(57) Process to achieve an industrial separation of the cortical part from inner part of the rhizomes of irises, or of rhizomes or roots of officinal plants having similar physical characteristics, that separation having been up-to-now effected manually and done in order to eliminate odours, tastes and other properties that degrade the materials extracted from the said rhizomes or roots, said materials being utilized in the perfumery, pharmaceutical and alimentary industries.
With this method a grinding phase must come before that of decortication and the ground components are treated in one of two ways. In one solution the two components, when mixed in a proper liquid, get separated from one another according to the difference between their specific gravities. In a second solution the process is characterized by the fact that the specific gravities of the two components tend to diminish as the seasoning of the rhizomes, or roots, goes on, reaching values that are lower than those of water, or of a proper solution, and when these components are ground and mixed with said liquids they return to their original values at different rates.