Tips for Solvent Extraction:Ĭold Extraction vs. Step 4: Extraction Solvent StorageĪfter separation and capture, the residual butane and propane solvents are typically refined and stored in their liquid state, which means keeping them at the right temperature and pressure until the time comes to use them again. Otherwise, the extract is ready for sale. Further refinement can then be performed to produce vape oils or distillate. Step 3: Further RefinementĪfter solvent extraction, the extract is typically winterized to remove fats, lipids, and waxes. The solvent is separated from the active compounds in a vacuum oven and recaptured through a recovery process for reuse. The solvent is cycled through the system and collects the active compounds as it passes over the cannabis material. This typically happens in a tank inside of a closed-loop extraction system. In the first step, ground cannabis plant material is soaked in butane, propane, or a mixture of both to separate the active compounds from the plant material. Temperature can be used to separate the residual solvents separately when purging the crude extract in a vacuum oven.īecause solvent extraction is a batch process, it’s common for extraction artists to experiment with blends, temperatures, and pressure to make the highest quality of concentrate possible with their particular extraction equipment.The pressure must be high enough for the solvent with higher vapor pressure.The temperature must be cold enough for the solvent with a lower boiling point.For budder and shatter extracts 100% propane can work well for sugar consistencies and high-terpene extracts. The propane extraction process results in an extract that’s either sticky or has a sugar-like consistency, whereas butane extraction can be used to make dark, solid extracts (like shatter) or golden-colored thick extracts (like badder and budder).Ī 70% butane/30% propane blend is often used because Propane accelerates the Butane through the CLS without the need of Nitrogen. Propane hash oil (PHO) is a lighter color than butane hash oil (BHO) and has a lower viscosity. That’s one of the reasons why butane and propane are often combined: The propane component makes the terpene extraction more efficient while the butane component keeps the level of terpenes low enough to ensure the smoothest possible smoke. Propane extraction strips more terpenes from the starting material-sometimes to the extent that the resulting extract is harsher on the throat. Both hydrocarbons can be boiled off the crude extract while leaving temperature-sensitive terpenes intact. The upside to this, however, is that propane is easier to separate from the final product than butane, which has the slowest recovery time. Propane’s boiling point-43.6☏ (-42☌)-is much lower than butane’s boiling point of 31.1☏ (-0.5☌), Which means, higher Vapor pressure is common with Propane due to the volatility at (varying) stored temperatures. Typically, operators use a single solvent to maintain consistency for production purposes. It also generally creates harder, darker-colored extracts that are slightly lower in terpenes while propane creates softer, lighter-colored extracts that are especially high in terpenes. The main difference between butane and propane is that butane has a longer carbon chain and removes more constituents due to its polarity. Butane and propane are two light hydrocarbons that are used either separately or together to create high-terpene, high-cannabinoid extracts with minimal post-processing required.
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