The Complete Birch

by Mister_Clean (retired)

This post is intended as a final answer to all those nagging birch questions that keep
popping up. Before I begin, I would like to make one thing perfectly clear:

THE BIRCH IS A DANGEROUS REACTION AND SHOULD NOT BE ATTEMPTED

BY AMATEURS. I mean no disrespect to anyone by this statement, I just dont think it
has been emphasized enough how dangerous this reaction can be.

An OVERVIEW:

Technically, the birch reaction refers to reduction by sodium dissolved in ammonia.

Lithium/NH3 reduction is not actually a "birch" but for simplicities sake I will refer to it
in this manner.

When lithium is dissolved in ammonia it releases an electron, referred to as a "solvated

electron" . The solvated electron produces a "royal blue" color in the ammonia, which,
depending upon concentration, can appear almost black.

Two electrons are required to reduce a molecule of ephedrine into methamphetamine.

Therefore the proper molar ratio for reactants is 2Li to 1 pseudo. The amount of ammonia
present is not important, as long as it is sufficient to dissolve all the Li present.

This 2-1 ratio is EXTREMELY important. Too little Li and not all the pseudo will be
reduced. Too much and your pseudo will be OVER reduced. This is the main reason
contaminants (including water) must be avoided. They will use up some of the electrons,
leaving you to "guess" how much Li you need. Your guess will most likely be wrong.

The 2-1 ratio is based on FREEBASE stock. If you use pseudo HCL, then the amount of
Li required will be higher.

CLEANING PSEUDO PROPERLY:

Placebo's lesser cure, followed by an a/b extraction, is sufficient. Those of you using
equate suphedrine will have to change your source, as they have been reformulated with
so much povidone they will literally turn to jello upon basifying.

Obtaining Li:

Eveready AA size batteries contain .94g of Li each. it is found in a flat metal strip inside
the battery which is light grey. There is another strip inside these batteries which appears
shiny. The shiny strip is trash. All other Li batteries should be avoided. The AA's are out
there. Look for them.

Obtaining anhydrous ammonia:

The ammonia used must be "anhydrous". It is impossible to use any form of aqueous
ammonia directly. Anhydrous ammonia is a gas at room temperature, and typically
requires around 100psi to become liquid at room temp. It is also liquid at -33c at standard
pressure.

Ammonia is a weak base, it is typically found as a salt in OTC fertilizers. Adding a

strong base, such as NaOH (sodium hyroxide or Red Devil) will replace the ammonia in
the ammonia salt, freeing it to form a gas. This gas can then be condensed in another
container which is chilled below -33c.

Aqueous ammonia can be used only by turning it into a salt, then boiling off the excess
water.A 1-1 molar ratio is required for this, and as a mole of HCL weighs about twice
what a mole of NH3 does , about twice as much hcl by weight is required.

THE REACTION:

There are several different opinions as to how the reaction should be done. Some people
add the Li to the NH3 first, in order to ensure blueness. Some add the pseudo and Li
alternately, and some just chuck the whole mess in together. I dont really know WHAT
the RIGHT way is, all I know is what seems right to me.

Dissolve the pseudo in anhydrous isopropanol . I recommend about 6ml per gram. Place
it in a container as close to the volume you have as possible. Try to avoid air space as it
will encourage condensation. This amount of iso will not completely dissolve it, but will
make kind of a slush. Place this in the freezer a few hours before your reaction is to start.

If you already have anhydrous ammonia, then peel your batteries. This can be easily done
by cutting just through the metal casing in a spiral pattern, grabbing the end of the metal
with needlenose pliers, and unwrapping. This leaves you with a paper wrapped cylinder.
You now need 2 containers filled with naptha. The first container should be wide and flat
enough that you can get both hands in (your not actually going to PUT your hands in
there, Tasty). the second is your Li storage container. For the second container it is
helpful to have something to keep the Li below the surface (it floats). A smaller plastic
lid will work, but be sure to test it in the naptha before using to make sure it won't melt.

Take the paper cylinder and submerge it in the large container of naptha. Now take an
exacto knife and CAREFULLY slit the paper open. Try not to go past the paper layer
with the blade as it will short the Li strip. Once the paper is slit, peel it off. This will
expose the inner strips and carbon. Now unroll the whole mess quickly under the naptha.
Once this part is saturated with naptha it can no longer short out. Take the grey Li strip,
being careful not to rip it, and put it into the second container. Leave the carbon crap in
the first container till you are done. Prepare as many batteries as necessary at this time.
IF YOU ARE CONDENSING YOUR AMMONIA, do not unwrap the paper until you
have finished condensing, just strip the metal casing.

Now for the fun part....

If you have a tank, place it in a container of ice. After the tank is chilled, add rock salt to
the ice. This will drop it another few degrees.
Place your reaction vessel in ice and add an equal volume of cacl2 to the ice (this can be
purchased by the gallon as concrete accellerant). The ice will start to melt quite rapidly,
but this will give you the low temp necessary to hold the ammonia. Fill the reaction
vessel with 250 ml of ammonia, plus another 100 ml for each ounce of pseudo.

Now add the pseudo to the ammonia. Leave it in the ice and stir vigorously.

WARNING: THE ADDED HEAT FROM THE PSEUDO / IPA WILL CAUSE THE
AMMONIA TO BOIL, ADD SLOWLY.

Once the pseudo is in, and the temp has equalized (ammonia not boiling off) take your
first Li strip, rip off about 1/5th of the strip and quickly pat it dry on a paper towel. Tear it
into 2 or 3 pieces (small) and toss into the reaction vessel. Mix well.

WARNING: ONCE THE LI IS EXPOSED TO AIR IT WILL BEGIN TO REACT.

THE PIECES WILL HEAT UP SLOWLY AT FIRST, BUT AT AN EXPONENTIAL
RATE. THEY CAN BECOME HOT ENOUGH TO IGNITE YOU, YOUR
FURNITURE, OR ANY AVAILABLE WATER DROPLETS.

When the pieces are almost completely dissolved (15-20 seconds) repeat the process. As
you near the end of your Li, the pieces will take longer to dissolve, but keep adding at a
steady rate of 1 piece every 30-45 seconds.

When all the Li has been added, and the temp has equalized, remove the reaction vessel
from the ice bath. Place a lid on it with a tube going to the bottom of a five gallon bucket
with about 1 1/2-2 gallons of water inside. to this water add 1/5th gallon of muriatic acid.

Do not submerge the hose until the vessel is OUT of the ice. If you do, the cooling from
the ice may cause the acid water to suck back. This will initiate a rather unpleasant
sequence of events.

Keep mixing the container for the next 15-20 minutes. Then you may place a heater in
front of it to drive off the ammonia. Do not heat TOO rapidly, for reasons which should
be obvious.

If and when your water bucket starts to smell of ammonia, add hcl till the smell goes
away, then add more. You cant have TOO much HCL.

When most of the ammonia is gone (30-45 minutes) then carefully remove the top of the
rxn vessel. Dont be a dumbass at this point and "sniff" the container. If there is still
excess ammonia, it will be no secret.

