Quote Originally Posted by halfassedjedi
The funny thing is, vaporization is when liquid turns to gas. Vaporizers actually have the wrong title, as they dont turn a liquid to gas, but they turn a solid into a smoke. this is combustion, not vaporization.

Vaporizers should be called combusters, if anything.
Well this is also wrong. Vaporizers work by use of a heating element. On top of this you have a bowl or a chamber which you load your thc into.

The heating element then heats the bowl. No flame ever touches it. This allows for THC and CBN to be released without a flame ever touching it or without the substance (marijuana) ever igniting aka combustion:


Main Entry:
com·bus·tion Listen to the pronunciation of combustion
Pronunciation:
\kəm-ˈbəs-chən\
Function:
noun
Date:
15th century

1: an act or instance of burning
2: a usually rapid chemical process (as oxidation) that produces heat and usually light ; also : a slower oxidation (as in the body)
3: violent agitation : tumult

Once the temperatures reach about 350-390 degrees the marijuana will release thc and cbn in the form of vapor since these substances are contained in the trichomes and plant material as oils and resin. They are not really a solid object like the plant material itself (although solid objects can turn to gas also. This is called sublimation. However this gets complicated and isn't really necessary knowledge for this discussion nor is it applicable. An example would be dry ice)

This is also why you are able to use your left over duff to make cannabutter. Because vaporizing cannot get the thc/cbn in the actual plant material that means you still have a tiny bit left in your duff. You can use another method of extraction (I prefer a liquid extraction method under heat/pressure that allows the thc/cbn to bind to a fatty substance.. ie: butter).