Reflux from this design?

[winelegs]

Had a little look around and the search terminology is not showing up anything.

SS pot still, doesn't matter the size, from 15l to 40l, with a diameter copper column of around 2-3 inches and 2 to 5 feet in height. Now instead of packing it with copper scrubbing material, what about creating out of 8mm (5/16) tubing a honey-like structure going from a few inches 2 or 3 times or a longer section of a foot up the middle of the column?

The theory is it will create lots of columns with narrow passages for more interaction between the up and the down vapours. Yes, it will give a path and wall descent but I would say more than copper scrubbing, which possibly leads to it dripping for the lowest point anyway?

Just trying to give something back to the wealth of knowledge I have soaked up.

Kind regards

[LWTCS]

If I understand you correctly, this concept has been coined "Gattling Gun" by a commercial builder/distiller and already protected property here in the US.

In any case, yes the concept does work.

[Bushman]

Can you post a drawing? If I am hearing you it’s a pot still as you mention not a reflux and you are trying to create some passive reflux.

[LWTCS]

Can you post a drawing? If I am hearing you it’s a pot still as you mention not a reflux and you are trying to create some passive reflux.

Yep, the concept is predicated upon passive reflux.
Picture an HX minus the shell.
Each individual (through) tube acts as a part that contributes to the aggregate diameter.
The space between each tube acts as a way to promote more surface area contact for potential passive cooling.
Stark Spirits runs one (among one or two others) and seems to be really happy with the finished spirit profile. Cool factor is,,,,,,,cool too.

[Expat]

If I understand you correctly, this concept has been coined "Gattling Gun" by a commercial builder/distiller and already protected property here in the US.

We observe such constrictions here?

[The Baker]

I had an idea that patent restrictions were not as severe when the idea was used for your own use;
or for experimentation.

Dunno.

Geoff

[zapata]

Patents can actually be enforced against private use, in some areas. It's why the DIY version of the tilt hydrometer is in Germany and not the US.

But honestly, I'd be surprised if the basic concept is still patented, I was reading about a similar idea recently, I believe in a book from the 80s. Of course any improvement, detail, or spec could have updated patents. But, lemme see if I can find my source again, I wasn't particularly interested and skimmed it...

I think this is what I was thinking of from Handbook of Labratory Distillation:
(apologies for the bad OCR, I don't feel like fixing it. I think it's sufficiently readable)

All empty columns have a satisfactory efficiency only if the load is kept relatively
low. However, if a number of tubes are combined in parallel, the total load may be
raised to any required value. Such a column was patented in 1936 by Fenske [20].
If a narrow, vertical tube, say, 0.6 cm in diameter is used at a load of 10 nd/h, an
HETP of 1.73 cm may be found [21]. Such a tube, having a length of 1 111, would
produce a pressure drop of 2.7 nim Hg and would have a hold-up of only 0.4 ml.
Starting from such data, Kuhn [22] developed the so-called h a i r p i n countercurrent
principk (Fig. 251). The basic idea is that a small separating effect, occurring under
stationary conditions in a direction a t right angles to the axis of the tube (vector a),
is rnultiplied by means of a flow along the length of the apparatus, changing its
direction at the ends (indicated by arrows u1 and u2). I n order that a high efficiency
may be attained, the vapour velocities must be kept as sniall as possible and the
reflux ratio must be very high. For a reasonable throughput it is then necessary, as
already stated, to combine a large number of tubes in parallel (Fig. 252). The reflux
is produced for all elements collectively by means of a thermostat c and the distillate is taken from the ends of the tubes through superheated capillary tubes d (cf. also
Fig. 157).
Table 56 shows the throughputs, with various initial and final concentration%
xiid various differences in boiling point, for a multiple-tube column containing
100 parallel tubes (diameter 0.4 em, length 2 m). The values were calculated [22] for
a molecular weight of 100 and a boiling point of approximately 90°C.
Another ninltiple-tube column, containing 61 tubes of 0.2 cm diameter and 1.5 in
length, was eiiiployed for the separation of the isotopes 12C-13C, where the difference
in boiling point was only 0.03deg. C. The number of stages was determined Is>*
analysis of the products in the mass spectrometer. The hold-up of a tube 2 m long and of 0.2 cm diameter amounts to about 0.5 g [22]. The method has also been used
Ruccessfully for the separation of close-boiling isomers, such as the xylenes'(Fig. 263)
and the isomeric airipl alcohols. This type of column would appear to be promising for
many problems of separation requiring inore than 100 stages, since its HETP is
extremely small.

