SUMMARY

The objective of this experiment are to extract coconut oil by using soxhlet
extractor, and to separate coconut oil with solvent by using rotary vaporiser. The
experiment was start with the preparation of coconut. The coconut need to be weight
for 15 gram. Then, acetone need to be measured for 150mL in a beaker. The thimble
also need to be weight. It was observed that the percentage conversion of coconut oil
from the Extraction, Evaporation, and Separation processes is somewhat little.
Nevertheless, coconut oil can be obtained. Furthermore, a hypothesis was made which
is the larger the amount of mixture (consists of acetone and coconut oil), the larger the
amount of pure coconut oil can be acquired. Based on the theory, it shows that the
amount of extraction is depend on the amount of mixture. From that, it can be
deduced that the objectives of the Extraction of Coconut Oil experiment were
achieved as all the objectives were successfully reached.

OBJECTIVE
The objective of this experiment is to extract coconut oil by using soxhlet
extractor and to separate coconut oil with solvent by using rotary vaporiser.

INTRODUCTION
Coconut oil is edible oil extracted from the kernel of a coconut palm. Coconut
oil can be extracted through dry or wet processing. Coconut palms are grown widely
in the coastal tracts of the country. Copra, the dried kernel is the chief commercial
product from coconut, which is mainly used for oil extraction. Copra normally has an
oil content varying from 65 to 72 per cent. Besides that, the oil has various industrial
applications. For the extraction of oil from copra, the common method which still
prevails in our country is by using rotary chucks. However, the most efficient system
of extracting oil is by the use of expellers. Wet processing or aqueous processing is
the term used for extraction of coconut oil directly from the coconut milk. This
method eliminates the use of solvent which may lower the investment cost. The copra
is pressed and dissolves along with the solvents, producing coconut oil and a highprotein, high-fiber mash. The mash is of poor quality for human consumption and is
instead fed to ruminants. In this experiment, preparations were made for the raw
material, and solvent. Both will be installed in the Extraction System carefully, in
order to obtain the best outcome of coconut oil. There are two parts in this extraction
process. First part is to separate the coconut oil from the solid coconut sample with
the aid of the solvent, hence obtaining a product consisting acetone and coconut oil.
Then in the second part, the Rotary Evaporator will separate the remaining acetone
from the mixture to obtain pure coconut oil.

METHODOLOGY
The material required for this experiment is coconut and Acetone. To begin the
experiment, all of the material required is prepared which is coconut and acetone as a
solvent for the extraction process. Firstly, 15 gram of coconut is weighed and put in
the thimble. Then, 150 mL of Acetone is prepared in a beaker by measuring it with
measuring cylinder. After that, the beaker (solvent) is installed on the hot plate in the
extractor and the thimble containing coconut is put on the tube holder. The extraction
process is started by switching on the power supply for the soxhlet extractor and the
temperature level is set to 11 which is the low boiling point for acetone. Then, the
allow the extraction process to run for about 2 hours. Lastly, to separate the mixture of
acetone and coconut oil gained from the extractor, rotary vaporiser is used.

