So I understand that essential oils are formed by steam distillation, and contain volatile, usually aromatic, compounds.
Extracts are formed by immersion of plant matter in a solvent, and are usually reported to contain compounds such as polyphenols, anthraquinones, flavonoids and the like.
Practically every report I have read does not mention whether obtained extracts contain the volatile compounds found in essential oils though. Will there be volatile essential oil compounds in extracts, or can they ONLY be taken out of plant matter by steam distillation?
First I want to correct some mistakes 1-we don't say the essential oils formed... but extracted. 2-essential oils (EO) according to the European Pharmacopoeia, it's the volatile extract obtained by hydodistillation , formerly EO is called essence, but this term was abandoned and attributed only to the extract obtained by mechanical expression
Dear Harrison,
Everything depends on how the extract will be prepared and under what conditions of temperature and humidity...
For extracting volatile oil from a sample you must use clevenger apparatus and use solvents like alcohol, hexane, ethanol, ether, methanol or even petroleum.
It is possible to get volatiles in plants extracts, but they are in minute concentration unlike essential oils which are majorly made of the volatile compound
Yes it is possible. Some components are present in both of Extracts and EO. You can compare chemical composition reported in conducted studies.
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