The most common method of extracting essential oils is a process called steam distillation. However, there is also a newer process of essential oil extraction called phytol extraction. Phytol extraction has a number of advantages over essential oils that are steam distilled. Phytol extraction is similar to the method used to extract infused oils. An essential oil supplier should be able to tell you which method of extraction was used to extract a particular essential oil.
Definition
According to the website Quinessence Aromatherapy, phytol extraction is an advanced method of extracting essential oils. Victoria H. Edwards, in "The Aromatherapy Companion," writes that phytol extraction was developed in the late 1980s by an English doctor, Dr. Peter Wilde. Phytol extraction uses a solvent extraction and produces a phytol oil or florasol.
Use of Solvent
Phytol extraction uses a hydro-fluorocarbon solvent, which is a solvent that does not leave any trace of solvent residue in the final oil, unlike another extraction method called solvent extraction. Phytol extraction is similar to the steam-distillation process except that no cooling water is used and therefore it is believed that phytol oils retain more of the original active chemical components of the plant matter than steam-distilled essential oils.
The Process
The solvent is enclosed in a sealed container with the plant material through injection. Oil is formed in the container when the solvent and the plant material have been contained for a period of time at room temperature. After the oil is put into another sealed container, an evaporation of gases occur at below freezing temperatures. The gas is contained, and once it is again liquefied back into oil, the end result is used as a phytol oil.
Advantages
According to Edwards, the process of phytol extraction is more efficient and more economical than other extraction methods for essential oils. Phytol extraction does not produce toxic waste or gas and uses less energy than the method of steam distillation. Unlike steam distillation, the process of phytol extraction does not use water or heat. The solvent used in the phytol extraction process is also nontoxic and nonflammable.
Infused Oils
Phytol extraction is a similar process to the original process of extracting infused oils. Patricia Davis, in "Aromatherapy: An A-Z," writes that the method of extracting infused oils pre-dates the steam-distillation process of essential oils. Infused oils were originally produced through the simple method of placing plant material in a container of vegetable oil and leaving it to "infuse" for several weeks. Phytol extraction "updates" this process through the use of a solvent extraction that is injected into a container and "speeding up" the process. However, the modern method of phytol extraction, as developed by Wilde, is not the exact same process of infusion, dating back thousands of years.
References
- Quinessence Aromatherapy: Definition of Phytol
- "The Aromatherapy Companion"; Victoria H. Edwards; 1999
- "Aromatherapy: An A-Z"; Patricia Davis; 1999
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