Preparation of Perfume Using Fractional Distillation

Introduction and Purpose

Perfume is an fragrant liquid typically designed to produce a pleasurable smell. In the Middle Ages, many Europeans used perfume as an alternative to bathing to create an enjoyable aroma surrounding their body. These aromatic compounds are commonly produced from essential oils extracted from spices and flowers. Rose essential oil, for example, can be manufactured to transform from petals to a scented oil in glass bottle. However, this key ingredient required to make perfume can also be created through fractional distillation, the separation of a liquid mixture into fractions differing in boiling point by means of distillation.

In addition to the scented aspect of perfume preparation, jojoba oil and ethanol are also necessary components. Jojoba oil is a widely used natural moisturizer that resembles the oil human skin secretes. Ethanol helps break down and blend together the oil and and aroma elements. The purpose of this experiment is to create a fragrance using jojoba oil, ethanol, and fractionally distilled rose water. Laboratory glasses must be worn when performing the distillation, a safe distance must be kept from the open flame, and ethanol must not be consumed in any part of the procedure. It is predicted that the water will evaporate out of the mixture before the rose substance does, leaving solely rose water remaining in the original container.

Materials and Methods

Place 2 cups of fresh rose petals in an empty medium saucepan. Fill the saucepan with water until the petals are covered, approximately 7 cups. Begin boiling on high over a stove. Once the water reaches 100 degrees C, turn down the heat to the lowest possible temperature that still keeps the water boiling. Continue to boil for 5-10 minutes, or until the rose petals lose their color. Strain the mixture in a colander by collecting the liquid in a container and keeping the rose petals out. The liquid should be a murky, yellow-brown color. Commence fractional distillation process using all of the accumulated rose water. The water and rose substance will be seperated due to difference in boiling points.

A strong rose smelling water will gather in the flask at the end of the distillation process, or it will remain in the original round-bottom flask. Pour 2 tbsp of jojoba oil in an erlenmeyer flask. Add 4 tbsp of rose water to the flask. Add more or less depending on desired strength of the perfume. Add 5 tbsp of ethanol to the flask. Use a funnel to pour the previously listed ingredients into the flask to prevent spilling and encourage accuracy. Close the container firmly with a stopper, shake vigorously for 1 minute, and let the mixture sit for a minimum of 48 hours and a maximum of one week, shaking occasionally. When satisfied with the scent, add 3 tbsp of distilled water. Shake for 30 seconds until all contents are thoroughly combined. Pour the mixture into a spray bottle using a funnel.

Data and Observations

To begin, 275 mL of boiling rose petal water was placed into a round-bottom flask. The flame was lit and the distillation process commenced. At 5 minutes, the temperature hit 38 degrees Centigrade. At 6 and a half minutes, the top of the round-bottom flask started collecting evaporated liquid, which was now a gas due to a physical change in state. Approximately one minute later, the gas started flowing down the condenser, turning back into a liquid. The first drop of distilled liquid entered the Erlenmeyer flask after 8 minutes of boiling. After 10 minutes, the liquid had reached 100 degrees Centigrade and only increased three more degrees throughout the distillation process. The distilled liquid started coming out faster after hitting 103 degrees Centigrade between 15 and 20 minutes.

After one hour of distillation, the procedure ended with a total mass of 206.57 grams of unidentified, distilled, clear liquid in the Erlenmeyer flask. The liquid had a slight rose smell. 41.94 grams of a dark brown rose water remained in the round-bottom flask. The liquid in the round-bottom flask had transformed from a light brown color to a deep, dark brown color. The other liquid that got distilled was clear. After the two days past of letting the liquids sit, no difference was recognized in the look or the smell of the liquids. 4 tablespoons of each liquid were poured into two containers, much smaller than the first ones. 2 tablespoons of jojoba oil, 5 tablespoons of ethanol, and 3 tablespoons of distilled water was added to each mixture.

The brown mixture looked the same once the other ingredients were added, but the clear substance turned to a murky light yellow. At first, the jojoba oil and ethanol sat on top of the dark brown liquid and the yellow liquid. The mixtures turned lighter and cloudy once shook vigorously. Once each substance was poured into a spray bottle, we noticed that the jojoba oil and the dark brown liquid started to separate. This is due to the fact that not all the water got distilled out of the dark brown liquid and water and oil are immiscible which means they do not mix. After letting the dark brown liquid sit in the container without shaking it, clear separation in the bottle was noticed. It became dark brown on the top and light brown on the bottom. The light brown was the water and the dark brown was the jojoba oil. There were also small, luminescent bubbles covering the the side of the container, which are little amounts of fat from the oil that got captured inside water bubbles. However, after watching the yellow perfume sit, there were no noticeable changes.

Conclusion and Discussion

In the experiment, fractional distillation was used to separate water and rose oil. The final mass of the water product was 206.57 grams. The final mass of the brown rose water in the round-bottom flask was 41.94 grams. Since water boils at 100 degrees Centigrade, it evaporated and condensed first. Due to the higher boiling point and density of the rose liquid, it remained flask. The heat produced by the bunsen burner prompted the molecular energy of the mixture to increase, causing the molecules to move faster and escape the surface of the liquid, rise, and turn into a vapor. The hypothesis tested was confirmed through the procedure, data, and observations. A discovery was made when the rose oil combined with the jojoba oil: oil and water are immiscible, meaning they do not mix. Not all of the water was distilled out of the rose oil, causing the final liquid to separate. The oil floated to the top because it has a lower density than water.

The water remained on the bottom on of the container, because its density is much higher. If no water remained in the rose mixture, it would be a homogeneous mixture with no separation of compounds. The most prominent error made throughout the procedure was removing the wire gauze in the middle of the experiment causing a sudden increase in temperature due to the direct contact of the flame to the flask. Another inaccuracy was when pouring the mixtures into their respective bottles using a funnel, some liquid did not make it into the container and instead escaped to the counter surface. When performing the procedure a second time, the distillation process will continue for a longer amount of time so all water can be boiled out of the rose substance.