I found this about possible separation of hexane from etho azeotrope. Someone smarter than me could correctly translate, but it seems possible.
What grade hexane are you using? Are you using the commercial isomer mix like they use with soybean oil?
acs reagent grade
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Could you please give me your thoughts on these steps Iām considering using to produce a higher quality crude?
Iām wondering if I may have the steps out of order and should be doing the degumming and T-5/T-41 scrubs before decarbing to avoid the burnt water solubles I normally encounter.
Hereās the steps Iām considering:
Extract with hexane
Centrifuge
Filter out sediment with 50l buchner
Recover hexane
Dissolve in methanol
Warm winterize
Cold winterize
Recover methanol
Decarb in SS pot
Filter out burnt material with metal mesh
Degum SOP columbo labs
Heptane/saline wash separatory funnel
Recover heptane
Cold winterize in methanol
Recover methanol
Heptane T-5 scrub
Filter over celite 545
Heptane T-41 scrub
Filter over celite 545
Recover heptane
Solvent punch out at 140c in beaker
Distill refined crude
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I found that decarbing under vacuum makes everything go much more smoothly in the distillation process. I can only get my condenser to 86c, but I noticed a huge improvement in smell quality of my final distillate when I decarbed under vac than when I decarbed in an open container. Less strain on my pump as well.
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I would like to start decarbing in my rotovap but it would cost a ton to get enough of that 100cst silicone oil to fill my 50l heat bath.
Iām planning on getting rid of my 50l rotovap soon and getting a 20l with dual condensers and receiving flasks and then will get the silicone oil to start decarbing.
avacado oil works fine
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Thanks for the tip, Iāll have to drain my water today and fill it back up a gallon at a time and see how much avacado oil I would need.
Just found 5 gallon here for $155, definitely a lot cheaper than the super lube 100cst silicone oil: 100% Pure Avocado Oil - 5 Gallon Pail
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Why not dump the rotovap wash into your spd bf. Spd bf into mantle. No vac, insert thermometer, and finish purging and decarbing this way?
This is how I do it currently. Takes me under 1hr.
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Iām currently getting a lot of burnt water solubles when I decarb and it would be a pain to clean out of my larger 20l spd boiling flask.
Also since Iām planning to do degumming, saline washes and heptane T-5/T-41 scrubs after decarbing I would just have to pour it out of the 20l spd to do more preprocessing.
I am thinking that would make sense for the final solvent punch out after I recover most of the heptane in rotovap. Now Iām wondering if could bring it the oil up to decarb temps a second time while using my rotovap diaphragm pump with my 20l spd to pull some more volitales out before switching to my Alcatel for the spd run.
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@IsolationChamberLab
Pro tip for you then. If you filter with enough t5 before you roto you avoid that burnt stuff decarbing, and if there happens to be any left anyways you know you didnāt use enough t5. Thatās what I do, t5,celite, t41 filter directly after extraction. Roto. Then hot scrub carbon (might actually do the t41 here instead with the carbon) and now gonna start degumming again at the same time. Last filter will have alumina and silica 60 to finish it and winterize after. Thatās the plan at least.
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Whatās T5?
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Is it the same process with hexane or different? Just curious not movin in on your turf 
As ethanol
Why not extract with hexane? Iām guessing youāre warm alcohol extracting? I hate the clumping shit that ethanol crude produces when decarbed
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If I were you Iād degum, and do the scrubs before winterizing. Youāre going to be doing alot of extra work you could avoid if you changed the order of your steps. Iād also decarb before anything, you wont have to worry about the clumping sugars if youāre using hexane
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See you do hexane-> methanol but I feel like methanol ā hexane is just as advantageous
close to my sop I roll with hexane and love my results
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