The popularity of essential oils continues to grow all over the world. These are natural aromatic extracts coming from a plant material which includes leaves, grasses, flowers, twigs, needles, peels of fruit, seeds, bark, and roots.
Common examples of plant oil are rose essential oil which comes from the flowers, basil from the leaves, anise coming from the seeds, sandalwood from the wood, frankincense from the resin of its tree, lime from the rind, and many more.
To give you more of an idea, essential is defined as any of a class of volatile oils that give plants their characteristic odors and are used especially in perfumes, flavorings, and aromatherapy.
In this article, we’ll explore how essential oils are made.
First of all, the proper term for pulling the oils from a plant material would be “extraction” as it is utilizing a piece of equipment similar to a plant oil extractor to create the product.
There are several methods of plant oil extractors to achieve this for essential oils, however, certain methods have been proven to be more secure and effective than others.
Throughout this article we will review various methods of extraction including steam distillation, solvent extraction, CO2 oil extraction, and the science behind supercritical CO2 extraction for plant extraction.
We will also share with you the existing CO2 concentrate oil products which are topicals, distilled oils, and home remedy products which can contribute to positive change in people’s lifestyle and living.
Guide to a Plant Oil Extractor
Currently, there are a lot of different plant oil extractor products in the market that use various processes and methods to achieve results. Most of these products choose these common methods to perform extraction – solvent extraction, steam distillation, or CO2 extraction.
Steam Distillation
Steam distillation is the most common essential oil extraction method. It uses steam by vaporizing the volatile compounds from a plant that are desired before they are condensed and collected, then further processed into a final product.
This process of extracting essential oil typically involves a still which contains the plant material and steam is introduced to remove the plant oils and other compounds.
It should be noted that the steam must not be so hot as to ruin the plant material, but hot enough to allow the release of the essential oil. The steam containing the essential oil ultimately passes through a cooling system where the steam condenses into a liquid composed of essential oil and water.
After this stage, the vaporized product goes through a chilled condenser flask. Then the essential oil flows into a separator where it is refined and siphoned creating the final essential oil products.
Solvent Extraction
There are some plant materials, like vanilla, that are challenging to extract. Other difficult plants for extraction include rose petals or jasmine flowers which are too tender to withstand the distillation process. When extracting from these plant materials another method is used to extract their aromatic essence. This plant oil extraction method is called solvent extraction.
This type of extraction method uses a kind of food-grade solvent in extracting the same desired plant compounds from the plant material. Hexane or ethanol are commonly used solvents for this. It is not always possible to strip off those solvents from the final product leaving traces of solvent residuals which can affect the desired product even if this method is effective at removing and collecting the compounds used in essential oil extractions.
CO2 Oil Extraction
This plant oil extraction method is steadily growing as a more natural alternative to extract the essential oil from the plant material.
This form of extraction uses carbon dioxide (CO2) in stripping volatile products from the plant material. It is proven effective on a large scale making it highly efficient in industrial applications of plant or essential oil extract products.
However, it is considered the most technical type of extraction in achieving the desired results. It requires specific heat and pressure applications for the CO2 to reach a “supercritical” state to perform the extraction. Ever wondered how this is done? Let’s go and look at the supercritical CO2 extraction details.
What is CO2 oil extraction?
Supercritical CO2 extraction is one of the most common and efficient methods of extracting plant oils. In the pursuit of creating quality products that are less expensive to create compared to conventional solvent extraction methods, this clean and green extraction is still a safe and reliable method. In addition, people utilizing a CO2 essential oil extractor are gaining more profits in the long term compared to other extraction methods.
Carbon dioxide is a perfect solvent in extracting pure essential oils since carbon dioxide does not chemically react with the essential oil being extracted. When it comes to removing the carbon dioxide solvent, it simply requires decreasing the pressure and the carbon dioxide goes back to a gaseous state producing the pure essential oil without residues
Let’s take a quick look at the supercritical CO2 extraction process.
The Science Behind the Supercritical CO2 Plant oil Extracto
The supercritical CO2 plant oil extractor utilizes carbon dioxide (CO2) at a high temperature and pressure in extracting soluble compounds from plants. At the critical temperature (31ºC) and pressure (1071 psi), CO2 becomes a supercritical fluid that contains an increased capacity in diffusing molecules and solubilizing non-polar compounds in the desired plant material. CO2 further produces highly efficient extractions of essential oils in a short period, by raising the temperature and pressure of the liquid.
In the demanding market to provide a product that is quality, consistent, and pure in a safe environment, supercritical CO2 extraction has become the favorite method. Consumers also prefer it for the same reasons, as the end result is a more natural and safe product.
CO2 Essential Oil Concentrate Products
The plant oils are set for product formulation when the final distillation processes are done. Essential oils can be used in a wide variety of products because it goes through a natural and safe CO2 extraction process.
Topicals
To provide a pleasant aroma, essential oils are often added to products like balms, lotions, chapstick, and other skin products. It is not only simply making a topical product smell good, there are other existing benefits. In producing a relaxing effect during inhalation, terpenes like linalool which are found in lavender for example. While limonene has been proven to provide uplifting effects. Thus, including these terpene-derived essential oils are sure to add beneficial effects when added to these products.
Distilled Oils
Essential oils have grown to be widely popular on their own. It is often used in diffusers to provide a pleasant in the home when vaporizing the water mixed with oils, it can even be utilized as an alternative to cooking products like peppermint extract. For those who want a natural approach to potentially relieving certain ailments such as anxiety, immune deficiency, and more, it can also be used as a homeopathic solution.
Home Remedy Products
Essential oils are expanding their purpose in dealing with a number of medical or household issues. Some creative products have recently emerged. Some have added aromatherapy products like bug bite sticks infused with terpene, CBD creams, stress relief bath scrubs, roll-on products, and many more. For similar applications to bug repellents, terpenes like peppermint extract are utilized in replacing harmful chemical-based products.
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