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Rotary Evaporator Applications

Rotary Evaporator Applications

Rotary Evaporator Applications

As an essential separation equipment, a rotary evaporator can remove a volatile solvent from a liquid mixture through evaporation and condensation. In the industrial field, people use rotary evaporators to extract CBD, which is the main component of marijuana. And CBD is usually used to be made into medicine in pharmaceutical field. In people’s daily life, rotary evaporators are used at home for extracting water from all kinds of juices, which makes juices have a better taste. In chemical and biochemical labs, rotary evaporators are used by professors to extract chemical substances, which will be further applied for other chemical purposes.

In recent years, the application of rotary evaporator has been extended to the cooking industry. Molecular cooking is a science that applies the principles of chemistry and physics to cooking. To some extent, molecular cooking has been promoted to be a proper term for describing innovative cooking styles. It is synonymous with cutting-edge technology and even psychology. The use of a rotary evaporator to non-heat evaporate liquid, thus retaining volatile aromatics that are easily lost by heating, is a perfect combination of modern culinary and experimental instruments.

Because of so many applications, a rotary evaporator has been quite well-received these days.

The applications of rotary evaporators are widespread from factories to laboratories, and today they are even used for cooking purposes in kitchens.

The basic principles of rotary evaporators are based on lowered pressure distillation, evaporation flask, snakelike condenser pipe, receiving flask, water bath, and motor. These make up the main components of the rotary evaporator.

The Basic Applications of A Rotary Evaporator

Purify and Separate A Reaction Product

The rotary evaporator is primarily used for the continuous distillation of different volatile solvents that are placed under lowered pressure conditions. More specifically, the concentration associated with the extract, along with the distillation of a receiving liquid linked with chromatographic separation, is able to purify and separate a reaction product.

Rotary Evaporator Applications

Educational Use


The applications of the rotary evaporator are mainly focused on scientific research along with the production processes of chemical, biological, pharmaceutical products, along with other industries. The functions of a rotary evaporator have to do with evaporation, crystallization, concentration, drying, solvent recovery, and separation.

Educational rotary evaporators are also widely used for teaching experiments in laboratories. During these experiments, when an evaporation bottle is used on a table, it does not roll or break easily, which helps to reduce the expenses relating to school experiments.

Rotary evaporator educational use

Applications of Rotary Evaporator in Industry.


The main application industries linked with rotary evaporators are biological, chemical engineering, and medical products relating to the production and different types of scientific research. Crystallization, evaporation, separation, solvent recovery processes, and drying are all necessary for all the industries that handle and process reaction solvents.

Laboratories are other areas where industrial rotary evaporators play an important role. During experimental processes, the evaporating flask is displayed on top of a desk, where it won’t roll or break.

In Molecular Cooking Industry

rotary evaporator cooking


In more recent years, the rotary evaporator applications are now used within the cooking industry for molecular cooking. Molecular gastronomy or molecular cooking is a type of science that applies chemical and physical principles to the world of cooking. Molecular cooking is better known as an“innovative cooking style”, that combines psychological cooking skills with advanced technology.

This style of cooking uses rotary evaporators that non-heat evaporate liquids, that help to retain the volatile aromatics in foods that are usually lost through the process of heating. It has also been described as the ideal combination of experimental instruments and modern culinary.


In Chemistry Industries

rotary evaporator cooking applications


But most commonly, the rotary evaporators are used in the chemistry-related environments for the purpose of gentle, yet extremely efficient removal of one or more solvents from a sample through the process of evaporation under a vacuum.

These chemical evaporators are made up of heating baths that come with rotating flasks. The liquid that is placed into the heating bath will distribute in a thin layer of film over the surfaces of the hot flask walls, which helps the liquid to evaporate easily. The rate of evaporation will be regulated by the temperature of the heating bath, the flask size, along with the distillation pressure. Other supporting factors include how fast the evaporation flask is rotating, and the coolant temperatures. In general, the principles of vacuum distillation are rotary distillation.

Concentration of Extracts:In extractive industries, such as in the production of essential oils, pharmaceuticals, or natural products, rotary evaporators are used to concentrate the extract by removing the solvent.

Drug Formulation:In pharmaceutical research and development, rotary evaporators are used to evaporate solvents from drug formulations, ensuring that the final product is free from residual solvents.

Sterilization:Rotary evaporators can be used in the food and beverage industry for gentle evaporation of solvents during the sterilization process of liquids without affecting the quality of the product.

Chemical Synthesis:In organic chemistry, rotary evaporators are used to remove solvents from reaction mixtures, especially when the products are heat-sensitive or when a clean evaporation process is required.

Wine Making:In the wine industry, rotary evaporators can be used for the gentle concentration of musts and wines by removing volatile compounds.

Research and Development:In R&D settings, rotary evaporators are essential for evaporating solvents from various samples to obtain concentrated research materials.

Laboratory Scale Production:For small-scale production of chemicals, rotary evaporators are used to recover solvents and concentrate solutions.

Analytical Chemistry:In analytical labs, rotary evaporators can be used to prepare samples for gas chromatography by removing solvents and concentrating the analyte.

Aquarium Maintenance:In some cases, rotary evaporators are used to remove alcohol or other solvents from aquarium water as part of maintaining a healthy environment for aquatic life.

Material Science:In the production of high-purity solids, such as polymers or metals, rotary evaporators can be used to remove volatile contaminants from solutions.

The versatility of rotary evaporators makes them a valuable tool in many industries and research fields, where precise control over the evaporation process is required to maintain the quality and integrity of the final product.

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