The Alchemy of Essence

the alchemy of essence

the alchemy ofe s s e n c e

ruth m. sumner

the alchemy of essence the alchemy of essence

Ruth SumneR has developed an aesthetic vocabu-lary that draws freely from cinema, medicine, anatomy, philosophy, neurology, literature and art among other areas. These references are blended into fluid and allusive nar-rative structures that are articulated through sculpture, prose, film, drawing, photography, and animation. Virtually every avenue is meandered down to realise the narrative thrust of the particluar design topic.

this beautiful and comprehensive report covers a snap-shot of Sumner’s life and her work from a four month period condensed down by The Alchemy of Essence to be the De Still system. Accompanying this book is a 1:2 scale model of De Still, a press pack containing 100% cotton teatowels with the press release statements typed on, a De Still branded apron, a box of developmental sketches and technical drawings and fourteen presentation panels.


the alchemy ofe s s e n c e

Final design thesisnovember 2011Ruth m. Sumner

Supervisors: Simon Fraser & tim miller


Published in 2011 by R. SumnerA Student of Industrial Design at Victoria university of Wel-lington.

Project working blog: www.para-disereplugged.wordpress.com

All images and text by Ruth Sum-ner, unless stated otherwise.

uSID: 300-06-208201-1

First Published 2011

Printed and Bound in New Zealand by Ruth Sumner Ltd., Te Aro, Wellington

Cover image: Plan view, 2011. Photograph of final model.


Contents

Preface 5Glossary 9IntroductIon 17

systems & Processes 23the Gardener 37

seeds & plants

the chemIst 45thermostatevaporatorstill headcondenser

user manual 101ergonomic data

the chef 107essential oildispensaryend product usage

conclusIon 127BIBlIoGraPhy 131

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the alchemy of essence the alchemy of essence4

image opposite: The Dunedin was the first refrigerated cargo ship bound for the uK from nZ, in 1882.


PrefaCe


Wellington Drive motors is the technology. It has exciting prospects to-ward designing a new refrig-eration system (harking on to new Zealand’s initial export-ing trade through the refriger-ated cargo ships, ref; Paradise Replugged book) the fridges operational system is also the driving force behind the distil-lation machine, where-by each works off the process of con-densation and evaporation, or simply the removal and relo-cation of heat.

the project brief states three defining areas of whom the design must appease, these being:

the technology, the commodity, And the brand.

thIS BooK is the resulting documentation of all research and design into the final year project for a degree in Indus-trial Design at Victoria uni-versity of Wellington. As this is the final project, it is there-fore the antithesis of every-thing that has come before.

Project BrIef

As the designer, you are the mediator between man and machine; through design you will marry the two in a mu-tual understanding of culture, value and respect, whilst also revealing new and unexpected relationships. You will define where NZ sits globally with its manufactured products through Design, adding value to the quotidian, by combining motor technol-ogy with digestive processes and relating it to the natural health care industry.

preface

PrefaCe


the Body Shop is the brand. there has been an increased uptake in the natural body care market as of recent, and to enable the Body Shop to keep up, a product like De Still (which is about health and beauty from within, through consumption of essences) will carve a new niche in the lucra-tive wellness market.

new Zealand Dairy is the commodity. Carrying on with the refriger-ated export cargo idea. the Dairy industry plays an under-current controversial yet vi-tally nurturing part in society, of which a serious raft has di-vorced one from the essence. the process cows go through in making dairy from grass is that of an alchemical fashion, of which is extrapolated into the design.

preface

7

image above: The Logos of WDt, the Body Shop and nZ Dairy industry.following page: The glass evaporator of the De Still system.


