ESSENTIAL OIL EXTRACTION FROM LEMONGRASS

(Cymbopogon winterianus)

Essential oils are found in every part of the plant from flowers, fruits, stems, and
roots of pinaceae, labitae, compositae, myrtaceae, dan umbelliferaceae. One kind of plant
potential essential oil producer big enough to be developed is lemongrass (Cymbopogon
winterianus). In Gianyar Bali, lemongrass is used as an ingredient in traditional medicine
Lemongrass is a plant perennial that grows live long, and strong. This plant is a kind of grass,
gathered a lot, and gathered into big crowd.

Lemongrass (Cymbopogon winterianus) is a spice plant, commonly used as a spice

food, and medicine. Lemongrass is one of the plants that can be used as an essential oil.
Essential oil from the citronella plant can be used as raw material for making perfumes and
insect repellents. Citronella plants are usually extracted using conventional methods, one of
which is the soxhlet extraction method.

Essential oil that freshly separated usually colorless. Therefore evaporation, and
possibly oxidation, can change the color, such as: green, brown, yellow, blue and red. The
taste of the essential oil can be sweet, spicy, sour, bitter, and some are has a burning taste.
The essential oil have smell that can stimulating and distinctive for each type essential oil.
The essential oil insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, chloroform, concentrated acetic
acid, and other organic solvents; and less soluble in dilute alcohol which is less than 70%.

Essential oil needs are increasing with the development of modern industrial world.
Essential oil is volatil coumpound. Lemongrass (Cymbopogon winterianus) is aromatic plant
which utilization is still limited. If the lemongrass prosessed into essential oil, its has many
benefits and high value of price. Essential oil are rocessed with extraction method. The
benefit from this method is not require high temperature, so that oil dont easily decomposed.
Citronelall oil made by extraction method using methanol solvent. At first lemongrass
redunced in size 0,25x0,25x0,25 cm, taken as much as 100 grams, then extracted for 6 hours
using 1000 mL metanol solvent. The lemongrass extract evaporated for 4 hours to evaporate
the solvent from extract essential oil. The purpose of drying lemongrass to reduce water
content, so extraction process more easily and procuced more high quality citronelall oil
(color, density, refractive index)