Executive Summary
An essential oil manufacturer required a fully automated, GMP-oriented Lemongrass Essential Oil Distillation Plant to produce premium-quality Lemongrass Essential Oil with high Citral (Geranial & Neral) content for export to the flavour, fragrance, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, aromatherapy, and personal care industries.
The customer sought a turnkey processing facility capable of maximising essential oil recovery, preserving volatile aromatic compounds, reducing steam and energy consumption, and delivering consistent export-grade quality with full batch traceability.
Mechotech successfully designed, engineered, manufactured, supplied, installed, and commissioned a Lemongrass Essential Oil Distillation Plant incorporating advanced steam distillation, high-efficiency condensation, precision oil-water separation, condensate recovery, automated utility management, and intelligent PLC-SCADA automation.
Customer Background
The customer manufactures essential oils for flavour & fragrance industries, cosmetic manufacturers, personal care companies, pharmaceutical companies, aromatherapy brands, household product manufacturers, nutraceutical companies, and global essential oil exporters. To satisfy increasing international demand for natural essential oils, the customer required a highly efficient distillation plant capable of continuous, high-quality production.
Customer Challenges
Before modernisation, the customer experienced:
- Low essential oil recovery
- Loss of citral during distillation
- High steam consumption
- Long processing cycles
- Manual plant operation
- Variable oil quality
- High operating costs
- Limited batch capacity
- Difficulty complying with export quality standards
Project Objectives
Mechotech was commissioned to develop a facility capable of:
- Processing 20 MT/day of Fresh Lemongrass
- Maximising essential oil recovery
- Preserving natural citral content
- Reducing utility consumption
- Improving batch consistency
- Documentation to support the customer's quality and regulatory qualification
- Supporting future expansion
Raw Material
- Botanical Name
- Cymbopogon flexuosus / Cymbopogon citratus
- Common Name
- Lemongrass
- Plant Part Used
- Fresh Leaves
- Moisture Content
- 65–75%
- Daily Processing Capacity
- 20,000 kg/day
Finished Product
Available Options
Applications
- Perfumery
- Cosmetics
- Soaps & Detergents
- Aromatherapy
- Pharmaceuticals
- Herbal Products
- Food Flavouring
- Household Cleaners
Process Flow
Process Description
Raw Material Preparation
Freshly harvested lemongrass is cleaned, inspected, and chopped into uniform lengths to improve steam penetration and maximise oil recovery.
Steam Distillation
Prepared lemongrass is loaded into stainless steel distillation vessels where saturated steam passes uniformly through the biomass.
The optimised process provides:
- High essential oil recovery
- Uniform steam distribution
- Reduced processing time
- Consistent oil quality
Condensation
Oil-bearing vapours are condensed using high-efficiency shell-and-tube condensers that rapidly cool the vapour mixture while minimising volatile oil losses.
Advantages include:
- High condensation efficiency
- Reduced cooling water usage
- Improved energy efficiency
- Stable continuous operation
Oil-Water Separation
The condensate enters precision-engineered Florentine separators where essential oil is separated from aromatic hydrosol.
Recovered products include:
- Premium Lemongrass Essential Oil
- Lemongrass Hydrosol (value-added by-product)
Oil Filtration
The separated oil passes through fine filtration systems to remove suspended impurities while maintaining its natural colour, aroma, and chemical composition.
Quality Standardisation
Each production batch is analysed for:
- Citral Content
- Specific Gravity
- Refractive Index
- Optical Rotation
- Moisture
- Purity
- Colour
- Organoleptic Properties
Only compliant batches proceed to storage and packaging.
