Essential oil extraction device for improving yield and quality of essential oil

Abstract

The essential oil extraction device comprises a distillation retort, a condenser and an oil-water separator, the inlet end of the condenser is connected with the distillation retort through a drainage pipe, the outlet end of the condenser is connected with a conveying pipe, a temperature sensor is arranged on the conveying pipe, and the oil-water separator is connected with the oil-water separator. The tail end of the conveying pipe is connected with a collecting pipe and a return pipe through a three-way valve; the outlet end of the return pipe is connected to a return port formed in the top of the distillation retort. Compared with the prior art, the device has the advantages that the three-way valve is additionally arranged on the pipeline between the condenser and the oil-water separator, the other outlet end of the three-way valve is respectively connected with the collecting pipe and the return pipe, and the tail end of the collecting pipe is connected to the oil-water separator; one of the outlets is selectively opened through the three-way valve, so that unsaturated essential oil droplets flow back to the distillation retort through the return pipe for secondary distillation, and the quality and purity of the essential oil are improved; meanwhile, the energy consumption and the cost are reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to an essential oil extraction device, and more particularly to an essential oil extraction device for improving the yield and quality of essential oils. Background Technology

[0002] Plant essential oils are a class of volatile oily substances extracted from plants. They are mostly colorless or pale yellow, hydrophobic, readily soluble in organic solvents, and easily volatilize at room temperature, possessing a distinctive odor. Due to their insect-repellent, antibacterial, and antioxidant properties, they show great potential in the chemical, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries.

[0003] Steam distillation is the most common method for producing essential oils due to its advantages such as simple equipment, easy operation, low investment, no pollution, and simple production process. The extraction of plant essential oils by steam distillation requires components such as a distillation tank, condenser, and storage tank. The specific process is as follows: Fresh plant materials and water are added to the distillation tank in a certain proportion. Superheated steam heats the reaction system from the bottom of the tank through a steam pipe. The mixed steam generated after the plant materials and water are heated is introduced into the condenser through a guide pipe. The essential oil-rich steam is condensed in the condenser, cooling into oil droplets, which flow into an oil-water separator along a conveying pipe. In the oil-water separator, the essential oil and water separate into layers. An oil collector collects the essential oil, while the byproduct hydrosol is collected in a hydrosol storage tank. After distillation, the waste is discharged from the outlet.

[0004] In actual production, certain defects have been found in existing plant essential oil extraction devices and methods during the steam distillation extraction of plant raw materials. For example, invention patent application CN105296162A discloses a method for extracting jasmine essential oil and top notes. The top note extraction uses adsorption, concentration, alcohol precipitation, and secondary concentration, and the top notes need to be extracted and concentrated in a distillation column, resulting in complex extraction processes, high extraction costs, and difficulty in operation. Utility model patent CN213951115U discloses a plant essential oil extraction device. This technology is suitable for the extraction of easily oxidized components and water-soluble essential oils; however, this technology has the following problems: First, this device does not have a rotating mechanism, resulting in uneven heating of the plant and incomplete extraction of plant essential oils; second, after being heated, the plant adheres to the inner wall of the screen cylinder, clogging the screen holes. Since the screen cylinder is difficult to clean, the efficiency of the device is reduced. The utility model disclosed in CN202359093U is a plant essential oil extraction device. This device has the advantages of convenient feeding, fast oil-water separation, easy collection of essential oil, and reduced energy consumption. However, in actual production, the device has problems such as being too simple and lacking a temperature control device. This causes unsaturated essential oil to form flocculent matter in the oil-water separator in the early stage of distillation, making it difficult to separate into layers. This reduces the quality and purity of the essential oil, requiring secondary purification of the product, which greatly reduces the efficiency of distillation and increases production costs. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide an essential oil extraction device for improving the yield and quality of essential oils.

[0006] This utility model is achieved through the following technical solution:

[0007] An essential oil extraction device for improving the yield and quality of essential oils includes a distillation tank, a condenser, and an oil-water separator. The inlet of the condenser is connected to the distillation tank via a guide pipe, and the outlet of the condenser is connected to a delivery pipe. A temperature sensor is installed on the delivery pipe. The end of the delivery pipe is connected to a collection pipe and a return pipe via a three-way valve. The inlets of the collection pipe and the return pipe are respectively connected to the two outlets of the three-way valve. The outlet of the collection pipe is connected to the inlet of the oil-water separator, and the outlet of the return pipe is connected to a return port opened at the top of the distillation tank.

[0008] As a preferred embodiment of the above-mentioned essential oil extraction device, the three-way valve is a temperature-controlled pneumatic valve.