Glossary


Alchemy - Chemistry

alchemy “the best type of alchemist was a quiet, lonely and sincere seeker into the nature of things.” F. Sherwood Taylor, The Alchemists, Founders of mod-ern Chemistry. (Replika Process, London, 1951) p.1

aromatheraPy “no exter-nal sense is so intimately con-nected with the internal sense of perception as that of smell, and none are more capable of receiving such delicate impres-sions.” J. CH. Sawer. Odorographia, a natural history of raw materials and drugs used in the perfume industry. (Gurney & Jackson, London. 1892) p.v

authentIcIty “All he’d wanted were the same answers the rest of us want. Where did I come from? Where am I go-ing?” Bladerunner, 1982

BaBcock test “to test milk, first stir it from the bottom up, or pour it from pail to pail, but do not churn it. As soon as it is quiet, suck up into the milk pipette more than enough to cover the mark, cap the end with the finger and slowly let

the milk drop out until its upper level agrees with the mark.” from http://www.tumbledown-farm.com/drupal/How_To_Do_Things/Cattle_and_Dairy

BIoloGy “the knowledge of the structure of organised bodies, and in its literal sense [...] includes the study of the structure both of plants and animals.” Clark, Elementary Anato-my. (Blackie & Son, London) P.9

BorosIlIcate (Glass) “the apparatus is able to have a greater wall-thickness, and consequently greater me-chanical strength, without af-fecting the thermal strength.” R. Barbour, Glassblowing for Laboratory Technicians. (Pergamon Press, Oxford) p.7

chemIstry “the idea of “chemistry” -a science con-cerned with all the transfor-mation of one substance into another- had not occurred to anyone, and the word chemia at that time meant simply “al-chemy.” F. Sherwood Taylor, The Al-chemists, Founders of modern Chemistry. (Replika Process, London, 1951) p.195

glossary

10


Concentrate - Distillation

concentrate “I made or-ange juice from concentrate and showed her the trick of squeezing the juice of one real orange into it. It removes the taste of being frozen. She marvelled at this, and I laughed and said, Life is easy. What I meant was, Life is easy with you here, and when you leave, it will be hard again.” Miranda July

condense “the leaves streamed down, trembling in the sun. they were not green, only a few, scattered through the torrent, stood out in sin-gle drops of green so bright and pure that it hurt the eyes; the rest were not a colour, but a light, the substance of fire on metal, living sparks with-out edges. And it looked as if the forest were a spread of light boiling slowly to produce this colour, the green rising in small bubbles, the condensed essence of spring.” Ayn Rand, The Fountainhead (1943)

desIGner “the role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host, all of whose energy goes into trying to anticipate the needs of his guests.” Charles & Ray Eames.

dIGestIon “A strong and well-constituted man digests his experiences (deeds and misdeeds all included) just as he digests his meats, even when he has some tough morsels to swallow.” Friedrich Nietzsche, Essay 3, Aphorism 16 On the Genealogy of Morals (1887)

dIsconnectIon “our ad-diction to technological appli-ances further disconnects us, and in that disconnected state we can build factory farms with no windows.” Thandie New-ton: Embracing otherness, embracing my-self, TEDtalk, 2011

dIstIllatIon “many essen-tial oils posses the remarkable property that their vapours pass so largely with that of boiling water that they can be extracted in this way (by “dis-tillation”) from vegetable sub-

glossary

11


glossary

Domestic - evaporation

stances, though the essential oils have a boiling point far above that of water.” Furst, I. Perfumes and their preparation. (N.W. Henley: New York, 1892) p.92

domestIc “when you’re making kitchens the hub of modern houses, you’re bound to want status symbol gadgets that actually work.” Jeff Kennedy, founder of the rocket espresso machine. Sunday Star Times, September 18, 2011

effIcIency “our products are designed as energy saving replacements of traditional inefficient motors used in re-frigeration and ventilation.” Wellington Drive Motors, http://www.wdtl.com/

entroPy “the second law of thermodynamics, entropy, conceptually demonstrates the nature of chaos. Its basic assumption is that the quan-tity of energy in the universe remains constant. For exam-ple, the temperature of a hot coffee in a cup will soon drop to the temperature of its sur-roundings. this doesn’t mean

that the heat has disappeared. Rather it has achieved a bal-ance with its surrounding en-vironment” Kenya Hara, white, p9

essence “essence may be taken for the being of any thing, whereby it is what it is. And thus, the real internal, but generally, in substances, unknown constitution of things, whereon their discov-erable qualities depend, may be called their essence.” John Locke, An essay concerning Human un-derstanding (1841)

