While the primary degradants of cannabidiol and related cannabinoids have been well documented since the 1960s, the mechanistic pathways to them are complex and multitudinous. An indepth analysis of the metastable intermediates of many of the key degradation routes has been performed. In particular, the use of optical pipes to allow insitu photo degradation within an NMR has allowed the real-time interconversion between reactive species to be mapped and the kinetics determined. In addition, it has allowed the effectiveness of various inhibitors to be rapidly and quantitatively assessed.
