Anyone aware of any solvent recyclers that are capable of distilling IPA and can fit on a desk? Safe to use indoors? Isn’t 5k+ USD?
I can’t seem to find any and a lot of the larger ones are far too big for my tiny lab. I have no outdoor space to utilize either.
I wish someone in the SLA printing industry would make one. For now, I’d be happy to just know where to look or who to ask but so much seems to be hidden behind sales reps. Thanks in advance.
I’m also very curious for this.
I am slowly coming to the realization that if I don’t want to spend a lot of money, even on something used, I will just have to make my own setup.
I am currently thinking of two possible solutions for this.
Buying a Moonshine still - This is the easier option since these are available on Amazon. Comes with two problems though.
My other potential solution is just building my own from scratch materials. I have already gotten some assistance from a chemistry-oriented subreddit that helped me figure out what I need to know and what to look for. This way, I can also more easily control all of the safety elements in the still and can bring it up to a satisfactory standard that I might not achieve with some random Amazon still. If I go with this route, I am thinking of emailing the chemistry department at my local university to see if I can get anyone to come check it out with me in-person.
I am still researching a lot since this isn’t really my forte and want to make sure whatever I do is safe and reliable.
Unfortunately I don’t think this is ever going to happen given the certification and safety concerns as well as cost behind both of those measures. I could be wrong though and I hope that one day someone with enough capital backing (cough Formlabs) does something like this for the sake of the environment.
Again I am very pessimistic though
A still with a magnetic/induction heating plate that has high-resolution heat control would probably be the way to go?
I have the distillation unit and induction plate, but I haven’t had the time/courage to try IPA recycling with this.
how about this? is not as ideal as a solvent recycler, bu tit might let you give some IPA liters a second life.
I just believe you are extra rich for having the machine, along with the other equipment 
, and the most organized person I know of, to make everything fit while keeping it all neat congrats on that.
You won’t find anything less than $5k unfortunately. A few companies have semi-desktop set ups, but you’re gonna pay for it. Depending on your output, it will eventually pay for itself.
Those don’t really work. At least not in the way you might expect or is marketed.
IPA works by two mechanisms - mechanical agitation and solubility. Using any kind of filter can improve #1 by removing partially cured monomers pigments and dyes but #1 is a small part of the entire cleaning capability of a solvent.
Haha, I started small and very organically which is how I can afford what I do have. The best way to run a business in my opinion.
100% pays for itself. I think I paid mine off in like 1-2 years and also is better for the environment so it’s a big win overall.
How much IPA do you use per year? At our current rate, for such an equipment to pay off we need to be using at least 1000 lt per year.
Ballparky numbers, we need around 8-10 20L barrels a year. 99% IPA at these quantities is expensive ($200 CAD each). We also used to pay a waste treatment facility to take our waste at like $50 a barrel or something stupid (they just burn it). We got the recycler on sale for $3500 CAD.
With the recycler we need to only buy 2-4 barrels a year and no waste facility which makes it more convenient and more environmentally friendly. We can refresh IPA more frequently and require less of my time overall dealing with poor wash quality and buying new and sending spent IPA out the door. I now have to transfer IPA out of the washes into the distiller though which takes time, but not any more than what I would normally have to do anyway. We also have to buy the recycling bags but they are dirt cheap.
As my business scales and fluctuates so does IPA usage, but running the numbers off above 2 years gets you close to paying off the machine. Environmental and convenience impact is hard to quantify in a monetary way.
I operate out of a small space so numbers are probably a lot different if you either a) live in the states where IPA is cheaper? And b) have the space to buy huge quantities of IPA and store it in bulk
IPA here in Mexico is priced at $500 USD for a 200L barrel, which last for about a year.
For $3500 CAD we need 6 years to just justifying acquiring it, ambiental issues are real but unfortunately there is no access to treatment facilities without the need of certifications, exhaustive verifications, tons of permits and of course the risk of being shut down by the govt just to take money out.
Ok the other side resins are 30% more expensive that they are in other regions, the same applies to powder and some consumables, so I guess we are on equal circumstances at least regarding operation costs 
If I could buy and store IPA in 200L barrels I think the numbers would for sure look different 
I already do a basic level of decanting, but like @leonhart88 said, it really doesn’t do much. Seems to help extend its life but only by a few uses at most. Lot of work for little return… Pretty sure I’m burning money on the labor to do that
Gonna test out a moonshine still at home first, I think. Somewhere safe and secluded and with a hose nearby lol
Stay safe! The biggest hazards are around vapour and ignition sources…so make sure there’s a) good ventilation for any escaping vapours and b) no ignition sources around
