Chemistry in Action

Don't get excited- this is not a post about romantic chemistry... It is about a little project I have going in an actual Chemistry lab- the ABTECH Biolab to be exact. I am using a basic steam distillation system to produce my own rosemary essential oil from rosemary grown at the Mountain Magnolia! Plant matter is placed into a glass "biomass flask" and then that flask is attached over a boiling vat of water. The steam flows through a "condenser," which has ice water circulating around it (by a pump which is in a container of ice water), and then down into a "still head," which seperates the hydrosol (basically rosemary water) from the essential oil. It is very cool. As I type I am sitting here watching the distillation in progress. If you get a haircut from me anytime soon, it is likely I will annoint your precious head with a drop or two of the pure oil.