Patent Application
20240280318
The invention pertains to methods of drying cannabis using microwave vacuum drying.
Terpenes are naturally occurring, volatile organic compounds present in cannabis and many other plants. The beneficial properties of some essential oils are derived from terpenes. In cannabis, terpenes are responsible for the particular odour and flavour of the different cannabis strains. Different terpenes are present in varying amounts in the various cannabis strains. Cannabis strains have particular terpene profile expressions that are important to consumers, and no two strains have the same terpene profile.
Terpenes begin to evaporate at just above room temperature. Conventional cannabis drying methods do not usually cause substantial degradation of cannabinoids, which are quite stable and non-volatile. However, terpenes are volatile and there is significant loss when cannabis is dried by conventional methods. Maximizing terpene retention is recognized in the industry as being important in the production of premium quality cannabis products.
The most common method used to dry cannabis is a slow room drying process which is generally referred to as “hang drying” or “rack drying.” In these methods, cannabis branches are either hung up or placed on racks. In another conventional method, the trimmed flowers are placed in trays in a single layer and the trays are put onto racks in a drying room. In general, these conventional drying methods can take from about five to fifteen days, depending on the size of the branches and buds, and the surrounding environment. Lengthy cannabis drying results in the loss of lighter terpenes. Monoterpenes are the most volatile as they have the lowest evaporation points and dissipate first during drying, even before water.
WO 2019/041017 (EnWave Corporation) discloses drying cannabis using a microwave vacuum drying apparatus that both pasteurizes and dries the cannabis in a single operation. However, pasteurization requires relatively high temperatures and a sufficient time of exposure to microwave radiation, so the method is not suitable where the goal is preserve terpenes to the greatest extent possible.
It would be desirable to provide a process the drying cannabis while maximizing the retention of terpenes, especially the more volatile monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes, producing a dried product that retains more terpenes than using the prior art methods.
According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a continuous throughput method of drying cannabis in a vacuum chamber having a plurality of adjacent drying zones, the vacuum chamber being at a pressure less than atmospheric, comprising: (a) loading the cannabis into the vacuum chamber; (b) conveying the cannabis from an input end of the vacuum chamber to an output end through each of the drying zones between the input end and the output end while exposing the cannabis to microwave radiation; (i) each of the drying zones having a microwave power level different from the microwave power level of an immediately adjacent drying zone, (ii) the microwave power levels of respective drying zones varying from each other in a non-linear arrangement from a first said drying zone to a last said drying zone; and (c) unloading the dried cannabis from the vacuum chamber.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a continuous throughput method of drying cannabis in a vacuum chamber having a plurality of adjacent drying zones, the drying zones comprising a first drying zone adjacent to an input end of the vacuum chamber, a last drying zone adjacent to an output end of the vacuum chamber, and one or more drying zones between the first drying zone and the last drying zone, comprising: (a) activating microwave generators having a microwave power level in each of the drying zones such that the microwave power level in each drying zone between the first drying zone and the last drying zone is either (i) lower than both immediately adjacent drying zones or (ii) higher than both immediately adjacent drying zones; (b) reducing the pressure in the vacuum chamber to a pressure below atmospheric; (c) loading the cannabis into the vacuum chamber; (d) conveying the cannabis from the input end to the output end through each of the drying zones while exposing the cannabis to microwave radiation at the power level of each respective drying zone; and (e) unloading the dried cannabis from the vacuum chamber.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a batch method of drying cannabis, comprising: (a) loading cannabis into a vacuum chamber; (b) reducing the pressure in the vacuum chamber to a pressure below atmospheric; (c) radiating the cannabis with microwave radiation at a first power level; (d) measuring the surface temperature of the cannabis being irradiated in step (c) and, when the measured temperature exceeds a specified temperature for a time period greater than a first time period, reducing the microwave power level to a lower power level that is a specified ratio of the first power level for a second time period; (e) repeating steps (c) and (d) a plurality of times; and (f) unloading the dried cannabis from the vacuum chamber.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided an apparatus for dehydrating cannabis, comprising: (a) a vacuum chamber having a plurality of adjacent drying zones, the drying zones comprising a first drying zone adjacent to an input end of the vacuum chamber, a last drying zone adjacent to an output end of the vacuum chamber, and one or more drying zones between the first drying zone and the last drying zone; (b) means for loading the cannabis into the vacuum chamber at the input end; (c) means for unloading the cannabis from the vacuum chamber at the output end; (d) means for conveying the cannabis from the input end through the plurality of drying zones to the output end; and (e) microwave generators having a microwave power level in each of the drying zones such that the microwave power level of each drying zone between the first drying zone and the last drying zone is either (i) lower than in both immediately adjacent drying zones or (ii) higher than in both immediately adjacent drying zones.