[0009] As a preferred embodiment of the above-mentioned essential oil extraction device, a U-shaped water seal section is provided on the reflux pipe.

[0010] As a preferred embodiment of the above-mentioned essential oil extraction device, the temperature sensor is positioned near the outlet end of the condenser.

[0011] As a preferred embodiment of the above-mentioned essential oil extraction device, the condenser includes a primary condenser and a secondary condenser connected in sequence, with the outlet end of the secondary condenser connected to a delivery pipe.

[0012] This invention has the following advantages over the prior art:

[0013] This invention provides an essential oil extraction device for improving the yield and quality of essential oils. It adds a three-way valve to the pipeline between the condenser and the oil-water separator. The inlet of the three-way valve is connected to the outlet of the condenser, and the other outlet is connected to a collection pipe and a return pipe. The end of the collection pipe is connected to the oil-water separator, and the end of the return pipe is connected to the return port at the top of the distillation tank. Based on the temperature detected by a temperature sensor, one outlet can be selectively opened via the three-way valve. This allows unsaturated essential oil droplets to be returned to the distillation tank for secondary distillation via the return pipe. This effectively avoids the problem of flocculent matter that is difficult to separate due to unsaturated essential oil droplets directly entering the oil-water separator, thus improving the quality and purity of the essential oil. Simultaneously, the temperature sensor can detect the temperature of the oil droplets output from the secondary condenser in real time, allowing for real-time adjustment of the condensate flow rate, thereby controlling the condensation of essential oil vapor and reducing energy consumption and costs. Attached Figure Description

[0014] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of Example 1.

[0015] The following numbers are labeled in the diagram: 1. Distillation tank; 2. Oil-water separator; 3. Drain pipe; 4. Delivery pipe; 5. Primary condenser; 6. Secondary condenser; 7. Temperature sensor; 8. Three-way valve; 9. Collection pipe; 10. Return pipe; 11. U-shaped water seal section; 12. Hydrosol storage tank. Detailed Implementation

[0016] The embodiments of this utility model are described in detail below. These embodiments are implemented based on the technical solution of this utility model and provide detailed implementation methods and specific operation processes. However, the protection scope of this utility model is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0017] Example 1

[0018] See Figure 1 This embodiment discloses an essential oil extraction device for improving the yield and quality of essential oils, including a distillation tank 1, a condenser, and an oil-water separator 2. The inlet end of the condenser is connected to the distillation tank 1 via a guide pipe 3, and the outlet end of the condenser is connected to a delivery pipe 4. In this embodiment, the condenser includes a primary condenser 5 and a secondary condenser 6 connected in sequence, with the outlet end of the secondary condenser 6 connected to the delivery pipe 4. A temperature sensor 7 is installed on the delivery pipe 4, located near the outlet end of the secondary condenser 6. The end of the delivery pipe 4 is connected to a collection pipe 9 and a return pipe 10 via a three-way valve 8. The inlets of the collection pipe 9 and the return pipe 10 are respectively connected to the two outlet ends of the three-way valve 8. The outlet end of the collection pipe 9 is connected to the inlet end of the oil-water separator 2, and the outlet end of the return pipe 10 is connected to a return port opened at the top of the distillation tank 1. A recessed U-shaped water seal section 11 is provided on the return pipe 10.

[0019] Among them, the three-way valve 8 can be a temperature-controlled pneumatic valve. The temperature-controlled pneumatic valve can be the RV ZRSP(M) series temperature-controlled pneumatic valve manufactured by Shanghai Jianglang Technology Co., Ltd.

[0020] During operation, 200 kg of fresh roses and water are added to distillation tank 1 in a specific ratio. Superheated steam heats distillation tank 1 from the bottom through a steam pipe, distilling out the essential oil components from the roses. The essential oil vapor first enters the primary condenser 5 through the guide pipe 3 for initial cooling. The cooling water temperature in the primary condenser 5 is around 98 ℃, which effectively reduces the temperature of the essential oil vapor and prevents incomplete condensation due to excessively high temperatures. After passing through the primary condenser 5, the essential oil vapor continues to pass through the secondary condenser 6, where chilled water is used for secondary cooling. The cooled essential oil droplets then enter the delivery pipe 4. Temperature sensor 7 monitors the temperature of the essential oil droplets in delivery pipe 4 in real time, thereby adjusting the flow rate of chilled water in the secondary condenser 6 to completely condense the essential oil vapor into rose essential oil droplets.

