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Heated & Natural Decarboxylation Testing Project for THC & High-CBD

Discussion in 'Weed Edibles' started by PsychedelicSam, Jul 11, 2014.

  1. #41 PsychedelicSam, Dec 2, 2015
    Last edited: Jun 25, 2017
    Initial Green Dragon Natural Decarb Sample - Final Analysis

    Reduction Control.jpg Natural 2.jpg Natural3.jpg

    I should have had this posted quite a while ago but life got in the way but it needs to be completed here so that we can move on to more in depth studies. This one got strung out too long to be relevant other than confirmation that an inactive tincture will decarb naturally if left long enough. I can't say too much closer than that because this strung out to over a year. I suspect from looking at the second test that total decarb actually occurs over a much shorter time. And that is what the new phases will look at.

    I'm not going to go over the analysis because we just had the previous one a few posts ago. This new one shows complete decarb after 1 year and 2 months. This is from the old lab and they messed up the dilution of the test so the numbers are skewed but the graphs show the story and that's what we're comparing although both the numbers and the graph indicates full decarb.


    I now have a lot of new tests to start putting in here for new fresh bud, new inactive tinctures, heated decarb temp/time comparisons, inactive coconut oil activation experiments and a few other things. I may throw in some results from some of the edibles I have made using the information I have gleaned from these tests. Tests are ongoing and thanks to an arrangement with the lab I can keep them flowing.

    Stay tuned. [​IMG]
     
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  2. #42 PsychedelicSam, Dec 2, 2015
    Last edited: Jun 25, 2017
    Heated Decarb Comparison

    Due to the next batch of tests my process is changing for a heated decarb. I have had a number of lab tests run at different levels of decarb and have been able to determine that 30 minutes @ 225F is insufficient to convert all the THCA to THC or CBDA to CBD. There are tradeoffs with the other cannabinoids, though, and terpenes. These new test results should be considered by others who are hanging by the 225/30 minute scenario. There could be reasons not to do a full decarb on your material but that is reserved for future discussion.

    My heated decarb is now 240F for 40 minutes.

    This next section is going to be fairly long because it includes 7 temp/time results and the analysis. I'll start with those either later tonight or tomorrow sometime. [​IMG]
     
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  3. #43 PsychedelicSam, Dec 3, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 3, 2015


    Heated Decarb Time and Temperature Analysis



    [​IMG]



    You'll be seeing this chart a few more times during the course of this particular study. These are the initial comparisons that got my attention about my heretofore unquestioned decarb process in which I was very confident. While I was and still am a firm believer in my process, I'm not too stubborn to change when presented with reliable data. There still may be times when my previous temp/time will be sufficient for material with different structure like leaf. Time will tell on that since I don't currently have any fresh leaf on which to experiment but my original decarb test was from fan leaf which did fully decarb @ 225F/30 minutes. More tests need to be done to determine that. This particular series studied flower material which does have a different structure than leaf and I have many independent results that verify this particular event, too.



    The first test below is our control. It is the raw material before any heat is applied for decarbing. We can see that it has an almost equal amount of THC-A and THC with just a hair more of the acid. These numbers played a role in the next test so make note. We see that we do have CBD-A but undetectable CBD. Note the amount of CBN in this sample. Moisture content out of the bag @ 9.7%. I have highlighted the values we're looking at on each of the tests.




    OGraw.jpg

    Select an image to expand


    This next test is a little different than the others and is only here because of the decarb data. This is the tincture I made using a decarb time/temperature of 225F/20 minutes. I chose that time for this based on the amount of THC that had already converted, just about half, and I wanted to see if that made any difference in the time needed to finish that conversion while believing the temperature setting was adequate and what I was accustomed to using. As you can see, we only had about a 25% conversion of THC at this combination. We're looking at the ratios here and not the actual numbers although the milliliter and gram sample numbers are similar in a number of areas. The lab tells me this is an excellent medical tincture due to the total number of measurable cannabinoids, not just THC. Many of them are measurable because of the concentration in the GD and others may be influenced by the decarb. The only ones missing were the "V's". I won't detail the numbers here because of the concentration but note how what happens to those cannabinoids as we increase the heat and time. Also of particular note is the amount of CBD we've detected.



