Are these as efficient as the "super conductors" as they are called by some "energy companies" import from China in the assembly of evac collectors. I had a demonstration where one end was put into a kettle of hot water while holding the top 4 feet away. within seconds it got too hot to hold. I wonder if butane or trichloroethylene may make the transfer more efficient.
@videoclipits If you search the term superconductor you will see it is referring to something else. Heat pipe is the proper term. Many different working fluids are used, even water. It gets a little more involved, but you can adjust the boiling point of the fluid by adjusting the pressure.
Although requiring more time, once the cap is on, does letting the pipe cool, flipping it over and then soldering the cap, make sense in order to improve the soldered joint? Thanks for the post.
@darthom You could do that, but all the solder joints I have done upside down have held. Just do the proper prep, and run the solder all around, it will be fine.
@WXIIIR That would require a dedicated Schrader valve to access the tube, refrigeration hoses and gauges. The torch was in my hand, much simpler and cheaper.
@sundug69 Not that effective, but certainly easy. I send freon bottles to refilling, but the same freon bottle if it has been refilled like that (not heated so much of course) or directly without compressor vacuum, after 5 refills or so it has a small but not good percentage of humidity (water) and air inside, which creates bad circulation on the capilar tubes and sometimes even blocks them, that's why compressor vacuum is safer.
@sundug69 Also joining tube walls and plugging the hole with silver solder will help with durability. I'm only saying this because i saw one guy that had done a lot of heatpipes like you are doing but that in the end saw that it was more effective to heatsink the area directly with a small heatsink intead of moving the heat to a larger heatsink. Precision is key when doing stuff like this, i mean, there's no point in making a heatpipe that won't serve the purpose of a heatpipe, am i right?
No No No wrong answer, ever see a plumber thaw out pipes with a welder? he hooks up the two leads to the pipe, and sets the amps low, and this heats up the pipe. take a weller solder gun, and install a wire and clamp into one side of the gun, use a bolt to secure the wire to the gun, do the same on the other gun post. now i one lead is clamped to the pipe, and the other to the cap, when trigger is pulled the heat will heat up the joint! i have done this many times where i needed a pretty joint.
@advthinker Again, my method works well, is not dangerous, and is a lot easier and faster. That was not a "wrong answer" as what you describe is a short.
uhm ... i think the pressure inside the heatpipe must be below atm (vacuum) to cause the working fluid to boil at a lower temperature than normal. Ex: in normal atm, water boils at 100oC but in vacuum it can be 32oC. I see no point in putting finger on top of the tube ... we will make a pressure positive environment
@archmonde11 You are correct that lowering the pressure on a fluid lowers it's boiling point. However, putting my finger on top of the tube allows me to feel when the acetone boils, pushing air out of the tube, and allowing acetone vapors to fill the tube. This also makes for a slight vacuum at room temp in the tube when it cools off.
@archmonde11 it's positive pressure with a blowtorch heating the fluid ... when you seal it and take the heat away the pressure plummets. if you want to see what's going on pressure wise, take a steel can with a narrow opening, put a little water inside, heat the bottom until water is boiling, put a rubber stopper in the top and turn off the heat
@sundug69 what about the bottle of ether people breathe to get high, thats at room temp, isnt that the same thing? i honestly just know the name, so is it?
one more thing if you want to seal cooper you can take a good electric soldering gun, and run heavy wire to the two peices. to be soldered. pull the triger and this will heat the area to be soldered, with out a flame. works for lots of projects where a flame is not wellcome.
many a year ago i built a collector , not knowing it was a hybyrd heat pipe! the difference was the glass tubes were pyrex and bought from fisher scientific. and the tubes were extruded alu. billet alu was bored and made a tee washer, that was o-ring sealed. pyrex tubes were mirrored by inst of 80/20 window tint on the inside of the tubes, weted and ramed with a sponge resulting in a 180 mirror. tube then vac out and co2 to replace the air. joined to top/bottom manifold that was freon filled.
@josephdupont Because propane is a gas at atmospheric pressure, it would be a lot more difficult to fill the tube, and a lot more dangerous, both in sealing and operation. No need.
