Aromatherapy for Pleasure Week 2 Extraction processes of Essential Oils

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Lets have a look at what we did last week, we discussed:- What Aromatherapy is Categorised smells & aromas What types of smells you liked & what you felt about them What essential oils are & where they come from Safety of using essential oils Demonstration of Hand Massage

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Extraction processes of Essential Oils We have already discussed from which parts of the plants that Essential Oils can be found, these are in:- BerriesSeeds PeelLeaves TwigsRoots WoodsPetals Barks Can you give an example of any essential oils that correspond with these parts?

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Processes of Extracting Essential Oils from the plants Depending upon the plant material, the extraction processes are different Essential oils are easier to extract from some plants than others Essential oils may be more plentiful in some plants than others Some plant parts are more robust than others There are several ways in which essential oils can be extracted;

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Cold Expression This method is used for all citrus fruits that produce essential oils. Essential oils from citrus fruits such as lemon, grapefruit, mandarin, orange & bergamot all require that the outer peel, the pericarp, be ruptured to enable the oils to be collected. No heat or solvents are used in this process

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Steam Distillation The oldest & most popular process of obtaining & separating oils. Only suitable for those plants that are robust enough to withstand heat and steam Essential oils are volatile, certain plants cope better than others to this process. Among these are lavender, camomile, tea tree and rosemary

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Process of Steam Distillation Plant materials are crammed into a container known as a ‘still’ The steam penetrates the plant material, & reaches the droplets of essential oils in the plant matter turning them to a vapour Two types of vapour arise from the still; water vapour and essential oil vapour The mixed vapours are led into a condensing chamber, the sides of which are kept cool

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Process of Steam Distillation The condensed vapours flows into a separating container Essential oils will float to the top of the flask and will then be tapped off. The heavier water will be sent around the system again to produce floral waters or hydrolats

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Solvent Extraction Most used for flowers & delicate plant materials that would be destroyed by hot water & steam It is a complicated & costly procedure using solvents such as hexane to draw the oils from the plant materials The result is not actually an essential oil but is known as an Absolute Absolutes are rich & powerful in aroma Absolutes are expensive

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Solvent Extraction Modern solvent still

Jane Barber/aromatherapy for pleasure week 2 Let’s recap on today’s lesson:- Name 3 Methods of Extraction of Essential Oils Provide 2 examples of Oils that are produced from each of the above Extraction methods Which Extraction method produces Absolutes? What is a Hydrolat?