How Does Essential Oil Be Extracted？（Two）

Earlier we knew two methods of essential oil extraction-distillation and enfleurage. Next we will learn about three other methods: maceration, expression and dissolving.

Essential oils are volatile aromatic substances extracted from the flowers, leaves, stems, roots or fruits of plants by steam distillation, extrusion, cold soaking or solvent extraction. Essential oils are divided into diluted (compound essential oil) and undiluted (single essential oil) such as cactus seed oil. Essential oils are very volatile and will evaporate quickly when exposed to air, so essential oils must be stored in dark bottles that can be sealed.

Maceration

The soaking method is usually used to extract aromatic essential oils in resins, gums and petals. This refining method is similar to the fragrance absorption method, but the liquid grease is used instead of the creamy grease in the fragrance absorption method, and it is also time-saving than the fragrance absorption method.

First put the petals or resin into the container that has been filled with liquid grease, and heat the container to raise the temperature of the grease to between 60 ° C and 70 ° C, and maintain this temperature. When petals or resin are immersed in this liquid oil, plant cells and tissues will slowly work one by one after being heated, and the essential oils in the plant will decompose, and these aromatic essences will be absorbed by the liquid oil. Due to the difference in specific gravity, the saturated fat and oil solution can be extracted by filtration after cooling.、

Frankincense, myrrh, sandalwood, etc. in aromatic essential oils are extracted by this method.

Expression

This method is mostly used to extract citrus aromatic essential oils, and it is the most traditional and economical family production method to preserve citrus essence. Because essential oils are mostly contained in these peels, the peels are first chopped and squeezed, so that the juice in the peels is squeezed out and penetrated into the sponge, and then pressed to make the juices flow out and then collected.

The squeezing method is the traditional technology of general family production in the past. In recent years, the machine has replaced the manual squeezing. Put the fruit into a container with long nails on the inner wall, roll the whole container, the fruit will be pierced by the long nails around, so that the juice flows into another collection container, and the essential oil is separated by a centrifuge. This method is faster, time-saving and hygienic than the traditional method of squeezing out the juice by hand.

Lemon, orange, bergamot, lime, and grapefruit are all extracted by squeezing.

Dissolving

Use solvents such as alcohol and ether liquid butane to repeatedly pour on the plants that need to be extracted; then slowly heat it with electric heating to make the solution extract the essential oil in the raw material; then the solvent containing the essential oil is stirred, cooled, separated and analyzed with alcohol, and the essential oil can be obtained by low-temperature distillation. This is the latest extraction method and can be used to replace the fragrant extraction method.

To sum up, we know that the flavors in different aromatic essential oils are obtained by different extraction methods. Some extractors are needed to obtain essential oils. SUNTHAI provides safe and high yield extractor systems for essential oil extraction, such as solvent recovery tank, condenser, extractor and so on.