*8.1.1 Maceration*

This process is conducted by soaking the plant materials (coarse or powered) in a closed stoppered container in a solvent allowed to stand at room temperature for 2–3 days with frequent stirring to obtain plant extracts. A sealed extractor is used to avoid solvent evaporation at atmospheric pressure. The process is intended to soften and break the plant's cell walls to release the soluble phytoconstituents. The mixture is then pressed or strained by filtration or decantation after a specific time [8, 54]. Maceration is the simplest and still widely used procedure. The extraction procedure in this stationary process works on principle of molecular diffusion, which is a time-consuming process. Maceration ensures dispersal of the concentrated solution accumulation around the particles' surface and brings fresh solvent to the surface of particles for further extraction [46].
