Why no mention of lysis by freeze/thaw to make broken cell bark? I would love to hear (read) how this improves extraction. Or if lesser amounts of materials, ie acid, base, are required.

I can tell you my yields went from 1.5 to over 2% and extraction times were cut in half as soon as I started using broken cell bark.

Hi, I'm new and my ignorance is such that this thread was too complicated for me. I don't understand what an acid vs an (alkaloid?) is though I've read about these things many times but unless they pertain to anything tangible my brain can attach to it doesn't stick.

I'm going to extract me some Dmt. I've got lye, Naphtha and mhrb. I think I will order a magnetic stirrer/heating pad and separation funnel to make things easier.

So the lye is the acid that will separate the Dmt from the plant correct? What about vinegar? Is that for the other plant used to separate fat from everything or something or is it something I can use for my process too?

I've read/watched over a few "teks" so I've come up with my own average of the process which looks so far like I will obliterate the raw bark, freeze it a few times to loosen up cell membranes or something, mix it up with water and vinegar and/or the lye I got, heat and stir it over a long time, perhaps strain out the liquid and repeat the process with more water + acid to extract more, boil it back down to less liquid, wait some time then add lighter fluid to pull the good stuff to the top, use the separation funnel to extract the lighter fluid(Naphtha) easilly, then freeze it for a couple days then filter out the crystals. Am I on a good track here? No vinegar? Or vinegar OR lye? Anything else I should know besides safety goggles and gloves? Thanks folks

Lye is quite literally the opposite of acid.

I suggest you go back and read the 1st page of this thread, and re-read some TEKs. Its explained quite well in the opening post of this thread.

Okay thanks. I'll read over the stb teks as I think that is what I prepared for with the lye.

So I did my first extraction using the a/b method and I guess I stirred it too much as Naphtha separation isn't clear cut so I'm getting some sludge, and a lot of what I'm reading is emphasis on getting it clean. Is this necessary? And after pouring Naphtha through coffee filter after freezing(not frozen) should I expect actual crystals? It left behind a pink stain lol. Maybe I just didn't do that much(50g's mhrb) so could the crystals be embedded in the coffee filter? Should I vape the filter lol? Still working on additional cycles with this little batch...

(couple hrs later) okay now I'm getting a swirly milky white substance in my Naphtha in the freezer. So I think I'm on the right track. Fingers crossed this will turn into tall ice castles...

So what is all that white stuff I got? I smoked like 1/2 g of it and nothing. It was like powder, kinda sticky powder. Should it have been more hard?

@Entropymancer

Although I see you no longer frequent the forum, I would like to thank you for this compilation of chemistry basics. It contains fundamental information that everyone should read before attempting an extraction. The learning of principles that underlie an extraction, in my opinion, is of far more importance than following a "Tek".

Connor

I apologize in advance if this has been answered other places many times. It's a newb question, so I am sure it has. I just haven't found a reference to it.

Simple: Lye solution and Naphtha. The layers separate fairly quickly, as long as you don't go Donkey Kong and get emulsions.

So, where's the magic? Time spent on top of each other, or times mixed? How long, or how many times per extractions?

Thank you in advance!

Greetings masters... I have one more question than one answer... Isoamyl acetate also known as isopentyl ester has its formula is C7H14O2. It is popularly known as banana oil is a nail polish solvent and considered a nonpolar solvent. Does anyone know if it would be useful in the process of extracting DMT in solution with CaOH.