Having some issues w/ N2 assist and I want to figure out whats going wrong.
First, I N2 into infinity tank w/ dip stick, material and collection are both chilled w/ valve between the two open. After I reach desired solvent amount I then push N2 directly after the inject valve on the tank. This pushes about 2/3 of solvent into collection before pressure equalizes between both columns. At this point I pressure relief on the collection and this helps push a little more solvent though but I am still stuck with about 1/3 of solvent in material.
I’m trying to follow your advice in your previous post but I cant quite follow. Are you recovering at the same time you inject into collection? If I relief from material column and not collection wouldnt that cause back-pressure? Should I be leaving the material to collection valve closed until the solvent fully soaks?
I use the excess pressure (nitro) in my tank to push the solvent once I have ran enough through the material. I have it hooked up like a hot loop bypass, but using the nitro, not hot vapor. After I know it has pushed some of the solvent out, I’ll use my nitro tank at the top of my column. I’ll vent out the nitro from my tank, when it gets low enough, I’ll vac out the remaining nitro. Open up recovery and use that pressure to yank the last of the solvent out.
When I start pushing into my collection, I open up the recovery valve letting vapor make its way to my condensing coil to ease pressure.
I will hit it with the nitro from the top of the column and get as much as I can. Once I get that done. I’ll close off everything. Remove remaining nitro, warming up collection then I recover.
Sounds like a pain, but all that takes 5-10 min tops and I recover close to a lb a min.
Before I changed it, there was a cmep hooked up to this system and the same run would take 2½ hours or more. Not including loading column and pulling vac. Retarded.
Can you explain the hot loop bypass and what that looks like?
“Once I know it has pushed some of the solvent out”
Out of the solvent tank?
“I’ll use my nitro tank into the column”
Material column?
“I’ll vac out the remaining nitro. Open up recovery and use that pressure to yank the last of the solvent out.”
You’ll open up recovery? If you are using negative pressure from solvent tank to pull solvent through material won’t that cause solvent to run through material and into tank? What pump are you using to vac out from solvent tank, cmep?
“I will hit it from the top of the column and get as much as I can”
I felt like this is what I did, pushed 40PSI through the material into collection and the pressures equalized which still left 1/3 of solvent in material.
I’m starting to think I need 2 coils instead of using 1 and switching out the lines after I reach collection.
Go to xtractordepot.com and look. Their tanks come with it. I hooked mine up with a vac takeoff valve.
I don’t use pumps, I nitro assist and recover passive. That answers all the questions you have, very vaguely, as I already gave a detailed description.
I don’t completely dry my column before opening it up and removing my sock. I can’t direct you on that. As I always have loss.
How much knowledge about making concentrates do you have? I would like a fully detailed explanation of your knowledge and everything you know?
You said you vacuum out out the remaining nitro after venting, which to my limited knowledge… can only be achieved with a pump, care to share what your vacuum source is if I am wrong.
I appreciate your detailed description, but I was asking for clarity since I do not fully understand what a hot loop is and your wording wasnt exactly easy to read.
Another thing that helped us evacuate material column is right when you are done running your solvent. Close down solevent side then open return line on collection pot and top of material column this allows the column the breath a dump the rest of your material out. It’s like if your straw is in water and you put you’re finger over the top and pull it out of the water the fluid will only fall when you relieve the vacuum from you’re finger.
The line coming off your recovery pump and running to the coil/heat exchanger is the “hot gas line” (HVAC term). This line goes through a heat exchanger (coil) so that hot gas turns again into a low pressure liquid allowing the refrigerant to be stored in our liquid reciever. I have a “T” that allows me to close the hot gas line just before the heat exchanger/ coil. The other end of that “T” goes to the top of my material column so that the hot gas leaving my recovery pump is running through the top of my column. This allows me to push hot gas through my column anytime with really no work. High temps=High pressure. The Trs 21 recovery pump runs really hot and does this well. This has worked well for me. It’s been a while but I have also recovered from the top of my column to alleviate the “head pressure” when running a hot collection pot and or “straw effect” when i feel solvent isn’t moving. Every system is different but for me these are a few things that have helped.
i personally have a quick release coupling at the top of my material collumn that i use for n2 and hot line pressure assists… i start filling my column with solvent, as soon as i see solvent come out the material column into the collection pot i close off the bottom of the column and fill tot he top, repull vac in collection chamber while material is filling and soaking, once filled and soaked for desired amount of time i will begin to drop the solvent from the column into the collection tank, once the flow starts to slow i will crack a bit of n2 into the top of the column to help keep consistent back pressure… once all solvent has stop flowing i close again and wait a couple minutes for residual solvent to make its way down the column and do another n2 pressure assist to get the last of the solvent out of the column and into the pot… i then do a quick head pressure release to purge out some of that n2 and i will then turn on my hot water and begin full recovery
So instead of putting a t could I just hook the hose up going into the recovery coil and hook it up to the top of my column and push that way? Does the hot gases pick up a lot of undesirables?
I use a jacketed recovery base that uses hot water. Could I use n2 to push into my recovery base and vent off the n2/ butane vapour or would I run into problems?
