partially veiled said:
Troi said:
The cloud has great efficiency at lower temperatures due to the turbulence create by the design of the air path, since the air moves thoroughly through the ez-bowl, it creates more vapor at lower temps then more traditional vapor paths.
So, basically, the answer is
I understand what you're saying but I don't truly grasp
why there is more turbulence in the air path nor how that creates more vapor at lower temps. However, as oldiebutgoodie said, the proof is in the pudding. If it works it works. I don't need to understand it for it to work, I would just prefer to understand it (in the absence of actually trying it myself) before I agree to these statements as truthful. I do trust the fine people of FC however so I will relent and wait until I can satisfy myself by testing my very own Cloud
Thanks for the feedback Troi.
So OK, I'm gonna give this a shot. Bare in mind that my engineering discpline is not thermodynamics. And besides, not being privy to the design itself, I couldn't comment anyway on
how the turbulence is induced or
how the air pressure is reduced. This all may very well be part of the "patent pending" system and hence a trade-secret. We may never know the how. But, presuming that this is actually occurring, one can formulate a reasonable
hypothesis for why the effects induced result in greater efficiency at lower temperatures.
First re the turbulence in the air path . . . vaporizer air paths are linear. The hot air penetrates the load at the air entry point, moves through the material, and exits. As it passes through the material, the temperature decreases because energy is absorbed and along with compounds, converted into gas. For example, in a 2004 LC/GC study using the Volcano set to 226C with thermo-couples mounted at the entry and exit points of the load, the temp at entry was 218C and at exit was 155C. If turbulence is introduced into the air movement the energy will disburse more evenly and thoroughly, coming into more and better contact with the material with consequent increased gas conversion. Of course, density, moisture, and amount of material, and density of pack, are also variables; but all things being equal, the turbulence should add efficiency.
The effect of lowering the air pressure in the ELB is more complex . . . air has weight (or mass). Air pressure is the force exerted by that weight. Low pressure areas have less mass. So for example as elevation increases, there is less mass and hence less pressure. Air mass/pressure affects the "boiling off" of materials, aka vaporization. When the air pressure is less, the boiling point falls - that's why when cooking at higher elevations the recipe must be adjusted, i.e., there is less air mass/pressure around the material. Consequently, if the air pressure in the herb repository is lowered, the boiling point will also be lowered, yet the result will be the same.
I'm certainly no expert on all the vaporizers on the market. But from what I've seen, they all operate on the same basic principle, i.e., moving air through a heat source into contact with the material. Where there is sophistication, it is in areas such as distance, resistance, or cleanliness in the path. Inducing a change in how the molecules behave and the pressure of the environment; that's altogether different. IMO the guys at VapeXhale may have a breakthrough. This, and the results thereof, is what sold me on the Cloud. The tubes were the gravy.