Sciencemadness Discussion Board - Distilling Ethanol

Distilling Ethanol

Manifest - 2-1-2013 at 13:27

Hello, I am obviously new to this so go easy on me(please?)

I'm looking to distill ethanol from a mash which I had fermented for use as a fuel and a solvent.

However, I do not have alot of equipment to do so.
A setup that had worked for me was a pint plastic milkjug where I poked a hole in the lid and stuck a pipe in it.
I put the milkjug in a waterbath with a pot lol
This was not efficient at all

I got a drop every minute or so which sucked.

However. It was flammable.

I figured a better setup might be to get a pot and pour my solution in it and then float a bowl in that and finally to turn a lid upside down and put ice on it.

While this was (a bit?) faster it was not much better.
And it wasn't flammable which defeated the overall purpose.

I have maybe got a meter of plastic tubing(9mm wide)

Can somebody help me with a better setup? Pictures would be really helpful. Thank you

smaerd - 2-1-2013 at 13:44

Using a plastic container to heat from is a bad idea. I have seen very ghetto designs of ethanol stills that utilize pressure cookers and copper tubing with copper condensers. I have no comment as to their efficacy as I haven't bothered doing it and didn't care to look into it.

What you are referring to is called a WOK still, this will concentrate alcohol. It's remniscent of how some emergency solar stills work. There's plenty of information about these on-line. It may be the cheapest route for big brews, but I wouldn't think of it as the most efficient nor the safest. Then again I'm not seasoned on ethanol distillation..

The real question is, what percent alcohol are you trying to achieve? I have turned 20% mouthwash past 50%(tested via flame outside) with one run through a vigruex condenser(all glass set-up). I believe people usually use the solutions specific gravity to determine actual percentage, this would be something worth looking into. It still contained the volatile additives however that's another matter altogether. I only needed it to clean some glass-ware and didn't feel like buying any liquor, so it sufficed my needs.

Also if you are planning on making a liquor of any kind for drinking beware of methanol(a natural toxic compound formed from fermentation that made the old moonshiners go blind), and learn to remove the majority of it before indulging.

Manifest - 2-1-2013 at 13:52

Quote: Originally posted by smaerd

Using a plastic container to heat from is a bad idea. I have seen very ghetto designs of ethanol stills that utilize pressure cookers and copper tubing with copper condensers. I have no comment as to their efficacy as I haven't bothered doing it and didn't care to look into it.

What you are referring to is called a WOK still, this will concentrate alcohol. It's remniscent of how some emergency solar stills work. There's plenty of information about these on-line. It may be the cheapest route for big brews, but I wouldn't think of it as the most efficient nor the safest. Then again I'm not seasoned on ethanol distillation..

The real question is, what percent alcohol are you trying to achieve? I have turned 20% mouthwash past 50%(tested via flame outside) with one run through a vigruex condenser(all glass set-up). I believe people usually use the solutions specific gravity to determine actual percentage, this would be something worth looking into. It still contained the volatile additives however that's another matter altogether. I only needed it to clean some glass-ware and didn't feel like buying any liquor, so it sufficed my needs.

Also if you are planning on making a liquor of any kind for drinking beware of methanol(a natural toxic compound formed from fermentation that made the old moonshiners go blind), and learn to remove the majority of it before indulging.

I'm not interested in moonshine.
I'm looking for alcohol as a project to maybe stick in a lawnmower and mess about and use it in lamps for heating stuff.

I cannot get access to copper tubing, it's far too expensive.
I'm looking to achieve 40 and up at least for flammability.

nor can I afford a condenser or stillhead.
So I need something like I had except more efficient.

I was wasting all that gas for about 5 ml of alcohol in 10 minutes -,-

smaerd - 2-1-2013 at 13:59

if you only want 40% or 40 proof a WOK still would suffice your needs. Not too sure about putting the stuff in a lawn mower though. 40% also will not burn in a lamp. It would likely be cheaper to just buy denatured alcohol or rubbing alcohol for such purposes. I invite you to do some more research on this, as I'm sure there's likely already dozens of threads on ethanol distillation on this forum.

Manifest - 2-1-2013 at 14:13

Quote: Originally posted by smaerd

if you only want 40% or 40 proof a WOK still would suffice your needs. Not too sure about putting the stuff in a lawn mower though. 40% also will not burn in a lamp. It would likely be cheaper to just buy denatured alcohol or rubbing alcohol for such purposes. I invite you to do some more research on this, as I'm sure there's likely already dozens of threads on ethanol distillation on this forum.

I need a higher concentration then :/
When I did the WOK still thingy I didn't even get 40%. It wasn't even flammable.

I already checked. There is no threads on it.

Manifest - 2-1-2013 at 15:58

Quote: Originally posted by smaerd

Lolwut
I used the search function and searched for ethanol and not much came up.

Thank you though, I'll look through some stuff although they don't give me what I initially wanted. A decently efficient distillation setup.

mnick12 - 2-1-2013 at 23:40

Back in junior high for a science fair I managed to make about 500ml of alcohol (not sure of the concentration but it burned) from a still I made out of two paint cans some poly tubing and some copper pipe.

A good resource for this type of thing is youtube.

Hexavalent - 3-1-2013 at 03:18

Quote: Originally posted by Manifest

I used the search function and searched for ethanol and not much came up.