Pour in 100ml water per ounce of product, then your favorite NP. Toluene is fine here.
Ether is not recommended.

Now add NaOH in 1/4 teaspoon increments, mixing well each addition, until no more
bubbles evolve. the bubbles are from NH3 evolving from the water layer.

Separate the NP and rinse with 2 small volumes of NaOH solution (PH 13), then with a
small volume of distilled water.

Dry the NP with baked epsoms, let the epsoms settle, then decant into a clean container.
filter the bottom portion of the NP to catch any stray salt.

Gas, filter, recrystalize, and enjoy.

CONDENSING AMMONIA FROM FERTILIZER (OR ANY AMMONIA SALT):

A plastic gas can is used here as the generator. This is used because the soft sides allow
you an idea of the system pressure. There are many other containers which may be used,
but I cant think of any which are as forgiving.

While generating, the system pressure will fluctuate. If your system cannot take 20 PSI,
then you should redesign it.

During normal operation it should run 5-7 psi.

The principle of this operation is that " the stronger base liberates the weaker base from
it's salt." If your salt is ammonium chloride, then you would add sodium hydroxide to it
to liberate the ammonia. the reaction goes: NH4CL+NaOH = heat + NaCl + H20 +NH3.
The reaction requires a small amount of water to initiate, but once it starts it produces it's
own water (as well as salt). Notice that the reaction produces heat (exothermic) as this is
gonna be important later.

To produce a liter of ammonia you will need about 2 kilos of ammonia salt, as well as 2
kilos of NaOH. This is a theoretical minimum.

When buying fertilizer, look for "ammoniacal nitrogen". Forget "total nitrogen" or "urea".
If your fert is 20% ammoniacal nitrogen, then you will need 10 kilos minimum to
produce a liter. If you shoot for a liter, you will likely make 1/2 that much.

The amount of water required to initiate the reaction is quite small. If you live in a humid
climate, you wont have to add any.

As water is produced, it absorbs NH3. wherever you have water in the system you will
have lots of nh3. This includes in your drying tube. That is why your salt and NaOH
should be added dry.

Now, your ammonia generator is for the most part a closed system. The NH3 is going to
expand from the generator, and shrink as it cools on the way to the condenser. So your
generator is humming along, producing heat, gas, and water, until it reaches a point at
which there is so much water being created that it stops pushing ammonia. The water
then begins to cool, and as it cools, becomes capable of holding even MORE ammonia.
Suddenly, your reaction that was pushing ammonia is now PULLING ammonia. This is
"suckback".

When your system starts to suck, you should, quick as a bunny, open your generator. If
you do not, then the ammonia from the condenser will be sucked back into your drying
tube, and you will wish to god you had just scraped the damn matchbooks. This is a good
time to recharge the generator.

WARNING ABOUT AMMONIA:

Ammonia will seek out and bond with any nearby water. This means your eyes and
airway. You should always have a few gallons of water handy to dowse yourself with, as
it may save your life. One breath of concentrated ammonia vapor is enough to burn your
trachea and make it impossible to breathe.

High concentrations of ammonia (above 15%) are explosive. Keep this in mind when its
time for your mid reaction toke.

Gas law says that 1 mole of any gas will occupy 22.4 liters of volume at standard temp
and pressure. A mole of ammonia is 17 grams. In short, it takes very little ammonia to fill
up a room.

Anhydrous ammonia is liquid at standard pressure only below -33c (-28f). This
temperature is quite sufficient to freeze various body parts.

Do not drop money into your ammonia. It will shrink (thank you slydog for this
contribution).

Be sure your connections are airtight BEFORE making/using ammonia. A seemingly

minor leak smaller than a pinhole will evacuate a room.

If there is a problem with ammonia, dump water on it and GET AWAY. Hold your breath
till you are sure your clear.

DISSECTING THE AMMONIA GENERATOR

GENERATOR: (the "gas can"). This is where the ammonia is liberated from the salt. It is
important to realize that this part of the unit requires CONSTANT attention. The
preffered method is to start off with 20 ml or so of water (you may also use aqua
ammonia for a little extra kick). pour a layer of DRY ammonia salt on top, then add the
NaOH and quickly seal the unit.the salt and lye are added dry so that they do not react too
rapidly. once the unit is sealed, begin shaking to mix the fert/lye. within a minute you
will see the generator beginning to pressure up. Shake intermittently to maintain a
constant, moderate pressure. The best way to determine the right pressure is to pay
attention to the condensor pressure relief valve. When ammonia fumes begin to emit
strongly, back off the pressure till there is only a very faint amonia odor from the relief.

Be sure to layer your fert/lye in the proper ratio, with a slight excess of NaOH. So for a
20% fertilizer, you would add about 1/4 lb of NaOH for each LB of fert.

Small layers work best. You will be recharging every 15-30 minutes on average.

This process takes time. Expect to wait an hour for your first ML of ammonia. Mr Cleans
first attempt required about 8 hours to generate 500 ml. It also took almost 30lbs of fert
and 7 lbs of NaOH, as well as 25lbs of dry ice. It gets easier, though.

The generator will get hot. expect temps around 140-150f.

The generator must be watched constantly. It can go from positive to negative pressure in
less than 1 minute. If you have to take a leak, don't dally.

After you have been running it for a while, condensation will form in the hose coming
from the generator. (it should form a U shape before going to the precooler) You can
watch the water droplets to get an idea of the flow rate.

PRECOOLER: when your ammonia exits the generator, it will be around 140f. to
condense ammonia, you will need to cool this below -28f, in other words, its gotta drop
almost 170 degrees. You will be there an extra day or two if you expect your condenser
to do ALL the work.

When the hot ammonia is generated, it carries a substantial amount of moisture as well.
The precooler will capture a good portion of this, ensuing that your drying tube does not
get overloaded.

The precooler cools in two ways. Firstly by heat transfer to the ice bath, and secondly by
expansion of the gas.

As water condenses here, it will trap ammonia with it. Due to the low water temp, this
will be about 70-80% AQUA AMMONIA (NH4OH). Towards the end of ammonia
generation you may either:

1. remove the precooler from the ice bath, liberating ammonia as it warms up or

2. neutralize with HCL, making nh4cl.

Whatever you do, be sure that the tube end from the generator never becomes submerged.
It will suck the water into the generator and kill the reaction.

Drying tube: This is elevated above the other components, mainly to condense and drain
back water before it reaches this point. There are also other reasons for the elevation that
I would prefer not to discuss right now (bad memories).The drying tube should be
thought of not as a primary way of drying your gas, but as a last stand barrier in case
some slips through.

Do NOT attempt to cool your drying tube. It will cause excess nh3 to be collected there,
and will seriously fuck up your cacl2.

CONDENSER: this is submerged in a dry ice/solvent bath. An inner tube which reaches
the bottom will substantially improve nh3 condensation. Putting your PFED/ISO solution
here first, and causing the nh3 to bubble through it, will greatly speed condensation, as
the alc will act as a heat sink.

