Hash oil

The tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) varies depending on preparation techniques and the variety of plant used. Dealers sometimes cut hash oils with other oils. The form of the extract varies depending on the extraction process used; it may be liquid, a clear amber solid (called "shatter"), a sticky semisolid substance (called "wax"), or a brittle honeycombed solid (called "honeycomb wax"). Hash oils in use in the 2010s had THC concentrations as high as 90% Following an outbreak of vaping-related pulmonary illnesses and deaths in 2019, NBC News conducted tests on different black market THC vape cartridges and found cartridges containing up to 30% Vitamin E acetate, and trace amounts of fungicides and pesticides that may be harmful. The following compounds were found in naphtha extracts of Bedrocan Dutch medical cannabis: • Cannabinoids: THC (~ 30%) and THCA (~ 60%). • Monoterpenes (~ 5%): β-pinene, myrcene, β-phellandrene, cis-ocimene, terpinolene, and terpineol. • Sesquiterpenes (~ 5%): β-caryophyllene, humulene, δ-guaiene, γ-cadinene, eudesma-3,7(11)-diene, and elemene. ==History==

Discovery and development The hash oils made in the 19th century were made from hand collected hashish called charas and kief. The term hash oil was hashish that had been dissolved or infused into a vegetable oil for use in preparing foods for oral administration. Efforts to isolate the active ingredient in cannabis were well documented in the 19th century, and cannabis extracts and tinctures of cannabis were included in the British Pharmacopoeia and the United States Pharmacopoeia. These solvent extracts were termed cannabin (1845), cannabindon, cannabinine, crude cannabinol and cannabinol. This product was made in Kabul, Afghanistan, and smuggled into the United States by The Brotherhood of Eternal Love. Production is thought to have ceased when the manufacturing facility was destroyed in an explosion. Traditional ice water-separated hashish production utilizes water and filter bags to separate plant material from resin, though this method still leaves much residual plant matter and is therefore poorly suited for full vaporization. Gold described the use of grain alcohol and activated charcoal in honey oil production by 1989, and Michael Starks further detailed procedures and various solvents by 1990. Large cannabis vaporizers gained popularity in the twentieth century for their ability to vaporize the cannabinoids in cannabis and extracts without burning plant material, using temperature controlled vaporization. Colorado and Washington began licensing hash oil extraction operations in 2014. Small portable vape pens saw a dramatic increase in popularity in 2017. == Use ==

Hash oil is consumed usually by ingestion, smoking or vaporization. Devices used for this process include water pipes ("dab rigs"), vaporizers, and vape pens. == Production ==

Solvent extracts Hash oil is produced by solvent extraction (maceration, infusion or percolation) of marijuana or hashish. Fresh, undried plant material is less suited for hash oil production, because much THC and CBD will be present in their carboxylic acid forms (THCA and CBDA), which may not be highly soluble in some solvents. These systems typically entail: a vessel that holds the solvent, material columns to hold the plant material, a flow meter to measure the volume of solvent entering the plant material, a recovery vessel(where heat is applied via an external jacket) to convert the liquid solvent into a vapor and separate it from the THC, CBD, or other cannabinoids/byproducts, and some form of a heat exchanger to then convert the hydrocarbon vapors back into a liquid form prior to returning to the original vessel. Such a process can be carried out using a Soxhlet extractor. Ten grams of marijuana yields one to two grams of hash oil. The many different textures/types of hydrocarbon extracts include: • shatter (solid, breaks easily, glass like oil) • pull and snap (solid, bendable, but still breakable, taffy-like oil) • diamonds/live resin (rock hard THCA isolated diamonds drenched in terpene sauce) • crumble (solid oil that will break into small crumbs) • budder/wax (soft, pliable, peanut butter-like consistency) Solventless extracts: Hash rosin Hash rosin has recently become a top quality, highly prized product in the cannabis market. For dabbing, it is considered to be the cleanest form of concentrating cannabis, as it requires only ice, water (instead of organic solvents like butane), heat, pressure, and collection tools. Cannabis flower material is washed with ice water, and strained using filters in sequential micron size to isolate intact trichomes and their heads into ice water hash. The microns that are held in highest regards are the 73μ and 90μ, as this is where the resin heads reside. These are sometimes isolated and sold as one of the highest quality, most expensive cannabis products in the market today, known as "full melt" because it will dab fine without having to be pressed. "Full spectrum" hash rosin will normally come from 45μ-159μ, as smaller and larger particles are likely to be too unrefined or broken stalks of the trichomes. This hash is then pressed at the appropriate temperature and pressure to squeeze the oils out of the hash, and is collected with metal tools and parchment paper. Just like hydrocarbon extraction, the quality of the final product depends greatly on the quality of the starting material. This is emphasized even more so with hash rosin due to its lower yield percentages compared to solvent-derived concentrates (.3-8% rosin vs 10-20% hydrocarbon). Hash rosin producers often touch on how growing cannabis for hash production is different than growing for flower production, as some strains will be deceptive with their looks regarding yields. ==Legality==

