Saturday sourcing

Saturday was such an adventure, I made a trip down to a warehouse that sells chemistry glasswares and apparatus. Also to figure out what are the things needed for the basic set up of a fractional distiller. I met up with a friend who has chemistry knowledge and we visited the shop with intentions to purchase some apparatus so I can start experimenting during project week. 

This are the few glasswares the store offers, more towards the chemistry side and they are all usable in laboratories. However they did not offer some other apparatus required to build the distiller. Moreover the store was quite messy and some of the stocks that are available on the website might not be available in the store. So the both of us decided to discuss further in the cafe with what we can build out of the available glasswares in the store. 

So we happened to be nearby Chye seng huat cafe and we dropped by to discuss how to build the distiller. In the cafe, I noticed the barista using some coffee dripping method which got me curious. The coffee dripping method includes filtration and distillation, so I decided to learn more about these few machines and how they function. I spoke to the boss who was tending the shop and he explained to me how these machines work.And hopefully extract something and maybe place into the design out my scent machine. 

This set up could be a working distiller because it has a steady clamp that is able to probably hold a conical flask or boiling flask. Plus, the space at the bottom allows the placement of a heat source which might be a candle or small fire. Also, we can remove the top section of the machine and replace with a stopper that is attached to a condenser.  It works in a very creative way as well, the water heated in the flask will become vapour and rise into the top section where coffee powder will be placed. The H20 will be trapped and the water molecules will interact with the coffee. After removing the heat source, the coffee will flow back into the flask. Perhaps we could build a distiller out of a coffee machine.

To me, the cold water dripper machine which works in a wonderful and peaceful way. It also makes the process slow and enjoyable. This machine looks amazing on its own too. The ice in the top container will melt and drip down into the middle section where the coffee powder is. Using the compressor, push the contents downwards and the distilled coffee will pass through the filter and collected at the bottom flask.

After leaving the cafe, we made a trip down to Tott where they sell mostly kitchen wares. They also carry some coffee machines and a wide range of glasswares that I can consider to use for the design of the scent machine with these made do glasswares. We also thought of ways of using the glass wares and figure out if we can build out something that allows distillation to happen. They had a few glasswares that were designed to look like chemistry glass wares, with the idea of a condenser which has two layers. 

We tried to visualise if we could make a distillator out of the coffee machine and tea warmer which was also a candle holder, and other possible chemistry apparatus. The height is perfect but we worry that the heat source might not be strong enough for the water to boil. There are many things to put into consideration. However if I needed to experiment, I now know where to purchase the materials needed and have a rough idea on how to build the distiller. 

The tea pot warmer that has a candle inside and placed under the tea pot to keep the tea warm.

I brought one of the glassware home, the one with two layers and tried to think of a way to make distillation happen with the design of the glassware. Let's hope the experiment works, if not at least provide me with an idea on how to improve. Today was a tiring day, with all the discussions, thinking thoughts and running from places to places. But it was fruitful and interesting. Happy with all these information and ideas brewing right now.