I meant to use the fluid instead the scrubs, so the heat from the evacuated tube is transfered to the fluid and then to the copper pipe. Next sunday I will be doing some exterimention. I have a 6-foot evacuated pipe. How much acetone do you think it would work?, because you are using 8 mililiters but the copper is shorter.
What about using some fluid as a transfer media from the evacuated pipe to the copper pipe? Perhaps water, or something that doesn't boil too easily. Maybe car antifreezer?
@rafakonishi If I understand your question, you want to put a liquid in the tight interface between the heat pipe bulb and the manifold? I used a copper paste to improve conduction, and I do not see how or why you would use a liquid there.
Hi! You have an awesome guide here. I'm planning to make one but I hav one question though. From what I understand, vertical heatpipes have a "wick" inside which means that when the liquid boils at the base of the heatpipe and then condenses at the top of the heatpipe, it's wicked back to the base of the heatpipe. My question is, will this still work if the hot side is at the top and the cold side is at the bottom?
@noobiest09 Wick is not needed when the heated end is below the cooled end, but when it gets to where both are at the same level, wicking is needed. I do not think any heat pipe, with or without wicking, will work with the heat having to flow downward.
@sundug69 Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour? What is the size of the condeser? is it 1/2" ?
@rafakonishi You asked-"Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour?"
When the heat pipe is sealed and heat is added, yes pressure rises in the pipe, that's why you do not want to add too much acetone. But the acetone boils at 135*F at atmospheric pressure. Yes, the condenser is 1/2"
@sundug69 Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour? What is the size of the condeser? is it 1/2" ? What if you just press and seal the pipe instead of using a little cap?
@Anima87 Copper tubing is never used for brake lines, only steel. Copper has better heat transfer qualities, but will not withstand brake line pressures. Acetone boils at 133*F, so it will not start moving heat until that temperature. You do not want your CPU to get that hot. The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone.
@Anima87 Copper tubing is never used for brake lines, only steel. Copper has better heat transfer qualities, but will not withstand brake line pressures. Acetone boils at about 133*F, so will not start moving heat until that temperature. You do not want your CPU to get that hot. The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone.
@mkubiak67 Which is exactly what I said- "The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone"
I have a solar station with 160 tubes. The heat produced is getting smaller as it is getting old. The tubes are OK, they didn't lose vacuum, other insulation is also OK. Thanks to this video I assume now, that the heat pipes have lost their "acetone" and therefore the heat production is smaller.
I will pull out all tubes and refill them.
Only I will not heat the tubes with fire. I will put them into a bowl filled with water at ~60°C.
@Dynordie The 8mm is sized to the 3/8"OD tubes I used. If you've read other comments, you would know that too much acetone can make it explode. Be very careful. I don't know how you're going to solder in a bowl of water.
Yes, it still moves heat efficiently, as long as there is enuf lite to heat the acetone above it's boiling point. I would not worry about oxygen going thru copper. Just heat the acetone slightly to drive air from the tube before sealing it.
Hi, thanks for sharing this, it was great but i'm sorta confused... isn't heat pipe suppose to have wicks or some capillary structure to drive liquid back? or is this a gravity based heat pipe?
At what temperature is your pipe transfering (the most) heat? - i want to use copper tubing used for brake fluid lines in a car (OD = 6 mm which is 1/4 in)) to make some simple heat pipes to cool a CPU in a computer. I wanted to use ethanol, but it expands about 700 times when i gasseus state and boils at a higher temperature than acetone. Maybe acetone is better. Hope you will reply!
sundug liked your video. I recently picked up 72 used evacuated tubes and i am converting them to heat pipe just like yours. my question is the start up temp. i have made 3 so far and in the sun they do boil water but in the shade temp is about half that does it still conduct that heat efficiently to the manifold. i have also heard if you dont use oxygen free copper over time impurities leech into the pipe and cause a air pocket just curios what your thoughts are thanks great info!
You're my hero! You kept the arts of fixing things and creating new (and creative) things from what others would consider junk.