    OGKtinc1.jpg

    This third test gets down to the crux of the matter. This is the time/temp combination that me and others have been touting for years now in good faith and it definitely shows a deficiency in the THC conversion. We only converted another 10-15% in comparison to the shorter time, leaving still quite a bit of THC-A. Close but no cigar. So, we know that needs to be improved but now let's look at the other cannabinoids, or lack thereof. Here I want you to note the increase in CBN from the raw to this one and the lack of CBD-A and CBD. Where'd they go? Well, THC isn't the only cannabinoid that easily degrades. CBD also degrades into CBN as well as another less well known cannabioid. CBD-A conversion to CBD is rare in a heated environment. I specifically asked the lab's chief chemist about what happens to the stuff since I had assumed that it worked like a THC conversion. It does not. It is affected by enzymatic action to CBG-A which then determines in what proportion the other cannabinoids are formed. CBG-A is the building block. You don't see that in these tests but they will soon include that essential cannabinoid. The heat and other factors can affect the enzymes that are released by the plant material. With enzyme action CBD-A can be turned into THC instead of CBD or directly to the CBN. If you're only interested in the THC then this is better than the last one.



    Og225 30.jpg



    In this final test we see that the THC conversion rate is complete. There's still a small, small amount of THC-A left but it's negligible and within the test margin of error. Much of the other cannabinoid values are the same as the last one, zero, except for the CBN. Please note that it has risen with the increased conversion rate and there is still no sign of CBD's. So while you will be getting full THC, which is what most people think about, you're not getting too much more and it seems that it wouldn't be an issue with a recreational product but may be lacking in more complex medical effects. I'm making a tincture like #2 in order to see whether the concentration will bring up any other cannabinoids so that we can get a more concise appreciation of what's at play.



    Og240 40.jpg

    I'm also tracking the other value on the chart, moisture content and will have more on that in the future. There will be follow up to the issues covered here and how they relate to creating the best cannabis profile for both recreational and medical benefits. These are the first of many.


    [​IMG]







     
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  4. If you notice, as the CBD compounds disappear, the THC content rises. Now, that shouldn't be the case, especially the last two because they were chopped and blended all at once and then separated into 2 different dishes for the individual decarb runs. This is probably due to the margin of error but you may notice that some other cannabinoids are detected as the CBDA reduces. In all future results keep your eye on the CBDA and the other cannabinoids besides THC.

    Also, I'd like for you to note the large increase in CBN at the higher and longer heating ranges, especially the last one and since we now know that CBD can degrade to CBN, I'd say that could be part of the answer. The only place I've ever found CBD is in a tincture that's been concentrated and now I'm wondering if chasing CBD conversion from CBD-A isn't just a pipe dream. This same data could be key in why so many people have trouble getting more psychoactivity out of their edibles than couchlock and sleep.


    As we saw in the second sample that was taken from a GD (Green Dragon tincture), there was a wide range of cannabinoids, including CBD, that were detectable and it is for this reason that I'm doing the 240/40 as a concentrated tincture so that we can see a little deeper into the matter. Sometimes a single type of test isn't adequate and opens more questions than it answers.


    I'm beginning to believe that decarboxylation is only a piece of the puzzle and that there are trade-offs with the compounds. I'll be including terpenes for the tincture sample, too, so we'll get a good look at what's lost. [​IMG]

     
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  5. This man's mind just flows with knowledge
    Thanks Sam
    I actually understand almost all LOL
     
  6. Heated Decarb Time and Temperature Chart
    (Continued)


    [​IMG]





    In order to make this study as accurate as possible, I am using the same material at differing intervals. As you can see, I just added another row with the new data in the 225F series as well as another column in the chart and I think this should put to rest any idea that 225 is going to give you a full decarb with a longer heating time. There is no significant difference between any of the 225 cannabinoid values. And remember, this material started out almost half decarbed after about 8 months of age.


