1000000030

rcfincd r.,h'pctre, cI'cn that of ,he third n,noting, is not

yet fUlfiócndy p"re for chemical expc,;",clltseh,tt rcq"i"e

m"eh "ec"raey:

that it mull be funhcr pu rificd, bUI

il ill by the f,'IlIe mc,hod.

The nitro"s a,id is nlit p"re in thc emh! and IlOJtC5

from \Vhieh it is cxtraétcJ.

is eoOlhi"ed part ly wi,h

the very eanh in whieh i, is formeJ, and I':udy \Vith the

vol:llilc alkali produecd hy the rutrefaaion of ,he vegt–

uble or animal ma.tlers thal eoneurred toi" gcneratioo.

A fixed :oIkali aod 'Iuiek·lime are .ddcd tOthe lixiviuon

of a oitrous canh, io oroer lOdecoOlI'0fc ,he nitrous

[,lts furlllcd in ,hat canh, and tO fq>Jratc ,h, acid from

the voh,ile alk:tli and d,e ahforbent eanh \l'i,h whieh il

is u"iteo: thcnee comes tha, copious fedimeo, whieh ap–

pears in thc Iyc at the bcginning of the eraporalion.

Thefc mamrs forOl with tha, acid a true nitre, ",udt

more e,'pablc than the origioal nitrolls falts of ery'

lIallifation, delon.lIion, and Ihe other properties which ore

clrenti.,1thcreto. The bafis of nitre is ,herefore a fixed

alkali lI,ixed with a littlc lime.

The mother of oitre, whieh will yicld no morcerynals,

is browo and Ihiek: by evaporation over a fire it is fur–

ther infpilfutcu, ano bceomes a dry, folid body; whieh

ho\Vever beine lefl lOitfelf foon eives, and ruos into a

Jiquor. This water lIiU contains a good deal of nilrc,

fea-r.tll, and the acids of thefe fallS uni,cd wi,h an abo

forbenl canh.

eon,ains moreover a great deal of a

flt , vifeid maner, whieh prcvenlS in cryllallifiog.

AII r.,line folutions in general, after Iming yielded a

cemin quanlity of cryllal!, grow thiek, and refufe to

pan with any more, though they lIill contain mueh falto

They are all called

,.~/h"-'lJJ./trl,

as well as thae whieh

hath yithled nitre. T he mother·watcrs of dilferent fal l!

nuy prore the fubjcas of eurious aod uferul

~ñquiri~s.

If a fixeo alkali be mixed with lhe mOlher of nitre,

copious \\'hi,e precipita,e

immedi~tel)'

falls, whieh being

collcaed and tlried is calleJ

I/Iagl/'.Jia.

T his precipitate

is nothiog but the abforbeot earth Ihat was united \Vith

tile nitrous acid, together with a good deal of the lime

lhu was adued, and was alfo uoited with that aeid,

from whi>'i, they are now fepara,ecl b)' the fixed alkali,

according eo the ufual laws of affinities or eleétive at–

wétions.

The IÍtriolie acid poured upon

moth~r

of nitre caufes

many aCld vapours tO rife, which are a compound of the

nitroul and marine acids, that is, an

aqua "'gia.

this oceafion alfo there f.lIs a large quantity of a white

pOlVuer, which is lIi1l called

l/Iagn'.Jia

yee it dilfm

from ,he former io that it is nOl, like it, apure abfor–

b~ot

canh, but eombined with the vitriolie acid.

agua

' ,gil

may allo be drawo from nitrous earths

by the force of fiee only, wilhout the help of an)' ad–

dit~ment.

1"<

¿mll/Poft Ni/u

hJ /Jifa

m a(

/h,

Phfagif/on.

Ni,,,

fird hJ Chamal.

Clyffus

Ni/fr.

Sal

1'"lychr !lu,n.

the puren fah petre ir. pow,Jer

pUt it in

IJfg~

nUClble, whieh it may but h,M fill ; fet thecrueible

in a co:om'IO furnace, and fUIround it with eo.Ils. \Vlten

it is red hut the nitre will meh, and become as fluid as

VOL .