A couple questions: how long is the piece of copper tubing you used? When you said it's 3/8" tubing, is that the internal diameter? Finally, is the "bulb" a water hammer arrestor? You have great videos. Thanks
At the risk of sounding dense as a board, I can tell you I already googled "evacuated tubes' - getting over 516,000 replies. I live in Canada, and I have found lots of places to buy NEW systems, but not parts, like you have. You could always email me a link through my contact page. Thanks. Phil
For some reason, YouTube will not let me post complete links, so just search "evacuated tubes". I can't believe how many people ask me this question when it is easily answered by Google. Doug
The riser pipe. Is this item an air tube used in plumbing to compensate for water pipes hammering? If the cap and pipe were pretinned then this becomes a simple sweat joint. Great video.
In one of your video you said that you can pump water with the photo votaic pump. Can you give more details. I am looking for a pump to work directly with out battery.
I arrived at the amount by trial and error, and the error can be dangerous, so exceed that amount at your own risk. I measure it with a small hypodermic.
I found an evacuated tube and tried this in the hot sun yesterday and it works great!! Very inovative and good way to save money for the DIYer. The only problem is finding evacuated tubes by the bundle to make your own. Any ideas?
Why would you want 212? You would be wasting a lot of heat below that temp, and possibly scalding yourself. You are missing the difference between amount of heat and degree of temp.
Perhaps my optimism for the heat losses from the solar array through the multiple heat exchangers to the kitchen sink is too low. Let me assume 30 % loss. This would provide water temp at 148F for the H20 and 93F with Acetone. At 93F the water temperature would need to be raised from the electric water heater (120 140F typically). Id like to avoid that if its as simple as changing my heat pipe fluid. Ill take my chance with the scalding. TBC.......
Nothing doing today. We had good sun in the afternoon, but the evacuated tube only reached 154. Not even close to boiling water. Back to Acetone tomorrow. I'm aslo running an experiment to use the inner tube as my chamber with short copper at the ends. If this works my DIY evacuated tube will be lighter and cheaper. No 5ft copper heat pipe required. The connection between copper and glass may prove difficult.
Doug - My acetone HP only gets up to 130-140 degree F with heat lamp. This may not compensate for the lossed from the HE to the usable water. I'm going to try distilled water as the boiling point is higher. The Abricus peops use distilled water and copper powder (that's what the sale guy said anyway). Do you have any thoughts on this? Boiling pt of acetone is 133 degree F, water 212. Looks like I could achieve a singnificant increase with the latent heat transfer.
But wouldn't the evacutated tube setup reach 212 to activate the heat pipe water. I'm sure it would take a bit longer to activate the vaporization, but the temperature payoff is 70 degrees more. Or am I missing something? I'm not too concerned about the freezing since I'm thinking the water would squeeze up the tube, but I will test a few sample in the freezer just ot be certain. Here in AL it rarely see's the teens in the Winter as you know I'm sure. thanks
I tried it tonight unsuccessfully. I used 1/2 tube with a reducer to connect the 3/4 tube riser. I quadripled the acetone quantity due to the larger tube ID. During the last step to create the pressure too much heat was applied and the acetone shot out of the tube like a volcano which spewed on me from above (while holding the lite torque). Thankfully no fire ensured. I continued with soldering the cap, but the acetone contaminated my joint. I will begin pick it up again tomorrow.
Way too much acetone!!! Why do you think I said only 8cc? Larger pipe does not need 4x the acetone!!! You are being very careless and endangering yourself!!
Will not repeat that same mistake twice. I attempted another heat tube today and went EXACTLY by your instructions. I now have a finished heat tube. I tested it in a pan of boiling water along with an identical size/length tube and was amazed at the rate in which the heat ran up the tube! Had to let go of the heat pipe first. This is superb for my solar heating application. Now if only I could find some glass tubes. Any ideas Doug? I'm up here in Huntsville, AL.
Wick in HP`s is to move liquid when gravity won`t, not help condense. Since these are going to be at a 45* angle, there is no need for wicking. I have made HP`s with R-11, but it gets more complicated, need to pull a vacuum, and use a valve. Yes, on the stub outs. All copper needs to be cleaned and fluxed before soldering.
I really like your idea of using the home built heat pipes to retro-fit the older solar collectors! Great! Do you place any sort of a fiber "wick" inside your heat pipe, to better condense the acetone vapors? Have you tried any other fluids, alcohols, freons, etc? Looks like you're using 1/2" copper stub out extensions soldered to the 3/8" refrigerator tubing? Do you clean/polish up the inside of the CU tubing prior to assembly? Keep up the great work!
