Methods to purify cannabinoids

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10822320-B2
Application number	US-201916271783-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 9, 2019
Priority date	Aug 10, 2018
Publication date	Nov 3, 2020
Grant date	Nov 3, 2020

Abstract

Various aspects of this patent document relate to the rapid purification and decarboxylation of cannabinoids by vaporization and condensation.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
contacting the composition with energy at a rate of less than 100 kilowatts (“kW”) of power per gram of the composition for a duration of less than 60 seconds to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

2. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
contacting the composition with energy to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate comprising the condensed cannabinoid molecule and cannabinol at a molar ratio greater than 100:1; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

3. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
contacting the composition with energy to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate, in which the method converts at least 95% of the cannabinoid molecule into the condensed cannabinoid molecule in the liquid distillate by mole; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

4. The method of claim 1 , A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
contacting the composition with energy to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate, in which the vaporized cannabinoid molecule is condensed into the condensed cannabinoid molecule less than 30 seconds after the cannabinoid molecule is converted into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

5. The method of claim 4 , in which all of (i) contacting the composition with the energy, (ii) separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule, and (iii) contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with the heat sink are performed in a total time of less than 30 seconds.

6. The method of claim 1 , comprising A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
suspending a particle or a droplet of the composition in a gas phase, in which the particle or droplet comprises the cannabinoid molecule;
contacting the cannabinoid molecule with energy while the particle or droplet is suspended in the gas phase to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

7. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
coating a heated surface with the composition at a surface-area-to-volume ratio of the composition that is greater than 500 per meter (m −1 );
contacting the composition with energy when the heated surface is coated with the composition to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

8. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
directing the composition along a heated path having a length of at least 4 meters;
contacting the composition with energy in the heated path to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the gas phase from the non-volatile molecule;
contacting the vaporized cannabinoid molecule with a heat sink to condense the vaporized cannabinoid molecule into a condensed cannabinoid molecule in a liquid distillate; and
collecting the liquid distillate.

9. A method to purify a cannabinoid molecule from a non-volatile molecule, comprising:
providing a composition comprising a cannabinoid molecule and a non-volatile molecule, in which both the cannabinoid molecule and the non-volatile molecule are in a liquid phase or a solid phase;
grinding the composition to a surface-area-to-volume ratio greater than 500 per meter;
contacting the composition with energy to convert the cannabinoid molecule in the liquid phase or the solid phase into a vaporized cannabinoid molecule in a gas phase without vaporizing the non-volatile molecule;
separating the vaporized cannabinoid molecule in the

Assignees

• Natural Extraction Sys Llc

Inventors

• Thomas C Russell
• Depalo Matthew M

Classifications

• B01D2257/70

  Organic compounds not provided for in groups B01D2257/00 - B01D2257/602 · CPC title

• B01D17/06

  Separation of liquids from each other by electricity · CPC title

• C07D311/80

  Dibenzopyrans; Hydrogenated dibenzopyrans · CPC title

• B01D5/006

  with evaporation or distillation · CPC title

• C07D311/78 Primary

  Ring systems having three or more relevant rings · CPC title