The condenser should have a large surface area, and rapid thermal transfer characteristics.
do not skimp here. Stainless steel and borosilicate glass work best. Avoid thick glass or
plastic.

A while back, some bees were recommending using antifreeze as a dry ice solvent. This
WILL NOT WORK WELL. antifreeze does not transfer heat worth a damn. I did find,
however, that adding a few ounces to the bath will increase the lifespan of your ice
considerably.

How do you keep the condenser from bobbing in the ice bath? Try adding a small amount
of water to the bath. It will freeze at the bottom, sticking the container there.

When the ammonia is condensing, there will be lots of vapor, and determining the
ammonia level can be quite difficult. Give some thought as to how you will do this.

TUBING: I prefer 1/4" vinyl tubing. It seems to work best.

FAQ: This is a list of questions from the board. Some were included here to elaborate on
various parts of the reaction, while others were included just because they were so damn
stupid/funny I couldn't resist. Also included are a couple of answers by me which are
incorrect. The correct answers follow the "OOPS".
What are the correct ratios of reactants for a birch? And how much Li is in those
batteries?

Energizer AA Li batteries contain exactly .94g of Li per serving.

(this info from an engineer for eveready)

PS: ephedrine/psuedoephedrine freebase = 165.24 g/mole

Li=6.94 g/mole
10 g Li soluble in 100g NH3

nh3~5lb/gallon .68g /ml (according to msn encarta) therefore:

For a 28.8 g birch using PURE psuedo freebase you would need:
2.41 g li or approx 2.57 aa strips
39 ml anhydrous nh3
a really good fume hood.

The 2450's are .47G of Li. theyre good for about 5.5g each.

The nh3 amount is an EXTREME minimum. You will always lose a little when you add
your Li and your psuedo/IPA.

Personally I have never imagined trying less than 300 ml for 28.8g. extra nh3 never hurt
anyones birch.But from what I have read the THEORETICAL minimum is MUCH less.

PS: due to losses in liberating the Li strips, if one did not have a reallly good scale, I
would recommend using ~ 2 3/4 strips. I imagined this worked PERFECTLY where
refrigerant grade ammonia was used, with 28.8g of psuedo freebase yielding 26.9g of
glasslike needles. Unfortunately, My last dream about ammonia from fert was done
before I had the correct weight. I Do know that 3 1/4 strips proved to be slightly
excessive.

Is there any way to test the purity of the recovered NH3?

In other words, is there a way to test liquid NH3 to determine if there is a small
H2O contamination?

As the condenser is chilled in the neighborhood of -70c there is an easy indicator of h20.
Its called ICE. There has been no ice.

OOPS: turns out, the freezing point of NH4OH (aqua-ammonia) is 1 degree higher than
the freezing point of anhydrous ammonia.

A better answer would be that, if your drying tube is set up like I diagrammed it, then
there is no way a significant quantity of water will come through.
Umm.... can silica gel be used as the drying agent? Probably not I'm guessing, but
no one around here seems to have ever heard of Damp Rid or Dry Rite. It's a very
warm, dry state.

I live in the desert, and I can find it. Look at a contractor suppy house for concrete
accelerrant. Do not use epsom salt in your DRYING TUBE. the magnesium will hurt
your reaction. I use a paper towel at the tube opening and in the top of the jar to prevent
tube gumming and keep the drying agent from getting into the tubing. NaOH may also be
used. It is not as efficient volumetrically as CaCl2, but you WILL know when its used up.

Hows the bio assay of birch product compared to rp/i?

If you have done both correctly, then the bioassay should be exactly the same. The meth
is the same molecule, so the only possible difference would be impurities. I believe it
more likely that you would have unreacted pphed in a birch.

If the battery shorts it's gone for good... right?

Depends on what you mean by "shorted". If the Li becomes oxidized, then that oxidized
portion is worthless. If the surface of the Li is covered with oxidation, that can be
removed. If it is light oxidation, it will come off when you blot it on the towel before
tossing it into the reaction.

Here's a question for the chemically inclined out there. It seems to me that adding a
few chunks of dry ice to the INSIDE of a homemade ammonia condensor would
greatly increase the rate of ammonia condensation.

This will create byproducts. It is not necessary if your condenser has enough surface area.

Swim opened a "AA"energizer lithium battery, and when swim pulled out the rolled
up contence swim found a little piece of metal that was folded over the roll, swim
unrolled it and found what you said would be there, a long shiney strip and another
strip that was a little (dull) and not as shiney as the other strip, and then the (dull)
not so shiney strip started turning dark in colour, so why did it do that, and is it still
alright to use. Swim also said that there was fumes and a awfull fucking smell when
he opened it.

When you open a battery in the air, two things will happen. First, the Li will start reacting
with the air, and second the battery will start reacting with the other components of the
battery. the "rotten egg" smell is from the electrolyte.

"If there is a problem with ammonia, dump water on it and GET AWAY. Hold
your breath till you are sure your clear." Wouldnt an acid be better?
That is a reasonable assumption. HCL would neutralize it well, however in the reason I
suggest water is:

1. I already said to have a bucket of water standing by.

2. If you have a problem, you wont have time to be careful, and dumping 3 gallons of
acid may cause other problems.
3. If the ammonia douses you, which would you rather pour on yourself?
Otherwise, good idea.

The addition of the IPA+pfed generates gas. How much? Lets say theres 350 ml
anhydous sitting there? How much will boil off in terms of ml's and fume wise?

The amount of gas that will boil of is variable. If your ammonia is stabilized in a cold
bath, and the pfed / iso is added carefully, you wont lose more than a couple ml. The
amount of nh3 you lose is going to depend upon your technique, your equipment, and
ambient conditions. I dont measure the quantity of ammonia as I am performing the
reaction. so the best answer I can give is "not much".

If you're somewhat effiecent with the process of peeling the caseing of the LI
batteries, there isnt a need to open them under your solvent of choice.

Actually, it is fairly important to saturate the battery innards. When you cut the plastic
open, you will find that the interior components are all quite soft. it is nearly impossible
to open the wrapper without penetrating the lower layers. If the thing is saturated in NP
solvent, then it wont short. If it is not, it almost certainly will. You may not lose all the Li
by opening in this manner, but you WILL lose some. By opening in the manner I have
described, your Li will be almost completely unoxidized.

Do you have to ice down the ammonia tank before discharging?

Icing the tank is necessary here, if yours is already at 0c, I wouldnt think it necessary.
The reason I recommend icing the tank is simple. It drops the pressure from 100psi to
(what was that damn gas law again?) about 30psi. the valves on nh3 tanks are designed
for on-off operation, and they arent very good at regulating the flow, so you want to have
every advantage possible when decanting.

Do I NEED dry ice?

I recommend a dry ice bath if you are GENERATING ammonia, but if you have a tank,
just use equal (weight) amounts of ice and CaCl2. Equal amounts of ice and H2SO4 will
work as well, but can be rather hazardous.