Major Equipment Supplied
- Raw Material Conveyor
- Chopping Machine
- Stainless Steel Steam Distillation Vessels
- Steam Distribution System
- High-Efficiency Boiler
- Shell & Tube Condensers
- Florentine Oil Separators
- Oil Filtration Unit
- Essential Oil Storage Tanks
- Hydrosol Collection Tanks
- Cooling Tower
- Pumps & Valves
- PLC-SCADA Automation Panel
- Electrical MCC
- Instrumentation Package
- CIP System
Automation Features
The plant incorporates advanced PLC-SCADA automation featuring:
- Automatic Steam Flow Control
- Distillation Recipe Management
- Temperature Monitoring
- Pressure Monitoring
- Cooling Water Control
- Batch Timing Automation
- Alarm Management
- Historical Batch Recording
- Utility Monitoring
- Production Reporting
- Remote Diagnostics
- Industry 4.0 Connectivity
GMP & Safety Features
The facility is designed with hygienic, GMP-oriented practice in view; the standards that apply to the client's facility and product are scoped per project. Features include:
- SS 316L product-contact surfaces
- Hygienic sanitary piping
- CIP-compatible construction
- Food-grade seals and gaskets
- Dead-leg-free piping design
- Automated cleaning systems
- Validation-ready equipment
- GMP-oriented plant layout
- HACCP-oriented design
Plant Utilities
- Steam Boiler
- Cooling Tower
- Soft Water System
- Electrical Power
- Instrument Air
- Process Water
- Air Compressor
Sustainability Features
The plant integrates environmentally sustainable engineering through:
- Condensate recovery and reuse
- Heat recovery systems
- Optimised steam utilisation
- Water recycling
- Energy-efficient condensers
- Reduced emissions
- Automated utility optimisation
- Eco-friendly process design
Customer Benefits
Following successful commissioning, the customer achieved:
- Increased essential oil recovery
- Higher citral retention
- Reduced steam consumption
- Lower utility costs
- Increased production capacity
- Improved process automation
- Better product stability
- Enhanced global competitiveness
- Faster return on investment
Plants Used In This Project
Why Mechotech?
Mechotech is a manufacturer of turnkey distillation and extraction plants for essential oils, herbal extracts, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, food processing, and aroma industries. Our expertise in steam distillation, hydro-distillation, condensate recovery, PLC-SCADA automation, and GMP-oriented engineering enables customers worldwide to manufacture premium essential oils.
Conclusion
The Lemongrass Essential Oil Distillation Plant from Mechotech provides a complete turnkey solution for producing premium Lemongrass Essential Oil with high citral content and excellent aroma. By combining advanced steam distillation technology, intelligent automation, sustainable engineering, and hygienic GMP design, the facility combines these process stages in a single turnkey solution.
Key Technical Highlights
- Raw Material
- Cymbopogon flexuosus / Cymbopogon citratus
- Finished Products
- Lemongrass Essential Oil, High-Citral Oil, Lemongrass Hydrosol
- Distillation Technology
- Steam Distillation / Hydro-Distillation (Optional)
- Automation
- PLC-SCADA with Industry 4.0 Integration
- Construction Material
- SS 304 / SS 316L
- Compliance
- Hygienic, GMP-oriented design with documentation to support the client's qualification; applicable standards are scoped per project
- Applications
- Flavour & Fragrance, Cosmetics, Pharmaceuticals, Nutraceuticals, Aromatherapy, Food Ingredients
Why Global Manufacturers Choose Mechotech
- engineering excellence in extraction and distillation technologies
- Complete turnkey project execution from feasibility study to commissioning
- Custom-engineered plants from 100 kg/day pilot systems to industrial facilities
- Energy-efficient steam distillation with optimised utility consumption
- High-performance condensers and precision oil separation systems
- Intelligent PLC-SCADA automation with batch traceability and production analytics
- Hygienic, GMP-oriented design with documentation to support the client's qualification; applicable standards are scoped per project
- Comprehensive installation, validation, operator training, preventive maintenance, spare parts support, and lifetime technical assistance
- Extensive expertise in essential oils, herbal extracts, spice processing, oleoresins, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and food processing plants
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