essentIal oIl “the name “essential (or volatile) oils” is due to the fact that the volatile vegetable aromatic substances cause a stain on paper similar to that produced by oils and fats; but the stain made by the former disappears spontane-ously after some time, while that due to true oils and fats persists.” Furst, I. Perfumes and their preparation. (N.W. Henley: New York, 1892) p.14

evaPoratIon “Precipitate as weather, she appeared from

12


glossary

Gastronomy - motorised

somewhere, then evaporated, leaving only memory.” Haruki Murakami, Dance, Dance, Dance (Ko-dansha International, Japan, 1988)

Gastronomy “...it concerns something which is both a sci-ence and an art… [F]or gas-tronomy, like architecture, re-quires intuition, imagination, enthusiasm, and an immense amount of organisational skill.” Eliasson, O. Milk Skin with Grass Noma, Time and Space in Nordic Cuisine. (London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2010) p.168

heston Blumenthal “These two became the first of a loose network of scien-tists and academics that have played a part in the restau-rant’s development, including several from the flavour and fragrance company Firmen-ich, which, with its shelves full of stoppered bottles con-taining every aroma imagina-ble, has proved an invaluable source of inspiration ever since.” from www.thefatduck.com

laBoratory “If anatomy

presupposes a corpse, then psychology presupposes a world of corpses. Person-alities, which means personal criticism and analysis, presup-pose a whole world laboratory of human psyches waiting to be vivisected. If you cut a thing up, of course it will smell. hence, nothing raises such an infernal stink, at last, as human psychology.” D.H. Lawrence

locavorIsm “Consumers increasingly are seeking out the flavours of fresh, vine-ripened foods grown on lo-cal farms rather than those trucked to supermarkets from faraway lands.” William Safire, Lo-cavorism. (NYTimes, 2008)

matter “once you can ac-cept the universe as matter expanding into nothing that is something, wearing stripes with plaid comes easy.” Albert Einstein

motorIsed “electricity’s extraordinary versatility as a source of energy means it can

13


be put to an almost limitless set of applications which in-clude transport, heating, light-ing, communications, and computation. electrical power is the backbone of modern industrial society.” Jones, D. Elec-trical engineering: the backbone of society,

neIGhBourhood food swaP “this is a giant step for-ward towards urban sustain-ability, reducing our carbon footprint and getting involved with the community. And what better way to meet other keen gardeners, swap your produce, reduce waste and have a yarn.” Mary Trigger, Sustain-able Gardening Australia leader.

PorcelaIn “A natural mate-rial that is born from fire, is immune to corrosion, as pure as glass, remains unaffected by time and atmospheric con-ditions and can always be re-cycled.” http://www.iei-world.org

PotaGer Garden “A garden that combines both edible and ornamental plants; a vegetable garden that is utilitarian in

neighbourhood Food Swap - Reductionism

nature but designed with beauty in mind” from: http://home-steadrevival.blogspot.com

PreservatIon “every per-son has a right to risk their own life for the preservation of it.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau

ProductIon “From the 1880s two major influences on commercial food produc-tion – canning and refrigera-tion – were introduced.” from: http://www.teara.govt.nz/

recolonIal “Rather than undergoing a steadily pro-gressive independence from Britain, new Zealand entered a “recolonial” phase in the 1880s, with the launching of refrigerated cargo ships bear-ing, by 1941, 500,000 tonnes of meat and dairy products to england: it operated as a long distance market town for London, and emotional as well as financial ties to Britain were tightened for nearly a century.” Emily Perkins. The guard-ian. 6 July 2002

reductIonIsm “If you want

glossary

14


to understand a complex sys-tem, you break it down into its component parts, and when you understand the individ-ual parts, you will be able to understand the complex sys-tem.” Robert Sapolsky, Stanford

refrIGeratIon “The defi-nition of refrigeration is the removal and relocation of heat. So if something is to be refrigerated, it is to have heat removed from it.” http://www.re-frigerationbasics.com

rItual “… ritual is an event upon which its participants depend; theatre is an event which depends on its partici-pants”. Tiwari, R. Space - body - ritual: performativity in the city. (Plymouth: Lex-ington Books, 2010) P.18

rumInate “a cow repeat-edly chewing and spitting up a cud of grass, or the repetitive process of considering and assessing ideas” Hara, white p18

system “I think that the earth’s immune system is try-ing to get rid of us, as well it should.” Kurt Vonnegut

