# Large Reaction Vessel for SSN Leachant



## rusty (Nov 14, 2011)

Another bit of kit for the laboratory.

The reaction vessel will be heated externally via a liquid to liquid type of heat exchanger.

For instance a small electric hot water tank would be perfect, you could control the heat with the factory installed thermostat, add a pump and a flow restriction device to limit circulation. Ideally you want a circulation of 4 liters per minute or less in your external heat exchanger. Perhaps Barren our resident HVAC expert would comment on this.

Venting the vessel is a snap, I'll machine a hole large enough into the cap to accept piping to vent this outdoors, add a water jacket to reflux any vapors back into the tank.

I'll be tapping into my waste oil boiler for heat so I'll use the thermostat from an old electric hot water tank because it can handle the temperature range I'm after. The thermostat will open and close without the aid of electricity, instead of triggering a heating element inside the hot water tank for my purpose the stat will trigger the circulation pump to come on as heat is called for.

Removing the spent catalyst from the reactor, this problem is solved by affixing a vibrator to the outside of the tank or underneath the platform of it rests

If you care to exert the energy, manually shaking the tank would accomplish the same, turning everything inside the tank to quick sand, a slurry that becomes mobile.

SSN is my solvent of choice.


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## Barren Realms 007 (Nov 14, 2011)

Hi Rusty,

That looks like a viable project that will work. The piping looks like PEX pipe, if it is you are in good shape. 

A ball valve on your pump to regulate flow will be your best bet for temperature regulation. Using a small water heater should do fine. You might want to be prepared to add one of those dual heaters built out of 4" square stock using water heater elements in line when you might need a boost of heat. 4 liters per minute might be enough flow but I think you might find you are going to need more than that. Since your leach should not generate any heat all of your heat will need to come from the water heater.

Using the thermostat to control the pump should work with no problem.

That tank looks like a pool filter, if it has a drain on the bottom with a screen you can remove this and install a PVC ball valve to empty the tank once your material has been washed clean. Don't count on being able to unscrew the valve from the tank many times, the threads on the fiberglass tank do not hold up well to wear of this kind.

You could also consider a venturi to remove the material from the tank once it has been processed and cleaned. I have used them on application like what you are going to do and they are pretty effecient once you learn how to use them and know thier limitaions.


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## skippy (Nov 15, 2011)

I like it Rusty.

Barren, the tank is a well pressure tank, they have an air bladder that maintains pressure in between pumping cycles, which can be removed.
I read they are lined with HPDE, which is pretty chemical resistant, but not thermally very resistant. It's a fibreglass composite shell
and if the resin is vinyl ester, it the shell should be both chemically and thermally resistant.


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## rusty (Nov 15, 2011)

skippy said:


> I like it Rusty.
> 
> Barren, the tank is a well pressure tank, they have an air bladder that maintains pressure in between pumping cycles, which can be removed.
> I read they are lined with HPDE, which is pretty chemical resistant, but not thermally very resistant. It's a fibreglass composite shell
> and if the resin is vinyl ester, it the shell should be both chemically and thermally resistant.



Slight revision, instead of wrapping the reactor with Pex , I'm going to insert the vessel within a larger one filled with canola oil heated via an electric element, thermostat to control temperature. My shop is going to smell like French fries and fried chicken.

I do not have my waste oil boiler running yet, otherwise I could heat the oil with a liquid to liquid heat exchanger, but I think direct immersion of the heating element has this beat.

Our local highways department donated the rock salt for my SSN, I left some cash for the Christmas fund. . 

Some interesting facts, the salt was in a cold shed but is warm to the touch and it's pink.


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## skippy (Nov 15, 2011)

A nice thing about SSN is it doesn't seem to make anywhere near as much intense fumes as AR or a chlorine saturated solution, while still having a pretty powerful dissolving capability.

I like the revision to the setup, it should make the whole thing fit into a smaller footprint - less wasted heat then. And the most important thing - it's less complicated. Needless complication is always the enemy. 

I think the pex pipe heating would make more sense if you set up a really big reactor, or a whole whack of reactors that needed to be heated, and you could substitute a cheaper source of heat like gas instead of electricity.


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## jimmydolittle (Nov 15, 2011)

Here in Indiana the salt is coated with molasses, which helps keep the salt on the road surface longer. It is in fact a pink color when loaded into the trucks. I have not had the time to study this SSN Leachant process, but I'm wondering if the molasses will interfere in some way?


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