I know that there isn’t a definitive solution yet. Thanks to the efforts of the community, there are some things that appear to work. I don’t mean to insinuate that there are any final answers.
My point above was more about how refreshing it is that a gas supplier is openly suggesting that extractors should proactively pre-treat their solvents. That’s what I was getting at.
Love this, Mike!
I don’t think anyone here who is capable of critical thinking and who has done any reading on the subject would accidentally be fooled into believing we have the answer, yet. Yes, Cat is in sales, which most of us also already know, and her job is to connect folks with even potential solutions, if that is what they are seeking. Those who cannot be bothered with the science and who want to try the best solutions we have at the moment would do just fine to listen to Cat’s advice… Heck, she and I regularly collaborate to ensure her advice is as accurate and current as possible. No harm, no foul.
As for the 10k reward, I don’t deserve it… certainly not yet! There are also several pioneering and industrious souls from whom I have gleaned valuable evidence for my ideas, so even if they wanted to give it to me, I would prefer to split it with whomever actually goes to the site and makes good crystals, like John requested for the reward… then donate or use my cut in solving other problems folks are having. Still, I appreciate the vote of confidence! 
It’s truly a team effort between many of the linked names, as well as yourself. If none of these parties shared their experiences and troubles with this issue, we’d all be in the dark, some like myself, far more than others. It’s that willingness to communicate and crowdsource issues and solutions, even as the industry continues to consolidate and become higher stakes financially, that allowed this issue to be vivisected.
As a spectator, I’d argue this issue right here may be one of the largest tackled by the industry, and the most silent at the same time. It definitely is emblematic of what this forum can achieve when motivated.
We have def figured out how to mitigate and still make diamonds that dont medusa. That being said I would prefer to just utilize our old sop for making diamonds as the local regulators are not fans of pentane or honestly anything other then butane. The 13x or 10a seems to help but not 100% of the time. We have not been able to water wash our LLE our butane. You would think one of these gas suppliers would be doing this on their own
How much do you distill per day? Or whenever you distill
100 lbs a day on avg
Shouldn’t be that hard to wash with additional AA
Activated Alumna? How is everyone water washing? Do you need a c1d1 reactor?
What I have been sitting her wondering lol
Thanks for asking that…
@Photon_noir would you recommend adding Activated Alumina or Alumicel A to use in addition to the 10a MSB?
I’d personally rather use pentane for post processing rather than bother LLEing solvent prior to extraction, but I guess it depends on the equipment available to the operator.
I make better diamonds in butane. For me to match the same quality. I have to take just as long. Which is why I don’t see the benefit
Definitely Alumicel A (acid-activated alumina), especially for treatment-resistant batches of butane!
Definitely read the full post.
That said, when I get approval to tackle this, I’m going for alumicel A and molecular sieve 10A in a column during distillation.
Just heard a report from a customer who experienced fast crashing issues. Things started off fine, but as they got to the end of the tank they started to have issues. This tells me that there is a likelihood of stratification inside the cylinder, with the culprit being less dense and residing in the upper layers, but not the lower layers. Since the diptube pulls from the bottom first, it would make sense that our target is on the top.
Just wanted to share in hope of sparking some ideas.
I’ve really gotta respect a solvent company that acknowledges the issue.
I’ve wondered if the impurity is mostly immiscible and is floating on the top of the tank. For the NH3/amine hypothesis, the postulated impurity is polar while our butane is nonpolar. Seems to support the idea that they are mostly not mixing, until distilled into your working tank.
Makes sense. When we crystallize at hot temps the impurity is probably on top so it won’t get crystallized in. When it’s cold it makes sense that it’s condensed in the solution and gets trapped in. However this brings up one question:
If the “Medusa” only happens with new gas not used gas…then why are the guys that were using the “old SOP” before not using used gas to perform said SOP and avoid the “Medusa”?
Thank you for that anecdote, @SolventDirect_BigM ! That is, indeed, VERY interesting to hear! I hope other folks can confirm or refute the observation! So I ask @everyone:
For those of you who have allowed your gas to rest for some time and only use perhaps the bottom half of it, have you found that run to give better results than runs using ALL of the gas or the top half of it?
Hey @Waxplug1 ! Good to see you! Afaik, the medusa & fast-crash continue to happen with used butane as much as they do with fresh butane. The culprit appears to follow the gas throughout its liquid and vapor phases.