Sidmadra
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Using a cheap Rotary Evaporator...as a makeshift ball mill?
Solid/Solid reactions can be pretty amazing given how high the yields can be. I've got a cheap Chinese rotary evaporator and I've been needing a ball
mill for some solid-solid reactions. The cheapest small scale lab ball mill I can find is ~$1000, and all of the rock tumblrs sold online have jars
that are too big (and incompatible with many organics). The advantage I see with using a rotary evaporator is that I can heat the flask in the water
bath, which wouldn't be easy to do in a diy-homemade ball mill. I'm not even sure I've seen laboratory ball mills with a heating option.
I can't tell if this is a great idea or somehow shortsighted, but I imagine myself putting my pre-ground reagents in a 100ml flask, with some "BB-Gun
BB's" to create the tumbling/crushing force. I figure could let this run for hours without issue. I've previously put similar sized molecular seives
in a rotary evaporator flask and they tumbled rather well. Glass beads could be used as well I imagine.
Thoughts?
[Edited on 17-9-2018 by Sidmadra]
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Ubya
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If you plan on using plastic BBs I think they are too light, and not really heat resistent, but if you want to use metal BBs they could scrape or
crack the glass flask
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Sidmadra
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Quote: Originally posted by Ubya  | | If you plan on using plastic BBs I think they are too light, and not really heat resistent, but if you want to use metal BBs they could scrape or
crack the glass flask |
I wouldn't use plastic BB's. I have heard metal BB's can scratch the flask, and occasionally even leave residue in the material, so I may just use
3-4mm glass beads that can be purchased online. About glass scratches, I wouldn't mind it really. Round Bottom flasks are arguably one of the cheapest
glass items in the laboratory after beakers. While I wouldn't use scratched glass under vacuum, I think it would last a longtime for the mentioned
purpose.
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