Further aspects of the invention and features of specific embodiments of the invention are described below.
The invention provides methods for drying cannabis in both continuous throughput-type and batch-type microwave vacuum drying apparatus, while maximizing the retention of terpenes.
For drying in a continuous throughput process, a microwave vacuum chamber is provided having a plurality of drying zones, each of which has its microwave power set at a selected power level. The power levels are set in an alternating arrangement such that, as the cannabis is moved through the vacuum chamber, its maximum temperature is maintained at a target temperature that is optimal for drying the cannabis while maximizing terpene retention.
The vacuum chamber 12 is connected via a vacuum pipe 36, a condenser 38 and a shut-off valve 40 to a vacuum pump 42 or the vacuum system of a plant. The loading and discharge modules 14, 20 are connected via a vacuum pipe 44 and shut-off valves 46, 48 and 50 to a vacuum pump 52. The loading and discharge modules are vented by discharge shut-off valves 54 and 56 respectively. A further discharge valve (not shown) is provided for venting the vacuum chamber. The loading and discharge modules 14, 20 are connected to the vacuum chamber 12 for pressure equalization by means of equalization conduits 58 and 60 and the associated shut-off valves 62 and 64, respectively.
The vacuum chamber 12 has a motor-driven conveyor 66 extending longitudinally through it and arranged to support and convey the trays 18. The conveyor runs on rollers 68 adjacent to the inlet and the outlet ends of the vacuum chamber.
Microwave generators or groups of microwave generators 70A to 70F are mounted below the vacuum chamber 12 and are arranged to radiate microwave energy into the vacuum chamber through waveguides 72 and microwave-transparent windows 74. Each microwave generator group 70 comprises one or more microwave generators, for example six or eight microwave generators.
The microwave generators are connected to a conventional power source (not shown) which provides the required electric power. The microwave generators are cooled by coolant pumped to circulate around them from a cooling liquid refrigeration unit. A water load 76 is provided at the upper part of the vacuum chamber 12 to absorb microwave energy and thus prevent reflection of microwaves in the vacuum chamber. The water is pumped through tubing by a water load pump.
The vacuum chamber 12 has six drying zones 78A, 78B, 78C, 78D, 78E and 78F, each of which has a respective group of microwave generators 70A to 70F. The first drying zone 78A is adjacent to the input end 16 of the vacuum chamber, the last drying zone 78F is adjacent to the output end 22, and the other four drying zones are arranged adjacent to each other between the first and last drying zones. In other embodiments, the vacuum chamber may comprise more or fewer than six drying zones, for example one drying zone or four drying zones or 12 drying zones. In the illustrated embodiment each of the six drying zones extends approximately one-sixth of the length of the vacuum chamber. For example, in a vacuum chamber that is 4.2 meters in length, each of the drying zones is about 0.7 meters long.
The vacuum chamber zone 12 is not partitioned into separate pressure zones and accordingly the six drying zones 78A to 78F are at the same vacuum pressure. The distinction between the zones is the level of microwave power that is applied in each zone. This may be accomplished, for example, by the number of microwave generators or generator groups 70 in each drying zone, or by means of higher power microwave generators in a given zone, or by setting the microwave generators at a particular power level in a given zone. In the illustrated embodiment, each microwave generator group may have a power output in the range of 0.2 to 10 kW.
The dehydration apparatus 10 includes a programmable logic controller (PLC) 82, programmed and connected to control the operation of the system, including the pressure and temperature sensors, the conveyor drive motors, the airlock doors, the microwave generators, the water load pump, the vacuum pumps, the condenser, the refrigerant pump and the vacuum shut-off valves.
It will be understood that the invention applies to microwave vacuum dehydrators having any of various means for feeding, conveying and discharging the cannabis material. In one embodiment, as illustrated, the cannabis is transported in trays which ride on a conveyor belt, with feeding into and discharge from the vacuum chamber being done by means of loading and discharge modules having airlock doors. In another embodiment, the cannabis material is fed into and out of the vacuum chamber by means of rotary vacuum valves rather than airlocks with doors, and is transported directly on the conveyor belt rather than on trays. In yet another embodiment, the material is transported through the vacuum chamber in a rotating basket, an arrangement of the type disclosed in WO 2009/049409 to EnWave Corporation. The present invention is independent of any particular means for moving the cannabis material into, through and out of the vacuum chamber.
