Cannabis Concentrates Part I: Introduction to Residual Solvents

Greetings, everyone! My name is Colton Myers and I’m the new kid on the block at Restek…kinda. You may have seen my name before in Jason Herrington’s E-Cig blogs, but that’s from when I was an intern at Restek. Now, I have the opportunity to work in our Innovations lab at Restek and do some research on a hot topic: CANNABIS!

Image Credit: Cannabis Now (cannabisnow.com)

In this blog series, I’m going to discuss analyzing residual solvents in cannabis concentrates. Cannabis concentrates are products that are made by extracting the chemical compounds, such as Delt-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), Cannabidiol (CBD), and other cannabinoids from the cannabis plant. After the extraction, you’re left with an oil, which can then be used to make a variety of different products.

Image Credit: The Travel Joint (thetraveljoint.com)

So, why do you care? Well, many of the cannabis concentrate producers are using different types of solvents to extract the compounds of interest from cannabis. Because of this, methods for testing residual solvents are needed to analyze these products to ensure that consumers are not exposing their body to harmful levels of chemicals. Therefore, many states that have legalized medical or recreational use of cannabis require residual solvent testing.

I know that this may be old news to many of you, but don’t walk away yet! I’m excited to share with you some of the work I’ve been doing on new testing methods, so stay tuned to this new and exciting blog series!