Are these as efficient as the "super conductors" as they are called by some "energy companies" import from China in the assembly of evac collectors. I had a demonstration where one end was put into a kettle of hot water while holding the top 4 feet away. within seconds it got too hot to hold. I wonder if butane or trichloroethylene may make the transfer more efficient.
videoclipits 1 week ago
@videoclipits If you search the term superconductor you will see it is referring to something else. Heat pipe is the proper term. Many different working fluids are used, even water. It gets a little more involved, but you can adjust the boiling point of the fluid by adjusting the pressure.
sundug69 1 week ago
Although requiring more time, once the cap is on, does letting the pipe cool, flipping it over and then soldering the cap, make sense in order to improve the soldered joint? Thanks for the post.
darthom 1 week ago
@darthom You could do that, but all the solder joints I have done upside down have held. Just do the proper prep, and run the solder all around, it will be fine.
sundug69 1 week ago
Hello. Amazing work and thank you for providing the information.
My question is does the pipe HAVE TO BE copper?
Copper is UNBELIEVABLY expensive in Egypt, nowadays =/
Abdallah2319 1 month ago
Instead of using a blowtorch to kick air out of tube just charge and discharge the tube using a refrigerator compressor, it's easy and effective.
WXIIIR 2 months ago
@WXIIIR That would require a dedicated Schrader valve to access the tube, refrigeration hoses and gauges. The torch was in my hand, much simpler and cheaper.
sundug69 2 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@sundug69 Not that effective, but certainly easy. I send freon bottles to refilling, but the same freon bottle if it has been refilled like that (not heated so much of course) or directly without compressor vacuum, after 5 refills or so it has a small but not good percentage of humidity (water) and air inside, which creates bad circulation on the capilar tubes and sometimes even blocks them, that's why compressor vacuum is safer.
WXIIIR 2 months ago
@sundug69 Also joining tube walls and plugging the hole with silver solder will help with durability. I'm only saying this because i saw one guy that had done a lot of heatpipes like you are doing but that in the end saw that it was more effective to heatsink the area directly with a small heatsink intead of moving the heat to a larger heatsink. Precision is key when doing stuff like this, i mean, there's no point in making a heatpipe that won't serve the purpose of a heatpipe, am i right?
WXIIIR 2 months ago
Comment removed
WXIIIR 2 months ago
Only if temps rise above 135*F
sundug69 3 months ago
i want use this metod to make a heatpipe for a laptop. it will work well?
iulik17d 3 months ago
Co to jest w 0:02 ten "aston" ??
What this is in 0:02 this "aston" ??
damian0076 5 months ago
@damian0076 denaturat
asg3131 4 months ago
@damian0076 It's Acetone
sundug69 3 months ago
No No No wrong answer, ever see a plumber thaw out pipes with a welder? he hooks up the two leads to the pipe, and sets the amps low, and this heats up the pipe. take a weller solder gun, and install a wire and clamp into one side of the gun, use a bolt to secure the wire to the gun, do the same on the other gun post. now i one lead is clamped to the pipe, and the other to the cap, when trigger is pulled the heat will heat up the joint! i have done this many times where i needed a pretty joint.
advthinker 9 months ago
@advthinker Again, my method works well, is not dangerous, and is a lot easier and faster. That was not a "wrong answer" as what you describe is a short.
sundug69 9 months ago
@sundug69 i think hes saying that the electric short is what they use to heat the pipe, like a filament
LiquidChem 7 months ago
uhm ... i think the pressure inside the heatpipe must be below atm (vacuum) to cause the working fluid to boil at a lower temperature than normal. Ex: in normal atm, water boils at 100oC but in vacuum it can be 32oC. I see no point in putting finger on top of the tube ... we will make a pressure positive environment
archmonde11 9 months ago
@archmonde11 You are correct that lowering the pressure on a fluid lowers it's boiling point. However, putting my finger on top of the tube allows me to feel when the acetone boils, pushing air out of the tube, and allowing acetone vapors to fill the tube. This also makes for a slight vacuum at room temp in the tube when it cools off.
sundug69 9 months ago
@archmonde11 it's positive pressure with a blowtorch heating the fluid ... when you seal it and take the heat away the pressure plummets. if you want to see what's going on pressure wise, take a steel can with a narrow opening, put a little water inside, heat the bottom until water is boiling, put a rubber stopper in the top and turn off the heat
eeenok 8 months ago
Ether has a boiling point of around 95 degrees vs Acetone which is about 133, wouldn't it be more efficient to use ether?
