Cannabis Extraction Methods
The cannabis market uses three main extraction techniques. In all processes, the plant material is
subjected to a solvent to remove active compounds from the plant matter and filtered to yield a
solution of the solvent with plant extracts.
All processes rely on standard techniques that have been used for years in the botanical, chemical
and petrochemical, and distilled spirits industries.
Super Critical Carbon Dioxide
Use carbon dioxide (CO2) pressurize the CO2 to its subcritical or supercritical state. The CO2 stream passes
through a chamber containing cannabis material. The distillate can be isolated easily by reducing the
pressure which evaporates the CO2, leaving a cannabis extract with no solvent. Working on temperature
and pressure affords CO2 systems the ability to yield extracts with a complete terpene profile.
Liquefied Hydrocarbons
Pressurize butane, propane or other low molecular weight hydrocarbons to a liquid state. The liquid
hydrocarbon passes through a bed of cannabis material and filter, yielding an extract solution of hydrocarbon
and plant extract. Like the CO2 method, a reduction in pressure evaporates the hydrocarbon liquid, yielding
a solvent-free plant extract.
This method requires great attention to safety due to the flammability of the hydrocarbon used.
Ethanol Extraction
Use food grade or USP grade ethanol as a solvent to extract plant material. This method varies from vessels
to reactors, filter reactors, spinning vessels to barrels. A popular process has the ethanol chilled to <-20°C (-
4°F) either in a cold room or freezer and then pumped into a container of cannabis.
After a soak period, the ethanol solution is either filtered or the plant material removed in a ‘tea bag’ fashion.
The resultant mother liquor of ethanol and extract is then concentrated by removing the ethanol. Typical
distillation apparatus used to remove the ethanol include rotary evaporators, falling film evaporators or a
batch vacuum distillation system.
Extraction Process Residues and Winterization
All extraction methodologies described above yield an oil once the solvent has been removed. This oil
contains plant lipids, possibly chlorophyll, waxes, fats, terpenes, THC and other cannabinoids. Additional
processing to remove the plant lipids and waxes is necessary to produce a more desirable extract product.
Winterization is the term used to describe the process of removing the plant lipids, fats and waxes.
Dissolution of the extraction oil in ethanol and chilling to temperatures <-20°C causes the lipids, fats and
waxes to precipitate. This cooling process is conducted in cold rooms, freezers or with jacketed vessels or
jacketed filter reactors.
The Ethanol Extraction is slowly making its way to an industry standard thanks to high-quality, low-risk, and
relatively inexpensive results it produces. Not to mention the huge investments needed for the Super Critical
Carbon Dioxide and Liquefied Hydrocarbons methods.
Which instruments are needed for the Ethanol Extraction Method?
Rotary Evaporator, Water Chiller, Vacuum Pump
The rotary evaporator enables the removal of solvent in a controlled manner under vacuum. Sizes range
from bench top (to 3 L flasks) to pilot scale (20 L and up). Reducing the pressure in the rotary evaporator by
a vacuum pump lowers the boiling point of the solvent to be removed. In this case ethanol has to be removed.
Typically, the distilling flask is filled to 50% volume. The water bath is heated to 30-40°C. The condenser
temperature, controlled by a recirculating chiller, is set to -5°C to 0°C. Once the water bath and condenser
have reached the set points, the distillation flask is rotated from 150-200 rpm. This creates a thin film on the
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upper surface of the round glass flask, which increases the solution surface area and enhances the solvent
evaporation rate. Applying an appropriate vacuum to the system lowers the boiling point.
To achieve a recommended target, set the vacuum to achieve an ethanol vapor temperature of 15-20°C. As
the ethanol evaporates, it will condense and collect into the distillate flask.
Pay attention: Increasing the evaporation rate by lowering the vacuum and/or increasing the water bath
temperature can lead to capacity overload on the condenser. The evaporation rate can exceed the
condensation capacity of the recirculating chiller. In this case, ethanol vapor will pass through the condenser
and into the vacuum pump. Cannabis extracts require lower water bath temperatures to minimize thermal
decomposition.
As a consequence, the condenser temperature of -5°C to 0°C will require a good quality chiller with adequate
cooling capacity at those low temperatures.
Temperature control plays a vital role in the cannabis extraction workflow therefore it is paramount to use
good and reliable instruments. Attention to detail and optimization of the processing conditions from
extraction to component isolation remain critical to maximization of yield and purity.
