CENTRAL PHILIPPINE ChE 4203 Chemical

UNIVERSITY Engineering Laboratory 1

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
Jaro, Iloilo City, Philippines
Group No. 2 Name: Donna Mae R. Galaez Expt. No. 6 Steam Distillation
I. Objectives:

To know the principle of steam distillation and observe what happens during the
process
To extract essential oil from plant leaves using steam distillation process

II. Theory:

Essential Oil Extraction. There are different methods for essential oil extraction. One of the
most common is steam distillation since it allows for the separation of slightly volatile, water-
immiscible substances by means of low temperature distillation, being of particular use when
the components boil at high temperature (higher than 100C) and are susceptible to
decomposition below this temperature. The release of the components present in the stomas is
caused by cell-wall rupture as a result of the higher pressure and the oil content expansion of
the cell generated by heat. The steam flow gets in through the stomas, breaks them and
eventually drags the essential oil.

Steam Distillation. Steam distillation consists of steaming as a result of a straight current of

steam water, which heats the mix as well as it decreases the boiling temperature because of the
higher steam tension inherent in water to those of volatile components in essential oils. The
steam coming from the distillate gets cold in a condenser and, finally, the immiscible mix gets
separated in a clarifier or Florentine flask. This methodology is more convenient than organic
solvent extraction or straight distillation as water steam has a lower cost compared to organic
solvents. Also, it avoids oil heating or the use of sophisticated equipment.

Date Submitted: Submitted to:

Date Performed: Page 1 of 5
March 21, 2017
March 13, 2017
ENGR. SHARON ROSE DUMAM-AG
 Figure 1. Typical steam distillation set-up

Most essential oils are obtained from the plant material by a process known as steam
distillation. Descriptions and explanations of the theory and practice of steam distillation are
given elsewhere and the reader is referred to these for detailed discussions of equipment needs,
distillery layout and methods. An indication of what is involved is given here.

The fundamental nature of steam distillation is that it enables a compound or mixture of

compounds to be distilled (and subsequently recovered) at a temperature substantially below
that of the boiling point(s) of the individual constituent(s). Essential oils contain substances
with boiling points up to 200 C or higher, including some that are solids at normal
temperatures. In the presence of steam or boiling water, however, these substances are
volatilized at a temperature close to 100 C at atmospheric pressure. The mixture of hot vapors
will, if allowed to pass through a cooling system, condense to form a liquid in which the oil
and water comprise two distinct layers. Most (but not all) essential oils are lighter than water
and form the top layer. The steam that is used for the distillation is generated either within the
steel vessel that contains the plant material (by boiling water contained at the base) or by an
external boiler.

Applications. Steam distillation is employed in the isolation of essential oils, for use in
perfumes, for example. In this method, steam is passed through the plant material containing
the desired oils. Eucalyptus oil and orange oil are obtained by this method on an industrial
scale.

Steam distillation is also sometimes used to separate intermediate or final products

during the synthesis of complex organic compounds. Steam distillation is also widely used in
petroleum refineries and petrochemical plants where it is commonly referred to as "steam
stripping".

Steam distillation also is an important means of separating fatty acids from mixtures
and for treating crude products such as tall oils to extract and separate fatty acids, soaps and
other commercially valuable organic compounds.

III. Materials and Apparatus:

A. Materials

Plant leaves, water

B. Apparatus

Submitted to:
Date Performed: Date Submitted: Page 2 of 5
March 13, 2017 March 21, 2017
ENGR. SHARON ROSE DUMAM-AG
 Steam distillation apparatus (boiling flask, condenser, beaker, adapter, glass
tubing, rubber tubing, Bunsen burner), wire gauze, boiling chips, iron stand, iron ring

IV. Procedure:

First, the plant leaves were first collected by hand a day before the experiment. The
young and old leaves were separated. The leaves were cut into smaller pieces.

Steam distillation apparatus was then assembled according to the diagram above. Next,
adequate amount of leaves were put into the boiling vessel. Tap water in a boiling flask would
be heated over Bunsen burner as the heat source. The flask was connected with glass tubing to
a second flask containing the baho-baho leaves. The second flask was connected with rubber
tubing that leads to a condenser where cooling water from the faucet flow countercurrent to the
vapor. A beaker was used to collect the distillate at the end of the condenser.

V. Diagram:

(see attached page)

VI. Data and Results:

Sufficient amount of distillate was collected and composed of water only. No evidence
of globules of essential oil was present and no thin layer of oil was formed and distinguished.

VII. Observation and Discussion of Results:

With the use of Bunsen burner, water from the first boiling flask was evaporated in a
span of few minutes compared to the time it took when we used the hot plate. The distillate
almost immediately formed as the water evaporated and its appearance was that of a clear
liquid. But the distillate, as we have seen, was just composed of water and no essential oil was
distilled. If there would be any oil, we can immediately see the globules of oil floating at the
top of the water or it will form an oil layer distinct from the water layer. However, we cannot
see any oil floating at the top. Although there were no essential oil present in the distillate, the
smell of baho-baho leaves is evident on the distillate.

The second flask which contains the plant leaves has acquired water from the steam
coming from the first flask. There was accumulation of water there and dark discoloration was
observed.

VIII. Conclusion and Recommendation:

The frequently employed process of extraction of essential oil is the steam distillation
where steam is used to extract the oils from the plant material. Although we have not collected
essential oil in the distillate, the steam distillation process is still the most widely used
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ENGR. SHARON ROSE DUMAM-AG
extraction process. The steam was used to extract the volatile constituent of the essential oil
and was passed through a condenser in order to make the vapor into liquid which is then to be
collected to form the distillate. Supposedly, the distillate would be composed of the essential
oil and the solvent that is used to extract it which is in this case, water. The water and the
essential oil will then be subjected to separation using separatory funnel.

It is recommended that longer time of steam distillation is to be employed so that to

observe if essential oil from baho-baho leaves can be collected using the said process. Maybe it
would take much longer time for the first drop of oil to form. It is also recommended that other
types of extraction like solvent extraction be employed.

IX. References:

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF STEAM DISTILLATION. (n.d.). Retrieved March 19, 2017, from
https://erowid.org/archive/rhodium/chemistry/3base/safrole.plants/fafopo/steam_di
stillation.html

Chamorro, E. R., Morales, W. G., Sequeira, A. F., Velasco, G. A., & Zambn, S. N.
(n.d.). Study of the Chemical Composition of Essential Oils by Gas
Chromatography.

Wikipedia. (2017, February 28). Retrieved March 19, 2017, from Steam distillation:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam_distillation

X. Pictures:

Figure 2. Collection of baho-baho leaves Figure 3. Separation of young and

old leaves

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ENGR. SHARON ROSE DUMAM-AG

Figure 4. Cutting of leaves to small

pieces Figure 5. Steam distillation set-up
 Submitted to:
Date Performed: Date Submitted: Page 5 of 5
March 13, 2017 March 21, 2017
ENGR. SHARON ROSE DUMAM-AG