Bob, I would valve off that sight tube and if the short section of plastic tube is going to be under any pressure it would be safer if it were steel.

Raften,

Do you think that there will be so much pressure that the reinforced/braided pvc tubing will burst? The reason why its built as it is is b/c I could not get the heights of the two tubes to match up perfectly. If this is seriously dangerous, the only option that might work would be to weld the two 45 degree fittings (left) and then see if I can successfully connect two short sections of straight pipe w/ a union. but as i recall, the height of hte pipes was not tall enough to accomodate a union.

good thought about adding a valve at the bottom of the sight tube

I have a six foot long sight tube, it's clear plastic flexible tube, it regularly cycles from 25 inches of vacuum to 100 psi, it has been in use for three years now and still going strong.

Fabricator,

Thanks for the input, I'll keep as is unless i see some serious bulging in the line.

Bob

I think you will be fine Bob, changing out the plastic is just something I do twice a year since I ignore my own advise and don't have it valved off. The tube gets hard and sort of brittle if I leave it in place for a year. I imagine it has to do with the methoxide and heat.

quote:

The tube gets hard and sort of brittle if I leave it in place for a year. I imagine it has to do with the methoxide and heat.

I have had the same issues however my hose has never seen any methoxide, only WVO and BIO and it is basically trashed now after only a year of light usage... I think its the BIO and vacuum that does them in...
I am sure all these braided reinforced hoses are not created equal so your mileage may vary...
Jon

See the bio trapped between the layers in the hose.

Alright, I decided that Raften had a point and so I had to do some cutting of the existing 45 degree fitting, and a little bit of welding + JB weld to seam seal the new connection. I was able to run two short lengths of pipe w/ a union to make a good fit:



I also added the ball valve on the sight tube:



I also started on the plumber's delight. i have no idea how Graham does it, but his inner pipe looks alot more squashed then mine. This is as far as I can squash mine before the rest of the pipe expands outwards and hits the ID of the larger 1" pipe:



Is this enough squashing on the pipe so that it'll avoid the hot core that Graham talks about in his writeup and produce distilled methanol?

Thanks,
Bob

Hi Bob,

I see its getting close to brew time!
Maybe the jaws on your vice are a little too wide? I used channel locks (pump pliers) to do my 1/2" inner pipe and I had more of a crimp than yours. I wouldn't worry about it too much though as I know there are many people who do not bother crimping the inner pipe at all...
I dont think you thermometer will give a good indication of your process temperature where it is. In my experience it will need to be in direct contact with the oil inside the reactor or in line with the mixing pump...
Jon

Jon, Yes, getting close. Here's what I've been using to crimp the copper tubing:



I'll give the channel lock pliers a try, but again, the problem is the more i crimp, the more it bulges out and hits the inner tubing wall of the outer pipe.

I'll be in touch soon re wiring. i really need to revisit that again

Bob

Work, work, work!

Ok, I had some time to build out the processor over the last 2-3 weeks and here's the latest. As you can see, I've gotten rid of the rubber tubing up top to the eductor as well as putting in all copper pipes for the Plumber's delight. I messed up and made it too long and then spent a good 3 hrs trying to shorten it. I'll definitely need to do a leak test on it. I also leveled the pump better, which was a job in and of itself. Here's a big pic of my processor so far:



I also built a methoxide tank w/ a valve and vent tubing. I'm going to buy an inline connector to make connecting the two lines easier when it comes time to mix:



I also built a freestanding inline water heater. This is made from 1.75" DOM tubing that was salvaged from my buddy's custom off road bumper (www.chaosedition.com). He's always generous with his scrap tubing! The neat thing like I mentioned is that it is perfectly balanced and stands on its own--who knows if it will stand on its own when BD is flowing through it. I will probably make a case for this and some wheels to make it mobile. I got the idea for this from another member. I have yet to decide how to plumb the rest. I will probably use some reinforced pvc tubing to connect as well as inline filters and spray drying head...who knows right now:



So I'll need to buy some more connectors and connect all the tubing. After that, I'll work on the electrical stuff. More reading. Jon Heron: I'll be contacting you again soon. Hope you don't mind.

That's all for now.

Bob

quote:

Jon Heron: I'll be contacting you again soon. Hope you don't mind.

