inspector071 - 28-2-2012 at 23:45
I recently acquired a Gomco 400 vacuum pump, the medical kind used often for stomach pumping. It has (fortunately) not been used for stomach pumping
and still works just fine. Having only used a central vacuum system before in the lab, I don't know if this pump will work for personal lab use. I
plan to do some vacuum filtration, distillation, and dessication. The specs for this model say it has a 1/20 hp motor and a vacuum range of 0-20 in.
Hg. I don't know exactly what the flow rate is for the pump, but I imagine it is in the range of 20-30 lpm. Will this pump be sufficient for
filtering, distilling, and dessicating?
MyNameIsUnnecessarilyLong - 29-2-2012 at 04:18
~20" Hg is about what water aspirators pull, which is typically fine for filtration. As for distillation it entirely depends on the solvent. Many
common solvents are better to distill at lower vacuums <20" Hg so the condenser water doesn't need to be cold.
Not sure what vacuum works for dessication. The deepest vacuum is obviously better but something around 20"Hg will probably work too, albeit slower.