Has anyone worked with an Across International U15 homogenizer? I’d like to get my temp settings correct the first time if anyone has some tips. Thanks!!
then you’ll need to be more specific about what you’re using it for…
one can homogenize all sorts of things. not all require added heat.
your starting material,
the volume,
and your desired end product are all going to be relevant here.
Edit: I didn’t find the U15, but found the U10
given the style of homogenizer, one might posit that you’re trying to make a nano-emulsion to approximate “water soluble”.
If so, searching for that here & asking in those threads may be your best bet.
I certainly suggest you explicitly state your goal is not trying to mix terps with distillate if you want appropriate parameters for mixing oil and water…
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I have distillate that i’m trying to add some true terpenes to. I wasn’t going to use a cut agent. I was thinking of a 80 distillate to 20 terpenes for some carts. definitely going to do some testing. just don’t want the terps to darken up too much.
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that is super high I would try like 10-15%
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copy that. i’ll start lower. as for my temp, I was thinking 40C
There are definitely lots of opinions on diluent ratio and appropriate temperature for mixing terps into distillate.
@FloraplexTerpenes and @TrueTerpenes are on here, and have probably stated where they recommend starting.
40C sounds like a decent place to start.
Are folks actually using these for homogenizing distillate for carts? Not a game I’ve played, but ultra-sound just doesn’t strike me as the correct weapon here.
Actually saw a couple of dual axis centrifuges in a production facility that were used for this task a few weeks back. They got great reviews (they had two!!)
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terpenes are a solvent I dont know why people use homoginizers
I bought a 300$ one and used it once it darkened my oil
I use hot plate and stirbar on 80-90c depending
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Planetary centrifuges like @cyclopath mentioned are the best mixing option for high viscosities (due to lack of heat). cost usually is above 10k
Next comes your rotor/stator homogenizesrs. They require pretty hefty heating (60-80c for distillate) but operate quickly (<2 minutes). Cost is typically 1-3k
Then goes your utrasonic homogenizers. They are easier to clean, but disperse heavy metals into the mixture and require really low viscosity (80-100c)
Cost is 1.5-8k
Mag stirrers are for pre mixing. You will not get an even mixture with them, and you will spend 5x-10x as much time mixing. Cost is 3-5 hunnit
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A homogenizer is employed to ensure uniform distribution of terpenes throughout the batch processed. A hotplate stirrer doesn’t have the capabilities to achieve particle size reduction.
Have you, or anyone else, come across these units?
https://www.amazon.com/Solder-Paste-Mixer-Automatic-Soldering/dp/B00Y02OZAK
https://www.amazon.com/500g-1000g-Automatic-Soldering-Solder-assembly/dp/B01IHDKPBA
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I’m in for the reviews, these sound awesome
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I don’t know about those units specifically, but yeah those things work well. If your disty is solid at room temp they won’t mix it at room temp, but get it warm enough it will.
Edit for review: I like this type of machine a lot, it can mix ~900g of oil in 20 minutes of spin time (not including the time to warm the oil) once you have your SOP all figured out. RPMs, oil temp, oil viscosity, time, and ratios are the only real variables. So it’s not very hard to figure out.
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How hot does the oil have to be if it is your average 90% distillate and 5% terps?
In my experience potency does not reflect viscosity, how the material was processed prior to distillation is what matters more, and possibly what matters most is how the material was initially extracted and what the dominant cannabinoid is.
Edit: For the sake of saving us both some time; the type of terps and their viscosity is very important as well. If your distillate is what I would call “average” then you’ll need to get the oil up to at least 110F to keep it from taking hours to mix. There’s a range of ideal temperatures, times, and RPMs, but go too far in a direction on any of the factors and either it won’t mix properly, or you’ll lose terps.
So, as much as I wish there was a realistically “standard” OP there isn’t. I regularly have to adjust parameters based on whether I’m using HTE or distilled terps and at what ratios.
Pro-tip: A viscometer is your friend in this scenario if you want reliable homogeneity.
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Damn so it sounds like it cant outpreform a homogenizer then.
Why don’t you heat the distillate to 60-80c to reduce your mixing time?
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I didn’t say you shouldn’t 
I just can’t list my parameters here.
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How are you losing terps in sealed containers?
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You don’t lose them when it’s sealed. If you dump 25C terps onto 80C oil, stuff happens.
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