Extraction is a way of removing both organic and inorganic constituents in the samples. The extraction can only take place in the presence of solvents such as water, hexane, methanol e.t.c.
Solvent is a substance that has ability or capable of dissolving solute to form a solution. Solvent can be categorised into polar and non polar solvent. Polar solvents are solvent that has ability to remove polar constituents from the samples while the non polar solvents is capable of removing non polar constituents from the samples.
Polar solvents: water, methanol ,ethanol
Non polar solvent : pet ether, hexane
In a laboratory , extraction can be done using different methods such as soaking , soxhlet apparatus e.t.c. The time of the extraction depend on the type of method used. After the extraction process there is going to be mixture of solvent and the extract in solution,separation of the solvent from the solution is the next process, which involve different methods some of which include rotary evaporator e.t.c.
Extraction can take place both in the field and in the laboratory, in large scale and small scale, making it the most important methods in industries. extraction process finds its application in various fields such as oil refinery. The literature of extraction is vast and is the only process that got developed, developing and underdeveloped countries in pace . Extraction decides the level of purity and the quality of any material and finished goods in the society, we can develop material quality by improving the extractive process which provide greater advantage and reduce cost of production because its a cheap process but high level of quality value is guaranteed. It is the most important aspect of industrialisation and its aspect goes beyond imagination.
Pharmaceutical industries depends solely on the high level of precision achieved during the extraction process, this gives the department a more application in the societal continuum , industrial chemists are coming up with many ideas that improves the level of precision achieved during this process,different methods have being greatly achieved which gives the highest accuracy and precise valued on both large and small scale extraction process most especially the extraction of secondary metabolites in leaves such Alkaloids, Tannins , Flavonoids , Steroids ,glycosides ,Saponins e.tc.
Pharmaceutical drug
