
Garlic

Garlic
Mechotech designs and manufactures turnkey spice-oil distillation plants for garlic bulb (Allium sativum). The plant recovers garlic essential oil by steam or hydro-distillation. Mechotech’s legacy garlic oleoresin page describes garlic’s organosulfur compounds as volatile and reactive, so charge preparation and still conditions are set during process development. The solvent-extracted oleoresin and allicin-standardised routes are listed on separate pages.
Mechotech’s garlic oil plant is configured around the raw material and the target oil. It is built in SS 316L with integrated condensers and oil–water separation, PLC-based automation and full documentation, and is delivered as a commissioned turnkey system. Charge handling is configured around the reactivity of garlic’s sulphur compounds. The distillation mode and operating parameters are established during process development and pilot validation. Garlic oil is made of sulphides formed when allicin breaks down during distillation, so the line is built around gentle, low-temperature steam distillation and careful condensation rather than allicin recovery; the allicin-standardised product is a separate route.
Technical Specifications
| Product | Garlic Distillation Plant |
|---|---|
| Botanical Name | Allium sativum |
| Raw Material | Garlic bulb |
| Plant Part / Feed Form | Bulb (cloves; exact feed form confirmed with the client) |
| Principal Sulphides | Diallyl disulfide (about 60% of the finished oil) and diallyl trisulfide (about 20%), per Mechotech’s garlic oil distillation article; allicin itself does not survive distillation intact |
| Product Category | Spices Oils Distillation Plants |
| Extraction Method | Steam, hydro, vacuum or pressure distillation — selected for the volatility and heat-sensitivity of the target oil |
| Distillation Temperature | Low-temperature steam distillation at 80–95 °C, as described in the article; conditions for the client’s material are set during process development |
| Product-contact Material | SS 316L |
| Condensation | Multi-tube condenser with chilled-water circulation |
| Oil–Water Separation | Stainless-steel Florentine flask |
| Finishing | Polish filtration; drying over anhydrous sodium sulphate or by vacuum |
| Automation | PLC-based |
| Plant Capacity | Configured to requirement |
| Utility Requirements | Steam, chilled/cooling water, compressed air and power (project-specific) |
| Compliance | GMP hygienic design; full documentation for qualification |
| Final Product Form | Garlic essential oil; aromatic hydrosol as co-product |
Plant Capacities
| Plant Scale | Raw Material Throughput | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot | Configured to your feedstock and trial plan | Product development, parameter validation |
| Semi-Commercial | Configured between pilot and commercial scale | Scale-up trials, contract manufacturing |
| Commercial | Configured to raw-material supply and confirmed buyer volume | Commercial production |
Capacity is configured to raw-material supply, confirmed buyer volume and investment timeline; a pilot plant is recommended to validate parameters before scaling.
Manufacturing Process
Raw Material Preparation
Garlic bulbs are peeled or cleaned and crushed or sliced before charging so that the oil-forming compounds are released; the preparation, charge density and any soaking are set during process development.
Charging & Distillation
The prepared Garlic charge is loaded into the SS 316L still and distilled by steam, hydro, vacuum or pressure distillation, selected during process development for the volatility and heat-sensitivity of the target oil.
Condensation
Vapours pass through a multi-tube condenser with chilled-water circulation, condensing the oil and hydrosol.
Oil–Water Separation
Condensate is separated in a stainless-steel Florentine flask; the oil is collected and the hydrosol is drawn off and can be recovered as a co-product.
Polishing & Drying
The crude oil is polish-filtered and dried over anhydrous sodium sulphate or by vacuum to remove residual moisture.
Quality Control
Each batch is sampled for GC-MS profile and physical parameters — specific gravity, refractive index, optical rotation — against the client’s specification.
Major Plant Equipment
- Raw material washing, sorting and slicing / grinding system
- SS 316L distillation still / extractor
- Multi-tube condenser with chilled-water circulation
- Stainless-steel Florentine flask (oil–water separator)
- Polish filtration system
- Drying unit (anhydrous sodium sulphate or vacuum)
- CIP system
- PLC-based automation and instrumentation
Plant Output
Applications
- Aromatherapy and wellness product formulations
- Natural perfumery and fine fragrance compositions
- Cosmetics and personal care — moisturisers, serums, shampoos
- Pharmaceutical topical formulations and liniments
- Food flavouring and beverage applications (food-grade, where permitted)
- Insect repellent and household cleaning product formulations
- Spa and massage oil products
- Natural air fresheners and home fragrance diffusers
Key Features
SS 316L Construction
Product-contact surfaces are SS 316L for corrosion resistance and product purity, with CIP capability between batches.
Efficient Condensation
Multi-tube condensers with chilled-water circulation condense the volatile oil and hydrosol and limit loss of volatile top-notes.
Sulphur-Compound Handling
Charge preparation and still conditions are configured around garlic’s reactive, volatile organosulfur compounds, as described on Mechotech’s garlic oleoresin page.
Low-Temperature Garlic Distillation
The still is configured for low-temperature steam distillation of garlic, with condensation and oil–water separation matched to the volatile sulphide oil.
Hydrosol Recovery
Integrated oil–water separation allows the aromatic hydrosol to be drawn off and recovered as a co-product.
Scalable Capacity
Plants are configured to requirement from pilot scale upward, with modular expansion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Mechotech supply the complete machinery for Garlic?
What specification can the Garlic plant achieve?
What production capacities are available for the Garlic plant?
Which part of Garlic is processed in the distillation plant?
How is Garlic oil produced in the plant?
How does this page differ from Mechotech’s other garlic pages?
Which related spice-oil plants does the catalogue list?
Is garlic oil the same as allicin?
Ready to discuss your project?
Get a free quote and technical consultation from our engineering team.