My $8 battey is an energizer for cameras in a blue package with a black top. Is this
the "AA" you are refering to? (I've only seen these and the 2450's)

Wrong battery. You want the $2 aa batt. It looks like a regular aa battery, (different color)
no black top. Sighted recently at home depot and wally world.
They are made by energizer and come in two varieties. a red topped battery and a silver
battery. Just like what you would put in your walkman.

We all know that the pills have been messed with big time lately, and that one of the
advantages of the birch is that it works with ground up messed up pills. I've been
reading about lithium carryover into product, and it driving the consumers to the
end of their ropes. I have a question. When dealing with a messed up pill, how after
the birch, is purification carried out? Are the ingredients just as troublesome? A
water wash would remove the lithium salts, but if the pills retain their troublesome
reaction to water, the problem is only delayed. Could someone comment?

You could just grind up the pills and toss them in, and you WOULD end up with meth.
However you would have to know EXACTLY what else in the pills is going to be
reduced, how much Li that will require, and what the byproducts will be. Lithium
carryover is bullshit. Lithium will not carry over into your NP unless you REALLY
screwed up, and a water wash would remove it quite easily. I think it more likely that
ammonia is carried over. As for purification, the methods used for RP/I work nicely.

I have come to utilize these measures during said reaction. First, addition of
minimal amount of mineral spirits to dissolve freebase and filter through a thick
medium paper filter (if one is using coffee filters use the cone type; do not use basket
type) add 50% more ms solvent to filtered ms then add minimal amt. of MEK or
DMK (preferably MEK as it is less hygroscopic), one could also add some ether as a
third solvent. Multiple solvent is then gassed to obtain go-go hcl. Go-go obtained has
consistency like styrofoam is really light and clean; in my neck of the woods has
become to be known as "Divinity".

Well, in my neck of the woods we call it ammonium chloride. Divinity does have a nice
ring to it, though. You have certainly elevated screwing up to an art form. Using three
different solvents will make sure you get the most impurities possible.

What, lithium? That shits supposed to make you happy, not sick. But, if you feel
that its tainting your product and making people sick, why not switch to another
viable metal, such as sodium.

Actually, sodium is a BETTER metal to use, due to it's lower electronegativity, it is less
likely to overreduce product. As far as making you happy, I assure you that LiOH will
NOT make you happy when you snort it. The main reason sodium is not used is because
it is difficult to obtain. It is used for a variety of O-chem processes and is only a little less
watched than RP. It can be made by electrolysis of NaOH, but the process is a little too
scary for me to attempt.

The EDA thingy is still a viable route for honey production right? I am about to
dream a dream with EDA so I hope so.
So far I have seen no credible reference to a succesful separation of the product from the
EDA. I don't know the secret, but I am pretty sure it will involve low temps, long reaction
times, inert atmosphere, and a complex separation.

I understand where you are comming from arent you expecting a little much from
us hive members? Do we really need to how and why the reaction works? It just
does, doesnt it? That how and why could only be answered AFTER a few years in
school.

If you screw up this one, assuming you live through it, the most likely result will be ten
years of uninterrupted study time at the nearest federal education facility. The reaction is
basic and can be learned and fully understood by anyone with at most 2 months of study.
Knowledge is a part of who you are, and it is one of the few things that cannot be taken
from you. I have an 8th grade education, yet I learned everything I know about the birch
reduction in three weeks. I never even had to go to the library.

Too bad there isn't some kind of semi-permeable membrane which allows the
ammonia to pass through, but not the water vapor. Or is there?

Unfortunately, ammonia forms a compound with water, rather than a mixture. So it is not
possible to separate from water by mechanical means.

Why can't I just use aqua ammonia? Li will reduce pseudo in the presence of H20.

(Answer provided by Osmium)

Li + H2O -------> LiOH + 0.5 H2
Li [6g/mol]
H2O [18g/mol]
For every gram of H2O present you need at least 0.33g Li.
So what if I used 1l of 30% NH3? Cool, only about 250g of Li needed to dry it! And
don't forget the liquid N2 to cool this bomb...

Do u use liquid ferterlizer or soild?

I recommend adding the NAOH DRY,DRY,DRY,DRY.(emphasis intended) adding in

liquid form, or to a liquid is not a good idea because:
1. water quenches this reaction by absorbing mucho ammonia
2. a large amount of liquid will cause the ammonia you DO produce to be released very
fast, like before you can get the lid back on. I made the mistake of adding naoh to nh4cl
in liquid form (from 1/4 gallon of aqua ammonia) my friend who lived 3 BLOCKS
AWAY mentioned an ammonia stink at HIS house. wanna guess how fun that was? Or
you could just try it... lol. But seriously, the little h20 I do add to kick the reaction off is
under a layer of fertilizer. the DRY NAOH is poured on top, and gentle shaking starts the
reaction AFTER the lid is on.

Hey what brand is used for a solid ferterlizer???

Fertilizer availability varies depending upon your climate. Where I live fertilizer blended
specifically for cactus, citrus trees, and date palms is prevalent in stores. So it would be
useless for me to specify a brand or type because it will likely not even exist in your area.
Look for the highest ammount of "ammoniacal nitrogen". alternately, it is not difficult to
source or synthesize straight ammonium chloride, which makes for a MUCH more
efficient reaction.

Can't I just use a canning jar for my generator?

Do not try to use a glass ammonia generator, you will have nothing in the system to
absorb excess pressure, and can easily have a blowout, or lose your ammonia through
suck back. canning jars are designed to withstand great NEGATIVE pressure, not
positive. Besides, if you are using fertilizer with 20% ammoniacal content, you will need
around 20 Lbs of the stuff, and its hard to find a canning jar that size.

Why do you use the 2-1 ammonia salt to fertilizer ratio?

The correct ratio for naoh-nh3 from salt is about 1-1.8. I use a little higher ratio to
account for impurities in the fertilizer. It seems to work better for me.

Can't you just pipe the gas from the generator straight into your garden after
running through a dryer?

Actually, I was forced to do this once due to a system failure which resulted in
insufficient ammonia. It worked quite well as 50g of product was produced from less
than 200ml of ammonia, but I am not sure if the ammonia piping in made a difference.
The 200ml may have been entirely sufficient by itself.

I would use a large erlenmeyer flask for the condenser, or a large round bottom flask.
Also I would curl the input hose of the condenser around the bottom of the flask so that
the NH3 gas HAS TO stay in the flask longer and with hopefully condense quicker.

Actually, I believe I mentioned that. Vessel 4 has a LOOP around the bottom. The large
ehrlenmeyer is a good idea though. Perhaps If they have one at home depot I will get one.

What kind of fittings do you use?

