Hi all-
Reaching out to get some feedback…
I have heard it suggested that a high ratio of limonene in the terpene profile of concentrate cartridge solutions may contribute to a higher failure rate with the hardware. Is there any data to back up this claim? Has anyone else had similar experience?
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Someone in this thread mentioned it was more likely terpinolene instead of limonene. Edit: This might have also had to do with heavy metals, not sure it’s been a long day
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Yes I’ve noticed this.
Limonene is a great solvent and it dissolves a wide range of plastic type compounds and even eats away at some silicone gaskets.
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I’ve seen it eat it’s own plastic container before. Shits gnar
That was in the context of metals but could be because monoterpenes are breaking down the seals/plastics allowing the oil to come in contact with surfaces that were not lead free. This is still a theory based on a trend I’ve seen with some of the lower purity monoterps.
D-Limonene for example is easily obtainable at 99% purity but terpinolene often is 5% lower and has some unidentified compounds in it that may be making it harsher on surfaces. Its possible that something specific to terpinolene makes it more “aggressive” than other monoterpenes but I’ve found that the isolates you only see at slightly lower purity levels tend to be more rough around the edges. Realistically they all can be rough on plastics on the long term. I just noticed the lead re-test failures were strains high in some of the harsher isolates. So it could be reacting with the metals, the plastics, or worsened by an impurity. Sesquiterpenes seem to be more forgiving.
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Terpinolene & caryophyllene would be my best suggestions on this culprit. Caryophyllene will tear your throat apart