Magickal Realism

A lot of people ask me if I distill my own essential oils. I think with other perfumers there’s always the hope of stumbling upon a new supplier, since though suppliers appear plentiful, resource distribution and quality is spotty so often certain suppliers will have one specialty over another. Alas, I do not. Just as I do not have the space to make soap in a safe way, I do not have the space necessary to safely and cleanly steam distill essential oils. I certainly do not have the means to squish them into submitting their oil (expression) nor do I have any solvents I’d feel comfortable separating out for that sweet, sweet scent of green. However, because the way my materials are made add up to my own earthly impact, I’ve spent a little time learning the basics. The following is a very brief overview, sourced from Wikipedia and the Illustrated Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils.

The way in which essential oils are processed is a big part of assessing their impact on the environment, their cost and even their safety. Because it’s important to have the whoe picture on the materials used, here’s an overview of each of the main processes:

Distillation
This is the most common way to process essential oil, and more common herbs stand up to this process quite well. The plant is heated over water, and then the steam condenses as essential oil. This is what I consider the second most environmentally friendly method of production, just because the heat may still be generated from a coal or petroleum source. Otherwise, however, it’s a perfect process. The byproduct, hydrosol, is water that still has the fragrance of the plant in it. While this water used to be disposed of (in the ground, most likely) there are now more bath and body makers experimenting with hydrosols for perfumes and other cosmetic ingredients.

Expression
If you happen to have an orange or other citrus fruit on hand, go grab it and try this. Select a small patch of the peel and press down on it. In a moment, a teeny droplet of liquid will appear. Congratulations, you’ve just expressed some essential oil. Expression is done on a larger level in the aromatics industry, usually with a machine that can be hand or electronically powered - it is possible for the process to be completely mechanical. The byproduct, squished plant, can be reused as compost. I consider this the most environmentally friendly form of essential oil production, though highly valid arguments can be made for distillation as the first place winner.

Solvent Extraction
There are some essential oils that just won’t part from their source without sending in a few molecules to pry them loose. Since this usually happens with flowers that would simply wilt under the pressures of extraction and heat distillation, florals are often the most expensive of essential oils and come with the highest environmental cost. The chemical most commonly used in solvent extraction is hexane, which is a petroleum based solvent. While it has a very high danger rating on the Cosmetics Safety Database, exposure to hexane is extremely minimal as a result of using hexane dissolved products. That said, it does have a significant negative environmental impact, and on its International Chemical Safety Card it does state that it is poisonous to aquatic life.

C02 Extracts - Newfangled Sciencey stuff
A new method of solvent extraction, sometimes labeled as “C02″ extract rather than as an essential oil, forces supercritical C02¹ through a plant, and then the plant is sprayed with water at high pressure. The resulting extract may be used as a fragrance compound, and has other uses including decaffeinating coffee. Since the C02 is a byproduct of other industrial processes, it is seen as advantageous to use this because of its low costs. It’s also an excellent alternative to petroleum-based hexane. There isn’t at this point much data about the long-term impact of C02 extracts; any safety information is inconclusive because the technology is so new. Perfumers do report some frustration working with C02 extracts, as the chemicals differ from essential oils and do not always smell or blend the ways their traditionally extracted counterparts would work. On the other hand, plants that did not stand up to even a solvent process did allow extraction in the C02 process, so there is actual significant gain to perfume arts as a result.

When evaluating whether to add an essential oil to my collection, I have to consider:

I’ll let you know when I’m at 100% comfort with all my decisions. That should be any century now, I’m fully confident.

So that’s how we get those scents. The way each scent is made is a considerable factor in how what we make impacts the planet, and how long we’ll be able to keep making that particular pretty scent. Someday, I hope to have a place where I can steam distill and expeller press to my heart’s content. Until then, I have to inspect the listings along with the other perfumers.

1. carbon dioxide that is liquid at a temperature where it is normally a gas [↩]