I use fittings which are L shaped with threading on 1 end. I use NO epoxy or glue. The
fittings are right next to the vinyl tubing at some major hardware store. I drill a hole, tap
it(not necessary, but I gotta use this damn tap and die set sometime), and screw the fitting
in with LOTS of teflon tape. The tubing goes on the outside of 1 end on the L and inside
the other. The press fit seal is excellent by itself, and yes, it's not technically " quick
release", but it is quick.
Could you take the hose that leaves the damp-rid jar and put a couple of rolls in the
hose and then place in a cooler of dry ice and anti-freeze.the same hose then goes to
a 2nd cooler of dry ice and is hooked into the jar that is to catch your gas that
becomes nh3. Is this possible are is there anybody that can tell me why this won't
work?

It will work, however you run three risks here.

1. Your tubing will become brittle from the extreme cold, and may break.
2. Your tubing may be attacked by the chemical you choose for your bath (depends on
type of tubing and type of bath. You will have to check.)
3. You may go broke from all the dry ice you must purchase.
My pre cooler will remove a similar amount of heat,(perhaps more), more safely, and
with only about 1.25 worth of chemicals. (more cheaply if you make your own ice... see
the faq on crytalline h2o production if you are unsure how to do this).

But you ARE thinking along the right lines... how about this:
1. Reduce the diameter of your tubing. less volume = less heat
2. Increase the length of your tubing.
or
3. Coil this excess tubing of yours in an icewater/salt bath.
you will obtain more benefits from pre-cooling if your efforts are concentrated BEFORE
the dryer IMHO.

There's a whole lot of cheap gizmos used for drip irrigation that might be REAL
cool for this application: including anti siphon valves that would dis allow "suck
back"?

I like vinyl tubing. I have not had problems with clogging, I am just paranoid about clogs
in the drying tube. Perhaps this paranoia is WHY I haven't had any probs. As for the
tubing size, I do not speak from experience on that, only common sense. A smaller
diameter tubing has a thinner wall thickness (less insulation) and gives the hot gas more
surface area to dispel heat through. I guess you have to actually try this reaction to
appreciate the amount of heat produced, and heat is not our friend here.

OOPS: The 1/4 inch tubing is best all around. Smaller diameters push more water
droplets further through the system. 1/4" is OPTIMAL.

How do you tell how much NH3 is in there? Does it matter how much Li is needed if
theres "too much" NH3 compared to E?

I take a flashlight, pop the top, and look. This is probly the hardest part, guessing the
amount collected. picking up the container and swirling it will also give you a pretty good
idea. but, as I've posted, the amount of ammonia required is actually quite small, and an
excess wont really hurt. the ammonia's just a solvent for the Li, and doesnt take part in
the reaction.
How long are your tubing?

Long as possible. There is a total of 22 feet in my setup.

Whats the best containers for the pre-chill (a gallon plastic milk jug?), the drying
tube and gas generator?

For the pre chill, any will do, I used a SS kitchen canister for my last dream, a quart
canning jar would work fine. I'd stay away from a milk jug unless you know how to make
a strong tight seal there. My drying tube is a quart mason jar filled 3/4 of the way with
cacl2.

When you poked holes in your thermos, did the glass shatter inside? Could i use
something else since the thermos obviously isnt one anymore now that the vacuum is
gone?

A thermos w/ a glass liner will not work. mine has a SS liner. stanley and alladin make
them in large sizes. you can use an alternate condenser made of glass or stainless steel
(stainless prefferred) . Bear in mind the effectivness is governed by the surface area for
condensation, and the heat transfer characteristics of the material used. thats why SS
works so well here.

NOTE: After working with the thermos for a while, I switched to a large (3.5L) SS
cylinder with about 6 1/2" diameter. That was the final generation of the condenser for
me.

How long does 5 lbs dry ice last?

Not long enough.

Could you tell me more of what you mean by "heat transfer"?

Heat transfer is very simple. Some materials transfer heat faster than others. That's it.

Aluminum, copper, and stainless have the best heat transfer capability. Borosilicate glass
is usually made pretty thin, so its not bad either. Plastics seem to be the worst. If you
have any questions, put the container on a warm burner, put your hand inside, and time
how long it takes to burn you.

Can I use CaOH instead of or in addition to NaOH? (question repeated 23 times in

various forms)

DAMNIT, FORGET THE FUCKING CaOH. USE SODIUM FUCKING HYDROXIDE.

THIS BULLSHIT KEEPS COMING UP AND I AM FUCKING TIRED OF IT. FUCK
CaOH. JUST FUCKING FORGET ABOUT IT. If you want to use some weak ass shit
use fucking baking soda and cook the shit out of it. Fuck.
Ok, lets try this one: how much dry ice and sludge can YOUR little cooler hold?

I dont know, I've only put methanol, acetone and polyethylene glycol in mine. Never
tried sludge. Seriously, it's a six pack cooler, a lunch cooler, whatever, it doesn't matter
how big it is.

Is it possible to time the reaction precisely so that one knows when blowback will
occur?

Yes. It is also possible to launch a satellite from earth and use the gravity of various
planets to sling it across the solar system. The math involved is similar in complexity.

Also, are you L-tubings fatter on one end, so that it looks like a plastic marijuana
pipe? If so does the fat end go in or outta the gasoline can and bell jar?

The fittings look like little pot pipes, yes. The L goes to the outside. You COULD put
them to the inside, but out is easiest. Please don't be smokin dope outa the fittings.

I'm looking for a one way valve (thanx dwarfer), so far only a 3/4" metal has shown
up, probably insuffcient. Just what is a auto stop pvc valve?

It's a car part. just go to auto zone and ask for a pcv valve. It recycles fumes from the
exhaust through the carbureator or something like that.

I'm thinking of using a large pressure cooker lined with plastic instead of a gas can.
Then when pressure drops I'll know, and I can snip the lines a put them in the HCl.
Surly I'd be staring at that gauge for a long damn time huh? Does anyone know if
the NH3 fumes will destroy my guage?

Depends on the type of gauge used. They DO make gauges for anhydrous ammonia,
which start at about $250. I looked at some oxygen gauges, but they are nickel plated
brass, which would not work well at all.

As for the gas can, perhaps you are missing the point. the expansion and contraction does
not only GAUGE the pressure, it also helps regulate it. With a soft sided generator, the
transition from positive to negative pressure is MUCH slower, taking 2-3 times as long.
This gives you more time to react to it.

I'd like to experiemnt, but that would be a HUGE loss. Because of the cruel laws of
the universe, merely heating fertilzier produces NO NH3, uhhhh, wouldn't that be
so damn easy? Is there anything you can heat without water that will produce NH3?

You could heat fertilizer and NaOH. This would produce MORE ammonia, but then you
have the extra heat to deal with. Heat is NOT your friend here.
Or, I'm also thinking of manual release valves: one comes out the pressure release
mechanism of the gas can, so I can turn the knob open into HCl, and another at the
condensor side, the final exit, rather than peeling tape off every now and then and
stinking up the dump. So far though, only seen copper or brass ones for water
(faucet section) and that may be no good at the gas can end, or wouldnt it matter?