RESULT
Coconut
Coconut oil
Acetone (after extraction)
TABLE 1

15.00g
11.48g
2.74g

Solvent used

Boiling point of solvent

Heating lower

Setting upper

Acetone

56.1 C

11

TABLE 2

FIGURE 1. PRODUCT OF COCONUT OIL

FIGURE 2. PRODUCT OF ACETONE

DISCUSSION

This experiment is all about extraction process. At the end of the experiment,
the objective that must be achieved is such as the amount of pure coconut oil through
extraction of a raw material , to utilize and to understand the Extraction process, to
utilize and to understand the Evaporation process, to utilize and to understand the
Separation process, to learn the functions of the BUCHI Extraction System, and to
learn the functions of the Rotary Evaporator.
Preparations were made for the raw material(coconut), and solvent(acetone).
To obtain the best outcome of coconut oil, the experiment must be run carefully.
There are two parts in this extraction process. First part is to separate the coconut oil
from the solid coconut sample with the aid of the solvent by using Soxhlet Extractor,
hence obtaining a mixture that consisting acetone and coconut oil. Then in the second
part, the Rotary Evaporator will separate the remaining acetone from the mixture to
obtain pure coconut oil.
It was observed that the 78% of coconut oil that we get from the Extraction,
Evaporation, and Separation processes . Besides ,the amount of acetone after the
separation process produce less from the exact value . This is because during the
extraction process, one of the valve was slightly opened and the vapour of the acetone
might be flow out from the system. So , the amount of acetone produced was less and
affected the production of coconut oil exactly. Moreover, we need to get about more
than 50% of coconut oil through extraction process. So , the result that we observed is
same with the theory. Hypothesis was made which is the larger the amount of mixture
(consists of acetone and coconut oil), the larger the amount of pure coconut oil can be
acquired. This shows that these two variables hold a directly proportional relationship.
Images of conducting the experiment are as shown in the Results section. It can be
perceived that while running the experimentations, the usage of Personal Protective
Equipment (PPE) was satisfyingly applied and utilized.

At the second part at Rotary evaporator, we need to set the boiling point of the
acetone at 56.1 C . So, when the temperatue is achieved, the acetone will evaporate .

Then, the condenser will turn the acetone vapour into liquid form and exactly
seperated with the coconut oil. Theoretically speaking, extractions are a way to
separate a desired substance when it is mixed with others. The mixture is brought into
contact with a solvent in which the substance of interest is soluble, but the other
substances present are insoluble. Extractions use two immiscible phases to separate
the substance from one phase into the other.
There are several possibilities that might have contributed to the errors that
occurred during the experiment. One of those errors is physical errors (human error).
The amount of water and the amount of Acetone (solvent) may appear insufficient for
the experiment. Besides that, the coconut husks may not be dried properly. This will
affect the product of the experiment. Also the time which was set to process the
coconut dust could have been insufficient to complete the entire process. Furthermore,
while running the Soxhlet Extraction Instrument, the Acetone (solvent) may have
drained without anybody noticing. This will also give effect on the product of this
experiment. Moreover, the experimenter may not have focused well during the
experiment in calibrating and mixing of the chemicals. Poor concentration directs to
bad mixture and will disrupt the production towards the expected ideal product.
Besides that, the wires or other equipment, like the burette, beakers, and the weighing
balance may be faulty or not plugged in. When this happens, the whole instrument
will not perform well and will produce mechanical errors which will produce
abnormal products.

CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION

In conclusion, the flow and process of the Extraction of Coconut Oil were
explained in this experiment. Each of the components/devices/tools/chemicals used in
this experiment has its own details by which has its own function in ways of carrying
out the experiment and most definitely had aided the process throughout the
experimentations. The data and information collected during the experimentations
was analyzed and fully used to proportionally increase the efficiency and the
reliability of the extraction process. It was observed that the percentage conversion of
coconut oil from the Extraction, Evaporation, and Separation processes is somewhat
little. Nevertheless, coconut oil can be obtained. At the end of this experiment, the
amount of oil extraction and the amount of acetone have obtained which is 11.48
gram and 2.74 gram respectively. A hypothesis was made which is, the larger the
amount of mixture (consists of acetone and coconut oil),the larger the amount of pure
coconut oil can be acquired. Based on the theory, it shows that the amount of
extraction is depend on the amount of mixture. So, the objectives of this experiment
were achieved based on the results obtained.
There were several recommendation need to be taken during the experiment to
avoid any error or misconduct of the experiment. Early precautions are important so
that the experiment can be carried out smoothly without any unwanted errors. Make
sure to read the lab manual before going through with the experiment to get a brief
idea on how to conduct the experiment. This step is really important so that the
experimenters know what to do in the lab rather than waiting for the technicians to
guide them through until the end and to prevent any amateur hour. Furthermore,
prioritizing the instruments condition is really important as it will affect the results.
Asking the technician to check on the instrument beforehand is strongly
recommended. In addition, the amount of coconut and acetone also need to be weight
carefully as we do not want any error for the result.