In this tutorial, you will see how to make homemade essential oils by distillation. This process will concentrate many aromatic and volatile compounds present in your favorite plant! This method is used to make lavender, rosemary, peppermint, eucalyptus and many more essential oils. However, this method is not suitable for more heat sensitive essential oils such as citrus. Instead, citrus are pressed to obtain a crude oil extract. Distillation is still the best method to extract the essential oils of a variety of plants. Let’s see how most essential oils are made!
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Steam distillation vs hydro-distillation
Click here to see this selection of essential oils on Amazon
There are 2 main types of distillation processes: hydro-distillation and steam distillation. Both of these distillation methods will extract essential oils as well as generate aromatic water. These processes give somewhat comparable plant extracts. However, either of these methods will favor the extraction of specific compounds, but at the same time could decrease the content of other molecules. Therefore, choosing the best distillation method for a given plant depends on many factors. Indeed, it depends on the compounds that you want to purify as well as the scientific information available. For example, a study showed that the extraction of rosemary essential oil by steam distillation had a better yield for the majority of the aromatic molecules analyzed. However, some of its components were found to be enriched only by hydro-distillation1.
Hydro-distillation is the process of boiling organic material in water. By this process, the evaporating water will be directed towards a condenser to retrieve the essential oils it contains. Therefore, the plants are in direct contact with the boiling water and will be exposed to more heat.
On the other hand, steam distillation is the preferred method to obtain heat sensitive aromatic compounds. Indeed, the steam flowing through the plants will enable a milder extraction of essential oils.
Essential oil distillation kit: how to make homemade essential oils
First of all, to make your alembic and extract homemade essential oils, you will need a distiller. There are affordable distillation starting kits as well as more professional apparatus depending on your needs. For example, this kit would be great for hydro-distillation:
Click here to see a distillation kit used to make essential oils
You can also extract essential oils by steam distillation using the same kit. However, you would have to buy a reservoir (24/40 joints) and two clips. This reservoir is a bit expensive on its own, but it is still a good alternative to more expansive kits that include it.
Glass reservoir used for steam distillation of essential oils
Keep in mind that you will most likely need a lab stand and an additional clamp to support the whole thing. You can also use different heat sources to boil the water and generate the steam such as a heat plate or water bath. This way it is easier to stabilize it at the right temperature for efficient essential oil extraction.
Check this Laboratory Stand with Clamps on Amazon
Finally, you can use a small aquarium pump using low voltage (3V or 2 AA batteries) and an ice bucket to supply the condenser with cold water.
Check this Submersible Aquarium Pump 3V
Now that you selected the best distiller setup, all you need is raw organic material. You can use either fresh leaves, flowers, seeds or even wood. Feel free to experiment with stuff that you can find easily.
Fractions obtained by distillation: essential oils and hydrosol
These distillation processes involve the condensation of steam containing the essential oils. As a result, the factions obtained will water and essential oils. The water fraction is the most abundant and is called hydrosol or aromatic water. This hydrosol is no waste, as it still contains aromatic substances, but much less concentrated then in essential oils. As a result, the aromatic water is used to make beauty products, skin cream, balm and perfumes.
The most valuable fraction is of course the precious essential oils. These essential oils are a concentrate of the different volatile aromatic compounds naturally present in the plant. The essential oils are mostly employed in aromatherapy and would account for most of the health benefits.
At the end of the distillation process, you will obtain a mixture of essential oils and water. To separate these fractions, you could just transfer the liquid obtained in a small bottle and let it sit for a few minutes. Then, you can use a pipet to retrieve the essential oils floating on top of the hydrosol. If you prefer, you can also buy a decanter/separator which will make this step easier.
The efficiency and yield of essential oil distillation
Several factors will affect the yield and efficiency of the distillation process when making essential oils. The main factors to consider are the temperature and the length of the distillation process.
First of all, the temperature is crucial. You want it to be sufficient to efficiently extract the essential oils, but not too high because it would destroy heat sensitive aromatic compounds. For example, a study showed how different temperatures would affect the extraction of essential oil from Damascus rose flowers. This research showed that lower temperatures were more efficient to retrieve terpenes, whereas high temperatures were producing more alcohol-based substances. The same study also tested the impact of pressure, but the authors stated that essential oil produced under pressure was of bad quality2.
The length of the distillation process will also influence the amount of essential oil produced and its composition. For instance, the optimal steam distillation time for dried lavender flowers was found to be approximately 60 minutes3. On the other hand, using fresh lavender flowers, the optimal length of the steam distillation process was cut down to 15 minutes4. This distillation time is consistent with another study, which showed that 80% of the rosemary essential oils can be extracted within 10 minutes1. For most plants, a distillation time ranging from 10 to 30 minutes usually give better results.
Even though you optimize the temperature and the duration of the distillation process, don’t expect to have an incredible yield. Essential oils are not very abundant in plants and it requires a lot of organic material in order to purify significant amounts. For example, steam distillation of 0.23 kg (1/2 pound) of rosemary can yield as little as 1.4 ml (0.05 oz) of essential oils4.
Conclusions about homemade essential oils
Making homemade essential oils is relatively easy, even though it requires the appropriate laboratory equipment. It can be a good option if you can easily obtain raw material to extract their essential oils. The overall quality of your setup and extraction process will influence the yield of essential oils. Nonetheless, making homemade essential oils is a fun scientific experiment! You can also use the hydrosol obtained to make homemade skin creams or lotions.
Check another of my posts to see how to use an ultrasonic diffuser to get all the health benefits from aromatherapy. See also my previous post about Miracle fruits and how they can magically turn sour taste into sweet!
References:
- Extraction of rosemary essential oil by steam distillation and hydrodistillation. Flavour Fragr. J. 2003; 18: 481– 484
- Essential oil composition of Damask rose (Rosa damascena Mill.) distilled under different pressures and temperatures. Flavour Fragr. J.2002;17: 136 – 140
- Distillation time effect on lavender essential oil yield and composition. J Oleo Sci. 2013;62(4):195-9.
- Steam distillation modeling for essential oil extraction process. Industrial Crops and Products, 2009;29(1): 171-176
More general information can also be found on the Wikipedia page for essential oils and distillation.
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