Cannabidiol (CBD), like THC, can be heated and inhaled using a vaporizer.

CBD is usually taken orally as a cannabis-based concentrate or extract. However, compared to smoking or vaporizing, ingesting cannabinoids orally poses a number of drawbacks, including inconsistent absorption and a delayed effect.

Vaporizing is considered a healthier alternative to smoking, and many cannabis users are now starting to switch. Unfortunately, most research involving vaporizers has focused only on THC. In fact, up till now, no study has been conducted on vaporizing CBD.

The very first study to investigate the process of vaporizing CBD was published by a team at the University of Wollongong in Australia. Overall, it showed that CBD can indeed be vaporized using conventional cannabis devices. One of the most popular models, the Volcano vaporizer, was chosen for the study.

The team conducted experiments using combinations of purified THC and CBD, in order to determine the best way of administering CBD via vaporizer. Here’s what they found:

Temperature

CBD begins to evaporate at a temperature of around 200°C (392°F), similar to THC, making it possible to release CBD as a gas without burning the plant matter.

In the study, vaporizing at 230°C (446°F) seemed to release more CBD than vaporizing at 210°C (410°F).

Conversion Rate

At lower doses (4-8 mg), as much as 97% of CBD was vaporized. However, the conversion rate dropped significantly as the dose increased. At 200 mg, just 40% of CBD was converted to vapor.

Interestingly, when administered together, the dose of CBD seemed to affect the conversion rate of THC. On average, 55% of THC was converted to vapor.

Dose

The researchers found 200 mg to be the maximum dose of CBD that could be vaporized efficiently, with higher doses producing a saturation effect.

However, the point of CBD saturation seems to be related to the vaporizer and its heating efficiency, meaning that different vaporizers may allow for higher or lower doses to be vaporized at once.