Vacuum Distillation

[MrGruffy]

A buddy has just emailed me a link to a cheapish vacuum distillation setup.
Anyone have any experience with vacuum distillation or have an opinion on it as a method?

(note how I've allowed for opinions without experience)

[Sam.]

What extra gain would you be trying to achieve with such a device?

[crow]

What extra gain would you be trying to achieve with such a device?

anhydrous alcohol (over 95.63%) and less heat/energy needed and less cooling, would be not difficult to have an air cooled condenser. Ok that sounds great but here's the down side, anhydrous alcohol will simply absorb water from the atmosphere so is difficult to keep and the average person has no use for it anyway. then there's the less energy question, if it takes as much or more to maintain a vacuum what's the point. As for the other plus not needing water well there are examples out there of finned fan cooled condenser take offs that will work well on regular stills, a few little computer fans are going to use way less energy than a vacuum pump. then you got the hassle of cuts that will require closed atmosphere valved collection jars the will withstand the the external pressures on the internal vacuum atmosphere. Might be worth the effort but I very much doubt it :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[JDB]

There is also some applications to making gins and other botanical extractions where you can get different "fresh" flavours by not heating so much.

[hillzabilly]

For the moment I think vacuum distillation is for the big boys and is used in the wine industry to reduce alcohol content without effecting flavour, check out this one developed by an aussie http://www.conetech.com/spinning-cone-column/ but then again I never thought I would have a bubble cap still in my shed either,here's ta dreaming .cheers hillzabilly