0
$\begingroup$

Vacuuming slightly wet wood with my vacuum pump resulted in making a mayonnaise with my pump oil - which turned out surprisingly stable. I mixed salt saturated water with it in order to break the emulsion (by raising the density of the water) and after days, my oil looks clear again...

However, I'm now a bit frightened : What if some salt remained in suspension in the oil. Wouldn't it corrode my pump ? How could I make sure my oil is clean enough ?

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
8
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Yes, the salt would corrode your pump. It is hygroscopic. Maybe consider an oil change all together. $\endgroup$
    – Ronith
    Commented May 10 at 6:01
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ What you can try is doing several repeats of gravity passing oil via funnel with filtration paper (any water soaking paper would do), making very tiny hole at the tip for the oil able to slowly drop. But oil exchange is the sure bet. $\endgroup$
    – Poutnik
    Commented May 10 at 7:12
  • $\begingroup$ Yes, I know that oil change would be the best thing, but the point is that it is something that might happen again and it could end up being quite expensive if I need to completely replace the oil every time. $\endgroup$
    – Camion
    Commented May 10 at 10:19
  • 2
    $\begingroup$ @Camion Based on your description, I presume you joined the oil pump directly to the container of your sample. A frequently used element on small lab scale, for instance with Schlenk lines is a cold trap with liquid nitrogen, or (less cold:) dry ice with isopropanol. Liquids which otherwise would condense on the high-pressure side of the oil pump are then retained as a solid by these traps. Often made of glass, there are larger ones of stainless steel, too. $\endgroup$
    – Buttonwood
    Commented May 10 at 13:53
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ See thomassci.com/nav/cat1/traps/cat2/traps_vaportraps/0 and westlab.com.au/… for some examples of moisture and vapor traps. Sorry, but I would discard the used vacuum oil, lest it destroy the pump... but then use a vapor trap to prevent a repetition. $\endgroup$
    – DrMoishe Pippik
    Commented May 12 at 2:53

0

Reset to default

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.