    You'll notice that there is a lot less potency in this latest sample and that is because it is the shake that was left after a 6,000 mile/3 week trip so it was a little beat up but that is not significant, either. We're going to look at the percentages of conversion so dust off your math skills.
    225F for 30 minutes:
    Total THC = 15.11%
    To find the % of conversion > 12.76/15.11 = x/100 > cross multiply then divide 12.76 * 100 = 15.11x > 1276÷15.11 = x > x=84.4% THC conversion.


    225F for 50 minutes
    Total THC = 10.07
    Following formula above > 8.57/10.07 = x/100 > 8.57*100 = 10.07x > 857 ÷ 10.07 = x > x = 80.9% THC conversion.


    In that additional 20 minutes we actually have a decrease in converted THC and an increase in CBN which we can see using the same formula using total cannabinoids instead of just THC.


    CBN 225F for 30 minutes, total cannabinoids = 15.65%
    CBN = 0.21 > 0.21/15.65 = x/100 > 21 ÷ 15.65 = x > x = 1.34% of CBN


    CBN 225F for 50 minutes, total cannabinoids = 10.5%
    CBN = 0.21 > 0.21/10.5 = x/100 > 21 ÷ 10.5 = x > x = 2% of CBN


    The director of the lab and I were discussing this and there seems to be a tradeoff between long and slow and hot and fast with more degradation due to extended oxidation times with the lower temps/more time and the degradation caused by the volatility using hotter and faster. We see that all the other values were lost in both samples with only the CBN showing any life other than the THC group. Because of this we may have to do one more test to see what we get with a 300F oven for 15 minutes, but that seems like such a sacrilege so I doubt if I do it.


    What we have learned here is the 225 is not going to do the job with longer times being detrimental to your product. [​IMG]


     
  7. Someone had asked me about higher temps(300F) to find the upper limits but I don't care what the end point is now that I know that the longer it goes, the more it will degrade which is not something that I want. Do you? Any other tests that get run for 225F will be done by others since I've now cast it off. I do know, not by charts or 3rd party sources but by my own tests, that the longer time cost me 4% conversion to THC and doubled the CBN instead and that was just with an additional 20 minutes. That wouldn't have been much different if I'd gone 60 or 90 minutes instead, do you think? I'm beginning to learn a lot about volatility and degradation that the charts don't address.



    I wanted to do this test for the sake of the thread and a little curiosity. There are some here who are still thinking about 220-225 but with a longer time like 45-60 minutes and I wanted to address that whichever way it came out. It just so happens that it reinforces the 240/40 and places a heavy negative on the 225 at any level. You haven't seen all the tests I've had run at both temperature ranges but when you do, you may get a better picture of what I see...or maybe not,




    This makes the natural decarb issues even more important and is where future testing will be directed. Alcohol extractions(Green Dragon) I think are going to be the most telling of the natural series because it seems to be the only way we can get real readings of the other cannabinoids and terpenes and I have several of various strains that I'll be following.
    [​IMG]


     
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  8. Heated Decarb Time and Temperature Chart
    (Continued)



    [​IMG]





    Here we have another variable, 240F/30min. By looking at these numbers alone, one might think that the 240F/30min decarb might be the best of the two alternate times because of the increased conversion rate of THCA>THC alone with no decrease in total THC isomers but there are a couple of anomalies that we have to take into consideration. And, of course, this conversation is only pertinent if you want to keep some of the THCA and other cannabinoids in your product.

    It's these other cannabinoids that are the source of the anomalies. One of which is good, I guess, and the other which is puzzling and may play a bigger influence. The first is CBDA. There was none detected in any of the other decarb samples other than in concentration in GD and it's about the same as the raw material but I have no clue as to why. It hasn't degraded yet and this could give us an idea of the range of time/temp where that happens. The anomaly here kind of goes hand in hand with the other one.


