Essential Oil production process
1. Harvesting of raw materials: roots, rhizomes, leaves and aerial parts.
2. Cleaning, drying, and storing: Collectors do the preliminary cleaning and drying in the herb collection areas. Further cleaning and drying is done in the village.
3. Procuring and storing of the raw materials: The processing unit buys the raw materials from the collectors. While procuring the raw material, the unit pays the conservation premium to the concerned forest user group and market price rate to the collectors.
4. Cleaning, drying, and grading: The processing unit most often has to clean and dry the raw material again.Cleaned and dried raw material is graded to produce high quality essential oils.
5. Weighing, starting distillation process : The raw materials are weighed and put into the distillation apparatus evenly in several layers, to avoid channelization of steam.
6. Steam distillation: Water is filled into the bottom chamber of the distillation unit. Cold water circulation is maintained around the condenser of the unit. Firewood is burned to heat the water in the chamber. The steam of the water takes up the essential oil of raw materials into the condenser pipe. In the condenser, the steam turns into liquid. The raw materials are distilled with low pressure and relatively dry steam for 12 to 20 hours.
7. Collection in a filter jar: The condenser pipe takes the water and essential oils into the separating jar.
8. Separating oil from water: Depending on the specific gravity of the essential oil, it will stay up or go below water level. With the help of separating jar, the oil is obtained.
9. Filtering the oil: Residual water and unwanted particles are removed from oil.
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10. Quality checking, packaging, and storing: The oil quality is checked and it is packaged and stored.
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