First, you DO NOT want a tube from the generator to an hcl bucket. Especially when
your pressure goes negative. secondly, a one way valve will not entirely solve the back
pressure problem. Third, a pressure release valve at the generator would be redundant.
you need to open it anyway to recharge it. What better time than right before it starts to
suck? fourth, releasing pressure from the condenser will not release a lot of fumes unless
you are overpressuring or the condenser is insufficient. During normal operation you
should not detect these fumes unless your nose is within 2-3 feet of the outlet. If you do,
then back off on the pressure.

FINAL CHAPTER:

This is the "catchall" section for this Birch FAQ.

The ammonia generator has gone through a series of changes since built.

These are notes for using a thermos as the receiver. This had the advantage of being very
efficient with the dry ice, but it was quite difficult to drain the coolant and to determine
the level of the ammonia inside

Important notes on this:

1. Maybe you can drill through the cap without breaking it, but I couldnt. The current cap
is a rubber 1 hole stopper with 1/8 ID vinyl tubing running through and (separate piece)
continuing to the bottom of the thermos.

2. There is a thumbtack size hole (not shown) through the top of the thermos, covered
with duct tape.

3. The thermos was placed in a vise, and a 7/8" hole drilled with a drill press (have fun
trying this with a handheld drill, it was not easy)

4. A funnel was used to insert finely crushed dry ice, it was found necessesary to use a
screwdriver to force the ice through the funnel.
5.Thermos is alladin brand, 1/2 gallon capacity.

6. Insulated lunchbox was lined with pieces of broken styrofoam cooler, then filled with
low-expansion polyeurethane foam. The remaining part of the thermos, sticking up above
the cooler, was also covered with this foam.

7. After using this condenser, I have decided I need a drain hole with a plug, as shown, to
empty coolant. currently I must clamp input tube and invert to drain.

8. After reaching temp, the unit is very efficient, and ammonia was generated with less
than 5lbs of dry ice.

And here is an idea for an alternate style condenser (courtesy Dwarfer) that I really liked,
but never had the opportunity to try. I believe it has promise.

NH3 CONDENSER

This condenser section is a smaller PVC bucket inside another 5 gallon bucket, the
intervening space is foamed in....

A 50"+ piece of 1/4 " vinyl hose is installed spiraling downward exiting at the bottom and
attaches directly to the collector.

And one other dwarfer concept. This one could use a little tweaking, but it's good.

The change requires another small pressure sprayer to be used for injection of base into
the reaction chamber. The reaction chamber can be any sealable large port container. I
still concur with Mr Clean that it is extremely cool to have the reaction chamber be a
large sprayer.

Should a mishap occur while pushing air, the hazard is minimal: particularly when
compared to a plunger volume filled with hydroxide saturated liquid.

GHETTO ANNIE: a response to using aqua ammonia in all the wrong ways.

1. Freeze the water out: Bullshit. It is IMPOSSIBLE to separate ammonia from H2O by
freezing. Here are the properties of NH3(anhydrous):

Formula: NH3

Molecular Weight: 17.030

Melting Point: -77.73 C

Boiling Point: -33.34

Specific Gravity: 0.77

Vapor Density: 0.597

Solubility: 89.9 mg/ 100 mL @ 0 C

### Well, Look at that... Nh3 is soluble in ice up to an 89.9% solution... Hmmm, didnt
we start out with a 3% solution?####

..... do you think that the water left in the jug is MAGIC ROOM TEMPERATURE
LIQUID AMMONIA? Who knows, Perhaps it is. I just know the aqua ammonia they
carry around here, even the 26 baume, has no such magical fluid in it. Then again I am
only around std pressure here. Perhaps some posters to this site live in denser
atmospheres where ammonia IS liquid above -33c..

2. Add NaOH in a bug sprayer and allow the water to escape through the pressure release
valve:

Dangerous Bullshit. Pour NaOH into a solution of aqua ammonia and you will get a
violent reaction as the NaOH displaces the NH3, and you will get a vapor that sprays out
through the pressure valve. Now do you think that the vapor is the water that magically
became lighter than nh3? I guess that the nh3 (gas) released through this process
somehow returns to a liquid which is so dense it displaces NaOH saturated water.Once
again it's the magical ROOM TEMP AMMONIA.
"Wait", you cry.. the ammonia is UNDER PRESSURE in the bug sprayer. It CAN be
liquid at room temp!!!!

Well then! you must have one hell of a bug sprayer to obtain that kind of pressure, guess
these farmers are pretty stupid buying 300+psi stainless steel tanks when they could just
use a bug sprayer. And if I was a bug in your neighborhood, guess I'd be crappin' my
drawers about now.

3. Reactions with this "ghetto annie" report sparks, flames, small fires, etc:

Well then, lets do an experiment. Take a little household ammonia, Saturate it with naoh,
and toss in some lithium. Get sparks, flames, etc? Gee, I guess all the freezer, bug
sprayer, wait 72 hour crap was unnecessary.

Now read all the literature on Li birch reactions you can find (from chem abstracts, not
some guy posting his backyard birch). What reaction did the scientists with reagent grade
anh. ammonia and Li report? Just "a blue color". No sparks, no flames... perhaps they did
it wrong.

To Summarize: if the people advocating this method really believe it works, then study
this post, message me, whatever. If you know it doesnt work and you post it anyway,
keep in mind that someone who tries this crap could end up hurt or very possibly dead,
and thats always good for a laugh, right?.(if they are stupid enough to try ghetto annie,
then how careful do you think they will be?)

Hopefully this will put a lid on this stupid crap.

Teflon tape is your friend. Your CLOSE friend. Use it everywhere you can think of.

AND THAT'S ALL I KNOW ABOUT THE BIRCH!

I hope I have contributed somewhat, but circumstances in my life have changed, and this
is no longer the place for me to be.

Goodbye.

Clean.
Hive Chemist
6-19-00 to 10-03-00
---------------------------------
* Lithium-Ammonia Reduction of Ephedrine to Methamphetamine