    The other anomaly is the nearly double value of CBN than any other sample and I can't explain where that came from. It didn't come from the CBDA or THCA. The THCA percentage leaves no room for it with an average of 16% which combined with the THC gives us a little more than 100% but is well within the margin of error. That mainly shows little if any degradation. So the CBN came from somewhere, maybe, if it's not a lab anomaly and that's the rub, not knowing for sure. This sample was even flower instead of shake and had been kept well. It's too much of an increase. If that is a correct reading then that doubling of the CBN would negate the THCA effects considerably if not completely.


    Here are the comparative percentages:


    240/30 > 85.57% THC 16% THCA 2.94% CBN

    225/50 > 80.9% THC 17% THCA 2% CBN
    [​IMG]

     
  9. Heated Decarb Time and Temperature Chart
    Final Entry

    [​IMG]


    kona raw1.jpg Kona decarb 1.jpg


    This is probably the last of the test results for heated decarb since it now has been established that the parameters for a successful conversion is the same for newly harvested or aged up to a year at least. Not only does it show a 98.5% conversion rate but it also illustrates how to tell the approximate harvest time of the sample if you have an original, raw, sample.

    By looking at the ratio of THCA to THC of each sample, we can see that the older one has considerably more THC than THCA due to the aging process but the point needs to be made here that it still took the same time/temp to get full conversion. That indicates to me that unless the material is so aged that it has less than 1/4 unconverted, it will still need 240/40.


    We also see in this fresh material that more of the cannabinoids were retained than the older one. One interesting thing is that the raw sample had undetectable CBG, CBN and CBC but quite a bit of CBDA and the decarbed sample detects some fairly high values of CBG, CBN and CBC but no CBD which indicates that at this temp/time combination the CBDA is going directly to the other cannabinoids. And by conjecture, since it isn't listed, the raw sample had a good count of CBGA which is the building block that determines the ratio of the other cannabinoids other than the THC isomers. The CBGA works in conjunction with enzymes in the plant material to transform it into the other cannabinoids, like RNA, not DNA, in the human body. This is really the first of these dry samples that we've seen that at work but we've had a hint of with the GD samples.



    So look it over. I think it's enough verification to definitely say 240/40 is the way to go. I may have some two year old Blue Jewel to check again to get a better idea on aging but I suggest the full time/temp up to 2 years of age until I get results that show otherwise. If someone else has some aged material with the known age then this would be a good project if you have access to a lab and some curiosity.


    [​IMG]
     
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  10. Green Dragon Natural Decarb Project 2 - Lemon Kush



    Lk1c003.jpg LKNat1b.jpg LKNat2b.jpg


    Select image to expand


    The images above are the three phases of this project, raw material, original extraction and the same extraction that has been aged in a jar in my cabinet.


    Okay, here we go with the results from some GD (Green Dragon) that I made with some not so great Lemon Kush with no decarboxylation or other heat of any kind. The flowers had been nearly a year old at the time so a large part of decarb had already taken place from natural aging, about 60%, so this isn't the most optimal sample but it works for our purposes at this time.

    I've posted the graphs along with the cannabinoid list as mg/ml. These graphs are the best way to illustrate this instead of just showing the numbers because you can actually see the difference in direct comparison. And I've also included the lab results of the raw material.


    I kind of goofed with this one because I actually wanted a full 90 day period but when I looked at the files, I read the date of the file next to this one and based my 90 days from that. Well, this one shouldn't have been tested until December 1st instead of November 19th so this is a report for 10 weeks instead of 12. If I had done things on schedule then we might have seen full decarb instead of 89% but this is still a successful measurement.


    In the second image we see the graph for the original no heat GD and it has a THC conversion percentage of 67%. The THC is the largest peak with the THCA being the shorter of the two but still indicating some decarb still needs to be accomplished. I have highlighted those on the graph and on the chart above. For comparison, the raw material, image 1, had 60.3 percent THC conversion at the time of the testing.


    The next image shows the very same GD, same batch, same jar, same everything with no detectable evaporation after 10 weeks sitting in my kitchen cabinet at room temperature. We see some expected small changes with the other cannabinoids from the curing process but look at the THC isomers. Currently it is showing an 88.2% conversion. That's about the same as our previous decarb practice of 225/30 converted and we were all pretty happy with that so I would definitely say that GD does naturally decarb enough in 90 days to knock your socks off.


