Stretch's used oil centrifuge

[nf6x]

Thanks for the info! Last weekend I transferred all of my waste oil from cracked plastic buckets and so forth into my nice shiny new (well, actually rusty and old!) barrel, with a nice shiny new (well, now it's oily and dirty) 5-gallon drum-top funnel. Some goop did get in there before I saw it and started pouring more carefully, and it even gunked up the coarse metal screen in the funnel outlet. I had to swirl the gunk around with a convenient stick just to unclog the screen. So, I think that a cleanable/reusable screen filter is definitely going to be needed before a finer filter!

My drum pump is an air-powered piston type made by ARO. The piston housing hangs down through the 2" bung hole and extends all the way to the intake port, and I don't think there's enough clearance to strap a metal screen over the intake and still get it to fit through the bung hole. It is adjustable to allow me to keep it off the bottom of the drum, though. Maybe I should reserve that pump for pumping clean oil/fuel, and get a cheap pump with a narrow suction tube for pumping dirty oil, so that I can install some sort of intake screen to keep the worst gunk from going through the pump.

 

[TommyG45]

nf,

In my setup, I don't put goo through the pump. I go from the pick up tube, to the inlet of the prefilter, through the 5 micron filter, then the pump, and a choice of back into the drum to cycle through again, or directly into the centrifuge then back into the drum. This way you don't mess up a rather expensive pump with dirt and who knows what else. You can still use your air pump by purchasing a 3" dia pipe, with fittings on the bottom where you would then hook that up to the pickup tube in the tank. You would need a 2" npt reducer for the top. securing it in place may take some creative work, but that was something I wanted to try initially.

 

[nf6x]

Ah, I hadn't thought of using pipe and fittings to make a fake drum to install the pump in downstream of the filters. Neat idea!

 

[TommyG45]

You will have to let me know how the air operated pump works out. Are you going to drive it off the MV, or run it from a stationary compressor. Do you know how many GPM your pump is? And what kind of CFM will it need t sustain operation. I am very interested in the air operated pump for the collection aspect, and run it off the M35 with a 275 gallon collection tank.

 

[gimpyrobb]

I just used a piston type barrel pump for transfering and filtering wmo over the weekend. You really have to watch the pressure gauges if you are pumping through filters. My input pressure would skyrocket if the air flow volume was not way down. I got some info from the manufacturers that said the filter's structural integrity was good upto 85 psi. I kept the input pressure @60 psi and that made the output pressure @25-30. Once the filter(s) got plugged the pressure shot upto 130. It was very thick oil and I even added 5gal of gas to it to thin it down. I am still experimenting so I have no more good info to post. Just make sure if you use a barrel pump to use a pressure gauge.

 

[TommyG45]

Gimp,

What are the specs on the pump and recommended PSI to run it at? I was toying with the idea of running the pump off the M35, for the sole purpose of getting from the source, to the tank in the truck, and then to my holding tank in the barn.

From there my other system takes over.

Do you think the air pump would hold up well in that situation. I could put an inline regulator off the glad hand on the emergency supply line. I would't bother trying to do the filtering at the collection point, but rather at home where I could contol the infrastructure better. Before your filters clogged, what the the approximate GPM flow at what PSI were you getting.

Thanks in advance

Tommy

 

[nf6x]

I was not planning to run my own pump off my truck air system; I plan to use it with a stationary compressor in my shop. Its dataplate suggests that its oil output pressure should equal the air input pressure, but based on Gimpyrobb's advice I'll need to see if it works the way that I think it does. Maybe he and I have different styles of pump? If I recall correctly, mine will happily stop pumping when the output is obstructed, just like the "thump-thump" electrical piston fuel pumps do. I haven't actually pumped anything with my drum pump yet other than a quick test in a bucket a long time ago, though, so I could be wrong. I expect that I'll at least hang a pressure regulator off its air input, and I might as well include pressure gauges on both sides of any filter(s) both to make sure I don't over-pressurize them and to indicate when they're clogged.

If you put the filters on the suction side of the pump like you suggested, then they will never see high oil pressure. In fact, they'll always see pressure at or below atmospheric pressure, and you'll need to make sure that they can handle vacuum without collapsing.

I think it'll be a while before I can provide the experimental data that TommyG45 wants. I'm in the middle of a move, and it'll be a while before I set up my new shop and start thinking about doing something with my waste oil. Getting my barrel and funnel set up now made sense, because I had to move those fragile sun-weakened buckets of oil to the new house, anyway!

I don't know yet whether I'll put filters on the input and/or output side(s) of my pump, and whether I'll use my nice fancy ARO pump for waste oil or buy a cheap Harbor Freight pump for that job. If it'll help (and if I remember!), I can take some pictures of my ARO piston pump this weekend. I bought it on eBay a number of years ago, in anticipation of needing to do a 70 gallon hydraulic oil change on my wrecker someday. I still haven't gotten around to doing that, but I got interested in playing with the pump again when this WMO fuel idea came along!

