Atoms. Equiv. wt. Per cent.
Ammonium (NH_{4}) 1 18· 33·65
Chloride (Cl) 1 35·5 66·35
--- ----- ------
Chloride of Ammonium (NH_{4}Cl) 1 53·5 100·
_Prop. &c._ The sal ammoniac of commerce is found under the form of large
white hemispherical, cup-like cakes or masses (or in large fragments which
are sections of them), possessing a tough, fibrous, semi-crystalline
texture, and very difficult to powder. It is odourless, has a saline taste
somewhat sharp or acrid, and sublimes without either fusion or
decomposition. It slightly reddens litmus; dissolves in rather less than 3
parts of cold water, and in about 1 part of boiling water; is soluble in
alcohol; and when crystallised from water, under favorable circumstances,
forms distinct octahedra, or cubes, usually small and aggregated together
in rays or feathery masses. By slowly evaporating its aqueous solution, it
may be sometimes obtained in cakes an inch in thickness. It is anhydrous.
Sp. gr. 1·450.
_Pur._ It should give a colourless solution with water; wholly sublime
with heat; and neither chloride of barium, nor sulphuretted hydrogen,
should affect its solution. A solution, to which a few drops of nitric
acid have been added, should not yield a blue precipitate with
ferrocyanide of potassium. It often contains sesquichloride of iron, and
sometimes lead; both of which may be readily detected by the above tests.
Its complete volatility may be easily determined by heating, in the flame
of a candle, a small fragment held on the point of a knife.
_Tests._--1. It is known to be a salt of ammonium by its cooling
ammoniacal fumes when triturated with lime, or when moistened with caustic
potassa or soda:--2. It is shown to be a chloride by its solution
yielding, with nitrate of silver, a white curdy precipitate, insoluble in
boiling nitric acid, soluble in ammonia.
_Uses, &c._ In the _arts_, chiefly in the coating and soldering of metals,
and the preparation of alloys; in dyeing; and in the manufacture of
ammonia-alum; also, in large quantities, to give a factitious pungency to
snuff. In _chemistry_, as a reagent; and, owing to the cold produced
during its solution, to form frigorific mixtures. In _medicine_ it is
chiefly used externally, as a stimulant and resolvent or discutient; and
occasionally, internally, as a diuretic, stimulant, resolvent, alterative,
tonic, &c., particularly in chronic inflammations of the mucous and serous
membranes, in chronic glandular and visceral enlargements and indurations,
and in amenorrh[oe]a. In rather large doses, frequently repeated, it is
said to prove often highly beneficial in chronic enlargement and
induration of the prostate gland (M. René Vanoye); and also in other like
cases.--_Dose_, 5 to 20 gr., 3 or 4 times daily, either in powder or
solution, mixed with some demulcent; as a discutient or resolvent lotion,
1 to 1-1/2 oz., to 1/2 pint of water, either with or without 4 or 5 fl.
oz. of spirits or strong vinegar (often serviceable in chilblains); as a
weak lotion, or a collyrium or injection, 1 to 4 dr., to water, 1 pint. In
very large doses it is poisonous; the treatment is emetics and
mucilaginous or demulcent drinks.
_Concluding remarks, Patents, &c._ The methods already described are those
by which commercial hydrochlorate of ammonia is usually if not almost
entirely obtained; the various improvements or modifications, from time to
time introduced, affecting chiefly the minor details, and the form or size
of the apparatus and machinery employed, and not the general principles on
which the processes are based. One of the most important of these has for
its object the entire removal of the iron present in the crude salt, some
of which, if it be not removed before sublimation, is volatilised and
contaminates the ultimate product. To obviate this evil, Mr Brewer passes
a few bubbles of chlorine through the hot concentrated solution of the
salt, previous to its crystallisation; by which the protochloride of iron
is converted into the perchloride, which, being acted on by the ammonia
always present in the liquor, is precipitated as ferric hydrate, with the
formation of a small additional quantity of sal ammoniac. The only
precaution necessary is to avoid employing more chlorine gas than is
necessary to peroxidise the iron; as beyond this a portion of the
ammonia-salt itself is decomposed, with the evolution of nitrogen. The
temperature of the liquor is kept up, after the action of the chlorine,
until the whole of the brown flocculent oxide of iron has subsided, when
it is at once decanted or filtered into the crystallisers.
