Seperating pure Ether from starter fluid-

[redchigh]

I've had questions, so here you go.

I spray starter fluid in a clear bag with cold water- The hexane/heptaine mixes with the water. Tie off the bag, and cut the bottom corner. Drain out the BOTTOM layer, the clear liquid in the middle is Ether.
Here's a diagram.

-------------------------
| C02 (or propane)
|-------------------------
|Ether
|-------------------------
|Heptaine/Water mix
|__________________
Cut here -^ to drain out water mixture and pour ether into second container. Use quickly- Only seperate as much as you can use. Its VERY Dangerous to store- If it forms crystals, gently dispose of it- they are explosive oxides.
MSDS Safety sheet for Ether- Must read!- www.sciencelab.com/xMSDS-Ethyl_ether-9927164[/url]

[jackssmirkingrevenge]

I thought heptane was not miscible in water..., with a density of 0.684 g/cm³ it's usually the upper phase.

[redchigh]

Well I actually got the directions from a drug-use web site... and thats how they seperate the ether to get a high off of it... I hate to say it, but drug-users are ingenius when it comes to their drugs...
(If only they would quit the drugs and turn to a more productive thing like spudding [like me :-p] )

The site claimed it was the condensation point that made it mix. *Shrug*

[Scope]

Well I actually got the directions from a drug-use web site... and thats how they seperate the ether to get a high off of it... I hate to say it, but drug-users are ingenius when it comes to their drugs...
(If only they would quit the drugs and turn to a more productive thing like spudding [like me :-p] )

The site claimed it was the condensation point that made it mix. *Shrug*

recreational drug users are the inventors and businessmen of the future. They learn quickly how to invest, turn a profit, and advertise. They also can make anything out of anything to fit there need.

[MikeNice]

So that makes them WINNERS! (sarcasm so thick you could cut it) They also learn quickly how to steal, lie, and blame everything and everyone else for their problems. Not the place for this discussion I know.

Pure ether is very, very dangerous. I can't even say it enough. It is HIGHLY unstable. It can explode in your face sending out shards of whatever it was being stored in, glass being a common storage medium. There are plenty of powerful, cheap, and safe fuels out there that people don't really need to play with ether. I strongly discourage it. In my opinion, it's just not worth it.

[jimmy101]

So that makes them WINNERS! (sarcasm so thick you could cut it) They also learn quickly how to steal, lie, and blame everything and everyone else for their problems. Not the place for this discussion I know.

Pure ether is very, very dangerous. I can't even say it enough. It is HIGHLY unstable. It can explode in your face sending out shards of whatever it was being stored in, glass being a common storage medium. There are plenty of powerful, cheap, and safe fuels out there that people don't really need to play with ether. I strongly discourage it. In my opinion, it's just not worth it.

Pure ether is not unstable. It is incredibly flammable (worse than gasoline) but it is not unstable. The boiling point of ether is low enough that it will just about boil if you just pour it into your hand.

Old ether, that doesn't contain any water or preservatives, can form peroxides that are unstable. This is usually only a problem if you take a large volume of ether and evaporate it. This concentrates any peroxides present which can present an explosion hazard.

[MikeNice]

So incredibly flammable and a boiling point so low it will just about boil in you hand ISN'T unstable? OK. Incredibly flammable, more so than gasoline, but not unstable? Hmmm. Maybe we are disagreeing on what stable is . . .

[DYI]

An unstable substance (by my very unscientific description), is one that can spontaneously decompose in a violent manner with little input energy. Things like pure compressed acetylene, or asphalt soaked in liquid oxygen that seem to explode if you look at them the wrong way. Just because a substance is highly flammable does not make it unstable.

[MikeNice]

An unstable substance (by my very unscientific description), is one that can spontaneously decompose in a violent manner with little input energy.

Ether decomposes into a gaseous state at room temperature readily, so by your own definition ether IS unstable. Also, the post was talking about "PURE ETHER" not ether mixed with water or preservatives.

My point was simply that ether is dangerous and there are plenty of better, cheap, significantly less hazardous, MORE STABLE, fuels out there. Just what we need here is some careless noob to come in, think it's a good idea to separate pure ether from starting fluid, get careless with it and die in his garage fro asphyxiation. Ether also has a nasty habit of displacing oxygen, thats why it was used as an anesthesia and is huffed. [/quote]

[ammosmoke]

Well, sheesh why would you want to seperate it in the first place??? Starter fluid is HIGHLY flammable and powerful as a fuel, and it isn't really recommended in itself for a fuel anyways... Why make it more flammable than that???

[jackssmirkingrevenge]

So that makes them WINNERS! (sarcasm so thick you could cut it) They also learn quickly how to steal, lie, and blame everything and everyone else for their problems.

Why is that sarcastic? Isn't that what succesful businessmen do? Financial wealth does not bestow you with any sort of moral highground, on purely ethical terms they are no different. I think you just reinforced scope's statement

[jimmy101]

By all technical defintions of "unstable" and "stable" ether is "stable". Yes, it is a bit more of a fire hazard than gasoline, but it is about the same as acetone (e.g., nail polish remover, which will almost boil in your hands). Since you probably have a bottle of nail polish remover in your house right now, and you don't classify nail polish remover as "HIGHLY unstable", then why would you classify ether that way?

Besides, propane, butane etc. iare even more volatile than ether and you probably have a couple containers of them in your house. Got any displosable lighters? How about cans of spray paint?

So, by pretty much any definition of "unstable" and "stable" ether is stable.

[MikeNice]

Yes or no, can ether remain in a liquid state open, at room temperature? No it cannot. Why?

I think you are confusing stability for chemical reactivity. Ether is not very chemically reactive. This does not mean the same thing as stable.

[jimmy101]

Yes or no, can ether remain in a liquid state open, at room temperature? No it cannot. Why?

Can propane? Can water? The physical state of a substance has very little to do with its stability. Ether as a gas is 100% stable, as it is when it is a liquid. It will not spontaneously decompose.

I think you are confusing stability for chemical reactivity.

I think you are confusing evaporation with stability. Water evaporates, that does not make it unstable.

Ether is not very chemically reactive. This does not mean the same thing as stable.

Non-chemically reactive does indeed mean the same things as stable.

I suspect I know a heck of a lot more about chemical reactivity than you do. Besides, without chemical reactivity there is no change. Doesn't matter what the physical state of ethers is, until it undergoes a chemical reaction it is stable. Evaporation of ether is not a sign that it is "HIGHLY unstable".

Ether is chemically reactive, that is why it is a fire hazard. But wood is also a fire hazard and wood is not classified as "HIGHLY unstable".

Ether, wood, propane etc. all require an igntion source to react with air (i.e., combust). Without air (or some other oxidizer) and an ignition source they are all stable.

[ammosmoke]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
un·sta·ble [uhn-stey-buhl] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective 1. not stable; not firm or firmly fixed; unsteady.
2. liable to fall or sway.
3. unsteadfast; inconstant; wavering: unstable convictions.
4. marked by emotional instability: an unstable person.
5. irregular in movement: an unstable heartbeat.
6. Chemistry. noting compounds that readily decompose or change into other compounds.

[Origin: 1175–1225; ME; see un-1, stable2]

—Related forms
un·sta·ble·ness, noun
un·sta·bly, adverb

—Synonyms 2. precarious. 2, 3. See unsettled. 3. vacillating.Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/unstable[/b]