CafeBikeGirl 9 months ago
@CafeBikeGirl Ether is harder to work with, as it is not liquid at room temp and pressure, also a lot more flammable.
sundug69 9 months ago
@sundug69 what about the bottle of ether people breathe to get high, thats at room temp, isnt that the same thing? i honestly just know the name, so is it?
LiquidChem 7 months ago
one more thing if you want to seal cooper you can take a good electric soldering gun, and run heavy wire to the two peices. to be soldered. pull the triger and this will heat the area to be soldered, with out a flame. works for lots of projects where a flame is not wellcome.
advthinker 9 months ago
Respond to this video... You are saying wrap the wire around the copper? Won't that short it out? My method works well, and is not dangerous.
sundug69 9 months ago
many a year ago i built a collector , not knowing it was a hybyrd heat pipe! the difference was the glass tubes were pyrex and bought from fisher scientific. and the tubes were extruded alu. billet alu was bored and made a tee washer, that was o-ring sealed. pyrex tubes were mirrored by inst of 80/20 window tint on the inside of the tubes, weted and ramed with a sponge resulting in a 180 mirror. tube then vac out and co2 to replace the air. joined to top/bottom manifold that was freon filled.
advthinker 9 months ago
like a minto wheel you can get the propain into the pipe and then seal it off with a vise and then solder the end.
josephdupont 1 year ago
@josephdupont I understand what you are saying, I just do not see the need to use a more difficult and dangerous material
sundug69 1 year ago
why not use propane?.use a vise to pinch it off. use a sliver of rubber if you like and then put lead on the end.
josephdupont 1 year ago
@josephdupont Because propane is a gas at atmospheric pressure, it would be a lot more difficult to fill the tube, and a lot more dangerous, both in sealing and operation. No need.
sundug69 1 year ago
I meant to use the fluid instead the scrubs, so the heat from the evacuated tube is transfered to the fluid and then to the copper pipe. Next sunday I will be doing some exterimention. I have a 6-foot evacuated pipe. How much acetone do you think it would work?, because you are using 8 mililiters but the copper is shorter.
rafakonishi 1 year ago
@rafakonishi Low mass collectors are more efficient, as the heat required to warm up the liquid every morning will be lost to the night sky at night.
sundug69 1 year ago
@rafakonishi 8cc for 46", so do the math to reduce.
sundug69 1 year ago
@rafakonishi If you are using 3/8" ID tubing as I did, I suggest trying about 10ML
sundug69 1 year ago
What about using some fluid as a transfer media from the evacuated pipe to the copper pipe? Perhaps water, or something that doesn't boil too easily. Maybe car antifreezer?
rafakonishi 1 year ago
@rafakonishi If I understand your question, you want to put a liquid in the tight interface between the heat pipe bulb and the manifold? I used a copper paste to improve conduction, and I do not see how or why you would use a liquid there.
sundug69 1 year ago
Hi! You have an awesome guide here. I'm planning to make one but I hav one question though. From what I understand, vertical heatpipes have a "wick" inside which means that when the liquid boils at the base of the heatpipe and then condenses at the top of the heatpipe, it's wicked back to the base of the heatpipe. My question is, will this still work if the hot side is at the top and the cold side is at the bottom?
noobiest09 1 year ago
@noobiest09 Wick is not needed when the heated end is below the cooled end, but when it gets to where both are at the same level, wicking is needed. I do not think any heat pipe, with or without wicking, will work with the heat having to flow downward.
sundug69 1 year ago
Good afternoon!
Why acetone? Whether it is possible to apply an ether of 65-70 %, glycerin of 10-15 %? And what structure in industrial samples.
staging2011 1 year ago
@staging2011 Acetone is cheap, readily available and has a boiling point at a suitable temperature for this application
sundug69 1 year ago
@sundug69 Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour? What is the size of the condeser? is it 1/2" ?
rafakonishi 1 year ago
@rafakonishi You asked-"Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour?"
