Lemongrass essential oil has many compounds appropriate for application in foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products. Of these, citral is a high-value compound of interest to industry. This work aims to evaluate the use of vacuum fractional distillation to separate lemongrass essential oil compounds, producing essential oil fractions containing high citral content. The effect of process parameters, namely vacuum pressure, type column, and energy input, on the fractionation time, content, and recovery of citral in the fractions, was investigated. The fractionation of lemongrass oils successfully provided five fractions, i.e., fraction 1 (F1), fraction 2 (F2), fraction 3 (F3), fraction 4 (F4), and fraction 5 (F5). GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry) spectra showed that the main compound contained in F1 and F2 fractions was β-myrcene (>70%). Meanwhile, F4 and F5 were the two main fractions for citral recovery. The optimal conditions of the fractional distillation system included a column height of 400 mm, power input of 165 W, and pressure of 15 mmHg. These conditions correspond to the highest total citral content of 95%, with a recovery of 80% at the F4 and F5 fractions. Therefore, fractional vacuum distillation may be an effective method to upgrade lemongrass essential oil.

Jasmine essential oil has been studied and widely used for many centuries in many countries throughout the world. However, relatively little is explored about jasmine essential oil application. Here, we produced essential oil of jasmine by hydrodistillation method. The effect of distillation time, distillation temperature, feed size, water-raw material ratio to the yield of the distillation process was analyzed and recorded. With 6 hours, 120°C, grind fresh and ratio of 2:1 the yield was 0.092%. Antibacterial compounds of Jasmine essential oil were determined by measuring Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry equipment. Jasmine essential oils are applied to develop the facial cleanser product that is safe for human. Jasmine facial cleanser will be a new product in Viet Nam’s cosmetic with many potentials.

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) has been a significant herb and was used as an antiseptic, astringent, antifungal, antibacterial, antioxidant, etc. This study determined the effect of material-water ratio, material size, distillation time, and power of microwave on the obtained yield of rosemary essential oil extracted by microwave-assisted hydrodistillation method. The results show the optimum extraction condition at 1:1 of feed-water ratio, 380W of distillation power, 25 minutes distillation, and 0.3cm of material size with the optimal extracted yield of 2.7%. The major components are α-pinene (22.277%), verbenole (16.488%), 1,8-cineole (16.256%) and geraniol (5.705%), which would be a potential material for cosmetic and pharmaceutical products caused their activities such as antioxidant, antibacterial, antiseptic, reduce anxiety.

Black pepper is an indispensable spice in life—pepper oil used in various fields as pharmaceutical, cosmetic, repellent. Black pepper was picked in Vietnam and its essential oil was obtained by distillation methods. This study investigated the effect of several parameters such as material/water ratio, distillation time, the weight of the sample, and extraction power on the yield and the quality of black pepper essential oil from three distillation methods. The results showed that the hydrodistillation method reached the highest yield of 2.19% at conditions of 60 minutes extraction time and material/water ratio of 1:15 g/mL compare to the steam distillation method and microwave assisted hydrodistilation method. GC-MS analysis resulted in the identification of 70 components accounting for 99% of the total amount: β-caryophyllene, 3-carene, D-limonene, and β-pinene, are among the main compounds in black pepper essential oil.

Deodorization is a crucial refining stage with an important effect on the quality of oil refined. We used steam distillation method to remove the smell of calophyllum inophyllum oil. We investigated the effect of various factors such as vaporization temperature, oil volume to the deodorization process. In laboratory conditions, at vaporization temperature of 140°C and oil volume of 200mL, the optimal time of deodorization process is 21 hours with 95% oil’s smell removed. In the other hands, deodorized oil still remains the benefit compents. The aim of this study was to eliminate unpleasant pungent smell of calophyllum inophyllum oil. In the other hands, deodorized oil still retain the beneficial component and properties eminece. Thereby, creating a substrate with great potential in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. Also, deodorized calophyllum inophyllum oil will help increase the economic value of traditional calophyllum inophyllum oil.