EFFECTS OF BATCH AND CONTINUOUS-FLOW MICROWAVE-ASSISTED PROCESS FOR THE DECARBOXYLATION OF CANNABIDIOLIC ACID IN HEMP EXTRACT

Abstract

This research aimed to design, optimize, and compare batch and flow-type microwave-assisted processing using temperature, time, and microwave effects to accelerate the decarboxylation of cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) to cannabidiol (CBD) in hemp extract. The conversion yield of decarboxylation was investigated at different heating temperatures and processing times, and the resulting yields were compared with those obtained using two other methods. The optimum conversion yields of the batch and flow-type microwave-assisted processing of decarboxylation were 90.3% (120 °C for 30 min) and 92.8% (90 °C for 30 min) in hemp extract, respectively. As a result, batch and flow-type microwave-assisted processing are effective and viable methods for the decarboxylation of CBDA to CBD at relatively short residence times and high throughput.