Refrigeration - Value

terroIr “A Plate of milk skin with grass, flowers and herbs. that was one of the dishes on the day’s menu. the garnish came from the field, where the cow that had supplied the milk had walked, grazed and defecated. the plate itself was a small closed ecosystem, which I ate my way through with some surprise (after all it was a rath-er slimy-looking pancake with some greenery on top). there was no doubt about it: my mouth was exploring eve-ry area of the field.” Eliasson, O. Milk Skin with Grass Noma, Time and Space in Nordic Cuisine. (London: Phai-don Press Limited, 2010) p.7

value “Knowledge is a pub-lic good and increases in value as the number of people pos-sessing it increases.” John will-banks vice president of science at creative commons.

glossary

15


IntroduCtIon


De StIjL was about a reduction to the essentials. De StILL is a domestic dis-tillation kit for extracting out the essence of things through steam distillation; this is real-ised through the process of evaporation and condensa-tion. this process also holds true for a refrigeration motor, which is a condenser and an evaporator working to remove and relocate heat. the fridge is an important driver in this project as it was the kick-start-er for the new Zealand Dairy industry. (Ref. page 4)the process cows go through in making dairy from grass is that of an alchemic fashion. thus the system of digestion is re articulated into a revised system of processes for distil-lation.

introduction

the art of distillation comes shrouded in mystery, reserved in ones mind for the labora-tory. De Still is the first step in bringing that system of al-chemy into the home. the do-mestic reappointation is an act of locavorism, to get users to grow their own essential oils. the end product has the op-portunity, (if you are harvest-ing from your kitchen gar-den), to use the essential oils in cooking.the component parts are also distilled down to the essence. the Condenser is sympathetic to the stomach and expressive of its contained volume and the thermostat is a motorised system that processes in a slow human way.

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IntroduCtIon

image opposite: De Stijl poster, 1921previous page: Press Release teatowel.


introduction

19


Design a domestic appliance that brings the system of al-chemy into the home and enables a mutual relationship to bond between the user and the technology involved. this will be a modern accessible means of distilling out the essence of things. the end product (essential oil) will be used in gastronomical culi-nary creations.

the key answer to this project is the generation of value.Value is obtained in the very act of creating some-thing yourself, its all about the blood, the sweat and the tears. therefore, the Alchemy of essence is the creation of social value and increased knowledge achieved through design.

introduction

20

the desIGn brIef

image above: Domestic electric motors and their manual counterparts. image opposite: How Pleasure works, Paul Bloom, Page 142


introduction

21


1


systems & ProCesses


Solid to liquid to gas is en-acted through the addition of heat, the reverse of gas to liq-uid to solid is enacted through the removal of heat.

the area of interest for this project (specifically with rela-tion to the refrigeration sys-tem of evaporation and con-densation) is the liquid to gas to liquid to gas and so forth cycle.

the De Still system encourag-es and enhances the refrigera-tion functions of condensa-tion and evaporation through a reciprocal cycle.

systems & processes

24

the states of matter

previous page: Cow with four stomachsimage right: States of matter, solid to liquid to gas.


systems & processes

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the driver for the Alchemy of Essence is the motor; being defined as ‘a thing that im-parts motion’*; Digestion also works under this definition. therefore, De Still is a system of processes that is based on the alchemical digestive sys-tem of a cow, (the cows four stomach compartments cre-ate this magical conversion of grass to milk) as the milk that cows produce is the forbearer of new Zealand, it sustains us economically as well as nutri-tionally.

this nourishment of diary is re articulated through the De Still system ‘digesting’ plants into flavoursome essential oils to be used in culinary crea-tions that sustain nutritionally as well as emotionally.

