be the best candidates.

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Howe much T5 should i use for a 1 end 1/2 2 pond rune???

Could you try to say that again?

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Is he talking about a volvo on a drag strip ?
1 T5 and 3 bar boost should do a 1/2 2 pond run.

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1.5 - 2lb run

What is your extraction solvent?