Cannabidiol, often called CBD, is an ingredient that is trending in the organic products industry. The compound is derived from hemp, a plant species that has gained significant popularity over the past few years because of its medicinal uses.
Unlike tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), this compound does not result in a ‘high’. Instead, CBD can offer a plethora of health benefits, thanks to its anticonvulsant, antipsychotic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties.
However, all of these benefits cannot be simply extracted from the hemp plant. In order to reap the medicinal benefits of CBD, the plant has to go through a series of procedures to extra CBD. Usually, a certified manufacturer obtains the compound and transforms into an oil extract to use it in products like oils, creams, edibles, and so on.
Where Does CBD Stand in the Market?
Due to its recent popularity, manufactures are always in the hunt for efficient techniques to extract CBD.
People are also looking out for innovative tools that cater to the growing needs of the plants, especially in a market where the product is federally legal.
Due to this reason, new players are joining the market, making it even more competitive. It is, ultimately, aiding the advancement of technology like never before.
Most of the industry-leading companies are pushing for constant innovation to make CBD extraction as efficient as possible. Among all the techniques available in the market, ethanol extraction has turned out to be the most efficient as well as safest methods of extracting CBD oil from the hemp fibres.
What is Ethanol?
Ethanol, often referred to as ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, is a colourless, volatile flammable liquid. It is majorly used for producing food additives, solvents, paints, beauty products, and gasoline. Ethyl alcohol is also present in products like wine, spirits, and beer.
Additionally, its usefulness has also been found in extracting the various chemical compounds present in cannabis.
Ethanol is fermented using various sources and refined. Corn is among the various feed stocks used for the production of ethanol. Others would include potatoes, grain sorghum, barley, sugar cane, and wheat. As a plant extract, people often consider ethanol to be a renewable energy source.
As per the FA, ethanol is classified as a Class 3 solvent that possesses relatively low risks of toxicity when used in pharmaceutical manufacturing processes, where the residual often is under 0.5% or 5,000 ppm.
The Ethanol Extraction Process
There are many ways in which CBD can be extracted using ethanol. However, the common and general process requires hating the plant material for obtaining decarboxylation. It is a critical step that helps in effectively producing the active components present in cannabis, after which the plant material needs to be soaked in ethanol for a specified time.
After the time elapses, the solution needs to be filtered for separating the hemp plant matter and the liquids. Immediately after, the liquid needs to be kept in an open dish to allow the evaporation of ethanol.
As ethanol is one of the popular plant-based solvents, experts believe that extracting cannabis compounds using it is the most efficient method that helps in maintaining the naturally existing chemical ratios in hemp. Because of this reason, several manufacturers are trying to scale up their technology for ethanol extraction to produce CBD in high volumes, while things are still kept simple.
Things to Keep in Mind During the Ethanol Extraction Process
Ethanol is known to extract water as well as oil-soluble compounds. One such compound would be chlorophyll, which is quite similar to the haemoglobin found in humans. This specific compound can often result in a bitter and grassy taste. Therefore, manufactures have to be very careful during the filtration procedure as it can easily reduce the potency of the CBD oil.
It is also paramount to note that it is nearly impossible to eliminate the ethanol from the oil without the help of an added filter, which often reduced the purity and potency of the final product.
However, the extraction process offers one prominent benefit to the final product. It results in the formation of water-soluble esters, implying that the human body can very easily absorb it.
As a result, the final product that is produced using this method will also be easily absorbed by the body, allowing quick results.
People use CBD oil to reap its benefits quickly, and it is possible using this method of extraction. Most oil-soluble compounds cannot be digested easily as they need to be broken down by acids and enzymes in the body, which further reduced its potency and purity.
The extraction method is also beneficial to health-conscious users as the method is certified organic. As it spells reliability and quality, most of the top-notch brands rely on ethanol extraction. If you wish to purchase high-quality, organic CBD products, you can give Hemp Tree CBD oil a try.
Closing Thoughts
In today’s dynamic cannabis market, the method of extraction has a massive role to play in offering top-tier CBD products. Every method has its own set of pros and cons, but ethanol extraction tends to stand out in the crowd significantly.
The method is not only safe but also extremely efficient, which is the reason why most big-name manufacturers are investing in this technology. If you are looking for high purity and potency level in CBD products, the ethanol extraction method is going to offer that to you.
