Table of the affinities of fundry Bafes for four of the Acids, according to their Intensity.

A Table of the real Specific Gravity of Solutions as indicated by Baumé's Arëometer for Salts. Drawn up by Robert Bingley, Efq.

EXPERIMENTS.

N°

TOTHING tends to imprint chymical facts upon the mind so much as the exhibition of interesting experiments. With this view the following Selection has been made, in which such experiments as may be performed with ease and safety, have uniformly been preferred. The original design of the author was to have explained the cause of each result to the student, and indeed most of the experiments were written with that intention; and the rationale of each was actually drawn up to accompany them. But having since thought that this method might perhaps tend to check that spirit of inquiry which ought to be encouraged in youth, he has determined merely to give the mode of conducting each exper ment, and leaves it to the pupil himself to discover the cause of every effect; earnestly advising him not to perform a second experiment till he has fully satisfied himself res pecting the operation of the former: this he may do by referring to the proper places in the Catechism, or the Notes which are annexed.

No. 1.

Take a small phial about half full of cold water; grasp it gently in the left hand, and from another phial pour a little sulphuric acid very gradually into the water. A strong SENSATION OF HEAT will im mediately be perceived. This, by the continued addition of the acid, may be increased to many degrees beyond that of boiling water.

2.

Take a small phial, in one hand, containing some pulverized muriate of ammonia; pour a little water upon it, and shake the mixture. In this instance a SENSATION OF COLD will immediately be felt.

3. Into a tea-cup, placed upon a hearth, and containing about a tablespoon full of oil of turpentine, pour about half the quantity of strong nitrous acid, previously mixed with a few drops of sulphuric acid. The moment the acids come in contact with the turpentine FLAME will be produced. In performing this experiment it is adviseable to mix the acids in a phial, to tie the phial to the end of a stick, and, at arm's length, to pour its contents into the oil, as the sudden combustion sometimes occasions a fiquids to be thrown out of the vessel.

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4. Put about an ounce of marble grossly pulverized into an eight-ounce phial, with about an equal quantity of water. Pour upon it a little sulphuric acid, and CARBONIC ACID GAS will be evolved*.

5. Put about an ounce of iron filings into a phial, with about three or four ounces of water; pour a little sulphuric acid upon the contents, and HYDROGEN GAS will be evolved.

6. Fill a glass jar with water, invert it upon the shelf of a pneumatic trough; and having heated a common iron poker red hot, plunge it into the water under the jar. In this case also part of the water will be decomposed, and HYDROGEN GAS will ascend through the water into the upper part of the jar.

7. Put some sulphuret of iron into a phial, pour a little diluted sulphuric acid over it, and attach a bladder, prepared as directed for experiment No. 4., to the phial. SULPHURETTED HYDROGEN, a gas extremely fetid and disagreeable, will immediately be evolved; though the ingredients here employed were destitute of smell.

8. Put an ounce or two of the black oxide of manganese into a small glass retort, pour a little concentrated sulphuric acid upon it, and apply the heat of a lamp. OXYGEN GAS will be disengaged in abundance.

9. Into a small glass retort put a mixture of two parts of quick-lime, and one of muriate of ammonia, both in powder. Apply the heat of a lamp, and AMMONIACAL GAS will come over.

10. Pour a little sulphuric acid upon a small quantity of quicksilver in a glass retort, apply heat, and SULPHUROUS ACID GAS may be colJected.

JI. Take a few shreds of filings of copper, and pour over them a little diluted nitrous acid, in the proportion of about three parts of water to one of acid. The gas evolved in this case is NITROUS GAS.

12. Upon an ounce or two of nitrate of potash in a glass retort pour some sulphuric acid; give it heat by means of lamp, and collect NITROUS ACID.

13. Treat muriate of soda in the same manner with sulphuric acid, and MURIATIC ACID in the gaseous form will rise from the retort.

