How to extract rose essential oil

In our lives, many people like to apply some rose essential oil on their bodies, because rose essential oil has a particularly good moisturizing effect, but the extraction process of rose essential oil is indeed very troublesome, and it takes a lot of roses to extract a bottle of essential oil. Therefore, the price of rose essential oil is also relatively expensive, but there are many ways to extract it, so how is rose essential oil extracted?

Steam distillation method:

Distillation is the earliest extraction method used. With the changes of the times, the equipment used has been significantly improved, but the principle is basically the same: place the aromatic plant in a distillation container, and then pass high-temperature steam into it (or boil the spices and water together). At this time, the essential oil containing aromatic components in the plant will diffuse into the water vapor to form an azeotrope of oil and water; thereafter, the azeotrope is cooled, and since the oil is insoluble in water, it is separated from the water to form the essential oil we need.

Distillation is very convenient and does not require the use of chemical solvents, so it is still widely used today. Roses, lavender, rosemary, geraniums, etc. mostly use this method.

Pressing method (extrusion method)

The moisture of the plant and the essential oil containing aromatic components are separated from the raw materials by cutting, crushing, squeezing, etc. to obtain a mixture of water and oil. The oil and water are then separated by centrifugation, filtration, etc. to obtain the essential oil. In the past, this traditional method was often used in ordinary households to extract essential oils. It is not only simple and convenient, but also ensures that the natural components of the essential oils are not destroyed during the extraction process.

Citrus, lemon, bergamot, lime and other plants will change their taste when exposed to the high temperature of water vapor, and are not suitable for steam distillation, so this method is mostly used.

Liposuction (cold fat suction)

The general method is: spread a layer of lukewarm fat (mostly butter or lard) in several flat-bottomed glass bowls (or ceramic bowls), and place the fresh petals on the fat; and also spread fat on the outer bottom surface of the bowl; and then stack these glass bowls up layer by layer, so that the petals are pressed between the two layers of fat and the oil can be absorbed by the fat. Replace the petals every one or two days. Until the fat reaches saturation. Finally, the fat is separated out to obtain essential oil. This method is often used to extract essential oils such as jasmine, rose, and orange blossom.

Liposuction is a very old method of extracting essential oils in southern France. It is also the most expensive method because it requires a lot of manpower and time.

Immersion method (grease warm immersion method): This method is similar to the liposuction method, but uses liquid grease instead, and the operation is also simpler:

Place plant materials (petals or resins, etc.) in liquid oil, heat it and keep the temperature at 60 to 70 degrees, and the aromatic components in the materials will be released into the liquid oil. The liquid oil is then filtered and separated to obtain essential oil. . This method can be used for frankincense, myrrh, sandalwood, etc.

Extraction method (dissolution method):

By fully mixing liquid solvents such as alcohol and petroleum ether with plant raw materials, the aromatic components, plant waxes, pigments, etc. in the raw materials will be dissolved and released into the solvent; then the solvent is separated from the liquid mixture to obtain an extract containing aromatic components, plant waxes, pigments, etc.; finally, the extract is purified to obtain essential oils. This method is often used to extract essential oils from plants such as cinnamon, sage, and benzoin.

The principle of "supercritical carbon dioxide" extraction method is: the density of carbon dioxide under high pressure or low temperature is close to that of liquid, while retaining some properties of ordinary gas, which is called "supercritical fluid" and has strong dissolving ability. When aromatic plants come into contact with it, the aromatic components of the plants dissolve in this fluid. Then, by reducing pressure or increasing temperature, the aromatic components can be finally separated. This is a new method that has emerged internationally in recent years.