I made a vapor polishing chamber with a food serving container (called a gastronorm) and (mostly) parts found on 3d printers.
It has a silicone heater taped to the bottom which is controlled with a pretty standard temperature controller and a DC solid state relay. The heated pad on the bottom is capable of getting to 110 celcius.
There's a couple 3d printed parts which are used for making a mount for a motor as well as a fan. These both were printed out of PVDF, an extremely chemically resistant polymer. The tray for holding the parts to be polished is affixed to the sheet of glass via some magnets and some flat-head screws. Everything else in the chamber is made from stainless steel.
It has a silicone heater taped to the bottom which is controlled with a pretty standard temperature controller and a DC solid state relay. The heated pad on the bottom is capable of getting to 110 celcius.
There's a couple 3d printed parts which are used for making a mount for a motor as well as a fan. These both were printed out of PVDF, an extremely chemically resistant polymer. The tray for holding the parts to be polished is affixed to the sheet of glass via some magnets and some flat-head screws. Everything else in the chamber is made from stainless steel.
This construction makes it suitable to be used for boiling and making vapors of any solvent I wish to use. In the coming weeks I will run experiments with it to see what solvents can be used to vapor polish what polymers.
the (non-exhaustive) list of polymers I want to test:
PLA, PETG, PCTG, ABS, ASA, TPU, PA6, PA12, PP, PMMA, HIPS and PVDF.
An incomplete list of solvents I'm going to test:
Isopropyl alcohol, Acetone, Ethyl acetate, limonene, Dichloromethane, DMSO, methyl ethyl ketone, toluene, methanol
Please let me know what other solvents and/or polymers I should try. Keep in mind I do not have a fume hood, so the solvents I can test with are limited to what I'm willing to let float around in my garage while it airs out. Essentially I don't want to use heavier PPE than rubber gloves, safety glasses and a respirator. I will not work with anything more toxic or volatile than toluene.
the (non-exhaustive) list of polymers I want to test:
PLA, PETG, PCTG, ABS, ASA, TPU, PA6, PA12, PP, PMMA, HIPS and PVDF.
An incomplete list of solvents I'm going to test:
Isopropyl alcohol, Acetone, Ethyl acetate, limonene, Dichloromethane, DMSO, methyl ethyl ketone, toluene, methanol
Please let me know what other solvents and/or polymers I should try. Keep in mind I do not have a fume hood, so the solvents I can test with are limited to what I'm willing to let float around in my garage while it airs out. Essentially I don't want to use heavier PPE than rubber gloves, safety glasses and a respirator. I will not work with anything more toxic or volatile than toluene.
At the moment the polisher is highly unsafe. It is so dangerous that I don't feel comfortable giving out the plans. With that said, I already have a version 2 in the works which addresses the problems the current one has. (the exposed mains wiring is the least of its concerns...)
This is a list of features/changes for version 2:
* Use FEP film for the top instead of a sheet of glass with a hole drilled in it
* Replace the PVDF printed parts with stainless steel ones, preferably with them all being off-the-shelf.
* Switch to a brushless motor for the fan so it doesn't create sparks millimeters away from flammable solvent vapors.
* Do something to hide the exposed mains wiring
* Do more to keep the mains-powered PSU away from the solvent vapors
* Use a dedicated microcontroller controlling things. It will control the temperature of the heater as well as the power/frequency of the ultrasonic transducer.
* Add a screen for displaying stuff and maybe a buzzer/timer.
This is a list of features/changes for version 2:
* Use FEP film for the top instead of a sheet of glass with a hole drilled in it
* Replace the PVDF printed parts with stainless steel ones, preferably with them all being off-the-shelf.
* Switch to a brushless motor for the fan so it doesn't create sparks millimeters away from flammable solvent vapors.
* Do something to hide the exposed mains wiring
* Do more to keep the mains-powered PSU away from the solvent vapors
* Use a dedicated microcontroller controlling things. It will control the temperature of the heater as well as the power/frequency of the ultrasonic transducer.
* Add a screen for displaying stuff and maybe a buzzer/timer.
Can anybody refer me to a private investigator firm? I need one that specializes in tracking people down, specifically that work in IT/software development related to financial services
I made a shirley temple like how it was originally served in the 30s/40s. It's freaking delicious with the real ingredients from the time.
A Shirley Temple is a an alcohol-free cocktail named after the famous child performer of the same name. It is made from ginger ale, grenadine, and a maraschino cherry. Shirley Temple (the girl) is known to very much dislike the drink, saying that it is much too sweet for her pallete.
I generally like drinks that are on the sweet side and I completely agree with her on this. However, and this is the reason I am writing this blogpost, the Shirley Temple you would be served today is completely different from how it would have been made in the 1930s!
All three of the ingredients in it have morphed over the years and are almost unrecognizable from how they would have tasted in ~1935 when it would have been served to the famous child actress.
A Shirley Temple is a an alcohol-free cocktail named after the famous child performer of the same name. It is made from ginger ale, grenadine, and a maraschino cherry. Shirley Temple (the girl) is known to very much dislike the drink, saying that it is much too sweet for her pallete.
I generally like drinks that are on the sweet side and I completely agree with her on this. However, and this is the reason I am writing this blogpost, the Shirley Temple you would be served today is completely different from how it would have been made in the 1930s!
All three of the ingredients in it have morphed over the years and are almost unrecognizable from how they would have tasted in ~1935 when it would have been served to the famous child actress.
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Modern maraschino cherries are an unholy abomination of chemical treatments. They are white cherries that are chemically bleached and then re-impregnated with artificial vanilla, almond flavoring and FD&C Red 40. Fortunately it's pretty easy to source classically made ones. The real ones will be stored in an opaque dark red syrup. My recommendation is the ones made by luxardo.
Ginger ale, at least modern main-stream varieties doesn't even taste like ginger to me. I don't really have any brand recommendations here, just shop around for any that specifically does not list high-fructose corn syrup or "artificial flavors" on the ingredients.
Grenadine is the most interesting of the bunch and its story is a deep rabbit hole which I am still researching. As far as I can tell, its original formula dates back to the 1400s and was made from with Clove Pink that was soaked in red wine and simmered down. The original formula was lost in America and so people in the 1900s thought it was a syrup made from pomegranate. This, too, has gradually evolved back into something else over the years. The stuff you would buy at the liquor stores today is attempting to immitate the the original formula from the 1600s.
Ginger ale, at least modern main-stream varieties doesn't even taste like ginger to me. I don't really have any brand recommendations here, just shop around for any that specifically does not list high-fructose corn syrup or "artificial flavors" on the ingredients.
Grenadine is the most interesting of the bunch and its story is a deep rabbit hole which I am still researching. As far as I can tell, its original formula dates back to the 1400s and was made from with Clove Pink that was soaked in red wine and simmered down. The original formula was lost in America and so people in the 1900s thought it was a syrup made from pomegranate. This, too, has gradually evolved back into something else over the years. The stuff you would buy at the liquor stores today is attempting to immitate the the original formula from the 1600s.