When the heat pipe is sealed and heat is added, yes pressure rises in the pipe, that's why you do not want to add too much acetone. But the acetone boils at 135*F at atmospheric pressure. Yes, the condenser is 1/2"
sundug69 1 year ago
@sundug69 Don't you loose vacuum when the acetone boils and the liquid converts into large volume of vapour? What is the size of the condeser? is it 1/2" ? What if you just press and seal the pipe instead of using a little cap?
rafakonishi 1 year ago
@rafakonishi You could press and seal the pipe, the cap just does it faster
sundug69 1 year ago
@Anima87 Copper tubing is never used for brake lines, only steel. Copper has better heat transfer qualities, but will not withstand brake line pressures. Acetone boils at 133*F, so it will not start moving heat until that temperature. You do not want your CPU to get that hot. The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone.
sundug69 1 year ago
@sundug69 Copper Nickle brake lines are considered the best in the industry...
They are over 80 percent copper. Just a FYI.
xexorz 1 year ago
@Anima87 Copper tubing is never used for brake lines, only steel. Copper has better heat transfer qualities, but will not withstand brake line pressures. Acetone boils at about 133*F, so will not start moving heat until that temperature. You do not want your CPU to get that hot. The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone.
sundug69 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@sundug69 Copper Nickle brake lines are considered the best in the industry...
They are over 80 percent copper. Just a FYI.
xexorz 1 year ago
@sundug69 yes but when you lower the Presser in the tube it boils at a lower temp this is called tuneing the pipe.
mkubiak67 1 year ago
@mkubiak67 Which is exactly what I said- "The only way I can see this working with acetone is to reduce the pressure in the heat pipe to reduce the boiling point of the acetone"
sundug69 1 year ago
Great video!
I have a solar station with 160 tubes. The heat produced is getting smaller as it is getting old. The tubes are OK, they didn't lose vacuum, other insulation is also OK. Thanks to this video I assume now, that the heat pipes have lost their "acetone" and therefore the heat production is smaller.
I will pull out all tubes and refill them.
Only I will not heat the tubes with fire. I will put them into a bowl filled with water at ~60°C.
How did you determine 8ml?
I will go with 15ml !
Dynordie 1 year ago
@Dynordie The 8mm is sized to the 3/8"OD tubes I used. If you've read other comments, you would know that too much acetone can make it explode. Be very careful. I don't know how you're going to solder in a bowl of water.
sundug69 1 year ago
@sundug69
A small misunderstanding.
I am going to solder with fire, I will only put the thicker end in a bowl of hot water to get the air out of the tube.
Dynordie 1 year ago
Yes, it still moves heat efficiently, as long as there is enuf lite to heat the acetone above it's boiling point. I would not worry about oxygen going thru copper. Just heat the acetone slightly to drive air from the tube before sealing it.
sundug69 1 year ago
Hi, thanks for sharing this, it was great but i'm sorta confused... isn't heat pipe suppose to have wicks or some capillary structure to drive liquid back? or is this a gravity based heat pipe?
ColdenScence 1 year ago
@ColdenScence Gravity is all you need, as long as the heat pipe is angled sufficiently so the condensed liquid drains back down.
sundug69 1 year ago
@sundug69 Hi Doug
At what temperature is your pipe transfering (the most) heat? - i want to use copper tubing used for brake fluid lines in a car (OD = 6 mm which is 1/4 in)) to make some simple heat pipes to cool a CPU in a computer. I wanted to use ethanol, but it expands about 700 times when i gasseus state and boils at a higher temperature than acetone. Maybe acetone is better. Hope you will reply!
Anima87 1 year ago
Comment removed
ricxeco 1 year ago
@Anima87 Acetone is fun for this type of heat pipe because you just boils some, wait for the tube to fill of acetone gas and seal it.
Now, for electronic application, Perkins tubes are not the best:
a) they are not heatpipe and only work at 30 to 90 degree from horizontal.
b) Acetone will only start to exchange heat at about 130F unless you seal the tube under vacuum.
c) If you get equip to seal the tube under vacuum, water is a much better fluid pass 90F. (Ethanol is worst then Acetone)
ricxeco 1 year ago
sundug liked your video. I recently picked up 72 used evacuated tubes and i am converting them to heat pipe just like yours. my question is the start up temp. i have made 3 so far and in the sun they do boil water but in the shade temp is about half that does it still conduct that heat efficiently to the manifold. i have also heard if you dont use oxygen free copper over time impurities leech into the pipe and cause a air pocket just curios what your thoughts are thanks great info!
