Continuous still

How do you intend to use the alcohol? As fuel or for drinking, or what?

Making alcohol by distilling leaves it fairly contaminated as far as drinking it is concerned.

Also, any small distillery is fairly energy inefficient.

I made a still back in Russia when I was 15. It worked. The product was not so great for drinking.

i

An RO system would be more efficient.

I'm not sure that a continuous system is even going to work -- alcohol and water are quite happy together, and you're bound to have convection. I think the only alcohol on the "top" is going to be the stuff that's boiled off.

So I think you're doomed to have some sort of a batch process. Putting in the next batch of fermented stuff as you draw out the spent batch would help with the energy efficiency, particularly if you make up some sort of a heat transfer gizmo.

The amount of heat that ends up in the alcohol itself isn't a whole lot, with most of the heat used in distilling simply being spent in raising the entire wash temperature to the point at which the alcohol(s) boil off...

--if you want to drink it, first you raise (and hold) the temp till all of the methanol boils off, discarding that because it's poison...after this, you again raise the temperature till the ethanol boils off, holding it there and collecting....now what you finally will have left is mostly hot water and dead yeast, easy enough to recover the heat from that concoction by using a counterflow chiller but unless you have another batch that's all ready to go or you have some other use for hot water then there's really not much sense..

Here's some info.

With Videos The first link is close to what I'm thinking of, not exactly though. If water is heated to 210 Deg. F would their be much/any alcohol left in it?

RogerN

I never thought of it but I guess the overflow of hot water could be used to pre-heat the alcohol/water going into the still, no need to waste all the heat.

RogerN

This would be for fuel. From my understanding the batch process is better for drinking because methanol would be boiled off first. You are supposed to be able to take the alcohol from the continuous process and run it through a pot still to boil off the methanol first and get the ethanol.

RogerN

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs (among other things)

void _-void-_ in the obvious place

If you have to ask that you don't know nearly enough chemistry to design a continuous process still.

Dig in:

it continuous requires some serious chemical engineering and probably real-time analysis of the product stream. I'd start with having it sense when the distillation completes and shut down.

jsw

Pot stills are not very efficient and pass a lot besides alcohol, which of course is why they are used to make whiskey. A reflex still makes much more pure alcohol. My mate says about 98 or 99% pure.

I have a mate who is into the sport although he is making it to drink. He built an electrically heated still and outfitted it with a control system.

As for fermenting you need to place a measured amount of sugar in a container with water; add yeast and then monitor the specific gravity to know when fermentation is complete. Certainly could be instrumented.

So yes, your idea is certainly possible.

Most stills, by the way, are reflux stills and you distill to get alcohol, not fracture.

The fuel is bound to be very expensive.

i

Would you have to pay Motor fuel tax? Does the BATF regulate home stills?

Best Regards Tom.

Possibly.

Definitely. Get the appropriate license before going past the drawing board stage.

No and no, as far as I understand.

However, other laws may apply to an industrial plant that Roger wants to have in his residence.

i

Yes and yes. Try getting licensed for a home ethanol fuel still. Possible, but it will raise your per gallon cost substantially. Not as much as getting caught without the paperwork though - - - .

jsw Googling the answers with dial-up.

I agree that I don't know enough chemistry but asking about the alcohol left in water at 210 Deg F isn't a significant problem, a PLC controlled process would have adjustable set points and I can change the program to what works the best. I know ethanol boils at 173 Deg. F but I'm not sure how the water mixed in alters the temperature. If I do a run at 210 Deg water and 173 Deg at the top of the column and get it wrong per hydrometer, I can change the settings and/or change the process, and try again.

Thanks

jsw