Another modification which has been adopted in two or three places is to
effect neutralisation of the crude ammoniacal liquor by distilling it, and
passing the fumes in at the lower end of a hollow shaft or column filled
with coke, down which the acid trickles; the resulting solution of
sulphate or chloride of ammonium being received in proper cisterns,
conveniently situated near the base of the column.
In Mr Spence's method of obtaining ammonia-salts from gas-liquor or
bone-spirit, a series of (usually four) cylindrical boilers, or
reservoirs, so placed that the contents of each upper one may be drawn off
into the one next below it are employed. Each boiler has an exit-pipe
which carries the vapour generated in it to that next above it, whilst
that of the highest boiler passes off to a trunk containing the acid
necessary to form the salt. The top boiler is connected with the reservoir
of gas-liquor (which is already mixed with milk of lime) by a charging
pipe furnished with a stop-cock turned by a floating ball, so as to keep
the surface of the liquor constantly at the same height. High-pressure
steam enters the lower boiler, by which its ammonia is driven through the
connecting pipe into the next boiler, and so on in succession, until it
leaves the highest boiler in a concentrated state, and thus enters the
acid-tank. When this last contains moderately strong hydrochloric or
sulphuric acid, the resulting solution of CHLORIDE or SULPHATE OF AMMONIUM
(as the case may be) is sufficiently concentrated to be at once run off
into the crystallisers. As soon as the liquor in the lowest boiler is
exhausted of its ammonia, its contents are drawn off, and replaced by that
of the next boiler, which is followed by a like descent throughout the
whole series.
Among improvements having for their object the substitution of cheap
chlorides[52] for the more expensive commercial acids, may be mentioned
those of--
[Footnote 52: Particularly such chlorides as are the 'waste or bye
products' of other manufactures.]
1. Mr Laming (Patent dated 1843), who employs a strong solution of
CHLORIDE OF CALCIUM for converting the ammonia of gas-liquor into the
hydrochlorate.
2. Mr Hills (Patent dated 1846) employs CHLORIDE OF MAGNESIUM[53] in the
same way; and by a subsequent patent proposes to convert the ammonia
eliminated in the distillation of coal into the hydrochlorate, by mixing
CHLORIDE OF MAGNESIUM with the coal in the retorts, or by introducing the
chloride into a retort appropriated for the purpose. The heat dispels the
chlorine of the chloride, in the form of hydrochloric acid, and this,
uniting with the ammoniacal vapour, forms hydrochlorate of ammonia, which
is retained in the liquor of the condenser. From this liquor the salt is
obtained by evaporation, &c., in the usual way.
[Footnote 53: Of the Epsom-salt works, &c.]
3. Mr Croll (Patent dated 1849) converts the crude ammoniacal vapours that
issue with the gas from the common retorts into the hydrochlorate, and
obtains a solution of it by passing the gas through a solution of crude
CHLORIDE OF MANGANESE[54] (1 cwt. of the salt to about 40 galls. of
water), contained in one of the ordinary vessels used for purifying
coal-gas. The manganic solution absorbs the ammonia and its salts,
converting them into the hydrochlorate, whilst a corresponding proportion
of oxide of manganese is precipitated. As soon as the liquor in the
purifier is fully saturated, it is drawn off, and replaced by a fresh
quantity; whilst the saturated liquor containing the hydrochlorate, after
subsidence, or filtration, is evaporated, &c., as before. Crude CHLORIDE
OF IRON may be substituted for the chloride of manganese, in the above
process: as may also SULPHATE OF MANGANESE, but then the product, of
course, will be sulphate of ammonia, instead of the hydrochlorate.