09caribou 1 year ago
GOOD TECHNIQUE
lapulapu12345 1 year ago
Thanks! The 3/8' OD tubing is about 46", the full length of the evacuated glass tube. You are correct about the bulb. I appreciate the compliments.
sundug69 1 year ago
You're my hero! You kept the arts of fixing things and creating new (and creative) things from what others would consider junk.
A couple questions: how long is the piece of copper tubing you used? When you said it's 3/8" tubing, is that the internal diameter? Finally, is the "bulb" a water hammer arrestor? You have great videos. Thanks
MrRBartsch 1 year ago
At the risk of sounding dense as a board, I can tell you I already googled "evacuated tubes' - getting over 516,000 replies. I live in Canada, and I have found lots of places to buy NEW systems, but not parts, like you have. You could always email me a link through my contact page. Thanks. Phil
pkarza 1 year ago
After getting those results on Google, then click on "shopping" to find sources. And I already did send you some links thru your page.
sundug69 1 year ago
Where do you get the parts - esp the glass?? It would be great to see a complete plan and parts list video. Thanks...
pkarza 1 year ago
Where do you get the parts - esp the glass?? It would be great to see a complete plan and parts list video. Thanks...
pkarza 1 year ago
For some reason, YouTube will not let me post complete links, so just search "evacuated tubes". I can't believe how many people ask me this question when it is easily answered by Google. Doug
sundug69 1 year ago
Where do you get the parts - esp the glass?? It would be great to see a complete plan and parts list video. Thanks...
pkarza 1 year ago
The riser pipe. Is this item an air tube used in plumbing to compensate for water pipes hammering? If the cap and pipe were pretinned then this becomes a simple sweat joint. Great video.
1foxtrot70 2 years ago
Yes, the bulb is a stub out used as you described
sundug69 2 years ago
In one of your video you said that you can pump water with the photo votaic pump. Can you give more details. I am looking for a pump to work directly with out battery.
prasadgoli 2 years ago
Search PV powered pumps. El Sid, Laing, are two good brands.
sundug69 2 years ago
Just acetone, no wick, buy the tubes
sundug69 2 years ago
Gravity does the job better than a wick, as long as the heat source is below the cooler side
sundug69 2 years ago
How long is your total heat pipe (including the 6" riser)? Have you had any additional refinements in the system?
Is 8ml Acetone still ideal?
Just want to minimize the danger and learn from your existing trial and error.
sandenni 2 years ago
Heat pipe length is about 48". 8-10 ml is still ideal, no further refinements
sundug69 2 years ago
Where I buy the condenser
jcsorter 2 years ago
I just did a conversion ml to oz. WOW it does not require much only .27 to .33 oz am I correct?
1foxtrot70 2 years ago
Yep
sundug69 2 years ago
Was it so simple?
Thank you for sharing!
DMINDTHELOWRIDER 2 years ago
where I buy the condenser
jcsorter 2 years ago
Any hardware store, I bought the condenser bulbs at Lowes
sundug69 2 years ago
I do show this in my solar tour video
sundug69 2 years ago
question?
how the pipes and the water are conected? can u made a video and show the conection??? please...
: )
kricotoy 2 years ago
how do you calculate the amount of acetone?
yobobcat 2 years ago
I arrived at the amount by trial and error, and the error can be dangerous, so exceed that amount at your own risk. I measure it with a small hypodermic.
sundug69 2 years ago
I found an evacuated tube and tried this in the hot sun yesterday and it works great!! Very inovative and good way to save money for the DIYer. The only problem is finding evacuated tubes by the bundle to make your own. Any ideas?
freak4vt 2 years ago
Why would you want 212? You would be wasting a lot of heat below that temp, and possibly scalding yourself. You are missing the difference between amount of heat and degree of temp.