[0021] After installing the temperature-controlled pneumatic valve, when the detected temperature is lower than the preset temperature, the valve selectively connects the reflux pipe 10, allowing the unsaturated essential oil to flow back to the distillation tank 1 for secondary distillation. When the detected temperature reaches the preset temperature, the valve selectively connects the collection pipe 9, transporting the essential oil to the oil-water separator 2. In the separator, the essential oil and water separate into layers, with the essential oil floating on top. The high-purity essential oil is collected by the oil collector, resulting in excellent quality. The aqueous phase in the oil-water separator 2 is the essential oil byproduct hydrosol, which is collected through a pipeline into the hydrosol storage tank 12. This hydrosol is characterized by its natural purity and pleasant aroma. Finally, the collected essential oil is analyzed using GC-MS (gas chromatography-mass spectrometry). A summary table of the chemical composition of the collected essential oil is shown in Table 1.

[0022] Table 1

[0023]

[0024] As shown in Table 1, the contents of the main aroma components citronellol, geraniol and nerol in the essential oils collected in this embodiment are 20.89%, 15.64% and 11.43%, respectively.

[0025] Meanwhile, rose essential oil was extracted five times according to the above essential oil extraction method, and the yield of essential oil was calculated and shown in Table 2.

[0026] Table 2

[0027]

[0028] As shown in Table 2, the average amount of essential oil extracted using the device in this embodiment is 30 g, with a yield of 1.5 per ten thousand.

[0029] Comparative Example 1

[0030] In this comparative example, a device without a temperature-controlled pneumatic valve and reflux pipe 10 was used as the control device before the improvement. The extraction process of rose essential oil using this control device differed from Example 1 in the following ways:

[0031] The essential oil droplets exiting the secondary condenser 6 enter the delivery pipe 4, and are then entirely fed into the oil-water separator 2 for oil-water separation. When the temperature sensor 7 detects that the temperature of the essential oil exiting the secondary condenser 6 is lower than the preset temperature of 40 ± 2 ℃, this usually occurs during the initial stage of distillation. In this case, the waxes and oils in the rose form unsaturated essential oil droplets, specifically presenting as an emulsion. These droplets form flocculent matter at the oil-water separator 2, making essential oil separation difficult and reducing its quality. The collected essential oils were analyzed using GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry). A summary table of the chemical components of the collected essential oils is shown in Table 3.

[0032] Table 3

[0033]

[0034] As shown in Table 3, the contents of the main aroma components citronellol, geraniol, and nerol in the essential oils collected in this comparative example were 3.98%, 3.04%, and 1.54%, respectively. The contents of the main aroma components were significantly low, indicating poor quality of the essential oils. Furthermore, the essential oil collected using the comparative apparatus was only 14 g, with a yield of only 0.07%.

[0035] A comparison of Example 1 and Comparative Example 1 shows that the essential oil collected using the apparatus of this embodiment is clearer and more transparent, with no flocculent matter. The contents of the main aroma components, citronellol, geraniol, and nerol, are significantly increased from 3.98%, 3.04%, and 1.54% in Comparative Example 1 before improvement to 20.89%, 15.64%, and 11.43% in Example 1 after improvement, indicating a significant improvement in essential oil quality. Simultaneously, the essential oil collection yield increased from 0.07 parts per ten thousand before improvement to 1.015 parts per ten thousand after improvement, representing a 114% increase in essential oil yield. The apparatus provided in this embodiment greatly improves the yield and quality of essential oils, reduces energy consumption and costs, and solves problems existing in the current production process.

[0036] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present utility model and are not intended to limit the present utility model. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present utility model should be included within the protection scope of the present utility model.

Claims

1. An essential oil extraction apparatus for improving the yield and quality of essential oils, comprising a distillation tank, a condenser, and an oil-water separator, wherein the inlet end of the condenser is connected to the distillation tank via a drain pipe, and the outlet end of the condenser is connected to a delivery pipe, characterized in that: The delivery pipe is equipped with a temperature sensor. The end of the delivery pipe is connected to the collection pipe and the return pipe through a three-way valve. The inlet ends of the collection pipe and the return pipe are respectively connected to the two outlet ends of the three-way valve. The outlet end of the collection pipe is connected to the inlet end of the oil-water separator, and the outlet end of the return pipe is connected to the return port opened at the top of the distillation tank.

2. The essential oil extraction apparatus for improving essential oil yield and quality as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The three-way valve is a temperature-controlled pneumatic valve.

3. The essential oil extraction apparatus for improving essential oil yield and quality as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The return pipe is equipped with a U-shaped water seal section.

4. The essential oil extraction apparatus for improving essential oil yield and quality as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The temperature sensor is positioned near the outlet of the condenser.

5. The essential oil extraction apparatus for improving essential oil yield and quality as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The condenser includes a primary condenser and a secondary condenser connected in sequence, with the outlet end of the secondary condenser connected to a delivery pipe.

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