Butane extraction and recycle system

  • Thread starter Graywolf
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Graywolf

Graywolf

1,597
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Hi ya'll!

I notice that DK has beaten me to the punch posting our new butane extraction and recovery system and a hearty salute to their design.

I took a little different approach, and mounted a stainless extraction column above electro-less nickel coated paint pressure pot. I pull a vacuum on the overall assembly after filling the column with plant material, and then either flood the column with butane and let it soak, or push pull butane through the column and collect it in the pressure pot.

After soak, I open a dump valve between the column and the collection pot, after which I pump off the butane as a gas, leaving behind the oil in the paint pot.

Cycle time is 49 minutes to extract ~300 grams of material, in the 1 1/2" X 48" column. Depending on starting material, that usually yields from 4.5 grams (fan leaves) to 54 grams (bud) of vacuum purged oil.


To accomplish that cycle time, I had to add heat tape to the collection pot and set the recovery tank in an ice bath.
 
Recovery tank cooling
New vacuum gauge
Final configuration
Butane recovery
M

MTgrower

247
0
Very nice guys. So cool to see people doing shit right.

Very nice.
 
H

hmusic

41
6
Sick!

Where did you get the cylinder? Are you using N-Butane in it? Is there anything special about it and it's use for spec gasses? Are you using a liquid syphon in it? I need to buy one so I can transfer my N-Butane out of my rented cylinder.

What's the thickness of your material column?

I'm a little confused about a couple things I see pictured. Can you explain the functions of all the connectors/hoses (especially the function on the yellow contraption on the chair)?

This thing is awesome! I'm now having buyer's remorse about buying my Tamisium TE175. :(

Can you tell us the total build cost? Also, would you consider sharing a parts list with the community? Thanks in advance! Keep innovating!
 
Confuten1

Confuten1

exploitin strengths - perfectin weaknessess
Supporter
1,930
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SIK!!!

confu
 
M

MTgrower

247
0
Ahhhhh, Heat tape. Awesome.

How much would your unit cost to sell as is?
 
L

LikemindS

Guest
That is one sweet extractor! Nice Pro Work!
:banana1sv6:
 
B

billybadazz

233
18
Can you tell us where you got the bottom (recovery tank)? Is it some sort of autoclave or pressure cooker? I have already started sourcing parts for my own and I like the look of your design the best. Good job and very professional looking.
 
Graywolf

Graywolf

1,597
263
Sick!

Where did you get the cylinder? Are you using N-Butane in it? Is there anything special about it and it's use for spec gasses? Are you using a liquid syphon in it? I need to buy one so I can transfer my N-Butane out of my rented cylinder.

What's the thickness of your material column?

I'm a little confused about a couple things I see pictured. Can you explain the functions of all the connectors/hoses (especially the function on the yellow contraption on the chair)?

This thing is awesome! I'm now having buyer's remorse about buying my Tamisium TE175. :(

Can you tell us the total build cost? Also, would you consider sharing a parts list with the community? Thanks in advance! Keep innovating!

I purchased a 50# refrigerant recovery tank off of e-bay. They are also available in 30#.

It has two valves in the top, one of which is a dip tube for liquid and the other is gas.

I used Schedule 10 304 for my column, because I had an eight foot length, but it is overkill. It cost about $6.20 a foot here locally.

Not counting the first recovery pump that didn't work out, I am into the system about $1500.

Yes I can. The yellow thing in the chair is a refrigeration recovery pump. The smaller silver unit is an AC vacuum pump.

The way the system works, is that after loading the column with plant material and bolting it in place, I pump the whole system down to about -29.9 inches using the AC vacuum pump attached to the yellow hose.

I then close the valve between the column and the lower pressure pot and the column and flood the column with butane from the red hose. I can tell when the column is flooded because there is a vent line from the top of the column to the lower pressure pot, through which the butane flows as it exits the top of the column. When the liquid butane reaches it, the tube turns instantly ice cold.

I time how long it takes to flood the column and record that time.

I then turn on the refrigerant recovery pump and pump the butane that reached the lower pressure pot collection vessel off as a gas and recompress it back in the original butane tank.

Pressure rise is usually under 25 psi when flooding and when the recovery pump has reduced the pressure to -10 inches Hg vacuum, I again flood the column, flowing one column volume of butane in the bottom of the column and out the top. I determine when one column volume has passed, by timing the flood to the same time it took to flood the column the first time.

I again isolate the column and let it soak, while the refrigeration recovery pump pumps off the butane in the lower chamber. I repeat that cycle every time the pressure in the lower pot reaches =10" Hg, which is approximately 10 to 12 times in my 30 minute extraction cycle.

At the end of thirty minutes, I again flood one volume through the column, but at the end of that time, I open the valve at the bottom of the column and let the column drain through the column in the reverse direction as before.

I leave that valve open and pump the column and lower pot to -22" Hg, after which I valve off and shut down the recovery pump and pump the system down to -29.9" Hg using the AC vacuum pump.

The heat cable on the bottom of the recovery vessel keeps the process from grinding to a halt from the refrigeration created by boiling the butane under vacuum.

The ice bath that the recovery vessel is in, speeds up the butane condensing back to a liquid after being heated up by compressing.

The cycle time is about one hour and yield varies depending on the material. Our best yield has been 22.2% from some prime outdoor bud, which is slightly better than my previous record of 21.6% using multiple runs through a conventional column, with repacks in between.
 
Graywolf

Graywolf

1,597
263
Ahhhhh, Heat tape. Awesome.

How much would your unit cost to sell as is?

This was a test sled built out of parts lying around and I would build it slightly differently if I were building them to sell.

Together the pumps are about $1000, Pressure pot was about $130, the six valves were $16 apiece, the two slip on flanges were $26 apiece and the two blanking flanges were $21 apiece. Schedule 10 304 SS costs about $6.20 foot here locally. Our system has a 12" column, a 24" column, a 30" column, and a 48" column.

The hoses are 3000# burst hoses and are expensive. I forgot exactly how much for all of them, but the big black 3/8" one was $78 all by itself.

There is some welding and machining involved. I spent $100 for the machining and there was about an hour of welding, which would have cost me another $100 or so.
 
Graywolf

Graywolf

1,597
263
Can you tell us where you got the bottom (recovery tank)? Is it some sort of autoclave or pressure cooker? I have already started sourcing parts for my own and I like the look of your design the best. Good job and very professional looking.

As Rusty notes, it is a paint pressure pot. It is a nickle plated steel pot that I found on e-bay and just gave away the spray gun and hoses.
 
C

Codisious

18
1
I love the plans & product, but someone has to ask why you didn't buy a Tamisium? Sorry in advance lol
 
norcal215

norcal215

Garden of Dreams Seed Co
1,180
263
hot damn you a mad scientist!
 
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