sundug69 3 years ago
Perhaps my optimism for the heat losses from the solar array through the multiple heat exchangers to the kitchen sink is too low. Let me assume 30 % loss. This would provide water temp at 148F for the H20 and 93F with Acetone. At 93F the water temperature would need to be raised from the electric water heater (120 140F typically). Id like to avoid that if its as simple as changing my heat pipe fluid. Ill take my chance with the scalding. TBC.......
grayjc 3 years ago
I will run some tests to determine if I can achieve the activation temperature for H20. This could be the limiting factor.
grayjc 3 years ago
Nothing doing today. We had good sun in the afternoon, but the evacuated tube only reached 154. Not even close to boiling water. Back to Acetone tomorrow. I'm aslo running an experiment to use the inner tube as my chamber with short copper at the ends. If this works my DIY evacuated tube will be lighter and cheaper. No 5ft copper heat pipe required. The connection between copper and glass may prove difficult.
Sorry for all the posts and questions.
john
grayjc 3 years ago
Doug - My acetone HP only gets up to 130-140 degree F with heat lamp. This may not compensate for the lossed from the HE to the usable water. I'm going to try distilled water as the boiling point is higher. The Abricus peops use distilled water and copper powder (that's what the sale guy said anyway). Do you have any thoughts on this? Boiling pt of acetone is 133 degree F, water 212. Looks like I could achieve a singnificant increase with the latent heat transfer.
thanks - John
grayjc 3 years ago
130-140 is ideal for water heating, acetone will not freeze. Water needs a vacuum pulled on it to lower boiling point.
sundug69 3 years ago
But wouldn't the evacutated tube setup reach 212 to activate the heat pipe water. I'm sure it would take a bit longer to activate the vaporization, but the temperature payoff is 70 degrees more. Or am I missing something? I'm not too concerned about the freezing since I'm thinking the water would squeeze up the tube, but I will test a few sample in the freezer just ot be certain. Here in AL it rarely see's the teens in the Winter as you know I'm sure. thanks
grayjc 3 years ago
I tried it tonight unsuccessfully. I used 1/2 tube with a reducer to connect the 3/4 tube riser. I quadripled the acetone quantity due to the larger tube ID. During the last step to create the pressure too much heat was applied and the acetone shot out of the tube like a volcano which spewed on me from above (while holding the lite torque). Thankfully no fire ensured. I continued with soldering the cap, but the acetone contaminated my joint. I will begin pick it up again tomorrow.
grayjc 3 years ago
Way too much acetone!!! Why do you think I said only 8cc? Larger pipe does not need 4x the acetone!!! You are being very careless and endangering yourself!!
sundug69 3 years ago
Will not repeat that same mistake twice. I attempted another heat tube today and went EXACTLY by your instructions. I now have a finished heat tube. I tested it in a pan of boiling water along with an identical size/length tube and was amazed at the rate in which the heat ran up the tube! Had to let go of the heat pipe first. This is superb for my solar heating application. Now if only I could find some glass tubes. Any ideas Doug? I'm up here in Huntsville, AL.
Thanks for the video.
grayjc 3 years ago
Doug - Very clever indeed. Thanks
grayjc 3 years ago
nice job can u send me info ..what kind of aceton?? sorry my engilsf from mexico
kricotoy 3 years ago
Regular acetone from any hardware or home supply, from the paint dept.
sundug69 3 years ago
so thats how heat pipes work
crazyhugs 3 years ago
Great presentation Doug. I must have watched it a dozzen times.
Looks like you finally made it on Green TV. it's nice to be there with a fellow hambone.
Good Job.
John
jcanivan 3 years ago
Wick in HP`s is to move liquid when gravity won`t, not help condense. Since these are going to be at a 45* angle, there is no need for wicking. I have made HP`s with R-11, but it gets more complicated, need to pull a vacuum, and use a valve. Yes, on the stub outs. All copper needs to be cleaned and fluxed before soldering.
sundug69 3 years ago
I really like your idea of using the home built heat pipes to retro-fit the older solar collectors! Great! Do you place any sort of a fiber "wick" inside your heat pipe, to better condense the acetone vapors? Have you tried any other fluids, alcohols, freons, etc? Looks like you're using 1/2" copper stub out extensions soldered to the 3/8" refrigerator tubing? Do you clean/polish up the inside of the CU tubing prior to assembly? Keep up the great work!
GlassArtist07 3 years ago