    Because this was so old and already had so much already converted, I will be starting a new project with some really special buds that check in at 28% cannabinoids and is so fresh that most of the other cannabinoids have not been created or remodeled and we'll get to see how that all takes place as it progresses. More on that later. [​IMG]

     
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  11. #51 PsychedelicSam, Dec 8, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 2, 2016
    Kief Decarb


    LKH2.jpg LKHtinc2.jpg


    Select an image for larger view.


    I wanted to emphasize that the decarb temperature and time is exactly the same as bud material. That is 240°F for 40 minutes. I've posted the raw hash and the 151 hash tincture as the decarbed sample. As seen in the flower tests, the kief tests @ a 98.5% THC conversion rate and each ml contains less than half a mg of THCA. Also the other cannabinoids have maintained similar ratios as the flower material, with the CBN increasing almost 3 times as much, some of which can be explained by the concentration of the kief and the breakdown of CBDA.

    I also wanted to post these test results to show that 151 is a good extractor, probably as good as 190 in some cases. We got a really good potency for such lousy hash. I transferred this to some coconut oil and used it in some brownies and they have been excellent. But that's another thread. [​IMG]






     
  12. The Dark Star Genesis Project


    Dark Star Raw1.jpg Dark Star Raw 2.jpg Dark Star Raw 4.jpg



    Select Image to Expand

    I'm beginning a new project that is going to concentrate on natural decarboxylation of an alcohol extraction (Green Dragon) similar to the ones above but using material that is so fresh that most of the other cannabinoids haven't yet formed and that's why I'm calling it "Genesis". We'll get to watch how the cannabioids change and CBDA in particular as much as THCA. It's "Dark Star" because that's the strain name and not because of some sci-fi movie reference.

    I'm also going to be using the inactive tincture to test other heated decarb projects that happen after the extraction instead of before. I already have one example and, believe me, it's a game changer. If you are mainly a coconut oil user then you may never need to decarb your dry material again. That's a tease, of course, but hopefully I can get those up soon, depending on my health, but I'm waiting on another sample to come back from the lab.


    The images above are to give you the main reference control. I've highlighted some areas to watch as we go along. I will try to get the results for the "raw" GD before too long.

     
  13. The Dark Star Genesis Project
    Sample Base - Raw


    Dark Star Raw tinc2.jpg Dark Star Raw tinc1.jpg Dark Star Raw tinc3.jpg


    Select Image to Expand

    The test results shown above are from the inactive, non-decarbed GD that I made with the raw Dark Star buds and will be the base for all the phases of the "Genesis" project. Because I only have a small amount, the experiments I perform are on a very small scale which will give us a platform on which we can build but will not be considered true until it can be confirmed with larger samples.

    I will try to get this sample tested each month until the THCA is fully converted but fortunately that doesn't take a lot of volume. I have about 3 fluid ounces total, having used 10ml for the first oil decarb sample, which is very exciting and will be posted soon.


    I am posting this mainly as a reference for future results since everything from here is going to be from this original volume. From here the graphs will be the main aspect of the posts. [​IMG]

     
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  14. #54 PsychedelicSam, Jan 2, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 2, 2016
    Dark Star Genesis
    Post-Extraction Heated Decarb for Coconut Oil
    Example 1

    Dark Star Raw tinc3.jpg Dark Star Coco 3.jpg

    Select an image to expand



    I used 10ml of the Dark Star raw tincture to infuse 10ml of extra virgin coconut oil in a glass beaker on my griddle with the temperature of the oil never exceeding 180°F during the course of the transfer. As seen in the first image above, the raw tincture only had 4.8mg of THC and nearly 20mg of THCA, quite the opposite of what we want.