So, obviously small scale. But a quick patent search for Fenske shows they were quite prolific, including several patents riffing on various versions of tubes in tubes for distillation.
Like this from 1937 and 1940, though the tubes here are specifically packed, I guess you don't have to:

This invention pertains to a method and apparatus for fractional distillation wherein high efllciencies are obtained by efiectively contacting the ascending vapors and descending reflux without serious channeling.

This is accomplished generally speaking by conducting the reflux down through the zone of contact in fllm form and in separate streams over a plurality of separately enclosed attenuated packing members.

The packing members being separately enclosed, for instance, by tubes having relatively small cross sections of any desired geometrical shape, the ascending vapors are brought into emcient contact with the descending reflux in a plurality of separate countercurrently flowing pairs of streams, or in other words in a plurality of separate fractionating units. The ascending vapors and/or descending reflux may be metered into each unit in a manner so that the rectified vapors produced by any one unit will be of substantially the same composition as the rectified vapors produced by any other unit.

In any case at least a very large part of the descending reflux is maintained in fllm form by virtue of its spreading out over the packing members.

While the capacity of the tower may be increased somewhat by increasing the cross sections of the packing members, to avoid serious channeling due to too large a cross section, the capacity preferably will be increased and decreased-by increasing and decreasing the number of packing members, the overall diameter of the tower being adjusted to conform thereto.

LWTCS, you have any specific info on what is currently protected? Seems if they were building packed "gatling guns" in the 40's then an unpacked one must certainly be "known to those skilled in the art".

[The Baker]

Just from the layout of the excerpts this book is from WAY before the 1980's, could well be the 1880's.
In which case any patent would have long expired.
Looks interesting, I will see if I can make anything of it but maybe not.
It looks complex and I am no engineer.

Geoff

[shadylane]

Some body here, aught to build one for testing

[The Baker]

Mentioned in home distiller Mar 5 2019.

"Gatling Gun Condenser"

Geoff

[Saltbush Bill]

From my understanding at least one pot still of that type is being used commercialy in Australia atm.
Myles also built one not so long ago and posted a photo of his on another forum. I nicked the photo to post here...hopefully he wont mind.

20201106_203645.png (39.49 KiB) Viewed 2356 times

[The Baker]

Just from the layout of the excerpts this book is from WAY before the 1980's, could well be the 1880's.
In which case any patent would have long expired.
Looks interesting, I will see if I can make anything of it but maybe not.
It looks complex and I am no engineer.

Geoff

Looks like I was wrong,the drawings are dated in the 1930's.
The style of the drawings seems unchanged from much earlier.

Geoff

[LWTCS]

@ Zapata et all,
I don't have specific info on any protections. Just grape vine is all .
And as you mention, any deviation can change the designation.

My point was to let the OP know that he didn't just think that concept up any more than Odin created corn flake faux whiskey.
Similarly, big oil has long since developed a bubble cap with an integrated downcomer.

[The Baker]

From my understanding at least one pot still of that type is being used commercially in Australia atm.
Myles also built one not so long ago and posted a photo of his on another forum. I nicked the photo to post here...hopefully he wont mind.
20201106_203645.png

Thanks for the picture.
NOW I think I can see what it is all about.
The diagrams did nothing for me.

Geoff

[jonnys_spirit]

So this is essentially an air cooled dephlegmator/column section?

Cheers,
jonny

[LWTCS]

So this is essentially an air cooled dephlegmator/column section?

Cheers,
jonny

Yeah, similar to how the big scotch whiskey hats use surface area to enhance abv.
Not sure about Dephlegmator bit because that implies forced reflux?

[winelegs]

I'm so sorry guys, I haven't received and notifications for this thread!!

Thank you for all your responses, and that Gatlin gun thing looks mean. But no I was meaning to hang/suspend a certain length of pipes that may be soldered together down the main column. I have attached pictures, and no I'm not claiming to invent, nor do I expect it not to have been thought of before.

Regards

[LWTCS]

Thanks for the clarification.
Beyond more copper surface area, what are you hoping to achieve beyond what a more conventional pot still can't already do?