11. No.

3).

1 21

water. Then tltrow inlo

Ih~

erueible a (¡naH quantity

of cltareoal dull: the nitre and the chareoal will imme–

dimly deRagrate wieh violenee; and a greal eommntinn

\ViII bt raifed, accompanied with a eonfillerable hlfling,

and abundance of black fillOke. As the charcoalwalles,

the dClUn<tion will abate, and

ce.fe

courely as foon al

the eo,1 i! quite eonfumed.

T iten throw in

the erueible che fame q'Jantity of

ehareoal-dun as before, .nd the fame phenomena will be

repwed. Let this coal alfo be confumed : thenadd more,

and go on in the fame manncr till you ean exeile no fur–

ther dcflagration; al\Va)'s obrerving to lel the burning

eoal be eOlirely eonfumed beforo you .dd any frcili.

When no d:R.'grationenfues, the matter eootained in the

erueible will have lo!! mueh of its fluidilY.

Nitre will not take fire, uolefs the i"flln,mable malter

.dd,·o toil be aéluallYbuining. or thenitre itfelf rtd hot,

and

thorougltly

i~nited

as immcdi"c1y to kindlc it.

Therefore, if yuu w0uld procure the dctonation of oitre

with charcoal, and make ufe of colo ehueDal, as in the

pro~:fs,

the nitre in the erueible mul! -be r,d hot, ano

in pcrrea fufioo: bUl you may alfo ufe live coals, aod.

then the nitre need noe be red-hoto

The malter rcmaining in the erucible afler the opera–

Iion, is a

very

nrong fixed alkali. Ileing expofed tOIho

air, it quiekly extraéis the tnoinure thereaf, and runs

ioto a liquor.

i, called

aUalita/d ni/fr,

Ji–

f1inguilh it from nitre alkalilated by other infl.mmable

mattcrs,

ni/re fi.,¿ DJ chareoal.

The nitrous aeid is not only diffipaled during the de–

flagration of lhe nitre, bUl is even dellroyed, and pero

fealy deeompofed. The rmoke that rifes during the

operalion has not tite leall onour of an acid.

In order lO collea the \'apours difcharged by the de–

flagmionof niere, fit loa tubulaeed eanhto retort tWo or

tJoree large adopters: fet the reton in a furnaee

and

under it make a fire fuffi eieol lO kecp its bOlCom mode–

rately red. Then take a fmall quanei,y, ewo or three

pinches for

e~ample,

of a mi.xture of three parts of nitre

wilh one of eharco.l-dull, and drop it inlo the reton

through i,s eube, which mull be uppwriofl, and imroedi·

atel)' IIGpped clofe. A deconation inflantlyenfues, and

the vapours ehat rife from the inflamrued mixture of nitre

and charcoAI, pa/Jing out ,hrough the neck of the mort

inlo the adopters" C1reulate therein for a Wllllc, aod al

Jall eondenfe into a licluor.

' Yhen the dtlOnation is over, and the vapou" con–

denfed, or ncady fo, drop into the retort anoclter equal

quan,ity of the mi xture

and repeat this til! you find

there is liquor cnough in the reeipienlS to be examincd

witl, eafe and . eeuraey. This liquor is allnoll ¡nlipid,

and fllews no

to~ens

of acidi,y

or at mon but

vtry

flieht ones.

is ealled

,(¡(JilJ

of nitre.

Nirre is alfo deeompofed ano takes fire by the means

of fulphur

but

t~e

circnmnanees and the refult dilfer

widel)' from thofe proJueed thmwith by chJrCoal or

any tll iter inRammable boJy.

tille t1eflAgrms \Vieh fulphur

lecount of

Ih~

phlo–

gillon ",hith the latter cootains.

~ne

pan of ful phur

be mixed with tWO or three pm s of nitre, and the mix–

ture tbrown by little and liule ioto a red-bot crucible,