Robert Thomas
Principal of Scientific Solutions
Rob is a heavy metals expert and has written for Analytical Cannabis on the subject since 2019. Through his consulting company Scientific Solutions, he has helped educate countless professionals in the cannabis testing community on heavy metal analysis. He is also an editor and frequent contributor of the Atomic Perspectives column in Spectroscopy magazine, and has authored five textbooks on the principles and applications of mass spectrometry. Rob has an Advanced Degree in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Wales, UK, and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and a chartered chemist.
Latest content from Robert Thomas
The Challenges of Measuring Heavy Metal Contaminants in Cannabis Vaping Aerosols
This white paper examines the fundamentals of vaping and in particular the process of converting a liquid into an aerosol and highlights the challenges of monitoring elemental contaminants in the vaping aerosol as opposed to the vaping liquid.
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Can Avid Hyperaccumulating Plants like Hemp be Realistically Used as a Source of Medicinal Cannabinoids? Part 2: The Importance of Testing
The second part of this series examines industrial and medical applications of hemp and emphasize the importance of regular testing for heavy metals to ensure maximum consumer safety.
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Can Avid Hyperaccumulating Plants Like Hemp Realistically be Used as a Source of Medicinal Cannabinoids? Part 1: The Conflicting Personality of Hemp
Explore the phytoremediation properties of hemp and why it has been used to clean up toxic waste sites where other types of remediation have failed.
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The Importance of Measuring Heavy Metal Contaminants in Cannabis and Hemp
This White Paper will examine all these potential sources of contamination and emphasize that testing of cannabis and cannabinoids through the entire growing and manufacturing process for a comprehensive suite of elemental contaminants is critically important to ensure these products are safe for consumers.
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New Colorado Regulations for the Measurement of Heavy Metals in Cannabis Vaping Aerosols, A Realistic and Practical Assessment: Part 3
We discuss the ICP-MS measurement technique and the many potential sources of interferences observed when determining the most common metals found in aerosols generated from organic-rich vaping liquids.
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New Colorado Regulations for the Measurement of Heavy Metals in Cannabis Vaping Aerosols, A Realistic and Practical Assessment: Part 2
Learn about the challenges of trapping and collecting aerosols without contaminating the sample, and how best to validate the process using standard methods developed by the tobacco industry for electronic nicotine delivery systems.
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New Colorado Regulations for the Measurement of Heavy Metals in Cannabis Vaping Aerosols, A Realistic and Practical Assessment: Part 1
This three-part series will take a closer look at the real-world, practical assessment of Colorado’s intent to implement these new regulations and their implications for other states that will inevitably follow suit.
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Workshop on Heavy Metals in Cannabis by ICP-MS Now Available to View
Check out the talks to get free advice, tips, methods, guidance, troubleshooting and, suggestions on how to optimize the use of ICP-MS for the accurate and validated measurement of heavy metals in cannabis and cannabis-related products.
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Regulating Heavy Metal Contaminants in Cannabis: What Can be Learned from the Pharmaceutical Industry? Part 5
Discover how analytical testing procedures can often lead to contamination and sources of errors if not adequately addressed.
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Regulating Heavy Metal Contaminants in Cannabis: What Can be Learned from the Pharmaceutical Industry? Part 4
In the fourth part of his series, Rob Thomas examines how processors can reduce the chances of elemental contamination and outlines recent case studies where CBD product recalls were issued due to heavy metal contamination.
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