What is steam distillation for essential oil?

Steam distillation is the most common process for extracting lavender essential oil, and it's a method that we prefer. Simply put, the process involves heating the water and plant matter to their boiling points, separating the essential oil vapors as they rise, and then cooling and condensing them back into liquid form for collection. It's as easy as ABC!

According to ScienceDirect, steam distillation has been used for many years to extract essential oils from perfumery plants. This is achieved by passing steam through the material and collecting the volatile compounds in receivers.

In this case, the lavender flower, buds, some of the stem, and leaves contain an oil that separates from the plant during distillation. Lavender is sensitive to steam, and when a plant is sensitive to steam, steam distillation is the preferred method to obtain its delicate oils.

During this process, plant material is placed on a screen or perforated grid at a specific height above the base of the still. Water is boiled to generate steam, which allows distillation to occur at low pressure. As steam molecules pass through the plant material, they extract the oil component from the intact plant and carry it to the top of the still, where it moves towards the condenser.

In the final stages, the steam and oil molecules pass through a cooling condenser. The cooling action then breaks up the combined molecule into an oil solution and a byproduct of water, known as hydrosol.

Tazeka Aromatherapy has crafted an informative and concise video that effectively outlines the process of steam distillation.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVQC-6qIq-Y