I also have not yet decided whether I will recirculate oil through a filter and back into the drum like the centrifugal guys do, or make one pass through a filter set and into another container (or maybe even directly into a truck's fuel tank). I figure that I'll get one or two translucent plastic jugs for initial experimentation, so I can easily run stuff through whatever system I come up with and then see what it looks like.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Tommy, my barrel pumps came from GL. No specs without looking up numbers. I have not used the deuce's air to power the pump, but I suspect if you are only using it to transfer fluid, not filtering, it should work ok. I say ok because these things can really eat up a big volume of air. If memory serves correct, Bjorn said the deuce has a cfm of around 7. I will try to get some pics for you all this weekend. Mark, I have a bunch of barrel pumps, from taking most of them apart, there is not a big differance in construction. Like you said, intake tube diameter was the biggest differance.

 

[nf6x]

Here are some pictures of my drum pump.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Mark, there are screens specifically made to slide over the bottom of those pumps. If that sliding threaded sleeve is how big the opening is, I'm sure you could make something or buy a ready made screen. I have been thinking of using old socks .

 

[nf6x]

I'll look for a screen and/or try to figure out how to make one. Maybe I should try calling up ARO/Ingersoll Rand to see if they have a nice pre-made one?

Anyway, I just dug up the manuals and datasheet for my pump. They include info on air consumption which might interest Tommy. I'm leaving out the "General Information" manual S-633, which is referred to in the attached manual. It's nothing by 8 megs of common-sense safety warnings in every written human language.

 

[TommyG45]

gimp, I thought the idea was to keep the contamination out of the oil. Using your old socks defetes the purpose doesn't it?

Thanks for the pics gimp, and nf for the datasheets. Good stuff, it's good to see these real close. Only 7 CFM.... from the deuce, not totally surprised. I would equate the drum pump to a larger air powered drill. Excellent data, thanks guys.

BTW, I just priced out WMO at a local place near me. .70/gal. Looks like I am going to be processing a lot of oil this winter to heat the barn. Still way cheaper then pellets/corn/wood/#2(fuel oil that is) coal.....

 

[reddawnready]

I just started filtering umo and been using old socks as sort of a pre-filter, seems to work well, minus the smell.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Sorry it took so long to get back to this thread. Busy busy month! Any way here are pics of my setup. I have now removed the deuce primary filter in favor of cheaper and larger secondary filters. I have also been trying to get a screen to cover the inlet of the barrel pump to stop leaves and bugs from getting to my filters.

 

[TommyG45]

G,

From the pump set up, I take it you fill the barrel by hand, and use the air pump to pump from the barrel through the filters and then to the deuce? Can theh pump be used to fill the barrel too?

Tommy

 

[gimpyrobb]

Yeah, the pump setup is easliy used to move fluids into or out of the 55gal drum. I have deposited some 55gal drums at places that get alot of "fuel", so I show up with an empty and load the full one in my truck. Go home, pump it into the 275gal HHO barrel and wait for the next call. I also have one of those horrible freight fluid pumps(12v 240gal a min) with a similar filter setup for smaller amounts, but busted a bunch of them trying to pump gear oil. I have driven my trucks all summer for very little money. Getting ready for the Ga rally now!

 

[Rattlehead]

Has anyone that is using filters vs centrifuge sent in an oil sample? I would be curious as to how they compare.

 

[gimpyrobb]

I have not. Bjorn sent in one of Stretch's samples from his centerfuge setup, results are posted earlier in this thread. I guess I will have to get a sample and send it in. There is really no comparison though, unless the samples were from the same batch of oil.

 

[coachgeo]

I have . ...

....

...I dont know about Stretch's setup, but mine....

any of ya'll still using the dieselcraft or PA Bio-D centrifuge?

 

[coachgeo]

side note--- MUST use hot oil.... unless you have a second means of removing water (absorb beads for example)

problem in using these type centrifuges w/out hot oil; and/or without proper venting you lose one of the principles used by these centrifuges to dewater. "Evaporation".

per design (or unintended benefit. not sure which) of these kind of centrifuges..... part of the water removal is in net effect evaporation.... aka. the oil as it is forced out the centrifuge jets.... causes some water to vaporize. This vapor spills out the bottom of the centrifuge along with cleaned oil.... the heat from the catch can (assuming heated oil) encourages the water vapor to rise up along with escaping heat from cleaned oil in catch can below... this pushes that water vapor out of the catch can ifffff you vented it. AKA if you have hot oil..... but no way for some heat; thus water vapor, to escape from area near oil exit at bottom of centrifuge.... your keeping the water you wanted to get rid of. ( a fan sucking or pushing water vapor out from just below centrifuge; where oil exits, might can replace/enhance the rising heat that pushes the vapor out ??)


use to do wvo myself in my unimog and 300sd..... became too hard to get wvo .... has been for decades now....... gave up long time ago... just now getting back into this.. but with wmo.....


plan is later to explore plastic pyrolysis to make crude oil essentially.. then make apparatus for cracking it into a diesel fraction (basically distillation). Other fractions from the process will then be used as fuel to burn/create heat in distillation process etc. Distillation apparatus could also be used to turn cleaned waste motor oil into a diesel fraction.

Im torn though on how to get rid of left over product.... it will be nasty nasty stuff. While running wmo in the blend method with petrol etc. in your engine with out any distillation/cracking ... leaves no visible pollutant gunk to get rid of.. it is still there.. it is- just invisible...... the stuff out your tailpipe will be very nasty stuff puffing into the air.