I have been considering adapting a new procedure for ethanol extraction using the Delta CUP-15 - spray washing. I imagine this can be facilitated by spinning the centrifuge at 200-300 rpm with the drain port open while pumping a steady stream of solvent into the center port. I believe the benefit would be a shorter dwell time for the solvent (less heat transfer to the chilled ethanol), and the minimizing of exposure to material inside of the plant (less chlorophyll retention), essentially stripping the desired resin from the surface of the material.
My biggest concerns are uneven or incomplete solvent distribution throughout the bag (might consider adding a spray ball or putting a vertically oriented, evenly perforated tube down the center of the bag to facilitate fluid distribution.
I know that pinnacle makes a basket/sprayer system that operates on the same principle, however I have not heard any feedback or seen any discussions on the benefits/drawbacks of spray washing (in a centrifuge or basket) especially as it compares to fully soaking the material in ethanol.
Delta offers a spray nozzle and open topped bags for just this purpose. I guess they might have stopped shipping it because nobody was using it.
I’d say you’re right on target. Ask delta for a replacement spray head, or design one yourself (you pretty much described theirs).
A closed bag will fail. As will a couple of other configs I’ve seen tried. There is deltas route, and maybe another. I’ll let you know if I find it.
I’m curious about the potential in this. You’d assume you could run with warmer solvent, as well you’d probably be able to tell when the run was done simply by the color of the output.
