Soxhlet extractor
![A schematic representation of a Soxhlet extractor 1: Stirrer bar 2: Still pot (the still pot should not be overfilled and the volume of solvent in the still pot should be 3 to 4 times the volume of the soxhlet chamber) 3: Distillation path 4: Thimble 5: Solid 6: Siphon top 7: Siphon exit 8: Expansion adapter 9: Condenser 10: Cooling water in 11: Cooling water out](/Images/godic/202502/12/Soxhlet_extractor.svg5702.png")
![Animation of Soxhlet extractor working](/Images/godic/202502/12/Soxhlet_mechanism5702.gif")
![Fruit extraction in progress. The sample is placed in the thimble.](/Images/godic/202502/12/Soxhlet_Extractor5702.jpg")
![The siphoning part of a Soxhlet extraction.](/Images/godic/202502/12/-Soxhlet_siphoning.webm5702.jpg")
A Soxhlet extractor is a piece of laboratory apparatus invented in 1879 by Franz von Soxhlet. It was originally designed for the extraction of a lipid from a solid material. Typically, a Soxhlet extraction is used when the desired compound has a limited solubility in a solvent, and the impurity is insoluble in that solvent. It allows for unmonitored and unmanaged operation while efficiently recycling a small amount of solvent to dissolve a larger amount of material.