Saturation points

You mean the solubility, I assume. This information isn't available, or at least, I haven't been able to locate it. The only info I have relates to olive oil, in which THC solubility is >50%. For more information on isolates, please check this.

 

You don't need any more oil then enough to make paste from.


This is just enough oil to fully saturate the 160 micron Kief I use to make my Capsules from.
Works out the same using powdered buds as well.

Decarb 240 F for 40 minutes uncovered

5 grams Decarbed Kief or Hash or powdered buds
1 tablespoon Coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon Lecithin
Heat 220 F for 20 minutes
Freeze
Heat 220 F for 20 minutes
Done

Kief-Hash 1 drop = 3mg of THC
Powdered Buds 1 drop = 1mg



BNW

 

"Solubility indicates the maximum amount of a substance that can be dissolved in a solvent at a given temperature. Such a solution is called saturated. Divide the mass of the compound by the mass of the solvent and then multiply by 100 g to calculate the solubility in g/100g.".

How to Calculate Solubilities - Sciencing

 

Now that's the big question. To determine the solubility you'd need to know how much THC you have to start with. Once you've reached that limit then you have your saturation point. It would take experimentation and testing to determine how much of your known compound will dissolve into a stick of butter. You'd probably need to use a concentrate/isolate so you'd know just how much THC you have. I'm sure someone has done that somewhere along the line and it's just a matter of finding it.

I have been doing research on this with alcohol when making a Green Dragon tincture and I have found that it holds a lot more than is generally thought, at least twice as much and up to 3x.

Dragon Lite.....another Tincture Thread

 

It may be helpful if you state exactly what you're trying to do. I don't think there is a saturation point when combining THC in other oils. Since oils are nonpolar, you're not really dissolving THC in butter, coconut oil, or olive oil, the THC disperses into the other oils. If you keep adding THC to olive oil it doesn't eventually reach a point where it begins to form clumps of THC floating in saturated olive oil, instead the THC molecules simply eventually become more numerous than the molecules of olive oil. Instead of THC becoming dispersed, or infused, in a container of olive oil, you'll have a container of THC infused with olive oil.

When making tincture using alcohol the hash oil goes readily into solution because alcohol and oil mix, there is no saturation point unless polar water molecules are added to the mix. The alcohol/water mixture has a limited capacity to accept more oil molecules, the lower the proof, the less oil it will accept before becoming saturated. There is no such point when combining hash oil with other oils. You can take a homologous mixture of hash oil and olive oil and add more hash oil drop by drop and it will never reach saturation where the added hash oil stops going into solution. As with oils, you can mix one drop of alcohol into a cup of hash oil or a drop of hash oil into a cup of alcohol without saturation issues.

Butter contains both polar and nonpolar molecules and it also contains some phospholipids which are emulsifiers and that makes butter different from the other oils we frequently use. If you want the most potent hash oil infused butter possible then clarify it first to remove the water and solids. I don't think there's a saturation point for infusing butter fat with hash oil, it's essentially an oil/oil mixture.

It's possible I'm full of shit but that's my understanding of how it works on this day. I'd be very pleased if anyone could point out where I'm going wrong, I'm always up for being corrected as accurate knowledge helps improve my game.

 

Perfectly explained.

 

No, you're right as rain about that but that's a different kind of thing. What you're describing is a "carrier" instead of as an extraction although both points are similar in nature. A carrier can be any number of different things and doesn't necessarily need any fat, alcohol or other solvent. As a carrier I have seen it fall out of solution if I tried to make it too concentrated. It's really more of a suspension when using a non solvent as the carrier. And it still remains effective.

The actual saturation solubility is about extraction for our purposes. How much THC will it extract and how much will be left behind? That's going to differ by solvent. Alcohol has a much higher saturation point than an oil. The oils are going to be dependent upon the amount of saturated fat which coconut oil has the most of. Almond or grapeseed not so much. However, almond and grapeseed oils make great carriers. Testing has shown me that alcohol has a solubility percentage of 75-80% after loss but the alcohol is not fully saturated and can be used again for another fresh batch. Oils will range from 60% or lower. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten into the specifics for oil but I have all kinds of stuff on alcohol.

 

Useful to know. I have about 5 gallons of alcohol here.

 

Thanks for the feedback Sam. You're right, I was talking about using oil as a carrier as that's where I have experience. I wasn't sure by the OP's question exactly why he was asking so I decided to answer the question as he wrote it, That's also why I suggested he state what he was trying to do. Sure, you're right that some oils are much better for extracting just like some solvents are better. Back in the day I've used methanol, hexane, and naptha but settled on iso because it's so available and works well enough, is cheap enough, and the smell isn't as noxious as some. What I haven't used for solvent is oils although I think that's probably a more efficient way to go. I've was tempted to use BadKat's recipe for hash caps and even more tempted to use B&W's method, they look so easy, but I haven't yet.

I do like the appearance of my alcohol extracted oil, it's a clear amber, sometimes with a green tinge, and although my stomach can't appreciate the beauty of my capsules, they work well enough. If I screw up the decarb and my oil isn't as potent as it should be, I add another drop or two to the capsules, I have enough in the freezer for the next few years and after that I won't be thinking of earthly concerns plus I have way more bud than I can ever use and even if I did run short, it's easy enough to grow some more so I don't need a perfect extraction. So my concern is mainly about the carrier. And curiosity has given me questions about that, like medium chain vs long chain triglycerides and the benefits and drawbacks of each. Whether or not adding an emulsifier actually increases bioavailability (which also doesn't make that much difference to me since I can always add another drop or two to increase my high) Questions for another time and a different thread.

Anyway, thanks for your efforts to improve the process over the years. Today's youngsters have a much easier time learning to manipulate hash oil than we did back when, thanks to guys like you willing to make the effort.

 

Nice to see someone else into chemistry. I have some esters here that are thinner than water, I'll have to see if they are edible.

 

@Tokintb12 has used esters in some of his edibles and he's really put some research into that and other infused "modern gastronomy" edibles. I have some esters in powder form but unfortunately my recent disabilities have prevented my further exploration. I'm sure the liquid could be used as well.

 

I think I have at least three that I use in personal care. One is too thick, it's like butter. Myritol 318 is coconut oil ester, it's really thin and for sure edible. And I have one even thinner but I can't recall the name atm. For my part, I either make keif using the ice method, or I make RSO, I have about 5 gallons of 97% ethanol. (You can buy it here, set up a roadside place, advertise 'litros' and dilute it with carbonated drinks to make cocktail buckets.)

 

The different emulsifiers allow you to make better infused products for specific application when it comes to the syrup
Most of the work was small batch so I need to do more experimentation
To somebody with a chemistry background this is maybe worthy of a yawn but it is quite interesting for a lay person
The food science is a lot fun
It does help folks who have a problem swallowing
Infusing drinks and making whipped products that dissolve in the mouth give us another delivery method

 

Sure. I think the polysorbates are a great idea. Food grade, excellent emulsifiers.