Question Vacuum needed when steam distilling freebase?

[MadHatter]

I just finished an amph synth and now I need to steam distill the freebase. and then my ´vacuum machine breaks down. The fucker.
I never steam distilled a-oil with nnormal pressure before, always assumed 100 C could damage it? So do I need to wait for a new pump? (fucketifucketifucketi)

 

[prime minister]

you can steam distill without any problem at air pressure just make sure the thermometer temp is max at 98.5°C and do it slowlyyy...... Maybe it takes more time as I can think of.

 

[OrgUnikum]

Steamdistillation does not work at all with vacuum. The amount of Amphetamine to water gets less with reduced pressure and higher with elevated pressure and temperature (but then you are prone to co-distill unwanted impurities too). The speed of the steamdistillation is more determined by the surface area of the liquid in the flask and the diameter of the flasks openening and the of the connection to the condenser and less by heat applied. Thats why you should fill the flask to not much more then half, mximizimg surface area and use a flask with a wide neck like NS45 and same diameter up to the condenser. The flask must be fully isolated to avoid back-condensation. If it is done correctly it is not so slow as many say but it still takes time.