How are Isolates Extracted?
Plants are much like little chemical factories that have all naturally occurring chemical constituents. If you’ve ever checked out a GC/MS report, that tells you the purity of essential oils and their constituents and that each constituent is a chemical molecule with varying sizes and weights. These are called fraction isolates. So how are those compounds isolated from their plant source?
Isolates are often taken from essential oils using fractional distillation. This method involves the separation of a liquid into fractions using differing boiling points. As the oil heats up, the vapor rises into a long column above the still. The vapor is repeatedly condensed and re-evaporated as it moves toward the top, which distills the vapor many times to pull the desired constituent in the oil.
Because of this, the column can be tapped at various levels to draw off different fractions of the oil. Essentially breaking the oil apart. This isolates different parts of the oil with different scent notes! So every chemical constituent of the essential has its own scent. so for example several constituents make up the lavender aroma but if you isolate one of those constituents you will experience just that fraction of the whole lavender scent profile. And it is all Natural! I never understood why anyone would play around with synthetic fragrance when you can do cool like using 100% natural fractions of oils to create new unique blends and aromas.
This process of isolation is also useful for some carrier oils. For example, Fractionated Coconut Oil is an isolate, which is why it stays liquid at room temperature. Linalool is one of the most well-known isolates, thanks partly due to the Lavender Essential Oil popularity. Geraniol (found in Geranium oils), citronellal (found in – you guessed it – Citronella or Lemon eucalyptus, and limonene (a major component of citrus oils) are just a few of the isolates with name recognition. But there are hundreds of isolates that may not sound so familiar or seem so natural. Like for example 2,3-pentanedione, delta-dodecalactone, and p-anisyl acetate are legit natural isolates too, each with their unique characteristics and each isolated from their natural botanical source.
ARE ISOLATES NATURAL AND SAFE ?
Yes, they are natural and yes they are safe to use just like any essential oils and blends and yes these blends should be properly diluted when applied to the skin! As someone who worked in the natural perfumery business during my early 20s, it was awesome to see this beautiful natural extraction process and work with the unique natural compounds but sadly the perfumery industry uses very few natural ingredients like Isolates, Essentials, etc thus my career changed quickly because as Natural raw fooder and for good health support Natural and Organic is the way to go.
For every ingredient we use for any product, we do not compromise on quality. We hope that through our transparency and integrity, you’ll continue to choose us for your all-natural product needs – whether or not that includes isolates. Isolates are fun and completely natural and plant-derived 100%.
It is just a deeper experience of exploring unique aromas we just have to share with you. And if you’re not a fan of isolates, that’s completely ok! We have hundreds of essential oils and essential oil blends to choose from that do not include additional naturally isolated compounds. We are transparent about our oils being natural, organic, and 100% pure and natural. So when there is an isolate in a blend rest assured it’s legit natural 100%!
Check out these few Isolate blends we carry. Absolutely amazing!
Strawberry Melange Blend Made in France
Peach Melange Blend Made in France
Butterfly Pea melange Blend Made in France
Blue lotus Melange Blend Made in Egypt
Apple and Honey Blend (contains Natural Apple Isolate) Made in Israel