Birch reduction of Pseudoephedrine to

Methamphetamine
by Morph in Oz

FOR THE RECORD, THIS INFORMATION IS FOR ENTERTAINMENT

PURPOSES ONLY
This is the completely factual way that my associates used to reduce the OTC psudafed
tablets into Methamphetamine in this country. It still works and is still a valid way to
produce a high profit substance that goes for a 14 - 1 cut and yields 80% and up
conversion to the product from pseudoephedrine precursor. It is rumoured that I was one
of the first to commercialize this method into Australia, where the text from Fester was
reviewed and backreferenced by me in order to authenticate its scientific validity and
apply the most economical means that avoided attention. My aim was to avoid all the big
crews in reliance on purchasing precursors, like pseudo and red phosphorus in order to
avoid the risk of getting busted for affiliation. I found Melbourne crews especially
careless with their talk, egos etc whenthey were under surveillance.
The amphetamine market looks as though it is quite a lucrative one as long as you dont
get wasted or associate with too many vain crims when you become known. When you
have a quantity of high quality substance and reputable dealers find out about you, the
"sucking" starts and so do the games. I used to be a young crim and have observed the
pitfalls of myself and other young associates and had to do time as a result. Popularity
turns to temporary fame and your confidence gets played out, mainly if you confuse
friendship with business, and surveillance can start on you if you mix with the so called
"big" names... especially in clubs where the real undertcover cops, are the cameras that in
criminal hangouts get checked on a regular basis by the "constabulary".
I see amphetamine markets as a good spinner for some since the structures of the heroin
and cocaine industries are tightly controlled by the upper echolon who preserve their
positions by police interaction and trade offs of their competition and "young" up and
comers, when things are getting squeezed. Many crews who have been around are not
totally independant, their background finance is usually heroin and/or some cocaine,
which in Australia is a rarer drug that is for the more expensive end of society. It's good,
it's all good - but only for a while...get in and out - remember this.
Anyway, back to the drawing board.The "birch" reaction is attractive because of the high
yields, it produces compared to the other mass production methods. The realistic figure
for HI/red mix is only usually 50 % realistically, and lengthy steam distillation is always
needed to separate the leftover Pseudoephedrine from the product. The real proportions
for the red method for any scale is:

• 10 kg of pseudoephedrine hydrochloride

• 10 litres of hydriodic acid and,

• 2-3 kg of red phosphorus depending if it has been reused or not.

Reflux for 48 hrs for larger reactions and 30 hrs when the result will be less than a kilo.
Filter(wash collected phosphorus with distilled water and reuse!), basify, steam distill oil
layer, separate add solvent and crystallise...I'm sure you can work the details out if you
have access to the precursors!
Back to the point, I will give you practical everyday talk because the mathematical
equations and organic chemistry jargon has already been worked out... I don't need to
prove my scholarly prowess or to confuse you either. Fester isn't a bad entertainment
reference to get ideas from and to get used to instruction with handling bits and pieces if
you're new. But like most references, there are assumptions and spelling mistakes that
really can procrastinate a successful result indefinitely...
If you have interests and have read up on him, avoid all Mehtylene dioxy reactions like
you would the plague. You can be round about with speed and still get some sort of
result...but not the aromatic variations. Reading the bromosafrole reactions made me
think that he's never made Ecstacy in his life... but on the good side, he's not a bad writer
on this subject. I'd be inclined to side with Eleusis on aforementioned issues but if you
have half a brain, you back reference Fester's material in which he gives references
honestly and freely. To make things doesn't take a chemical genius, except to newly work
out the most accessible reactions with the most economical and lowkey equipment. It
takes more hands on experience and familiarity, which breeds contempt as it did with me
which is why I changed careers and stay out of trouble, I can afford to.
Anyway there has been an extension to the old 100 grammer so it can be stepped up to
200-250 grams without a hassle, and too much costly reagents. Repeat process can yield a
kilo in about 6-9 hours. The longest time is to collect the packets of psudafed brands and
other brands(amcal) that contain purely pseudoephedrine HCL. In victorian chemists, it is
safe to get 2 packets of 30's per person so a couple of people shopping around for a
couple of weeks can slowly get a suitable amount of ephedrine. A packet of 30's is 30 *
60mg = 1.8 g suzy which converts to 1.3 g end result minimum. 60's and 90's used to be
available but I'm afraid that most of us fucked it up for you over the last few years! The
chemists in 1997 were legislated to call the drug squad directly if a person bought 3
packets of 90's...that's because crooks, like the late Mad Charlie (RIP - assasinated a
couple of years back), were sending guys in to collect 10 or more packets...etc so the
alarm bells went. The rest of us had to contend with 1 * 90 per chemist, it was worth it
according to my friends over the long run.
Simple brief instructions.The acid salt suzy HCL is needed for acidic reactions like the
HI/P whilst the freebase suzy is needed for the alkali (ammonia/alkali metal) reaction.
Freebase l or d -ephedrine is an oil in freebase form, similar to meth, but d-
pseudoephedrine is a solid, flake freebase which is only slightly soluble in water. The
modern glues make the popular water extraction methods impossible to filter the methyl
cellulose. So hence:

• crush tablets finely in blender

• soak in bucket with 3 volumes (to the solid) of acetone, preferably anhydrous
acetone for 6 hours.

• Vacuum filter, wash solid with extra acetone, filter through, collect solid and dry
at 50 C or low heat in agriller on a pyrex dish. Discard acetone and MC mix.

• When fully dry, dissolve powder in 2 volumes of water, stir to dissolve of course.
The lactose filler and suzy dissolve but the talc filler stays visible.

• Vaccuum filter after solution has been stirred. This can take a while, and a few
filter papers.

• Rinse talc cakes with a little water before changing filter papers. If done properly,
the filtrate is crystal clear with a slight yellowy tinge.

• Premix caustic soda solution. In simple terms, stick 2 tablespoons into every 200
mls of water. For every 25 pkts of 90's or 75 pkts of 30's, mix in 200ml of NaOH
soln.
 • Mix in well and suzy HCL is basified into freebase solid form in water, it can
make the solution white and thick.

• Vaccuum filter and colect all solid. Before changing filter paper or finishing, rinse
fb cake with 200 mls of distilled water to collect any excess, trapped
lactose,NaOH or NaCL.

• Carefully collect all fb suzy and spread in a pyrex dish. Put under a griller to dry,
do so slowly with low to moderate heat with occasional sifting with a spoon. This
stuff melts at 110 C so the ideal temp is 100-105 C. This will give a fishy
ephedrine smell that clears a blocked nose and soothes the throat.