In Canada, hash oil – defined as a chemically concentrated extract having up to 90% THC potency – was approved for commerce in October 2018. In the United States, regulations specifically for hash oil have not been issued as of 2019, but hemp seed oil – along with hulled hemp seeds and hemp seed protein – were approved as generally recognized as safe (GRAS) in December 2018, indicating that "these products can be legally marketed in human foods for these uses without food additive approval, provided they comply with all other requirements and do not make disease treatment claims". In Germany, the KCanG (Cannabis law) from April 1, 2024 allows the possession of a certain amount of Cannabis products for adults. However, extraction of cannabinoids from the plants, and thus hash oil, is still illegal in general. The term extraction is not defined in the law but refers in most definitions to the use of an extractive such as butane or ethanol. As this is not used in the production of rosin it is uncertain whether rosin is a legal cannabis resin according to KCanG due to the mechanical process of production or an illegal one, since of the extractive purpose. ==Ingredient in vape liquids==

Adulterated products Vitamin E acetate On 5 September 2019, the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) announced that 10 out of 18, or 56% of the samples of vape liquids sent in by states, linked to recent vaping related lung disease outbreak in the United States, tested positive for vitamin E acetate which had been used as a thickening agent by illicit THC vape cartridge manufacturers. On 8 November 2019, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified vitamin E acetate as a very strong culprit of concern in the vaping-related illnesses, but has not ruled out other chemicals or toxicants as possible causes. Research suggests when vitamin E acetate is inhaled, it may interfere with normal lung functioning. "Vitamin E oil might be in 60-70% of street carts, insiders say." Synthetic cannabinoids Counterfeit THC oil has been detected to contain synthetic cannabinoids. Several school children in Greater Manchester collapsed after vaping Spice mis-sold as 'natural cannabis'. == Safety ==

Use the health effects of using hash oil were poorly documented. Cannabis extracts have less plant matter and create less harmful smoke. However, trace amounts of impurities are not generally regarded as safe (GRAS). In 2019 following an outbreak of illnesses additives added to vape pen mixtures were found to be causing breathing problems, lung damage, and deaths. Production Most of the solvents employed vaporize quickly and are flammable, making the extraction process dangerous. Several explosion and fire incidents related to hash oil manufacturing attempts in homes have been reported. Handling Hash oil can contain up to 80% THC, though up to 99% is possible with other methods of extraction. While health issues of the lungs may be exacerbated by use of hash oil, it is not known to cause side effects not already found in other preparations of cannabis. Storage When exposed to air, warmth and light (especially without antioxidants), the oil loses its taste and psychoactivity due to aging. Cannabinoid carboxylic acids (THCA, CBDA, and maybe others) have an antibiotic effect on gram-positive bacteria such as MRSA, but gram-negative bacteria such as Escherichia coli are unaffected. == See also ==