* OED definition.

dIGestIon

the digestive system of a cow

1/ the mouth2/ the rumen3/ the reticulum4/ the mouth again5/ the omasum6/ the abomasum7/ the intestine

systems & processes

26

image above: Mans digestive systemimage right: Cows digestive system


systems & processes

28

eaCh steP of the ProCess from seed to sell:

1/ seeds

2/ Garden

3/ sun

4/ Cut

5/ WeIGh

6/ heat

7/ Water

8/ steam

9/ bIomass

10/ Cool

11/ Condense

12/ oIl

13/ dIsPense

14/ label

15/ sell

system of dIstIllatIon

image above: chart of the De Still systemimage right: De Still essential elements breakdown


One of the most efficient ways essential oils are ex-tracted from plant material is through steam distillation. Firstly, fresh or dried plants are placed into a vessel that has steam passing through it from a boiling water chamber.the steam vaporises the vola-tile oils in the plants, carrying the essential oils through to the condenser.the condenser chamber is cooled, turning the steam back into a liquid, which drips down into a collection vessel. The hydrosol (floral waters) are then separated from the essential oils via a Florentine neck.A traditional distillation setup is very spread out, it has hoses everywhere, and the compart-mentalised elements are dis-jointed from one another, as per image opposite.In the De Still set up, there is

the CyClIC system

a continuous flow happening. Instead of a Bunsen burner and hoses of chilled water, the temperature is controlled through a fridge motor con-cept where the evaporator takes away heat and the con-denser gives off heat.

a tradItIonal system

1/ heat source (typically a Bunsen burner)2/ evaporator with plant mat-ter inside3/ cool source (cold water)4/ condenser5/ oil collection vessel

the de stIll system

1/ compressor2/ heat source3/ evaporator with plant mat-ter inside4/ condenser dispenser5/ cool source (evaporator)6/ expander

systems & processes

30

image right: De Still versus Traditional Distillation set up.

the alchemy of essencethe alchemy of essence

“If you want to understand a com-plex system, you break it down into its component parts, and when you understand the individual parts, you will be able to understand the complex system.”

-Robert Sapolsky –Stanford.

reduCtIonIsm

systems & processes

32

image right: exploded sketch of the De Still Systemimage far right: De Still hand drawn garamond font poster


reduCtIonIsm

systems & processes

33


“Essence may be taken for the being of anything, whereby it is what it is. And thus, the real internal, but generally, in substances, unknown constitution of things, where on their discoverable qualities depend may be called their essence.” john Locke, 1841, an essay con-cerning human understanding.

the kit consists of four key components; a borosilicate glass evaporator, a porcelain and steel mesh still head, a hand-blown glass condenser and a porcelain motorised thermostat plate. the mate-rialities of which borrow no-tions from equally chemistry and domesticity.

the Whole system

systems & processes

34

image right: photograph of the whole De Still System


systems & processes

35


2


the Gardener


The first step in the alchemy of essence system is to plant the seeds from which the plants you will distil oils from will grow.the growing potager garden vogue is a prime precedent for harvesting the plants for your essential oils locally, add-ing value to the ‘flavour of the region.’

the Plants

the gardener

38

previous page:User Profile, the gardenerimage right:Seeds to generate the plants from.image far right: Concentration ratio of plants to oilfollowing pages:Details of Seed packets for De Still, Seed packets in rack,Global essential oil trade for uK


the gardener

39

ConCentratea tWo lItre volume of Plant matter Can be dIs-tIlled doWn to a mere four mIllIlItre (80 droPs) of essentIal oIl.When distilling a plant of its es-sential oils, there is a dramatic re-duction in volume, and an equal increase in value.


the gardener

40


the gardener

41


Image left:The chart opposite cites all of the culinary plants of whom aromas can be preserved through steam distillation.Image right:Ginger Scallops recipe from heston Blumenthal, using Ginger essen-tial oil.