Does the jacket have cooling medium ports?

[winelegs]

No, I was just wondering if there would be more interaction with the vapour coming up and droplets coming down. From what I have understood is that the droplets can cling to the wall, here any clinging to the wall will be closer to the vapour coming up, filling the void and increasing surface area. The other thing I have read with using scrubbers is that the droplets can form a stream coming down through the mesh and drip from the lowest point of the mesh. Here the tubes could be from 4 inches to whatever size, but should get a lot more dripping from each tube, and could even fill each tube with a little fine mesh too.
I have no viewing glass to see, the only other way would be to build it and do a comparison. Which I will get around too if i is worth it.

[LWTCS]

With that outer wall, I would theorize that once the mass of copper inner tubes is brought to temp with a reduced ability to shed heat, the ability to boost proof ( compared to a more conventional pot still) should not be expected without an upward pointing lyne arm.

[jonnys_spirit]

The open design with a helmet on top would be pretty cool. Say 15-20x 1/2 tubes on a 4” fitting with some area for good air flow. 48”tall? 60”?

Cheers,
-jonny

[Yummyrum]

Winelegs .
Googe had a similar thought here a few years ago .

http://www.coppercustomstillcomponents. ... f=79&t=891

[winelegs]

With that outer wall, I would theorize that once the mass of copper inner tubes is brought to temp with a reduced ability to shed heat, the ability to boost proof ( compared to a more conventional pot still) should not be expected without an upward pointing lyne arm.

Yes, to be honest, I did think of that, but my column of 2 1/4" x 2' has a cross-section of15mm pipe, like the attached picture, and I'm also placing copper mesh up, below and above that cooling aid. When the water is flowing around that cross-section nothing is coming out, it is in total reflux. It must be sending the vapour back down as liquid somehow and I'm thinking it might be coming down the walls or trickling from the lowest point of the mesh, like a stream. So I'm thinking if I can make a place for interaction between the ups and the downs I've got a secondary level. The stuff coming down should cool the top half of the tubing and the stuff coming up will heat up the bottom half. In the ideal world slap bang in the middle.

The cooling by that cross-section is also so sensitive, just running at a trickle holts any vapour coming up and down to the condenser. Also, I am getting rid of that plastic tubing and those bloody jubilee clips and will run two elbow joints instead and a bit of bend pipe. It's always leaking and the clips don't take well for multiple takedowns. It gets so hot that the plastic pipe virtually melts.

Winelegs .
Googe had a similar thought here a few years ago .

http://www.coppercustomstillcomponents. ... f=79&t=891

Omg, the waffle section is just awesome, yes going for something like this, only from 4" to 1' depth.

The open design with a helmet on top would be pretty cool. Say 15-20x 1/2 tubes on a 4” fitting with some area for good air flow. 48”tall? 60”?

Cheers,
-jonny

Hi jonny it has a top on, see picture, I just had a cut out so you could see inside. But yes that would then be like the Gatlin gun thing that someone was on about. Could even place a fan over that for water-free passive cooling, but air doesn't conduct any where near as good as water.

[winelegs]

Where's everyone gone aha

[zapata]

I found another. I don't read German, but I was chasing a ref and could only find the 1948 German version of a book I was looking for. Turns out I can look at pictures in German just fine. Still didn't find what I was looking for, if it was in there it wasn't in the picturs but I did find this:

From what I could gather, pretty much same deal. Decent rectification if you need low pressure drop and are willing to keep the loading very low, there is some complicated and clever way to distribute reflux evenly. So, like the other probably not much point for our needs.

So where did everybody go? Well I'm still here, but still don't see the point. Seems like a great idea for vacuum distilling small amounts of isotopes or something, but for booze? Whats this give you that packing doesn't?

[LWTCS]

Packing on the large scale can be a real pita .

[Kareltje]

Some body here, aught to build one for testing

Well, if somebody there has done that, maybe he will be kind enough to tell us the results?

[winelegs]

Well I have soldered up some parts, just a few sections of 5 cm tubing. Could get a tight fit around the main base by wrapping copper screen around it and after doing it I'm not to sure how much a difference it will make. I kind of think with the springs and other packing the close-knit of material, vapour and reflux plays the most important interaction in the role. Oh well, I may run it, wait until I get enough low wines and do a comparison. I'm still crawling at the moment to be fully scientific.