• Weigh up dry FB suzy and prepare other components for the reaction.
Read Fester for the basic rundown of this reaction, this one actually works, yet it is quite
stinky at the start and during separation of h20/ether or toluene layers.
#Tips for the alkali metal:
Purchase Lithium metal (in paraffin oil of course) or Sodium metal (also in P.O.) from a
small chemical outlet under a business name, not from commercial or analytical outlets,
where they are particular about such things. Sodium is less expensive but is somewhat
more dangerous and you need more for the reactions. For a 250 gram suzy reaction,
measure out; 38 - 46 grams of lithium or 84-100 grams of sodium work, use abit more if
the metal appears crumbly and old and varying this catalyst can vary the quality slightly.
Use gloves when measuring and use a small bowl of et2o or tol to rinse paraffin off
metal, dry in paper towel thoroughly and accumlate measured metal in a freezer bag. If
you are being precise, cut and measure soft metals with a butterknife whilst oil is on it
and use oil to cover cuts when applying pressure. As long as you don't sneeze or get
water on metal, this is relatively safe procedure. Care, dexterity and thoughtfulness are
necessities whenever cooking. Rushing or taking drugs leads to disaster, explosions, fire,
spillages and sometimes arrest. Always keep a cool clear head. Seal bag of metal when
finished and stick in a cool dark place until needed. Use in same day. Proportions for
smaller reactions, just scale it to 14-16 g Li for 100 g suzy additions or 33 - 38g Na.
#Tips for solvent:
You can use either toluene, which is cheaper in 20L tins compared to diethyl ether. They
both dissolve about the same amount of freebase suzy, yet ether takes less time to dry and
some people believe ether gives a slightly better product. This is purely speculative.
Some use half tol/half ether etc. Freebase suzy has a low dissolution rate in solvents
compared to freebase oil meth. 4L will typically dissolve 100 grams comfortably and
perhaps abit more when solution is warmed to room temperature(20 C). That's 40 mls per
gram, this wastes alot of solvent, especially when it turns to meth oil that dissolves in 8-
15 mls per solvent per gram after its converted, depending on isomer percentages that we
believe alter a little. So prepare the 200mls of pre-addition solvent(it's not entirely
necessary) and dissolve 60 - 65 grams in 2.5 L of solvent. Mix well and let settle.
Undissolved purities wil settle to the bottom and you can filter this through a funnel and
sheet of paper towel (non bleached). Cover and save this, keep the remainder of the
freebase (40-190g for this single reaction),ground up fine in a plastic bag.
#Tips for NH3:
When you get your gas bottle of ammonia from BOC or other acetylene suppliers, get the
associated mask and cartridges for NH3 and if a full face mask is too costly, use
swimming goggles for the eyes., Always use gloves and cover up exposed skin, if you get
skin burn just rinse it with water, and shower after a cook, you reek. Use a bathroom with
a fan, open window for the main addition reaction. When getting liquid NH3 into
erlenmeyer, tip tube upside down, stick a fitted pvc hose and empty 2.3 L of liquid into a
dry plastic measuring flask. This way, you can measure abit more accurately, then tip
NH3 into dry 4L erlenmeyer which is snug in a bucket of dry ice and tol or acetone half
covering the ice, etc etc.
#Tips for additions:
Keep a plastic bag over the top of th 4L erlenmeyer to prevent dry ice, ice
solvent(supercooling) whilst fitting it into the bucket system. Make sure stirrer is
absolutely dry before dropping it into the flask. Add NH3 as described, activate stirrer,
Add metal in and wait 20 minutes for it to dissolve, check, with a torch make sure it
continues to stir and it all dissolves. Solution should turn dark blue to black and be really
murky, if it stays clear add pre addition 200 ml solvent gently and this should help things
along. Wait longer if you have to, success depends on all the metal dissolving. Just add
more ice around the flask and keep it level near the top of the flask, push down
occasionally on the dry ice because it forms gaps as it melts. Try not to add too much
solvent to the dry ice as this will melt the ice quicker, have it 2/3 the way up the ice, this
will take some rough calculation and observation. When confident of dissolution of all
the metal, add pre addition solvent (200ml) gently. Then slowly drip pour the solvent
with the freebase in it into the supercooled solution. Take regular pauses when the mist of
ammonia rise out of the top of the erlenmeyer. On addition turn the stirrer up to a fast
stirring pace. When pausing, cover top of flask covered with gloved hand or plastic bag
and wait until mist goes and you can see solution again. Take your time at first, then
make it quicker near the end - 20 minutes. Now total liquids in the flask are more than 4
L volume in a 4 L erl flask, why does it fit? Why is it so? Well the dry ice and solvent are
keeping the solution between -38°C and -46°C so the density of the solvent occupies a
somewhat smaller volume. Now that all the liquid additions are made, it's time to sprinkle
the majority of the remaining freebase gently into the dark solution and turn up the stirrer
to the safest fastest pace. The majority of the freebase in the solvent has already been
converted to meth so there is lots of space for more to go in. After another 10-15 minutes
the rest of the powdered freebase should be in the solution. Cover top and leave for 15-25
minutes. keep ice jacked up around flask. There should be 250 g of fb suzy in there to be
converted.
#Tips for neutralisation and seperation:
Pull flask from ice with gloved hands and teatowells, this is cold...pour through dry
strainer ( to catch undissolved Li or Na ) into clear square plastic bucket (like a 25L kids
toy container, with lid from hardware store is ideal) that is immune to solvent. Do this
with mask in a well ventilated room. throw any pieces of caught undissolved metal into a
plastic bag. Tie up an flush down a friends toilet for a joke...Water additions create Naoh
or LiOH but these whitish precipitates dissolve in water whilst your product stays in the
upper solvent layer, so need not worry. Having no shiny bits that blow up floating on
your dark mix makes slow water addition quite safe. I know from experience. Rinse
erlenmeyer with 500 ml solvent, swirl and pour through strainer into main mix. Pour
water in main mix and stir until solution turns clear and all whitish precipitates have
dissolved. There is alot of ammonia smell steam from this. Leave covered for half to 1 hr
then separate top solvent layer,dry by pouring in some oven dryed epsom saltsand stiring
to pickup any residual water and pour through paper towel into a container to be
crystallised. Flush NH3 water down toilet and most of your smell problem will be gone...
#Tips for crystallization with this:
Using one of those clear plastic buckets is ideal so you can keep glass down to a
minimum, pour in solvent/freebase meth mix. Festers Hcl gas generator is ok, but we
down under prefer to simplify it a bit. Pour 200 g non-iodised salt into a 2 L filtration
flask, this flask has 2 ft length of clear ptfe hose on vac. nipple. Pour 98% sulfuric into a
plastic pouring flask and pour 50 mls at a time onto salt and stopper. HCL gas
immediately bubbles through solvent and creates NH3CL smoke which is harmless to
breathe but gets quite thick. Watch bubbling froth in gas flask, tilt and swirl to reduce
froth. Just unstopper, pour 50 ml acid and restopper quickly to keep it going. About 10
minutes roughly goes by and the only thing you generate is thick smoke from the surface
of solvent. Keep going and after smoke generation dies down, crystals begin to form.
Keep gassing until , white crystal layer begins to settle and alot of HCL gas rises from
surface (you'll begin to smell it, do this with a fan and open window going...). Take
vaccuum flask when finished and carefully pour water in to acid mix to neutralise it.
Filter solvent, collect product and wash with a little solvent and gently dry crystals in a
grill on a pyrex dish...etc You can retest the ether with litmus paper and if it still registers
an alkali presence (turns blue), repeat procedure.
Please excuse the simplicity, but the KISS principal stands true. This is tried and tested
and since 1997 is old news to us. 8 oz's of 14 - 1 100% pure is worth abit of money. If
done twice, a lb is worth $42,000 in Victoria wholesale. Thats a bit of chemist travelling
to get 300 boxes of 30's, at 10$ a box, which is the main expense, but who's complaining
when you've paid off the house? It also keeps you independant from the main crews in
the production deals so you don't have to fork out 50% for them supplying the ephedrine.
Sell quickly, sell bulk C.O.D. and enjoy life. Independance is the key and soon this
simplicity will be hampered with by authorities.
Yours independantly, Morph in Oz.
P.S. If you are left with smelly, wet or oily crystal, dissolve uncut into minimum water
and boiloff in a pyrex dish, this will leave you with fairly dry immutable crystal "plates"
that have to be scraped off.