Supercooled Wort Chiller

NoNothing · 08-06-2008, 06:49 PM

I know what you're thinking...oooohhh, colder water? that will help a lot!

No...no colder water..coolant! Well this is just an idea right now I need to expand on it.

I used to be really into overclocking computers and I ended up having a guy on http://www.xtremesystems.org/ build me a phase change system. The way the phase change system works (in short) is to cycle liquid coolant through an evaporator that is connected to the CPU and there heat from the CPU is used as energy to convert the liquid coolant to a gas. Using that energy to change state is a lot easier than heating the coolant and having to cool it down again. The coolant then goes back through a compressor (like a fridge or AC unit) and is compressed back into a liquid and the cycle starts again. Now I dont know all the specifics of it, which is why someone else built my unit. But I do know its been sitting in a closet for 2 years now and its time to put a $500 peice of equipment to good use, cooling my wort fast!

Right now the unit is clogged and I need to have it flushed and re-gassed but that will come. Right now I need to figure out a way to cool wort with this sucker. I should mention at the evap head without a load on it -53*C is the running temp, so a little colder than that 0-7*C from your chilled water/garden hose.

At first I had an idea of just getting a large metal rod, welding that onto the evap and slowly stirring the wort (possibly with a conventional wort chiller in the wort aswell) but then the bottom of the stick would always be much warmer than the top which would be freezing.

Another idea is to take apart the evap once the system is flushed of coolant and build my own evap, basicly build a coil like current wort chillers and just have coolant run through it, super cooling the wort. I would have some cooling professional help me with this since I dont want to gas my wort, or kill myself.

So, anyone have any better ideas, or HVAC cert'd and want to tell me Im nuts and should just use a pre chiller?? Ill try to get sketches of what Im thinking of up here shortly.

In the mean time here are some pics of my PS (phase shift) unit:

Boodlemania · 08-06-2008, 07:15 PM

you "could" take apart a window AC unit, extend the AC lines enough to submerge the evaporator, and accomplish the same thing.

For really cold stuff, though: PolyCold Systems

Bytor1100 · 08-06-2008, 07:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boodlemania

you "could" take apart a window AC unit, extend the AC lines enough to submerge the evaporator, and accomplish the same thing.

For really cold stuff, though: PolyCold Systems

I am planning on doing this, all I need is to find an AC unit to use.

GearBeer · 08-06-2008, 07:21 PM

I'm not so sure about a window A/C unit. Initially I'd thought about using the window A/C unit I have from my apartment to cool my wort. I never measured it to find out for certain, but I'd be worried that the coils would freeze the coolant water. There's always the option of using salt water or some solution of glycol to prevent freezing, but that level of complexity turned me off (Plus I'm on a well with 45-50* water year round).

p4ck37p1mp · 08-06-2008, 07:32 PM

This is more or less what we use for cooling saltwater reef aquariums, you can buy them at reef stores, like marinedepot.com. Not sure they'd like boiling water passing through them though, I might use an IC or CFC to get the temp down from boiling to 140 or so, that might be less work for the chiller.

k1v1116 · 08-06-2008, 07:37 PM

this system is the same as a refrigerator/air conditioner. I would love to see a very short CFC using ethanol phase change for cooling I think that would be the ultimate system.

NoNothing · 08-06-2008, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by k1v1116

this system is the same as a refrigerator/air conditioner. I would love to see a very short CFC using ethanol phase change for cooling I think that would be the ultimate system.

Amazing idea, i was only thinking of doing normal coil wort chiller. But that...Could be epic!

Im gonna need to call up my cooling guy and see if we cant work something out.

**conpewter** · 08-06-2008, 08:10 PM

Ohhh i like the idea of using ethanol as the coolant, if it leaks... higher ABV instead of ruined batch of beer.

camiller · 08-06-2008, 08:34 PM

I'm thinking the thermal mass of 5G of hot wort is greater than the thermal mass of a running CPU. I doubt a system designed to cool a PC will be capable of cooling 5G of wort very effectively.

IIRC acetone cooled with dry ice will get down to -70F. Fill a cooler with acetone and dry ice then pump the acetone through an immersion chiller and back to the cooler. Add dry ice as necessary.

NoNothing · 08-06-2008, 08:46 PM

Stupid thermo-dynamics...

Thats a pretty valid point camiller, but I would still expect it to be better than a cool water IC.