Nic seperation

[Skreech]

Hi. I've just started mixing my own liquid and bought a 1 litre bottle of 72mg nic in VG.
As it is going to take a while for me to get through a litre bottle, is the nic likely to come out of suspension and settle at the bottom (or top) of the bottle over time?

 

[stols001]

It shouldn't, though you could shake it lightly before use, just to be on the safe side. Mainly, keep it stored in a cool, dry place, many folks will separate out their nic into usable quantities using glass jars with the PET lids and keep them frozen until use. This will prevent the nic from oxidizing and it will remain fresh until you are ready to use each smaller jar, that will prevent defrosting and etc.

Anna

 

[sofarsogood]

Hi. I've just started mixing my own liquid and bought a 1 litre bottle of 72mg nic in VG.
As it is going to take a while for me to get through a litre bottle, is the nic likely to come out of suspension and settle at the bottom (or top) of the bottle over time?

I've never seen an authoritative answer to this question but, there is a concept called "specific gravity" which means the weight of something compared to water with water equal to 1. If something has a value lower than one it should float on water. If the valuse is higher than one it should not float. It happens that pure nicotine and PG have an almost identical specific gravity almost the same as water, about .99 I believe. I seem to recall that VG is 1.26 times the weight of water so heaviier than nic or PG. That might mean that VG would settle and separate from the nic more than PG. Regardless may be re mixing is prudent before use or may be there is some other principle at work besides graviity that decides these liquids don't separate in pratctice. Hmmm...

 

[Beamslider]

Shake that bottle...just in case...probably not an issue though

 

[Alien Traveler]

It is a solution, not suspension, of nic in VG. Solutions does not separate (example: ethanol and water in vodka). But shake well your bottle upon arrival - may be mixing (by a seller) was not really good, and VG is very viscous to finish mixing on the road to your house. I do not feel is is really needed, but just to be on a safer side...
I shaked my bottles when they arrived. Felt myself rather dumb, but shaked anyway.

 

[IDJoel]

I asked @Kurt (an ECF community member, who is a university chemistry professor, and active in vaping science) about this when I first started DIYing; and his response was something along the lines of it taking concentrations GREATER than 250mg/mL BEFORE nicotine may separate. Concentrations of this level are beyond the scope and safety of the home DIYer (and also prohibited from ECF discussion).

 

[Alter]

I'd cut the liter into smaller bottles so your just shaking a small amount and not adding unnecessary air to the large amount thus oxidizing(turning it dark) faster. Its just habit to shake all concentrates and more or less swirl my bottle of nic. I would warm up the liter some since its VG based then shake it well before cutting into smaller bottles...don't use plastic jugs. Putting the extra nic into the freezer is also a good way to go.

 

[Katya]

Hi. I've just started mixing my own liquid and bought a 1 litre bottle of 72mg nic in VG.
As it is going to take a while for me to get through a litre bottle, is the nic likely to come out of suspension and settle at the bottom (or top) of the bottle over time?

Per Kurt, our resident chemist:

"Nicotine is soluble in VG, but it is not QUICKLY soluble, meaning it has to be mixed a lot since both liquids are very thick. But it is soluble, otherwise you would not be able to buy clear colorless VG-nic. A suspension would be cloudy from tiny nic droplets in the VG, and this is not the case."

and

"At the concentrations we normally use (max 10%) it is soluble. At concentrations much higher than this, separation can occur at elevated temperatures. I do not know what the actual solubility of nic in VG is, or at what concentration it is saturated.

For a 10% solution, incomplete mixing can lead to hot spots and concentration gradients, meaning the more pure nicotine regions can rise to the surface. But this is a mixing issue of thick liquids, not necessarily a solubility issue.

Some vendors will add some water and/or ethanol to their VG-nic to make sure it is mixed easily and fully.

I do not think it is a suspension, but I am using that term with the rigorous chemistry meaning."

From:

Nic solubility

 

[Skreech]

A lot of info. Thanks. I'm thinking a good shake on the litre bottle and then separate out into smaller bottles is the way to go. If I keep them in a cupboard in the garage which is unheated then that will be pretty close to putting them in the freezer given the time of year. Anything left over next spring can go into the freezer.

Thanks again for the great replies.

