Hello All,
I was not able to find a good email to contact on the GLG site (other than the refund page) so I decided here may work.
I am looking to start a small CBD Oil from hemp company using precise CO2 extraction to avoid winterization so we can create a solvent-less product. The problem we have run into, same as many others, is THC remediation would be required to stay under the legal limit for CBD and that almost always requires a solvent or dilution.
From reading there are ways to use Heat and UV to convert the THC to CBN, but the specifics are hard to come by, as it is a large business case for firms in the remediation space.
From reading a lot of post on this site there it seems that GLG has some leads on SOPs that will solve this issue and give a solvent-less process. Is this tech currently / going to be available to GLG members?
Thank you for your time.
Solvents are good m’kay
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CO2 extraction is not solvent-less as CO2 is a solvent. I do not believe you can avoid winterization with any CO2 extract as it tends to pull more fats/waxes than other extraction methods. The only truly solvent-less extraction is mechanical (rosin, bubble hash). The only way to separate without a solvent is distillation and I think that will be difficult to control as the boiling points of CBD and THC are similar. If you think people are interested in how their product is extracted you won’t be in the business long imo
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Could press rosin into isolate.
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If you’re doing hemp try converting the cbd to cbn. CBD to CBN
Also the search bar is a great tool. If you search THC to CBN you’ll get results.
https://future4200.com/search?context=topic&context_id=57874&q=THC%20to%20CBN&skip_context=true
Also here’s a thread that could help Degradation of THC after harvesting
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Rosin is definitely on our list of things to do. I am doing research on it, but have not done enough to work through all of its intricacies.
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That thread looks to be helpful, I guess I was limiting my searches too much.
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Just remember there’s more than one way to skin a cat. I was looking at the OP and I’m like wait is he trying to get cbn off of THC when he’s growing hemp why not the other way around why not cbd to cbn.
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Anyone ever make hemp hash and test the different microns for cannabinoid concentrations?
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I never done that but I was thinking that too. Also make isolate with a rosin press with each different grades of hash and get the isolate tested for cannabinoids. I’ve had that idea before when I was making hash balls a few months back.
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CO2 has its place, that place is probably not processing hemp at scale. It can be done (look at Thar), but it’s not cheap, and doesn’t seem efficient.
On a boutique scale, you might be able to manage a “solvent-less” product, so long as your willing to lie to yourself about the solvent you’re extracting with.
Although chances are you’ll need to winterize in ethanol and/or use it as a cosolvent in your primary extraction.
As you’ve noted, you’ll still have the issue of being 10x over the legal limit for THC. You can degrade that in a oven, but you also take a hit on your CBD when you do that. All other routes seem to require use of addition solvents.
I suggest you ditch the hippy bullshit that sold you on CO2 being “solventless” and wrap your head around using whichever solvents best fit your needs.
Smart consumers already understand that the “solventless” appellation is a straight up lie for most CO2 oil, so claiming it doesn’t do you any favors imo.
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I agree that solvent-less is a bit of poor nomenclature, I used it here as it seems commonly understood in the industry, a better term would be Hydrocarbon and Ethanol free. But Hydrocarbon and Ethanol free is my need at this point.
Can you currently produce usable crude without winterizing?
Have you looked into SFC (Supercritical fluid chromatography)?
Have you noticed that hemp derived, CO2 extracted terpenes are selling for more than CBD is?
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With high controls on our inputs we are able to produce crude without winterization, it just takes a lot longer.
I have not seen SFC yet, I’ll be diving into that now.
I had heard about the terpenes, extraction usually produces more terpenes than you want to add back in, so we have been looking into other revenue streams involving it. Although focusing on that could also be an interesting path as well.
Thanks for your insights.
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Was about to recommend making disty then sending it to a chromatography lab and have them strip the oil to the required specs.
except that most folks doing chromatography are using solvents not on OP’s list (aiming for “solventless” so it’s a very short list 
)
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But still, with proper purging it wouldn’t matter as much. I also thing that distillate is probably the best bet for OP
I just ran across you mentioning the issue with “solvent-less” in another thread, do you still think “solvent free” is an acceptable term for what I am going for?
I guess I never thought about the specific differences in the two.
I went through that phase. Imo there’s a bigger problem with processors not wearing gloves and masks then with even trace amounts of ethanol. Plus, none of the hemp industry is regulated. I’m seeing moonrocks advertised as 74% CBD and people selling hot shatter all over the place.
My take on it all was that making good clean disty is the way.
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If the object of the game is to sell your end product, it’s not my opinion that maters. It is what your customers demand.
If I was aiming at folks who will pay a premium for “CO2 only” extracts in pens, I would not claim “solventless” or “solvent-free”.
I would simply tell them how much trouble I went to to provided them with the “CO2 only” experience, and leave the horse shit (“solventless”) for others to promote.
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