    After the alcohol had been removed from the coconut oil, I turned the heat up on the griddle until the oil read 240° on my IR thermometer. Because I was using a small beaker I didn't try to use my candy thermometer because of it's size so for the first part of the project I could only keep it in a 10° range and that took a lot of checking. I got tired of that and decided to try to use the candy thermometer and found that It balanced perfectly so the last 30 minutes of this project had steady heat at about 245°.


    I let the infused coconut oil heat for 1 hour at that temp range of 240°-250°, took it off the heat then off to the lab the next day and the results as shown above are better than I had hoped. As you can see, Those THCA and THC values have reversed, giving us over 26mg of THC and only a half milligram, 0.0005, or 5mcg, which for all purposes is the same as full decarb.


    This is only a small sample but does show that it can be achieved with little trouble. There will be an expansion of this. I have results from an oven decarb of very concentrated coconut oil in a higher volume, oil that a friend forgot to decarb first. I told him 240°F for an hour or until it stopped bubbling but he only left it for 40 minutes. It was still bubbling from the carbon dioxide being released when he took it out. I had it tested and got some good data indicating a 70% decarb. I'll get that one up soon. [​IMG]

     
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  15. Post-Extraction Heated Decarb - Infused Coconut Oil
    High Concentration & High Volume
    Example 2


    [​IMG]




    The lab results shown above are from 2 separate tests of the same sample material. I had the lab place the results next to each other so that they will be easier to compare and not take up as much room. The column on the right is the first sample and the one on left is the last.

    I have a good friend who was going to make some RSO strength coconut oil with 6oz of buds and because he's made it several times before, he sort of put the processing on automatic pilot without giving it much thought....until after he had already started processing. At that point he realized that he completely skipped the decarb. This was fresh bud and definitely needed it. He called me freaking out and I was able to calm him down when I told him about the first oil experiment I had done and that this was the time to test out the oven process. It would be a good test because it was highly concentrated and 6 fluid ounces.


    The column on the right is the first try. I had told him to put the oil in a 240°F oven for an hour or until the bubbles stopped. Well, he got impatient and only left it for 40 minutes and it was still bubbling rapidly at that point. Not alcohol bubbles because that had already been done prior to this but carbon dioxide bubbles from the carboxyl group baking off. It was at this point that I got it tested to see if we were on the right track. Lo and behold, we got about a 70% conversion from THCA to THC. That's close to the range we get with a 225°/30 minute heated decarb. You might be able to use this in a low dose but with this high of a dosage, the higher THCA could cause some issues. At this stage my friend said that it was a bit edgy at a milliliter dosage ("00" cap) and he would have to take it a while before bed in order to be able to sleep.


    The left column shows the results after he placed the oil back in the 240°F oven and let it heat until all the bubbles stopped. He said that it took about 2-3 hours and I suspect that is because the concentration was so high. There is over 3.5g of pure THC in each ounce of coconut oil. Lower concentrations shouldn't take as long. As you can see, it went from 73mg/ml of THC to 107mg/ml and 33.3mg/ml of THCA to just 2.9mg/ml. I call that full decarb.


    There are some other notable differences. First, the CBDA went from 1.92 to 0 as did most of the other cannabinoids except for CBC which nearly tripled. Since there is no CBN, that increase in CBC must have come from the CBDA. As is the case with lab testing of oils and edibles, not everything is detectable. The labs, several, have noted that but none seems to know why. Something to do with the solvents they have to use. For my complex cookies they have to soak it overnight in acetone. But nevertheless, the good stuff is there and tells us that our extraction and decarb were absolutely successful. [​IMG]

     
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  16. Post-Extraction Heated Decarb - Infused Coconut Oil
    Topical Strength & High Volume
    (Example 3)


    Fan Leaf Base1.jpg topical oven oil decarb1.jpg


    Fan Leaf Base2.jpg Topical oven oil decarb2.jpg



    Select an image to expand


    This example is some infused coconut oil that I'm going to use for my topicals. The material is mostly very old (3yrs) fan leaf with a small amount harvested in May of this year but as you can see in the first image, it still had a lot of THCA that needed conversion. I did no oven decarb at all, just skipping that part and doing my regular extraction. Because it's for topicals, it isn't real strong but it's enough to see the noticeable differences before and after the post-extraction decarb.