The basic steps of the method of drying are as follows. The vacuum pressure is set to the desired pressure, for example, a pressure in the range of about 10 to 50 Torr (13 to 67 mbar), alternatively about 20 to 30 Torr (27 to 40 mbar), alternatively about 25 Torr (33 mbar). The microwave generators are activated at the power levels selected for each of the drying zones. The cannabis material is loaded into the vacuum chamber. This is done on a continuous throughput basis and the material is conveyed at constant speed through each of the drying zones in the vacuum chamber. It is irradiated with microwave energy in each drying zone at the microwave power level of the respective drying zone. After the last drying zone, the dried cannabis is unloaded from the vacuum chamber.
The method of the invention may be carried out using the dehydration apparatus 10. The airlock doors 26 and 30 are closed and the vacuum pumps, water load pump, conveyor drive motors and microwave generators are actuated, all under the control of the PLC 82. Pressure within the vacuum chamber is reduced to the desired vacuum pressure for drying. The cannabis 19 to be dehydrated is put into a tray 18 and the tray is placed in the loading module 14. The outer airlock door 24 and shut-off valve 52 are closed and the loading module is evacuated by the vacuum pump 45 to the pressure of the vacuum chamber. The inner airlock door 26 is then opened and the tray is transported, by the conveyors 32 and 66, into the vacuum chamber 12. Once the tray is fully inside the vacuum chamber, the loading chamber 14 is prepared for receiving a second tray, by closing the inner airlock door 26 and the shut-off valves 46 and 62, opening the shut-off valve 54 to vent the loading module to atmospheric pressure, and opening the outer airlock door 24. The dehydration apparatus is thus able to process multiple trays of cannabis material at the same time, in a continuous process. Inside the vacuum chamber 12, the tray is moved along the conveyor 66 through each of the drying zones 78A to 78F and the microwave generator groups 70A to 70F irradiate the cannabis and dehydrate it. Moisture given off by the cannabis is conveyed to the condenser 40 to be condensed to liquid water. The residence time in the vacuum chamber, as the cannabis is moved at constant speed from the input end to the discharge end, is about 70 minutes, alternatively in the range of 50 to 90 minutes, alternatively in the range of 80 to 150 minutes. The length of each drying zone 78A to 78E is approximately equal in this embodiment, and as the conveyor 66 moves the cannabis at a constant speed, the residence time in each drying zone is the same. The target maximum temperature of the cannabis during treatment is about 40° C., or alternatively about 39° C., or in the range of 30 to 45° C. The cannabis is dried to a desired moisture content, for example in the range of 1 to 16 wt. %, alternatively in the range of 2 to 14 wt. %. The drying process retains a high proportion of the terpenes in the cannabis, for example at least 75 wt. %, or at least 80 wt. %, or at least 89 wt. %.
At the end of the residence time within the vacuum chamber, the tray 18 of cannabis enters the discharge module 20, where it is conveyed toward the outer airlock door 30. The inner airlock door 28 is then closed, the shut-off valves 48, 64 are closed, the valve 56 is opened to vent the discharge module to the atmosphere, the outer airlock door 30 is opened and the tray is removed. The discharge module is prepared for the next tray of fresh cannabis to be removed from the vacuum chamber by closing the outer airlock door 30, evacuating the discharge module by means of vacuum pump 52 to the reduced pressure of the vacuum chamber, and opening the inner airlock door 28. Following either loading or discharge of a tray from the loading module or discharge module, the vacuum pump 52 draws gases from the loading or discharge module, through the vacuum conduit 64, without disturbing the vacuum in the vacuum chamber 12.
The microwave power levels of the drying zones are set so that as a tray of cannabis is conveyed, at constant speed, through the vacuum chamber from the input end to the output end, it is exposed to alternating higher and lower microwave power levels. This maintains the maximum temperature of the cannabis within a narrow range about the target temperature. For example, in the embodiment of
The invention further provides a method of batch drying of cannabis that maximizes terpene retention. In this embodiment, fresh cannabis is dried in a batch-type microwave vacuum dryer, for example a resonance cavity microwave vacuum dryer. This drying method 100 is depicted in the flowchart of
This control of the microwave power level may be done automatically by means of programming of a PLC that operates the drying apparatus. The specified time for the temperature to be higher than the selected temperature may, for example, be in the range of 1 and 60 seconds; the specified ratio of the reduced microwave power level to the original power level may be in the range of 5 and 95%; the specified time period for the power level to be reduced before returning to the original power level may be in the range of 5 to 600 seconds. Steps 108, 110 and 112 are then repeated 114. In a typical process, these three steps are repeated many times during the drying period, which may be, for example, in the range of 70-150 minutes. In this manner, the selected maximum surface temperature of the cannabis is maintained during the drying process. When the cannabis has been dried to the desired extent, the dried cannabis is unloaded 116 from the microwave vacuum chamber.
