Table 2. Commonly Used Methods for the Extraction of Bioactive Components from Plant Extracts.

method	procedure	extraction solvent	volume consumed	extraction time	extraction temperature	extraction efficiency
maceration	Powdered plant material is dissolved in solvent in a closed vessel for a long time with occasional shaking, filtered to obtain extract, and evaporated.	water, aqueous, and nonaqueous solvents	large	long (hours to days)	room temperature	low
Soxhlet extraction	Plant material loaded in a thimble is extracted by continuous hot extraction in a Soxhlet extractor.	organic solvents	moderate	long	under heat	moderate
pressurized liquid extraction	Plant material with solvent is heated above boiling point under high pressure.	aqueous or organic solvents	less	less (5–10 min)	under heat and pressure	high
supercritical fluid extraction	Supercritical fluid, mainly CO2, is used for plant extraction.	very little amount of organic solvent or no solvent	less	less	heated to supercritical conditions	high
microwave-assisted extraction	Plant material with appropriate solvent is packed into a microwave-assisted extractor.	mainly polar solvents	less	less (15–20 min)	under heat generated by conversion of microwave radiation	high
ultrasound-assisted extraction	Plant material with appropriate solvent is packed into an ultrasonic water bath.		less	less	under heat generated by the conversion of ultrasonic radiation	high