3


the ChemIst


the thermostat


the thermostat is the base in which the entire De Still sys-tem rests upon. It is a temperature controller for both the evaporator and the condenser.the temperature is controlled through a refrigerator motor concept where the evapora-tion takes away heat (essential-ly cooling) and the condenser gives off heat (heating the wa-ter to then evaporate) once the heater is at 100 de-grees Celsius, the process is in a continuous state of transfer-ence and requires very little if any energy input from the grid.

the reciprocal nature of the motorised thermostat is an energy efficient way of utilis-ing a motor system further en-hancing WDt motors energy efficiency niche.

the thermostat

the chemist

48

Previous pages:User Profile, the chemist,thermostat working sketchesImage right:Thermostat sketches


the thermostat exterior shells are made from Ceramic Por-celain as it acts as an electri-cal insulator, holds incred-ible temperature control and has the reassuring tactility of crockery.the Porcelain used is typically composed of a high propor-tion of halloysite Kaolin Al2Si2o5(oh)42h2o+Sio2 the world’s leading porcelain manufacturers use halloysite from new Zealand because the purity of the clay and the low iron and titania content produce exceptional white-ness and translucency to ce-ramic ware.“halloysite clays are currently mined in northland at two sites: matauri Bay and mahi-mahi. About 80,000 cubic me-tres of the raw clay are mined each year by Imerys tableware new Zealand Ltd. the clay is excavated and transported to

the treatment facility. At the present rate of production, the current site has another 40 years of production.the clay was formed by hy-drothermal alteration and subsequent subtropical weath-ering of Pliocene/Pleistocene rhyolites. the unprocessed material typically contains 50% halloysite, 50% silica and occasional minor feldspar. us-ing careful grade controls at the mine site, clay is extract-ed using open cast quarrying methods and stockpiled into various plant feed grades. Ap-proximately 50% of the plant feed is supplied from each quarry. the clay is processed using crushing, grinding and fine gravity separation tech-niques.”

CeramIC manufaCture

the chemist

52

Previous page:Photograph of thermostat modelImage right:Thermostat exploded sketch


the chemist

53


A large metal master mold is used, to form the plaster mold, which in turn is used to make the production moulds. After being formed, the por-celain ‘shells’ are bisque-fired, which helps minimize shrink-age during firing. next, the pieces are hand-painted with an enamel glaze, for strength and lasting beau-ty.The parts are then fired in a gas and electricity kiln, which is more economical and en-ergy efficient than a periodic kiln; going through these steps, for the following rea-sons:“…the ware will enter a preheating zone and move through a central firing zone before leaving the kiln via a cooling zone. During the firing process, a variety of reactions takes place. First, carbon-based

impurities burn out, chemi-cal water evolves (at 100 to 200 degrees Celsius), and car-bonates and sulphates begin to decompose (at 400 to 700 degrees Celsius). Gases are produced that must escape from the ware. on further heating, some of the minerals break down into other phases, and the flux (feldspar) reacts with the decomposing min-erals to form liquid glasses (at 700 to 1,100 degrees Cel-sius). these glass phases are necessary for shrinking and bonding the grains. After the desired density is achieved (greater than 1,200 degrees Celsius), the ware is cooled, which causes the liquid glass to solidify, thereby forming a strong bond between the remaining crystalline grains. After cooling, the porcelain is complete.”

ProduCtIon ProCess

the chemist

54


the chemist

55

Image right:Collage of firing up the kilnfollowing pages:p.56-57 Photograph of motor p.58-59 sketch of compressor, and photograph of fridgep.60-61 Photograph of model detail.


the chemist

56


the chemist

57


the evaPorator


the evaporator is essentially a ‘vase’ made from blown glass that contains the water (max 400ml) to be boiled, and thus evaporated into steam. this steam then passes through the still head that is inserted two thirds into the evaporator, sealing up the top opening. the tapered cylindrical form is derived from equally chem-istry lab conical flasks, tradi-tional milk bottles and size/volume efficiency.there is a side inlet for the addition of hydrosol (floral water) during operation, this works on a cyclic basis where the hydrosol flows back from the condenser to continue and enhance the distilling process.the base of the unit is in-dented much like a wine bot-tle, aiding in directing the heat from the thermostat table be-neath.

the evaPorator

the chemist

64

previous page:Evaporator working sketchesImage right:Evaporator sketchesfollowing page:Render of evaporator

“Glass is both the material used and the ideal to be achieved, both ends and means [...] It does not change over time as a function of its content [...] Nor does it shroud the content in mystery.”

p42, Baudrillard.

the manufacture of glass is a facinating process, meld-ing art, science and dexterity; from sand granules to a mol-ten state, to a transparently rigid form. The fluid nature of produc-tion was a high influencer in the design of the glass forms (both evaporator and con-denser).


