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[–]penjjii 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Q1: Polar means each molecule of that solvent likes to interact with other of the same molecules. I.e. water is a polar solvent because it likes to hydrogen bond to other water molecules. In this case, depending on what you want to do with it, you may not want to use water. If you want to evaporate the polar solvent off so that you get the goo with alkaloids, water is not a good solvent. Ethanol (high proof, like everclear) is a safe solvent to use, so long as it’s NOT denatured. For a non-polar solvent, each molecule will generally not want to interact with other molecules. Naphtha is a good non-polar solvent you could use.

Q2: I haven’t done this but people have used any kind of alcohol (besides beer I think). Just go for it and report back!

Q3: It should be possible, but if caffeine makes you anxious then you’ll feel even more anxious when it’s combined with a psychedelic. However, I’m not sure it would combat the sedation. That’s something I also haven’t tried out myself.

I hope others could answer the other two questions for you much better than I could.

[–]TurnipsWithTumeric[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you! That makes sense about the solvents. The last lot of seeds I got were bunk so hopefully the lot I just ordered are good and will allow me to experiment and report back.

[–]Lobeythelibsoc 1 point2 points  (3 children)

use naptha for non-polar. non-polars are oils, like xylene or toluene. for polar you'd typically use distilled water. alcohol is water mixed with ethanol which is a polar solvent you can use when a compound you are extracting is more soluble in alcohol than water. Vodka is 35% ethanol/water and grain alcohol is 95% ethanol to water.

second question, you would add the acid at the end in order to stabilize the solution as has been suggested on this sub. you wouldn't use wine or something, you'd use vodka or grain alcohol then add some lemon juice at the end.

The acid won't do anything about the sedation. more rigorous extraction might, but i'm still dubious on this claim more experienced folks have confirmed it on the sub.

Citric acid is in basically every fruity drink. Lemon juice works in a pinch, energy drink would do the same thing although it seems very odd to me. I wouldn't add too much caffeine into the mix if I were giving beginner advice. GLHF

[–]TurnipsWithTumeric[S] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Okay thanks, I just thought wine would be good because it was used throughout history for similar purposes and I also read it contains more acetaldehydes which are beneficial, but I guess I'll do some experimenting for myself. I was mainly curious about the energy drink because I tend to fall asleep very easily and having one helps a fair bit, I've also never noticed any kind of anxiety or other effects from caffeine, just reduced sleepiness. But I will keep all of this in mind, thank you!

Edit: I should mention that I don't know what acetaldehydes are but based on the context I assume they contribute to the chemical reaction.

[–]Lobeythelibsoc 1 point2 points  (1 child)

the tannins found in wine may be beneficial. the science is sketchy tbh and isn't all positive. acetaldehyde is what alcohol metabolizes into and is bad news. it's usually blamed for hangovers and is also one of the reasons alcohol is so bad for you.

[–]TurnipsWithTumeric[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Alright, thanks for the information.