extracted alkaloids that didn't work :(

[firedrum]

i heard of someone who extracted what appeared to be alkaloids but when smoking them nothing happened to her.
she had picked a tree that closely resembled A. Obtusifolia, but was uncertain if it was the exact species.
she followed elfspice's tek very closely up to step 7, using pure gum turpentine as the aromatic solvent and shellite as the extraction solvent. she had evaporated off the extraction solvent and decided not to recrystallise further after finding what appeared to be white crystals.
upon scraping up the material, she found the crystals quite flakey, i.e. they were easy to scrape off the drying dish, and got stuck together, sometimes forming a thick creamy clump of white on the edge of the razor.
she smoked the whole lot using a meth pipe. she made sure to keep the flame pretty far away from the pipe as not to burn the alkaloids. the material melted and she drew little smoke. she melted it down all the way, blowing out only the smallest amount of smoke, her guide noted there was no distinctive smell produced by the burning.
she was clearly disappointed, going to such lengths to gather the bark and extract the alkaloids. she is in need of some sort of explanation as to why she didn't have a DMT experience and i can't give her one. Does anyone know what i could tell her?

 

[3rdI]

she had picked a tree that closely resembled A. Obtusifolia, but was uncertain if it was the exact species

this is probably your problem.
You need to get an exact ID on these plants as you dont know what you might be extracting.

 

[endlessness]

Get some ehrlich reagent, maybe look into TLC too (check my signature links). Also you can purchase a thiele tube for melting point test, as well as notice smell, comparing to previous experience with dmt if you have, or actually having some mimosa extracted dmt to compare.

 

[nen888]

..depending on the species, it could be simple tryptamine or PEA, the latter with a higher vaping point, both of which would have almost no activity at practical doses..
in entheogenic effects of nmt i wrote (post#47)

..it should be noted that at certain times, or in individual plants of Acacia obtusifolia..the major alkaloid content is NMT, on occasion over 90%
..this can explain extracts that only 'semi-work' at normal dosages, though such extracts could contain simple Tryptamine or occasionally extraction artefacts & impurities..

..NMT darkens with time/exposure..
..at least 30-40mg (if it was nmt) would need to be carefully vaped to begin to notice any effects at all..
some species have seasonal variation in alkaloid content..

 

[nen888]

..also, firedrum you wrote:

she followed elfspice's tek very closely up to step 7, using pure gum turpentine as the aromatic solvent and shellite as the extraction solvent.

..the gum turpentine step seems odd to me..never personally heard of it working for acacia extraction..more often no-defat required, but i would suggest some of the other various nexus A/B teks..or see acacia thread..

 

[Electric Kool-Aid]

Honestly it is best to buy you product online until you get to know the biology of plants. It just makes your life a whole lot easier.
If you think about it. You could actually extract a poison and die, if you didn't know what exact plant and what chemicals / alks you were pulling.
Just a word of caution. Please someone correct me if I am wrong...

 

[Parshvik Chintan]

Honestly it is best to buy you product online until you get to know the biology of plants. It just makes your life a whole lot easier.

this is not always an option, and if you have an abundance of dmt-rich plants right outside your home, there is no reason not to use them (for example, i started out ordering my mhrb from online, but am now cultivating my own personal phalaris garden)

as far as extracting toxins from unknown plants, i don't see why not.

an alkaloid extraction extracts alkaloids (typically), and i am not chemist but i would think not all alkaloids are non-toxic.

just common sense really....
(don't extract and smoke alkaloids from unkown plants for the same reason you don't munch unkown shrooms)

 

[nen888]

..there are no reports of serious harm from smoking an acacia basic extract which is or isn't DMT..

however, unknown acacias should not be consumed orally with MAOIs (or on their own) as a couple contain nicotine..

 

[firedrum]

thanks for the input and appreciate the words of caution.

Nen you observed: "..100g of material known to contain dmt/nmt was extracted with ethanol/methanol/acetic acid>NaOH>dichloromethane..the solvent/alkaloid mix, when almost evaporated was placed unsealed in a freezer (to allow H20 condensation in order to 'skew' the re-x according to polarity)..upon removal the mixture had partitioned into white circular dmt crystals & a clear oil plus H20 condensation on top..the mixture warmed to room temperature turned back into a homogenous clear liquid..left to stand it crystalized as circular white dmt crystals with yellow cemicircular nmt crystals interlinked on top.."

assuming what she had were active alkaloids would you recommend this re-x method?
also, i assume that NMT and DMT work in conjunction with one another quite harmoniously, should one attempt to separate the two?

 

[nen888]

..most people who've tried it like a bit of nmt in there, the mentioned method worked...