 

[Katya]

I'm thinking a good shake on the litre bottle and then separate out into smaller bottles is the way to go.

That's what most of us do. Shake, rebottle (smaller amber or blue glass bottles), freeze.

 

[SteveS45]

I never re-bottle but I do shake before I do a mixing session.

 

[sofarsogood]

I've thought of a way to may be test the propensity of nic and PG to settle and separate. Put a mix of 10% nic and 90% PG in a centrifuge and give them a good spin then see if the concentration of nic is different between the top and bottom of the vial. The centrifuge might speed up the settling process so we wouldn't have to wait years for the answer.

 

[mcclintock]

It's nicotine and therefore would be very bad if it seperated somewhat and you didn't mix it. In addition, there have been a few reports on here that are best explained by nic solution seperation. With any bottle that is long-ish, I flip the bottle lengthwise a few times too to engage that mixing mode. Unfortunately, when the bottle is new and most needs mixing it will be too full to do much to it from straight shaking.

 

[DaveP]

I shake my flavors and my nic before a DIY session. Can't hurt. I've had mixes turn out different for no apparent reason when I didn't even though all are thick and not obviously stratified.

Heck, I shake or power mix my steeped bottles daily for a few days after mixing and shake every time that I fill a tank. It's a good habit.

One of these is a good addition to your mixing supplies.

https://www.amazon.com/Badger-Air-B...8&qid=1510320802&sr=8-1&keywords=badger+mixer

 

[SteveS45]

A mixer speeds up infusion in my personal experience without a doubt.

 

[zoiDman]

Hi. I've just started mixing my own liquid and bought a 1 litre bottle of 72mg nic in VG.
As it is going to take a while for me to get through a litre bottle, is the nic likely to come out of suspension and settle at the bottom (or top) of the bottle over time?

Good Question.

And the Short Answer is Not Really. But you should Shake the Bottle when you get it.

But that Short Answer is based on the Nicotine already being Fully in Solution.

So another Question that can/should be asked is is it Possible to receive Nicotine Base that is Not Fully in Solution? And contains "Hot Spots" ?

I think it is Possible. Depending of How the Nicotine Base was made by the OEM. But Shaking the Bottle of Nicotine Base when you receive it solves that possible Problem.

 

[stols001]

I will say that it costs me nothing to shake a bottle (well, maybe some calories if it's heavy) and whether I need to or not, I usually shake my stuff, storebought, DIY, nicotine, I just go ahead and shake it, because I don't think it will do much harm, and I've just gotten used to it...

Anna

 

[DaveP]

So another Question that can/should be asked is is it Possible to receive Nicotine Base that is Not Fully in Solution? And contains "Hot Spots" ?

I think it is Possible. Depending of How the Nicotine Base was made by the OEM. But Shaking the Bottle of Nicotine Base when you receive it solves that possible Problem.

I'm from the crowd who assumes that if I didn't see it happen, it probably didn't.

I think it's possible that your nic could not be completely mixed when you get it, but hopefully not likely. Then again, how do we know that the guy who's bottling it doesn't just add the base mixture and then add the pure nic on top and give it a few shakes for good measure?

I shake it until my arms get tired, then wait a couple of minutes and shake again. Then, I shake it some more before each DIY session.

 

[zoiDman]

...

I think it's possible that your nic could be not completely mixed when you get it, but hopefully not likely. Then again, how do we know that the guy who's bottling it doesn't just add the base mixture and then add the pure nic on top and give it a few shakes for good measure?

...

You Don't.

All you really Know is that if you are buying a Nicotine Base that has a Lower Nicotine mg/ml than the Nicotine the Manufacture buys, that the Manufacture is "Mixing" your Nicotine Base for your desired mg/ml level.

How Well is the Manufacture Mixing it? Well... That's anyone's Guess.

 

[Izan]

I order my nic on line.
After being bottled, I presume it goes to packaging/shipping. It is then picked up and transported to a central distribution point and sorted. From there it is delivered to the local post office and sorted. From there it is loaded for delivery. The mail/delivery person brings it to my door.
I have 100% faith that the "journey" is not so smooth and level or even as to not agitate the solution at a variety of temperatures and positions.
So, is it mixed? Yeah...I would think thoroughly.

Just my opinion.
I