Images above:Photographic documentation of glass blowing production, featuring Laboratory equip-ment glass blower, Grant Franklin.Image right:Technical drawings of evaporatorfollowing page:Photograph of glass evaporator

the chemist

68


the stIll head


the still head is based on a sieve, extruded out to a depth that contains a two litre vol-ume of biomass and is of a proportional relationship to equally average hand span and the evaporator vessel in which it inserts into. the portion of the still head that is not submerged within the evaporator is made of thick ceramic porcelain for in-sulation and comforting tactil-ity factors. Whilst the extruded ‘sieve’ part of the still head is a stain-less steel mesh for permeable qualities.the top of the still head hous-es the inlet for the condenser through which a big cork stopper seals the opening.

the stIll head

the chemist

74

previous page:Still head working sketchesImage above:volumetric testing documentationImage right:Still head sketchesfollowing pages:Pg. 76-77 Photograph of Stillhead modelPg. 78 Collage of harvesting Pg. 79 Technical drawings of still headPg. 80-81 Photograph of still head in use

how to calculate the volume of a sphere: v=4/3*π*radius3how to calculate the volume of a cylinder: v= π*r2*h


the chemist

78


the Condenser


the Condenser

the condenser was formed through an exploration in the nature of its action: the drip-ping condensation formed within its cool glass walls. the form also hints toward the nature of perfumery at-omiser bottles, and chemistry lab equipment tying the whole kit up in tidy package.

the condenser works on the chemistry of when steam is cooled it forms back into a liquid, this is achieved within the condenser through the reciprocal flow in the thermo-stat beneath it. the thermostat beneath the condenser draws out any resi-due heat and cycles it back into the heating of the evapo-rator.

the condensed distillate trick-les down the condenser to the receptacle where the water

(now hydrosol) is naturally separated from the hydropho-bic oil, and the hydrosol flows through the s-curve back into the evaporator to continue the cycle, resulting in highly refined end product.

the chemist

84

previous page:Condenser working sketchesImage above:Florentine flask from: Furst, I. (1892) Per-fumes and their preparationImage right:Condenser sketchesfollowing page:Render of Condenser model


Image above:Dripping experiment documentation stillImage right:Condenser technical drawingsFollowing pageCondenser working sketches


the chemist

92

Image above:Condensate flow diagramImage right:Digestive reference, source unknown.

the alchemy of essence the alchemy of essence 93

the chemist


the chemist

96

previous page:Condenser mould documentationImage left:CondensationImage above:Traditional Distillation setup with retorts. from: Furst, I. (1892) Perfumes and their preparation Image right:Hand blown Glass condenser model sitting in cooling dip in thermostat plate. following page:Photograph of condenser in De Still system


4


the proportional values of circumferences in the still head, evaporator and con-denser are designed in accord-ance to the relation to the av-erage hand.

ergonomic data

care & use instructions

104

previous pages:pg. 100-101 Care & Use instruction manualpg. 102-103 How to use guideImages right:Ergonomic hand data, including propor-tional relationships of product to hand.


care & use instructions

105


5


the Chef


the dIsPensary


the end product is an essen-tial oil that the customer pro-duces from their own garden to use in future season dishes. Due to the preservation na-ture of distillation, the fresh aromas of spring herbs can be re-experienced in the chilly depths of winter. the dispenser works in the same fashion as a traditional pipette, for drawing up meas-ured volumes of the end product, to then dispense into awaiting vials. An aesthetic reference to plant biology is touched upon in the final form of the dis-penser, to relish in the nature of drawing up liquid from the earth below.

the dIsPensary

the chef

110

previous pages:pg. 107 User Profile: the Chefpg. 108-109 Dispensary Working sketchesImages right:The Milkmaid, johannes Vermeer, 1658Render of 1ml vial to dispense oil into.Dispensary sketches


the chef

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image above:Traditional Pipette usage from: Sawer, j.C. odorographiaImages right:Dispenser in use and photographs of final form.Following page:Photograph of pipette dispensing oil.


