![]() ![]() Why bother knowing the flash points of essential oils?īecause it’s handy to know when adding essential oils to hot liquids like wax, carrier oil, and other bases when making lotions, salves, candles, etc. Here are some of the most common essential oils and their flash points: Just keep in mind that citrus essential oils and absolutes are more likely to break down when exposed to their flash point or higher no matter how tightly closed their caps may be. So, the rule of thumb here is to refrain from opening your oils until they have cooled.īelow is a list of essential oils (distilled, expressed, and chemically extracted) and their flash points. When essential oils have low enough flash points that even the temperature inside a hot car can cause them to vaporize, that’s when keeping your essential oils tightly sealed really comes in handy.Įven though the components within the essential oil may temporarily separate within the bottle, once the essential oil cools down again, these components re-condense and become “whole” again, leaving their chemical makeup intact. Many essential oils have pretty high flash points, however, there are, of course, essential oils that have lower flash points, some even as low as 100 degrees. This is what determines the vaporization of the most volatile compounds found in that particular oil. A rancid carrier oil will still turn rancid!Ī flash point is a point at which an essential oil is heated one degree at a time until a temperature is reached where there is a flash of fire when a tiny wand of flame hovers over the surface. It is important to note that carrier oils are susceptible to the ill effects of heat exposure no matter how much distilled essential oils are added to them. ![]() Oils made in this way include sweet almond oil, grape seed oil, coconut oil, etc. ![]() These types of oils are typically cold-pressed from the nuts or seeds of a plant to produce the oil. These are often used as the base for roll-on recipes, lotions, balms, salves, etc. I’ll briefly go over the other two types later.Īnother thing to note is carrier oils. The ones that are not affected by heat when capped tightly closed are distilled essential oils. Having said this, you still need to be aware that there are three main groups of essential oils – distilled, expressed, and chemically extracted. So, by nature, essential oils are born from high temperatures and will remain stable (as long as they are capped tightly closed) even if left in a hot car. I think it’s easy to forget that these amazing oils come from extraction processes (aka distillation) that use temperatures between 240 and 260 degrees (115-125C), WELL over the boiling point of water. If a pure essential oil is temporarily exposed to heat like if you forgot it in a hot car that reached upwards of 140 degrees, the oil would still be good as new as long as it stayed sealed until cool. How Hot and Cold Temperatures Affect Essential Oils It’s a common misconception that if an essential oil is exposed to heat, it will automatically lose its medicinal qualities. Stored in this way, pure essential oils can last for years and retain practically all of their original chemical components and potency.īut what happens if these precious oils are exposed to heat or cold? It goes without saying that essential oils do best when stored tightly sealed in a cool dark place in order to preserve their therapeutic properties. How Hot and Cold Temperatures Affect Essential Oils. ![]()
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