Plant Knowledge: How Do You Extract CBD Oil From Its Plant?

Extracting CBD should be done correctly in order to produce high-quality CBD products, such as CBD oil, CBD tincture, and CBD skincare products. Hemp plant flowers that have been selectively bred contain an abundant amount of cannabidiol, which promises a lot of therapeutic benefits, such as pain and stress relief. There are plenty of ways one can extract CBD from hemp plants, from basic and manual to complex methods.

But, how do you extract CBD oil from hemp?  What are the different methods available for home and commercial purposes?

In this post, you’ll learn the common methods used in CBD oil extraction so you’ll be guided as to the best quality CBD products to use.

Why Learn About The Different CBD Extraction Methods?

It’s important to keep abreast of the best CBD extraction methods so you’ll know if a CBD product is safe to use. Of course, your ultimate goal is to gain the therapeutic benefits of CBD, so you want to make sure that you’re only using high-quality CBD products.

There is a huge array of premium quality CBD products available in the market today, so find out here now if you’ve got no time to produce your own. But, if you’re ready to extract your own CBD oil, below are the different methods you may carry out.

Basic Method: Solvent CBD Extraction

First, you’ve got to understand the solvent extraction method of extracting CBD, which is a rudimentary practice. It involves extracting CBD oil from a decarboxylated hemp plant matter by running a liquid solvent to remove and carry CBD and terpene of the hemp plant. The most common solvents used for this method include hexane, butane, and ethanol. Once the plant has been extracted, the liquid will be safely evaporated, leaving the CBD oil behind.

Here are the advantages and disadvantages of the solvent CBD extraction method:

Advantages:

• It’s relatively cheap.
• It only requires small amounts of equipment.

Disadvantages:

• This method can be dangerous. It may cause injury because it can be highly flammable when used incorrectly.
• A professional should be available when using this method, and must be done in a laboratory as much as possible.
• This method can strip the chlorophyll, waxes, and other plant matters, which results in dark, thick, and low-quality CBD oil.
• The CBD oil produced using solvent extraction can be contaminated with the solvent used.

Olive Or Coconut Oil CBD Extraction

There’s a safer way to extract CBD from hemp plants than solvent extraction, and it involves using olive or coconut oil. If you decide to plant hemp plants in your backyard or indoors using the best grow tent, this method of CBD extraction is a safe option. And, if you have basic kitchen skills, then, this method is very easy for you to do.

Here are the steps to extracting CBD using olive or coconut oil:

• Grind the hemp flower.
• Add the hemp plant matter and olive or coconut oil in a slow cooker. During this process, cannabidiol and other cannabinoids bind to the fats, creating an infusion. Leave the oil to cool and filter out the plant matter, which leaves a CBD-infused oil.
• Stir the oil and plant matter mixture occasionally.
• Strain the CBD-infused oil over the strainer or cheesecloth.
• Discard any remaining material if you prefer.
• Store the CBD oil in an airtight container.

Note: This method is easy to do, but the CBD content can be unreliable because you have little control over what is extracted. That’s why this method is only suitable for home experimentation.

Manual Or Solventless CBD Extraction

You can make CBD oil without using a solvent by applying heat, friction, or pressure. For instance, the technique for making CBD kief uses water and friction, in which the small glands of hemp flowers containing CBD are frozen and collected in a concentration. On the other hand, making CBD rosin involves applying pressure and heat directly to the hemp flower so that its natural oil is extracted.

Carbon Dioxide CBD Extraction

Carbon dioxide or CO2 extraction is not new. It is used in making food and other products, so it’s also incredibly safe for extracting CBD oil from hemp plants. In therapeutic hemp industries, CO2 extraction is a preferred method of extraction.

Carbon dioxide extraction is more environmentally friendly, cleaner, and cheaper than fossil fuel-based extraction, and results in high-quality CBD oil. Also, it results in a consistently more palatable CBD product. The two techniques used in this extraction method includes supercritical and subcritical carbon dioxide extractions.

Here are the differences between these two carbon dioxide extractions:

• Consistency: Supercritical systems tend to produce a substance with a peanut butter-like consistency, without fractionation used in the process. The resulting substance is made up of oils, waxes, and fat. Winterization (mixing the substance with alcohol) can be used to remove these extra components and leave just the CBD oil. On the other hand, subcritical carbon dioxide extraction produces a molasses-like consistency.
• Cannabinoid Yield: Subcritical carbon dioxide extraction preserves other cannabinoids aside from CBD. During supercritical CO2 extraction, this process may destroy cannabinoids due to thermal degradation, but yields more cannabidiol or CBD in a shorter time.
• Contaminant Removal: Supercritical oil extraction kills mold, bacteria, and other contaminants that could be a major problem for people with compromised immune systems.

How Does Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extraction Work?

The supercritical CO2 extraction method provides the most flexibility. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is in the form of a gas in standard pressure and temperatures. At 60.4 psi, CO2 becomes a liquid, and at -78 degrees Celsius at standard pressure, it becomes solid or dry ice.

When CO2 is heated to above 31.10 Celsius or above its critical temperature and at its critical pressure, which is at 1,071 psi or higher, carbon dioxide has both the properties of a liquid and gas, which becomes the so-called supercritical liquid. It passes through porous solids, dissolving materials, making them suitable as a solvent. Because of the “tunability” of this extraction method, it enables targeting cannabidiol in maximum outputs, depending on the quality and type of plant material used. It keeps undesirable compounds, like chlorophyll, out of the final CBD product.

Conclusion

Extracting CBD oil from hemp plants can be done in many different ways. For home experimentation, olive or coconut oil extraction and manual methods are safer options as compared to solvent extraction, which requires the supervision of a CBD professional. For commercial uses, the carbon dioxide method is highly recommended, specifically supercritical CO2 extraction, to help eliminate chlorophyll, mold, bacteria, and other plant contaminants from the final CBD oil product.