Tags: extraction, CBD, tincture, ethanol, yield, cannabis, science, home extraction
Kevin Spelman, PhD, MCPP presents “Extraction of Cannabinoids in Differing Extraction Techniques” at CannMed 2022.
Since the advent of legalization of growing the Cannabis plant in 38 states, traditional home remedies have become very common to avoid the high cost of Cannabis in dispensaries. Traditional herbal medicine has long had multiple ways of extraction medicinal plants but few of these methods have been studied for yield of cannabinoids. In this investigation, we studied the two most used extraction techniques for medicinal plants; maceration (steeping biomass in a solvent for a specified time) vs percolation (running a solvent through biomass in a relatively short time period). There has long been a debate about these opposing methods. We show very clearly with triplicate extractions and triplicate samples of the extractions that the most efficient extraction yield of cannabinoids is through percolation. It is also the fastest method.
Objective: The objective of the study was to examine the extraction of cannabidiol in two ethanolic extraction systems; 1) maceration, which most production plants are currently using and 2) percolation, which has rarely been used in the extraction of cannabinoids but is very popular for other medicinal plants. Methods: Maceration, the technique of steeping the biomass in a solvent for a period of time and percolation, the technique of running a solvent through the biomass for a brief period of time were utilized. We mimicked traditional home extractions methods using glassware and other easily available equipment that are readily available to an average consumer. Summary: Our results demonstrate that a 3-minute extraction is similar to a 60-minute maceration and 2-week maceration. Our results also demonstrate a significantly higher extraction efficiency (greater than 14%) using percolation rather than maceration. The highest extraction efficiency is with a percolation method, which is also relatively quick. Conclusions: The traditional method of extracting herbal medicines by 2-week macerations is not needed for the extraction of CBD. Moreover, the relatively quick and efficient percolation method is more efficient than the maceration technique.
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