Our search function on the forum is not very powerful, and tends to be quite ineffective. In the future, you may wish to consider Googling for "search term + sciencemadness".

Quote: Originally posted by Manifest

Back in junior high for a science fair I managed to make about 500ml of alcohol (not sure of the concentration but it burned) from a still I made out of two paint cans some poly tubing and some copper pipe.

Did you not distill it in a glass apparatus afterwards?

[Edited on 3-1-2013 by Hexavalent]

Manifest - 3-1-2013 at 14:55

You guys don't know how much this frustrates me...

My newest setup! Tada
I have tried and tried and got nothing. I got a few droplets on the side of the straw.

The plastic is pretty resistant.

Please don't laugh......

Photo on 2013-01-03 at 22.49 #2.jpg - 72kB

[Edited on 3-1-2013 by Manifest]

vmelkon - 7-1-2013 at 19:36

You should distill multiple times. This means, filter your mash and then distill. Use that to distill again. Use the result to distill again.
Every time you distill it, the purity goes up and then you hit the azeotrope limit (95% by weight, 89% by molarity). In order to get past that, use a drying salt. I used CaCl2.
It is important to have some tools. A thermometer to measure the vapor temperature. A scale and graduated cylinder to measure density (or use that hygrometer or whatever it is called). When you know the density, you can look at a chart to know the purity. I just googled for the chart.

Here is my video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_Nv1gnzYWs
Note: I use lab glassware.

Manifest - 8-1-2013 at 11:53

Quote: Originally posted by vmelkon

You should distill multiple times. This means, filter your mash and then distill. Use that to distill again. Use the result to distill again.
Every time you distill it, the purity goes up and then you hit the azeotrope limit (95% by weight, 89% by molarity). In order to get past that, use a drying salt. I used CaCl2.
It is important to have some tools. A thermometer to measure the vapor temperature. A scale and graduated cylinder to measure density (or use that hygrometer or whatever it is called). When you know the density, you can look at a chart to know the purity. I just googled for the chart.

Here is my video : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_Nv1gnzYWs
Note: I use lab glassware.

Nice video, however I don't have any equiptment at all and I'm not shelling out £80 for a distillation kit.

Anyway. I need to ask, why do you distill multiple times? if you keep an eye on the temperature you should only need maybe 1 more distill.

Also you said it took you 1 year to make 2 litres??? Bullcrap.

blogfast25 - 8-1-2013 at 12:54

Quote: Originally posted by Manifest

Nice video, however I don't have any equiptment at all and I'm not shelling out £80 for a distillation kit.

If you're not willing to invest something you're unlikely to ever make any decent alcohol at appreciable rates. The Tinkerwebs are chocker with good designs for decent stills that will yield 95 % ethanol from fermented mash but they all cost something, even home built.

Placcy things held together with glue, paperclips and staples will quickly collapse and be a liability.

Manifest - 8-1-2013 at 13:00

Quote: Originally posted by blogfast25

Quote: Originally posted by Manifest

Nice video, however I don't have any equiptment at all and I'm not shelling out £80 for a distillation kit.

No, I am looking for some ideas with some PVC pipe.
Not glue, paperclips and staples.

I'm not looking to make a brewery here. I am simply looking for a simple design that somebody else might have made themselves.

blogfast25 - 8-1-2013 at 13:15

Well, here's something I cobbled together for distilling acetone out of nail polish remover:

http://www.sciencemadness.org/talk/viewthread.php?tid=13959#...

Things like that one inevitably start leaking after a while but it was fun while it lasted!

[Edited on 8-1-2013 by blogfast25]

vmelkon - 8-1-2013 at 15:21

Quote: Originally posted by Manifest

Also you said it took you 1 year to make 2 litres??? Bullcrap.

It's true. I was making small runs.

Why you need to distill in steps? I guess this depends on how efficient your vigreux condensor is. Some people fill it will glass beads but I don't have any.

Here is a document I had downloaded that details building a still with copper pipes and various stuff. It is very efficient according to the doc.

Attachment: Ethanol_still_design.pdf (1.4MB)
This file has been downloaded 409 times

cyanureeves - 8-1-2013 at 16:32

i made more than two pints with a tin gallon can and 3 pieces of straight aluminum tubing no more than 10" long.i connected the tubing with silicone tubing i got from old coffee makers.all coffee makers use silicone tubing for the hot water and the tubes dont have to be coiled either just suspended and hung in the air with speaker wire. the undoubtedly poisonous ethanol smells delicious like rum and is more flammable than everclear.

blogfast25 - 9-1-2013 at 12:52

Quote: Originally posted by vmelkon

Here is a document I had downloaded that details building a still with copper pipes and various stuff. It is very efficient according to the doc.

I've seen that design before. It's one of the best on the net.

Manifest - 10-1-2013 at 09:08

Quote: Originally posted by blogfast25

Well, here's something I cobbled together for distilling acetone out of nail polish remover:

http://www.sciencemadness.org/talk/viewthread.php?tid=13959#...

Things like that one inevitably start leaking after a while but it was fun while it lasted!

[Edited on 8-1-2013 by blogfast25]

Thank you!
This is exactly what I wanted. Cudos to you!