How to create less waste when extracting CBD oil
While CBD’s popularity grows every day with its medical benefits always in the spotlight, not everyone knows that CBD extraction also involves a waste stream and biomass. Unused plant material, utilized solvents, discarded plant waste just to name a few. However, the amount of waste created can vary depending on the selected extraction process.
Extracting CBD from the hemp plant using a solvent
During the extraction, a solvent of your choice is combined with the hemp to draw the CBD out. In this case, the solvent not only dissolves the CBD but also other compounds such as waxes, fats, lipids, and chlorophyll that are not needed in the end product. Therefore, the process creates a waste stream in the form of these unwanted compounds that must be filtered out in the winterization step. Before proceeding to the winterization step, the first solvent must be removed and cleaned. Another solvent can be used for the subsequent steps.
Freeze your “unnecessary waste” using cryogenic ethanol
Avoiding unnecessary creation of waste streams and using as little solvent and energy as possible can be a solution to being “greener” in the cannabis industry. With CryoEXS using cold ethanol (-40 ˚C), only the cannabis oil is extracted, while fats, waxes, chlorophyll, and lipids are trapped and frozen in the plant. By skipping the winterization step, cryogenic extraction reduces waste stream and time as well as necessary equipment and energy consumption – this is because CryoEXS can carry out the entire extraction process on its own. Another advantage is that cold ethanol is the only solvent required and can be used for as long as possible without changing it each time. After extraction, the remaining biomass is solvent-free and can be used as fertilizer.
