testing for PH levels of an extract ?

axle2u said:

does anybody know how to, test the ph level of an extract
prior to cooking and/or refining into resin oil ?


also, does anybody know about raising the ph levels with acid
(the procedure and acid type) used ...?


ive scanned a couple different recipes that calls for this...


thanks for the help guys,


axle robot

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Gray Wolf said:

I’ve never bumped the ph of a concentrate, except when we were isomerizing the CBD’s to THC with sulfuric acid, or making THC-Acetate with acetic anhydride, but I can share that with you.

Acids are low ph and bases are high ph, so you would use a base versus an acid to raise the ph.

When you drop the ph with acid, mineral salts are formed and precipitate out. It is also an exothermic action producing heat that will raise the bath temperature.

We typically use H2SO4 sulfuric acid to lower ph, and NaOH Sodium Hydroxide to raise it. Both nasty, so use buffered solutions of both and safety gear.

Ostensibly citric acid and sodium bicarbonate would also work. We use citric acid for acid degumming.

For THC-O-Acetate, we used acetic anhydride, which is essentially vinegar without any water, and it is both highly corrosive and flammable.

Joe uses HCL hydrochloric acid for PNP extractions.

Safety gear includes things like proper respirator, chemical goggles, (face mask if you’re pretty to look at), chemical gloves, and a chemical apron.

You will also need a ph meter or ph paper, as well as an emersion thermometer or probe to keep track of what is going on.

It needs to be done outside, or in a chemical hood with adequate ventilation.

You will also need something to stir it vigorously. We used a stirring hot plate and stir bar with the heat off.

Our procedure was to place a hexane/concentrate solution in an Erlenmeyer flask, drop in the stir bar, set on the stirring hot plate, and adjust the rpms to achieve a good mixing action.

We dribbled the buffered sulfuric acid from a pipette dropper, down the inside neck wall of the Erlenmeyer, while watching the temperature and keeping it below 180F.

It is a reaction, not a simple mixture, and moves fast when it starts, so stir lots, measure often, and dribble small additions in-between. Easy to overshoot.....

I was trying to find an article that I wrote on Isomerizing, that covers much of the above, but alas could not, soooo here is one Joe wrote on THC-O-A and another on PNP extractions, where he explains making buffer solutions of the acid and base.

https://web.archive.org/web/20150709084531/https://skunkpharmresearch.com/thc-acetate


https://web.archive.org/web/20150709165814/https://skunkpharmresearch.com/pnp-extractions

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