Anytime bob, no bother!
Jon

Ok, the condenser is all done. So I spent this week buying parts for the looped water system. I believe legaleagle or another frequent contributor had inspired me to build this. I bought a Harbor Freight water pump (on sale $30), modified the supplied tip to accomodate a 1/2" fitting, glued a series of pvc pipe and fittings to create this:



Not knowing if the pump would be too powerful or not, I designed a blow off valve on one side to alleviate any backpressure created by the now 1/2" piping.

The big discovery for me (though many of you probably know of this) is the array of fittings that can be found NOT in the pvc section, but rather the drip irrigation section. yes, its usually nearby the pvc section, but i had no idea about the hose fitting to pvc pipe fittings. good thing I had a lot of time and nothing to do on sunday

the submersible pump will go into one of the plastic barrels that i have lying around that has a slight crack up top. I'll be cutting off the top and making a wood one to replace it.

Nice!
That looks like it will work well...
Jon

After further reading and discussion with other members as well as realistically assessing my space/logistics of disposing of wash water, I've decided to go the route of dry washing. I will build a column (or two) in parallel with wiring up this thing.

If I were to start over I would incorporate a tank of hard wood chips before the resin beds. This will not only help get out the soaps but will also greatly prolong resin life. You will have to be set up to properly settle out the glycerine and then demeth the biodiesel before going through the towers.
I just did an interview with a local commercial biodiesel producer for a popular biodiesel magazine, and the unique thing they are doing is using wood chips exclusively for purification.
The initial introduction was posted at Biodiesel Pictures where you can see their set up. The article has better and clearer pics, along with a great explanation of their process.

Hi there

I am also looking to build my processor. Your designs and pictures have been a great help and given me alot to think about.

I do have a question, tho. The Venturi - what exactly does it do..... Looking at the diagram above, the Venturi would suck in air via HV8 and the vent ??

From all of the other designs I've seen, including your earlier ones, it's directly connected to the Methoxide tank (vented) so that it sucks it into the system......

In a latter picture, you have labeled the Methoxide line, but it's unattached - where would you connect this & what to....

I've read thru the whole aticle, but am not sure now, how this bit goes together. I apologise if i've missed it.

This whole thread has been really useful and I'm following the advise and development with great interest.

Thanks in advance for everyone's time and comments.......

Legal,

Yeah, a wood-based filtering media seems to be the way to go as I've read over the past day and a half. Today I called a bunch of steel yards around here to see how much it would cost to source the steel for this project. I can get 4 feet of 6" pipe for about $14/ft + flanges = $120. That's inline with what I'd like to spend building a dry wash system.

...of course, then there's the outrageous cost of the diaphragm pump. gasp! I'll have to read up more on that to see if there are other less costly options.

What I'll be doing is building out the processor electrical connections first, create some batches, and then let them time settle in a settling barrel like GL himself does. In the meantime, I'll be reading and building a dry wash system. Most likely 2 columns, 1 for wood and 1 for resin. Thermax seems to be the resin of the month.

Columns: is pipe (instead of tubing) ok to use? The pipe they have in 6" diameter has the following specs:

1/4" wall
hot rolled steel
a500 grade (whatever that means)

What psi rating must the pipe need to be anyways?

crowley,

mind you, this still hasn't seen a single drop of BD produced as of today! needless to say, i am taking my time building this b/c i am attempting to build only 1 time. work and other things have delayed by build.

i have not updated that picture in quite some time. the one thing that has changed is the location of the site tube. the site tube is now located off a short tube at the lower part of the reactor. look at the real pics. other than that, the processor has been built according to the pic you posted/copied. just look at all my recent pics. that'll give you a better idea of my build

as I understand it, the venturi can produce pressure that is lower than atmospheric pressure so it can be used as a pump of sorts. the venturi is used to regulate this in several operations. the best way i learned what it does and where it is used is to read GL's website. print out his diagram and print out the table where it shows you which valves to leave open and close. then you can figure out step by step how atmosphere pressure is used (or not) in the GL process

the methoxide line (HV5) is attached to a flap-style check valve. meaning, the flap only opens 1 way so when the methoxide is not flowing, then the oil cannot go upwards. in the pic below, look at the red dotted line. that is the path to the methoxide line to the check valve.



what i did recently is add an in-line fitting so that i can plug/unplug the methoxide line. of course when i mix, i will need to close off the valve.

Do you have any local salvage yards? You can often find stuff like 6"pipe for scrap price.

fabricator,

is 6" pipe common in scrap yards? i had to call three metal suppliers (who also sell cut pieces fairly cheap) in my area and none of them had 6" pipe except one.

for reference, what should i be paying (estimate is fine) at a scrap yard on a per lb basis?