14. Convey some muriatic acid gas into a glass jar containing a portion of the gas produced in experiment 9. From the mixture of these two invisible gases, a SOLID SUBSTANCE will be produced; viz. the common sal ammoniac ; this may be perceived to deposit itself upon the sides of the vessel in a neat crystallized form.

15. Convey some carbonic acid gas into a glass jar containing a portion of ammoniacal gas. The instant the two gases come into contact a great absorption will take place, and SOLID CARBONATE OF AMMONIA will be formed on the inner surface of the jar,

16. Put about half an ounce of quicksilver into a wine glass, and pour about an ounce of diluted nitrous acid upon it. The nitrous acid will be decomposed by the metal with astonishing rapidity; the bulk of the acid will be quickly changed to a beautiful green, while its surface exhibits a dark crimson and an effervescence indescribably vivid and pleasing will go on during the whole time the acid operates upon the quicksilver. When a part only of the metal is dissolved a change of colour will again take place, and the acid by degrees will become paler, till it is as pellucid as pure water. This is one instance of a METALLIC SOLUTION by means of an ACID ;

:

*The cheapest receiver for the collection of this and other gases is a moistened bladder, with a piece of tobacco-pipe firmly tied into its neck, and twifted in fuch a manner as to expel all the common air. This may eafily be adapted to any veffel by means ofthe pipe, which may be fixed in the cork, and closely luted in the usual way.

in which the opacity of a metallic body is completely overcome, and the whole rendered perfectly transparent.

17.

Take the metallic solution formed in the last experiment, add a little more quicksilver to saturate the acid; then place it at some distance, over the flame of a lamp, so as gently to evaporate a part of the water. The new formed salt will soon be seen to begin to shoot into needle-like prismatic crystals, crossing each other in every possible direction; affording an instance of the formation of a METALLIC SALT.

18. Pour a drachm by weight of strong nitrous acid into a wine-glass, add two drachms of distilled water*, and, when mixed, throw a few very small pieces of granulated tin into it. A violent effervescence will take place, the lighter particles of the tin will be thrown to the top of the acid, and be seen to play up and down in the liquor for a considerable time, till the whole is dissolved. This is another example of a TRANSPARENT LIQUID holding a METAL IN SOLUTION.

19.

Take an ounce of a solution of potash, pour upon it half an ounce of sulphuric acid; lay the mixture aside, and when cold, crystals of sulphate of potash will be formed in the liquor. Here a MILD SALT has been formed from a mixture of two corrosivessubstances.

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20. Take carbonate of ammonia (the common volatile smelling salt), and pour upon it muriatic acid so long as any effervescence continues. produce will be a SOLID SALT, perfectly inodorous, and of little taste. 21. Take caustic soda one ounce, pour over it one ounce of muriatic acid, both of these corrosive substances. The produce will be our COMMON TABLE SALT.

22. Mix in a wine-glass equal quantities of a saturated solution of muriate of lime, and a saturated solution of carbonate of potash, both transparent fluids; stir the mixture, and a SOLID MASS will be the product.

23. Take the substance produced in the foregoing experiment, and pour a very little nitric acid upon it. The consequence will be, the solid matter will again be taken up, and the whole exhibit the appearance of one homogeneous fluid. An instance of a solid opake mass being converted to ́a TRANSPARENT LIQUID.

24. Take a transparent saturated solution of sulphate of magnesia, (Epsom salt,) and pour into it a like solution of caustic potash, or soda. The mixture will immediately become almost SOLID. This instance of the sudden conversion of two fluids, to a solid, and that related No. 22, have been called chymical miracles.

25. Take a portion of dried sulphate of iron, and an equal quantity of nitrate of potash, grind them together in a mortar, and put the whole into a small glass retort. Adapt a receiver to the retort with two or three hottles, according to the plan of Woulfe's apparatus, and apply the heat of an Argand lamp. After some time a gas will be disengaged, which will be condensed by the cold receivers, forming the true nitrous acid. We have here a CORROSIVE FLUID produced from the mixture of two mild and solid substances.

