Written by Conor Corrigan, Applied Extracts
High Efficiency Supercritical CO2 Extraction
Supercritical CO2 is one of the most popular solvents for manufacturers of consumer products. One of the main benefits of Supercritical CO2 is its efficiency.
Supercritical CO2 extraction/equipment is used in several industries, and is used to make many different types of products:
- Pharmaceutical Drugs
- Cosmetics
- Essential oils
- Decaffeinated Coffee
- Oil & Gas separations
Benefits of CO2 as a Solvent
There are many reasons why CO2 is used in so many different applications. CO2 is relatively cheap, it is a solvent that is considered GRAS (Generally Regarded as Safe), and CO2 also leaves extremely low or untraceable amounts of residue in the finished products. These are all extremely important benefits, as they address crucial issues with production costs: costs of materials & goods sold, safety (of production), and quality/assurance (of products).
Specifically, with manufacturers of products derived from botanical matter (plants), CO2 is highly favorable because (for example) CO2 in its supercritical state is highly efficient when targeting specific compounds within plants. Supercritical CO2 is often able to extract greater than 95% of target compounds in oils found in plants.
For example, the target compounds in the hemp plant are called cannabinoids. Cannabinoids found within the hemp plant are medicinally valuable, therefore it is the goal of the processor to efficiently separate cannabinoids from the rest of the plant. With Applied Extracts machines, Supercritical CO2 is highly efficient when separating these valuable compounds. As mentioned above, the result of Supercritical CO2 extraction of hemp is a cannabinoid-rich crude extract that is void of traceable solvent, which is extremely important when selling products that are ingested/consumed by people.
The same thing can be said of the efficiency of Supercritical CO2 when extracting many other products: the fragrant terpenes (essential oils) from lavender, caffeine (making decaffeinated coffee), and delicious vanilla extract used in kitchens around the world.
All CO2 Extraction Technology is not Created Equal
Manufacturers of certain products don’t just need CO2; they need Supercritical CO2 extraction technology in order to target desirable compounds. What makes the technology capable of Supercritical CO2 extraction is its engineering – specifically the pressure thresholds (psi) as well as the temperature threshold. Without the proper equipment, High Efficiency Supercritical CO2 Extraction is not possible.
Applied Extarcts as an Industry Leader
Applied Extracts, founded by Dr. James White, PhD, has been manufacturing High Efficiency Supercritical CO2 extraction systems since 2016. Applied Extracts machines can be found in cGMP and EU-GMP processing facilities in the separations, medical device sterilization, pharmaceutical/nutraceutical industry, as well as the botanical extraction industry. Applied Extracts is a highly respected brand in the space for its broad success within the botanical extraction space. There, Applied Extracts technology has leveraged the benefits of Supercritical CO2 to serve plant-derived product manufacturers with their patented extraction machines.
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