[Footnote 54: Obtained from the chloride-of-lime works. The portion of the
precipitated oxide of manganese saved from the process may be reconverted
into the chloride, by mixing 3 parts of it with 4 parts of common salt,
and heating the mixture to low redness, scarcely perceptible in the dark,
for 2 to 3 hours. 140 _lbs._ of the calcined mass, with 40 galls. of
water, forms a solution that may be again pumped into the purifier.]
4. Mr Laming (Patent dated 1850) also proposes the use of various salts
and mixtures for retaining and condensing the ammoniacal vapour of
coal-gas as it passes from the retorts through the purifiers. Of these the
principal are CHLORIDE OF CALCIUM obtained by decomposing chloride of iron
by hydrate of lime; CHLORIDE OF IRON, obtained by decomposing sulphate of
iron with chloride of sodium; CHLORIDE OF MAGNESIUM; a mixture of SULPHATE
OF LIME and SULPHATE OF IRON; or of moist precipitated oxide of iron with
carbonate of lime, carbonate of magnesia, or magnesian limestone; or one
containing sulphate of magnesia, or chloride of magnesium or calcium, or
one or more of them, in combination with oxide of copper, either with or
without lime or magnesia, or with both or either of them or their
carbonates. These salts, or compounds, are mingled with sawdust, or some
other porous substance not acted on by the gas, before being put into the
purifiers; and after they become saturated with the vapour, the
newly-formed hydrochlorate or sulphate (according to the salt or mixture
employed) is washed out of the mass with water.
Besides the usual sources of SAL AMMONIAC (and the other ammonia-salts of
commerce) it has been proposed to obtain it from guano, peat, shale, &c.,
as noticed under SESQUICARBONATE OF AMMONIA (_suprà_); the substance
employed to effect the neutralisation or decomposition of the ammoniacal
liquor being, in this case either hydrochloric acid or a chloride.
In Young's Patent (1841) for 'obtaining AMMONIA and its SALTS,' a mixture
of 2 parts of guano, and 1 part of hydrate of lime, is distilled in a
retort placed vertically, at a moderate heat, gradually increased until
the bottom of the retort becomes red hot. The ammoniacal portion of the
fumes evolved are absorbed by the cold water contained in a suitable
condenser; whilst the other gases eliminated by the process pass off
uncondensed. By subsequently passing carbonic acid gas into the liquor of
the condenser, a solution of CARBONATE, BICARBONATE, or SESQUICARBONATE of
AMMONIA is formed. By nearly filling the condenser with diluted
hydrochloric or sulphuric acid, instead of with water, a solution of
HYDROCHLORATE or of SULPHATE OF AMMONIA is obtained.
Stale urine saturated with hydrochloric acid, or with sulphuric acid
diluted with about twice its weight of water, yields SAL AMMONIAC, or
SULPHATE OF AMMONIA (according to the acid used) on evaporation.
Hydrochlorate of ammonia is now wholly prepared on the large scale, and
never by the dealer or retailer, by whom it is only occasionally refined
or purified, in small quantities, for chemical and medical purposes. The
sal ammoniac of commerce is found to be sufficiently pure for all its
ordinary applications in the arts; but when wanted of greater purity, it
is broken into pieces, and resublimed from an earthenware vessel into a
large receiver of earthenware or glass. The product (REFINED SAL AMMONIAC,
DOUBLE-REFINED S. A.; AMMONIÆ HYDROCHLO''RAS PU''RA, SAL AMMONI'ACUS
DEPURA'TUS[dagger], L.) is popularly known as FLOWERS OF SAL AMMONIAC
(flo'res sa'lis ammoni'aci, L.), from being in a finely divided
crystalline state.