26. Pour a little pure water into a small glass tumbler, and put one or two small pieces of phosphuret of lime into it. In a short time FLASHES OF FIRE will dart from the surface of the water, and terininate in ringlets of smoke; which will ascend in regular succession to the ceiling of the

room.

27. Put thirty grains of phosphorus into a Florence flask with three or four ounces of water. Place the vessel over a lamp, and give it a boiling

*Where diftilled water is not at hand, clean rain water will anfwer nearly as weil for most purpofes.

heat. Balls of fire will soon be seen to issue from the water, after the manner of an artificial fire-work, attended with the most beautiful corruscations, An experiment to show the extreme INFLAMMABILITY OF PHOSPHORUS.

"28. Into an eight-ounce retort, pour four ounces of pure water, add a little solution of potash, and give it a boiling heat with a lamp. When it boils, drop a small piece of phosphorus into it, and immerse the beak of the retort in a vessel of water. Bubbles of PHOSPHURETTED HYDROGEN GAS will issue from the retort, rise through the water, and take fire the moment they come in contact with atmospheric air, somewhat similar to the appearance mentioned at experiment No. 26.

29. Fix a small piece of solid phosphorus in a quill, and write with it upon paper. If the paper be now carried into a dark room, the writing will be BEAUTIFULLY LUMINOUS.

30.

Pour a little phosphuretted ether upon a lump of sugar, and drop it into a bason of water, a little warm. The surface of the water will soon become luminous; and if it be moved by blowing it gently with the mouth, beautiful and brilliant undulations of its surface will be produced, exhibiting the appearance of a LIQUID COMBUSTION.

. 31. If any part of the body he rubbed with liquid phosphorus, or phosphuretted ether, that part, in a dark room, will appear as though it were ON FIRE, without producing any dangerous effect, or sensation of heat.

32. Take about ten grains of oxygenized muriate of potash, and four grains of flour of sulphur; rub them together in a mortar, and a sinart DETONATING NOISE will be produced. Continue to rub the mixture hard, and the reports will be frequently repeated. If the same mixture be laid upon an anvil, and struck with a hammer, the report will be as loud as what is usually produced by a pistol.

33. Take ten grains of oxygenized muriate of potash, and one grain of phosphorus. Treat them in the same way as the mixture in the last experiment, and very VIOLENT DETONATIONS will be produced. In ibis experiment it would be dangerous to employ a larger quantity of phosphorus than that prescribed.

34. Put a little oxygenized muriate of potash into an ale glass, gradually pour some cold water upon it, and add a bit of phosphorus. Now take a small glass tube, and plunge it into some sulphuric acid: then place the thumb upon the upper orifice, and in this state withdraw the tube, which must be instantly immersed in the gas, so that the acid may be immediately conveyed upon the ingredients, on withdrawing the thumb. This experiment is an example of a very singular phænomenon, COMBUSTION UNDER WATER.

35. Proceed in all respects as in the last experiment, and add a morsel of phosphuret of lime. Here, besides the former appearance, we shall have COMBUSTION also on the SURFACE OF THE WATER.

36. Prepare a mixture of equal parts of lump sugar and oxygenized muriate of potash; put a small quantity of this mixture upon a plate or a tile, then dip a fine glass rod, or tobacco-pipe, into a phial of sulphuric acid, and let a single drop of the acid fall from the rod upon the aforesaid mixture. The consequence of this will be an immediate BURST OF Flame.

37. Mix, without much friction, ten grains of oxygenized muriate of potash with one grain of phosphorus, and drop the mixture into concentrated sulphuric acid. This is an instance of DETONATION AND FLAME being produced, by the mixture of a powder with a cold liquor.

38. Pour boiling water upon a little red cabbage sliced, and when cold decant the clear infusion. Divide the infusion into three wine glasses. To a solution of alum; to the second a little solution of potash; and