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Most Common Extraction Methods For Medical Cannabis

Extraction of cannabis is an easy process, which people have practiced for centuries. There are many stories of people using cannabis tea, hash or tinctures in ancient times as medicine. The first remark of hash dates back to the year 900 in Arabia, where people used to consume it rather than smoke it as a pain reliever and for other medical use.

Modern Experiments

Nowadays, the science behind cannabis extraction for medicinal use has developed significantly, with more technologically demanding methods being applied. The reason people carry out extractions is plain and simple, and remains the same after centuries of study — the definitive produce is much more potent than the fresh herb, and there are more of the solicited compounds present. Therefore it is easier to determine the dosage. For example, fresh herb of Super Lemon Haze CBD Kush usually contains up to 7 % of THC and 7 % CBD, compared to concentrates which can be up to 99 % pure.

Plant material

According to the method of extraction, the initial process is to select the appropriate parts of the cannabis plant to use. Almost all parts of the plant— cannabis seeds, trims and leaves, and the buds can make an extract using solvents except for active resin extract. Conclusively, to make high-quality concentrates always use dried and properly cured cannabis.

Extraction methods

There are two foremost groups of cannabis extracts. Solventless extracts, which are produced with no external substances, except water, however, these extracts are not acknowledged as “solvent-based”. The most frequently used solvents are alcohol, butane, and propane. Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is not a solvent, even though methods using CO2 are considered solvent based too.

Solventless cannabis extracts

When performing solventless cannabis extract no chemical solvent was used. All are needs are water, heat, pressure and a mesh.

Hash

Hash is one of the earliest cannabis extracts known to humans “900-1000 Scholars debate the pros and cons of eating hashish. Use spreads throughout Arabia.”There are several different techniques to apply in making hash. The most common process to make solventless hash is to apply ice water to separate the trichomes from the plant matter since the trichomes hold most of the essential oils. When separated, they stick together and after they dry, they are pressed and the hash is ready.
Another approach of producing hash is the dry sift method. It was prepared by using frozen buds, which are further broken down into small parts on the mesh or screen. Using this process, the trichomes are isolated from the plant, falling through the mesh and are pressed into a hash-like texture.

Kief

Kief notes to the tiny, sticky, white crystals covering the cannabis, otherwise known as the resin glands or trichomes. They contain the highest amount of active terpenes and cannabinoids. Extraction of kief is a very simple process—  A three cell blender does all the work by distributing the kief from the plant into the bottom chamber.

Solvent-based cannabis extracts

With the growing demand for medical cannabis products, technologies used for extracts are becoming more and more advanced. Legalization has opened the door to many innovative approaches and techniques to make various concentrates, and producers are always discovering new solvents to get the very best from cannabis. However, it starts to become a little precarious to make and use extracts when one doesn’t have the basic information. Firstly, the chemicals can explode. Secondly, the residual solvent can develop in the final cannabis extract, which is not desirable and can be unsafe to consume.

Butane Hash Oil (BHO)

BHO is made using butane. Several hydrocarbons like propane, butane, hexane etc. have been used for food extractions. The final product can have a distinctive consistency which is responsible for the title of the extract for example; wax, shatter, honeycomb, oil, nectar, etc.
The solvent is run through the plant material, which makes the beneficial oils come out of the plant. To remove the residual solvent, the solution is heated— butane evaporates in low temperatures in a vacuum. This is to make sure that there is no solvent left and the cannabis extract is very potent. The product can have up to 90% of the medicinal cannabinoids in the extracts.

Supercritical Fluid Extraction (CO2)

This process doesn’t need any chemical solvents which are also the reason why some people favor for it. The extracts are made using carbon dioxide, which is compressed until it produces supercritical fluid. This oil then strips the essential oils from the cannabis plant in a comparable way to the hydrocarbons (BHO, propane, hexane). This method is uncommon in a way because it uses the supercritical fluid which has the characteristics of liquid and gas. It enables it to melt the plant matter very thoroughly. In comparison to BHO, the CO2 method is simpler to control and the cannabis extract contains more terpenes up to 10 % compared to BHO which has 0.5–3.5 %. This method needs very expensive equipment which is commonly found in professional laboratories.
Different extracts offer various deliverability methods, which affect the final result of the extract. It is great to have such a variety of medical cannabis products. You can choose according to your choices.

About The Author:

Mikaela Smith is a young Chemical Engineer and an active advocate for medical cannabis raising awareness. A researcher by day and writer at night. After years of collecting information from hundreds of cannabis experts and institution. She wants to inspire others how we could see the world as haven as she found the safest, most effective relief and hope in medical cannabis.