The chemically pure chloride of ammonium may be prepared by bringing its
gaseous constituents--ammonia and hydrochloric acid--into contact. During
the combination much heat, and even light, is generated, and the anhydrous
solid salt is precipitated in a minutely divided state, which, under the
microscope, is seen to be crystalline. It may be also more easily and
conveniently prepared by saturating pure and moderately dilute
hydrochloric acid with ammonia or its carbonates, and evaporating the
solution until a pellicle forms, when crystals of the chloride separate as
the liquid cools. A similar but rather more violent reaction occurs when
gaseous chlorine is brought in contact with gaseous ammonia, or is passed
into a nearly saturated solution of ammonia or its carbonates; but in this
case nitrogen is evolved at the expense of the ammonia; moreover, the
process is attended with danger.
The manufacture of sal ammoniac is usually a distinct business, and is
carried on to a very great extent in the neighbourhood of London. Indeed,
the London makers now supply the chief portion of that used in England. A
large quantity is now, however, made at Manchester and Liverpool. A small
quantity is imported from Germany. That from Brunswick is in the form of
sugar-loaves. An inferior quality is also imported, in chests, from the
East Indies.
The red bands frequently seen in the sal ammoniac of commerce are said to
arise from the workmen falling asleep, and allowing the fire to go down,
and then suddenly raising the heat too high. (Muspratt.) They consist
chiefly of ammonio-chloride of iron.
=Ammonium, Citrate of.= (NH_{4})_{2}HC_{6}H_{6}O_{7}. _Syn._ DIAMMONIUM
CITRATE, CITRATE OF OXIDE OF AMMONIA; AMMON''NIÆ CIT'RAS, L.
_Prep._ A concentrated solution of pure citric acid, gently heated, is
saturated with sesquicarbonate of ammonium, in fine powder (about 7 parts
to 6), and slightly in excess; and the resulting liquid is crystallised by
refrigeration in close vessels, or by evaporation in vacuo. If heat be
employed in the evaporation of the solution, an acid citrate will be
formed.
_Uses, &c._ Chiefly as a chemical test. An extemporaneous citrate, made
with lemon-juice and drunk effervescing, is employed as a saline draught,
and a mild aperient and diaphoretic, in fevers, &c.
=Ammonium, Ferrocyanide of.= (NH_{4})_{4} FeC_{6}N_{6} . 3Aq. _Syn._
FERROCYANATE D'AMMONIAQUE, Fr. _Prep._ 1. Saturate a solution of
hydroferrocyanic acid with sesquicarbonate of ammonium, in slight excess;
evaporate the solution at a heat below ebullition, and crystallise by
refrigeration.
2. Digest ferrocyanide of lead or of iron in a solution of sesquicarbonate
of ammonium, at a gentle heat, for some time; then filter, evaporate, and
crystallise.
_Prop., &c._ It is isomorphous with ferrocyanide of potassium; it is
easily crystallisable, very soluble in water, and is decomposed by
ebullition.
=Ammonium, Iodide of.= NH_{4}I. _Syn._ HYDRIODATE OF AMMONIA; AMMO''NII
IODI'DUM, L.; HYDRIODATE D'AMMONIAQUE, Fr. _Prep._ An aqueous solution of
hydriodic acid is neutralised with ammonia, or ammonium sesquicarbonate,
in slight excess; and the resulting liquid is either carefully, but
rapidly, evaporated to dryness over a water bath, or it is concentrated by
the same means, and then caused to deposit crystals by refrigeration; in
both cases care is taken to keep a slight excess of ammonia present during
the evaporation. The crystals are dried by pressure between folds of
bibulous paper; and the product, in either form, preserved in a stoppered
bottle.
Pure iodine is triturated with a little distilled water, and solution of
ammonium sulphydrate added, in small quantities at a time, with continued
trituration, until the red colour of the iodine has entirely disappeared.
The solution, after being gently boiled for a few seconds, to expel the
sulphuretted hydrogen present, is filtered, slightly alkalised, with
ammonia, and evaporated or crystallised, as before.