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image left:De Still branded apronImages above (clockwise from top)Roll of De Still labelslabelling end product vialdispensing oil into recipedispensing oil into vialwriting out labels


Images left and right:Documentation of using ginger essential oil to season scallops before cooking, as per a recipe by the experimental chef hes-ton Blumenthal.only two drops of oil were required to produce an exqui-site mouth watering flavour. De Still and enjoy.


the customer is of upmost importance when designing a product, or in this case a serv-ice or process or kit. A deeper understanding is gained through a re-enact-ment of the possible range of end user profiles.

the essential oil industry is primarily used in four over arching industries (as per user value chain chart): Flavour, Personal Care, Pharmaceuti-cal and Industrial Industries, these industries are further divided into sub components.essential oils are primarily seen in the consumers eyes as an aromatherapy product (personal care sector) and hence marketed and sold as such. Although the majority of plants used in steam distil-lation are culinary related.

The Customer

The Chef/ Whom the project is geared towards, someone of the likes of heston Blumen-thal, a gastronomical wizard.

The Gardener/ A keen ad-vocate for preserving their labour in 1ml bottles of es-sence.

The Aromatherapist/ (image right)

In all of her eccentricities is of course interested in how the oils she uses in her prac-tice are made.

The Chemist/ helps them to expand on ideas generated in the laboratory, in the home.

The Entrepreneur/ takes on the community challenge much like a pumpkin growing contest, but in this case, pro-ducing the best essential oils of the region.

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The Customer

The Aroma therapist

the alchemy of essence the alchemy of essence(diagram data source: essential oils Incubator, SeDA , 2009)

user value ChaIn


the end product usage of es-sential oil is shifting from an aromatherapy niche to culi-nary based. Bringing greater flavour and aroma to dishes, much like vanilla essence has a long-standing relationship with our pantry.Consuming the essence of plants not only tastes incred-ible but also makes you better looking; As pure beauty and optimum health come from within.Images left:fijian vanilla essence


the ConClusIon


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one must not underestimate the importance of aroma in everyday life. the mouth wa-ters at the smell of cooking and rekindles memories from the waft of a certain flower. De Still is a domestic steam distillation system that enables the budding gastronomical chef to harness the aromas of their garden in a concentrated form, and gain pure value through the process of mak-ing something themselves. the design of the De Still system was also a hands on in depth look into the process of designing, through distill-ing something down to its es-sence, both literally and figu-ratively.the Alchemy of essence is an entrepreneurial toolkit of processes that bridges the gap between people and products, between culture and technol-ogy.

ConClusIon

“From the point of view of the comparative zoologist, the species Homo sapiens exhibits many of the characteristics one would expect to find in a species which has an active olfactory communication sys-tem, namely the presence of dense aggregations of specialised scent-producing apocrine glands, and the recention of tufts of hair around those aggregations. in the social behaviour of modern man there is evidence of an enigmatic umbra surrounding man’s olfactory world. Humans are acutely aware of body odour, removing it with lavish en-thusiasm and high frequency.”

Previous page:Bulging thermostat of De StillImage far right: De Still system in the kitchenFollowing page:Water in the evaporator.


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Ruth SumneR grew up in new Zealand with a paintbrush in hand. She has worked at a button fac-tory, a veterinary clinic, a physiotherapy clinic, a natu-ral health clinic, and as a manufacturer of remedies at Weleda. She studied Fine Arts in a retired monk monastery, then went on to study Industrial Design at Victoria univer-sity of Wellington. She is an emerging designer who focuses on humanist design, created by a fine blend of science, art and passion.

The Alchemy of Essence

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