dandilion leaves, and turn them into powder.

[bionat]

I would like to be able to take dandilion leaves, and turn them into powder.


I would like to mix the powder with water.
This wil be a vitamin supplement drink.

 

[MedicineEng]

What is exactly your question?

 

[bionat]

Hi MedicineEng


I would like to take plant leaves,and turn them into concentrated powder form.

 

[ElderX]

Hi,
We used to do some thing similar when I worked for Glaxo-Wellcom. We made digitalis from the leaves of the Foxglove plant. I'm not a ChemE and I don't know the whole process but it involved grinding the leaves then reducing them to a syrup using HC acid. There are a number of steps involved. Bet if you look up info on digitalis you will get what you need to know.

 

[bionat]

Hi ElderX
Thank you for the reply

 

[MedicineEng]

bionat:
Besides the industrial process, if you are thinking on selling this product, you have to consider also all the regulatory issues in your country regarding vitamin supplements.
Regarding your question, for the little that I know, I think that you have to find the right solvent to dissolve the components that you want to extract from the leaves and then arrange a way to let's say, evaporate that solvent in a oven or something like this.
Eventually it would be easier to make like a liquid concentrate than a powder because usually vitamins are sensible to heat. Unless you find another way to make the powder.
Good luck.

 

[bionat]

Hi MedicineEng
I do want to do this for business.
It does not have to be in powder form, I like your idea of making it in liquid concentrate.
I have to look into whether this can be done on a small scale.
Thanks for your reply

 

[MedicineEng]

Good luck with you quest.
Nevertheless, as I pointed out previously there are other issues beyond tuning the productive process of your product that you have to think about, namely:

-In your country who is the governing body responsible for licensing and approval of vitamin supplements? It should be something similar to FDA in US;
-Stability and replicability of your production process
-Side-effects: Unless this is already a product in the market and you are replicating all the steps, you'll have to prove that your product is safe;
-Interactions with other suplements/medicines;
-restrictions for use-any particular age should be restricted to use? Any persons with a particular disease or disability?pregnant women? children?
-Stability data-to stablish your storage conditions (do you need cold storage, etc.?) and validity date.

These are just some of the issues that crossed my mind and for sure there must be a lot otehrs, but I am not an expert in regulatory affairs. Eventually some of these are not applicable in your country, but you have to investigate.

Again, if you are just making a product that is already in the market, then most of this work you can get it from literature orthe competition.
If you are starting from square one, then prepare yourself since there is a big road ahead (and hopefully a pot of gold in the end of it)

 

[willemsma]

You can try to freeze-dry the leaves. At university I used to freeze dry amphiphile solutions to get the amphiphiles back as a solid (or powder). For fun we also powder roses.
The amphiphile solution in a round bottum flask was frozen in liquid Nitrogen. Subsequently the ice (water) was removed by vacuum.
The roses we froze in liquid Nitrogen and put in beaker, which was subsequently placed in vacuum to remove the ice.