Materials needed:
· 3« gallons of nitrate bearing earth or other material
· « cup of wood ashes
· Bucket or other similar container about 4-5 gallons in volume
· 2 pieces of finely woven cloth, each a bit bigger than the bottom of the bucket
· Shallow dish or pan at least as large in diameter as the bucket
· Shallow, heat resistant container· 2 gallons of water
· Something to punch holes in the bottom of the bucket
· 1 gallon of any type of alcohol
· A heat source
· Paper & tape
Procedure:
1.Punch holes on the inside bottom of the bucket, so that the metal is "puckered" outward from the bottom.
2.Spread cloth over the holes from the bottom.
3.Place wood ashes on the cloth. Spread it out so that it covers the entire cloth and has about the same thickness.
4.Place 2nd cloth on top of the wood ashes.
5.Place the dirt or other material in the bucket.
6.Place the bucket over the shallow container. NOTE: It may need support on the bottom so that the holes on the bottom are not blocked.
7.Boil water and pour it over the earth very slowly. Do NOT pour it all at once, as this will clog the filter on the bottom.
8.Allow water to run through holes into the shallow dish on the bottom.
9.Be sure that the water goes through ALL of the earth!
10.Allow water in dish to cool for an hour or so.
11.Carefully drain the liquid in the dish away, and discard the sludge in the bottom.
12.Boil this liquid over a fire for at least two hours. Small grains of salt will form - scoop these out with the paper as they form.
13.When the liquid has boiled down to « its original volume let it sit.
14.After « hour, add equal volume of the alcohol; when this mixture is poured through paper, small white crystals appear. This is the potassium nitrate.
Purification:
1.Redissolve crystals in small amount of boiling water.
2.Remove any crystals that appear.
3.Pour through improvised filter then heat concentrated solution to dryness.
4.Spread out crystals and allow to dry.
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