CategoriesCannabis Concentrates Education
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Understanding Methods of Extraction


Understanding the method of extraction is the key to a safe and environment-friendly operation. As the awareness on cannabis continues, a proper understanding of how marijuana seeds have been cultivated and how the derived products are made, both the process and the equipment used are also important.
Cannabis concentrates are a complex issue in the ever-expanding cannabis industry. There’s a lot of misinformation with its network and marketplace. Dispensary managers, budtenders, and consumers will be conceited at extracts made with BHO because they think there’s some sort of health risk.
The hostility towards BHO comes from a story of some newbie teens blowing themselves up, not knowing what they’re doing due to the big trade dominating the risk. As a result of the BHO process being branded, specialists consider the process is more productive and beneficial than other methods of extraction.

Cannabis Concentrates

Cannabis concentrates and extracts shook the cannabis industry a few years ago, as the state to state legality started the discussion. A class once defined by hash alone exploded into factions, where absolute levels of THC offered a firmer passageway to getting high, shrouded in skepticism.
However, there are comprehensive issues among people unfamiliar with these stiff substances that come in many forms and under many marijuana names, from shatter to wax, honey oil, live resin, taffy, butter or budder, dabs, and the sometimes controversial methods used to make these extracts, were faced with uncertainty from the public as records started coming in of teen blowing themselves up, attempting to make them at home. In response to the issue, marijuana state laws have been refurbished to minimize casualties.

The Stigma on BHO

Butane extraction suffered from the brunt of judgment due to some teens “open blasting,” a process where butane is discharged into the environment instead of retrieving to safety in the vacuum oven. While most believe BHO’s stigma is a health-related one concerning the presence of butane in the oil, it’s really part of a larger plan to demonize butane by some facets of the marijuana industry expecting to take the heat off themselves.
Contrary to what many believed, the butane method is scientifically better than other methods in terms of conserving the fragile terpene profile of a certain marijuana strain— OG Kush, granddaddy purple, purple haze etc., which is responsible for its aroma, and taste.
Extracts are either made by processing the buds with a propellant like butane or propane, a.k.a  Butane Hash Oil or BHO or shattering the flower with carbon dioxide. When running through a closed loop system, both are perfectly safe. A closed-loop system gives a way of extracting concentrate from marijuana in a closed environment. The butane evaporated in the extraction process is collected in a vacuum oven to be reused, instead of spoiling the environment by mixing with air, potentially prompting to the dangerous explosion.

The Closed-Loop Extraction Method

Closed loop extraction is a fast, efficient way to separate essential oils from botanical material and, when operated properly, is extremely safe.
The closed-loop system is a method in which the complete process is done inside a secured vessel. The solvent used to extract the flowers does not ever come in touch with the outside environment. The loop portion includes the recovery and reuses aspect of the system.The solvent will begin inside one vessel, and then move through different containing botanical material, after which it will revert back into the original container hence forming a loop.

How it is Done?

So how does a closed loop works? The solvent tank will carry the solvent to use. The common solvent used in this process is the butane. The material cylinder will contain the desired material.
For example, A freshly trimmed Mephisto genetics blue dream haze will be used as the material because of its greasy nugs from the trichomes. The oil will be removed from the material by butane as the solvent. The butane will begin flooding the material vessel. As the butane initiates contact with the material, the essential oils will begin to dissolve into the butane. As the butane runs its way through the material, the essential oils continue being dissolved, leaving the butane/oil mixture.
Once the mixture falls into the collection base. Separating the mixture is the next step by evaporating and recollect the butane. This is done by setting the collection base in warm water and placing the butane tank in dry ice or ice water to form a temperature differential. The butane will begin to evaporate and leave the collection base, which will be drawn into the solvent container by this temperature differential. Inside the solvent container, the butane vapor will re-condense into low-pressure liquid.
Once all butane has been distilled from the collection base, all that will be left over is the oil we extracted from the blue dream haze. the solvent tank will be loaded with butane which we can reuse and the loop will be completed. Safe, convenient environment-friendly extraction.

Author Bio

Mikaela Smith is a young Chemical Engineer and an active advocate for medical cannabis raising awareness. A researcher by day and writer at night. After years of collecting information from hundreds of cannabis experts and institution. She wants to inspire others how we could see the world as haven as she found the safest, most effective relief and hope in medical cannabis.