In some embodiments of the batch drying process, the total energy applied during the process is allocated to different power levels. For example, the drying may be done at two or more descending power levels, such as two or more of power levels 6.0 kW, 4.5 kW, 3 kW, 2 kW and 1.5 kW.
Freshly trimmed cannabis flowers of the “LA Confidential” strain were loaded in multilayer fashion in polyethylene drying trays, with a loading depth of about 2.5 inches. The total product weight for each tray was 5.0 kg. The microwave vacuum drying process was carried out using a 60 kW dryer marketed by EnWave Corporation under the brand QuantaREV. The filled trays were fed automatically on a conveyor belt to the entrance vacuum lock of the dryer. The pressure of the vacuum chamber was 20 Torr. The filled trays travelled horizontally on a conveyor belt inside the chamber, passing through the six drying zones. The microwave power levels for the drying zones were set at alternating high, medium and low values, specifically, the power settings for the six drying sections, from the input end to the output end, were 10 kW, 4.4 kW, 7.4 kW, 1.6 kW, 5.0 kW and 1.6 kW, respectively. The total power applied was 30 kW and the total residence time (i.e., the drying time in the vacuum chamber) for each filled tray was about 70 minutes. About every 8 minutes one tray with fresh cannabis entered into the dryer at the input side and at the same time, one tray with dried cannabis exited from the output side. The hourly throughput of the process was around 37 kg of fresh cannabis.
Total terpene measurements were done on the dried cannabis produced by this process, as well as on fresh cannabis material and on dried cannabis from a control example done by conventional rack drying. The rack drying was done for time periods in the range of 7-10 days, at temperatures in the range of 18-21° C., and at an ambient humidity in the range of 55-65%. The materials were cryogenically ground, extracted and subjected to gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. Triplicate measurements were done on each extracted sample. The total terpene retention was 88.862 wt. % for the cannabis dried by the continuous throughput microwave vacuum drying, whereas it was 74.313 wt. % for the cannabis dried by conventional rack drying.
The example described above was repeated using a different strain of cannabis, namely the “Think Fast” strain. Table 1 shows the total terpene concentration on a dry basis of both the LA Confidential strain and the Think Fast strain, in comparison with the respective rack drying control examples.
Compared to the room dried control cannabis flowers from the same harvest, the microwave vacuum dried LA Confidential strain flowers contained 19.56% more terpenes and the Think Fast strain cannabis flowers retained 47.98% more terpenes.
Trimmed fresh cannabis flowers of the “Kush Hemp” strain were dried using a 10 kW resonance cavity microwave vacuum dryer marketed by EnWave Corporation under the brand NUTRAREV. The cannabis was loaded in multilayer fashion in polyethylene drying trays, with a loading depth of approximately 2.0 inches. The total batch weight was 8.0 kg, comprising 1.0 kg on each of 8 trays.
The maximum surface temperature for the cannabis was set at 40° C. on the PLC screen. When the temperature sensor read a temperature value that was higher than 40° C. for a time of 2 seconds, the microwave power level was reduced automatically by the PLC to 50% of the set power level, and to stay at that reduced power level for 2 seconds before returning to the original level.
The initial moisture content of the cannabis flowers was 81 wt. % and the target residual moisture content after drying was 16 wt. %. The target moisture loss was calculated at 6.19 kg. Based on an empirical drying rate of 1.05 kg/kWh, the total required microwave energy needed was 5.90 kWh. In this example, the total energy was allocated to three descending power levels, namely, 5000 W, 3500 W and 2000 W, for 1.965 kWh at each level. The total drying time was about 2.5 hours. The surface temperature profile of the cannabis during the drying process is shown in
Total terpene measurements were done as described for Example 1 on the dried cannabis produced by this batch process, as well as on fresh cannabis and on dried cannabis from a control example done by conventional rack drying. The terpene concentration was 2.51 wt. % for the cannabis dried was by the microwave vacuum process and 1.87 wt. % for the control example. Compared to the room-dried control cannabis flowers from the same harvest, the microwave vacuum-dried cannabis contained 34.58% more terpenes.
Throughout the foregoing description and the drawings, specific details have been set forth in order to provide a more thorough understanding to persons skilled in the art. However, well known elements may not have been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the disclosure. Accordingly, the description and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative, rather than a restrictive, sense.
As will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the light of the foregoing disclosure, many alterations and modifications are possible in the practice of this invention without departing from the scope thereof. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is to be construed in accordance with the following claims.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/CA2021/051180 | 8/25/2021 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63234074 | Aug 2021 | US |