    I transferred 8 ounces of the GD base into 8 ounces of coconut oil. After that was finished, I preheated the oven to 245°F and kept the oil warm in the double boiler so it wouldn't take as long to get up to temperature. I poured it into a pyrex dish and placed it in the oven. That oil at that point was 155°. It took it a half an hour to reach 245° then I left it in the oven for 2.5 hours with the temperature ranging from 245-255°.


    I had planned on just watching for bubbles and taking it out when that was finished but I didn't get any bubbles the whole time and so I just set a time, 2.5 hours, but I really thought that I had a failure even though the first example in a minute volume didn't bubble, either. My friend who did the Dragon oil said that it bubbled a lot so maybe it's just the concentration level.


    As you can see, though, it was not a failure. [​IMG]

     
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  17. Post-Extraction Heated Decarb - Infused Almond Oil
    Topical Strength & High Volume
    (Example 4)

    Fan Leaf Base1.jpg Topical Almond Oil Post Extract1.jpg


    Fan Leaf Base2.jpg Topical Almond Oil Post Extract2.jpg


    Select an image to expand


    This is a continuation of the post-extraction decarb project using infused almond oil instead of coconut oil. Like the last one, this one is low potency designed for use in topicals and involves a volume of 8 fluid ounces. You'll notice a big difference in the strength of the original base and this almond oil because I dilute the almond oil.

    This oil was infused by a solvent transfer from the GD base and then placed in an oven preheated to 240°F for 1 hour and 45 minutes. I had intended 1.5 hours but the time got away from me a little. The previous sample had been 2.5 hours. As you can see, all of the THCA has been converted to THC. [​IMG]




     
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  18. Post-Extraction Heated Decarb - Infused Coconut Oil
    Full Strength (4g/fl oz) - 30ml Volume
    (Example 5)

    Pakistani Raw Tinc1a.jpg Pakistani Coco 1hr 240a.jpg


    Pakistani Raw Tinc1b.jpg Pakistani Coco 1hr 240b.jpg


    Select an image to expand

    This will be the final set of tests for this project and I wanted it to be as comprehensive as possible so I used fresh material instead of the Dark Star because the Dark Star was already nearly half converted. For this test I'm using Pakistani Chitral Kush which has had no heat applied at any time during initial processing. The only heat was during the solvent transfer and decarbing of the coconut oil. I also wanted to use a larger volume than the first one but small enough that it wouldn't possibly inhibit conversion. Also, I wanted to make enough for use in caps.

    We have already done a 2.5 hour very small volume, a 40 minute and 2.5 hour at high concentration and high volume, another 2.5 hour high volume lighter topical strength and an even lighter 1.75 hour almond oil at high volume. This one is 1 hour small volume and will define the range of our project well.


    As you can see, 1 hour @ 240°F does not fully decarb the oil, leaving about 1/4 of the THCA unconverted. This is about the same as a 225°F for 30 minutes pre-extraction decarb, maybe a little less. For those who like their product in that range, this is perfect. With even less time at this temperature you're conversion rate will drop accordingly.


    There is another thing to note with this test although it's probably coincidental but worth pointing out since this is another "Genesis" candidate. In the base GD there is .75 CBDA but no CBD and CBN was .12. In the oil we see that we lost .14 of CBDA but gained .14 CBD. This is the first time I've seen such a close correlation between the two. Only .04 was gained on the CBN which could have come from the THC or other compounds.



    For the record, after I got the test results I heated my oil again on my griddle for another hour to finish the decarb. While I didn't have it tested, I'm sure that it's fully converted based on the other examples and the effects I get from it. It's a heavy Indica and 1ml works like it should. [​IMG]
     
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  19. Excellent article and charts, thanks! At least if I messed up oil, I know I can fix it.
    But what if it is an alcohol tincture and use the Magic Butter Machine on 130 and forgot to decarb.
    Has anyone found a way to get the THC up?
     
  20. You can let it sit and age / decarb naturally. Takes about 3 months
     

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