_Prop., &c._ Colourless; deliquescent; freely soluble in water, and in
spirit; air and light turn it yellowish or brownish, with partial
decomposition. It closely resembles iodide of potassium, than which it is
more active, and thought to be better suited to irritable and relaxed
habits.--_Dose_, 1 to 10 or 12 gr.
=Ammonium, Lac'tate of.= _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ LAC'TAS, L. An uncrystallisable
salt prepared by saturating ammonia, or its carbonate, with lactic acid.
It has been found useful in rickets, and in dyspepsia and worms, when
occurring in debilitated habits. For this purpose it is best taken
fresh-prepared, as a draught, flavoured with syrup of orange-peel, 3 or 4
times daily. See LACTATE and LACTIC ACID.
=Ammonium, Nitrate of.= NH_{4}NO_{3}. _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ NI'TRAS, L.;
NITRATE D'AMMONIAQUE, Fr. _Prep._ Saturate nitric acid (diluted with 3 or
4 times its weight of water) with sesquicarbonate of ammonium, evaporate
by a gentle heat, and crystallise. When not required in a crystalline
form, it is usually evaporated to dryness at about 212° Fahr.; and the
heat being carefully raised to about 250°, the fused salt is poured out on
a polished slab of iron or stone, and when solidified broken up and put
into bottles.
_Prop._ When the evaporation of the solution is conducted at a heat under
100° Fahr., the salt is obtained in beautiful hexagonal prisms; when at
212°, in long silky fibres; when by rapid evaporation and fusion, it forms
a white, compact, and usually foliated mass. It dissolves in about twice
its weight of water; is slightly deliquescent; melts at 230°, and is
decomposed into nitrous gas and water at 460° Fahr. It deflagrates, like
nitre, on contact with heated combustible matter.
_Uses, &c._ Chiefly to prepare nitrous oxide or laughing gas (of which
nearly 4-1/2 cubic feet may be procured from every _lb._ avoir.); and with
water, to form freezing mixtures, for which purpose it may be used for any
number of times by simply evaporating the solution to dryness, when the
salt, obtained unaltered, is ready for another operation. Care, however,
should be taken not to expose it to too great a heat, as at a certain
temperature it deflagrates with violence. It is occasionally employed in
the laboratory to promote the combustion of organic bodies during
incineration; and sometimes, though seldom, in medicine, as a diuretic
and diaphoretic. It is said to reduce the frequency of the pulse, and the
animal heat, without affecting the head, chest, or stomach.
(Wibmer.)--_Dose_, 10 to 30 gr.
=Ammonium, Nitro-sulphate of.= _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ NITRO-SUL'PHAS, L.
Dissolve sulphite of ammonium, 1 part; in solution of ammonia, 5 parts;
and pass nitric oxide gas through the solution; rapidly wash the crystals
that form with solution of ammonia, dry in bibulous paper, without heat,
and preserve them in a well-stopped bottle.--_Dose_, 10 to 20 gr.; in
typhoid fevers, &c.
=Ammonium, Oxalate of.= (NH_{4})_{2}C_{2}O_{4}. _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ OX'ALIS,
L.; OXALATE D'AMMONIAQUE, Fr. Neutralise a hot solution of oxalic acid
with sesquicarbonate of ammonia; evaporate and crystallise.
_Prop._ It forms beautiful, colourless, long, rhombic prisms, which
effloresce in the air; slightly soluble in cold water; freely soluble in
hot water; heated in a retort, it yields ammonia, carbonate of ammonia,
cyanogen, and carbonic acid, together with oxamide, which sublimes.
_Uses, &c._ In _chemistry_, chiefly as a test for calcium (with which it
produces a white precipitate soluble in nitric acid), and to separate lime
from magnesium, solutions of the salt of which it does not precipitate. A
BINOX'ALATE may also be formed; but it possesses no practical interest.
=Ammonium, Phosphate of.= (NH_{4})_{3}PO_{4}. _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ PHOS'PHAS,
L. _Prep._ Saturate a solution of phosphoric acid with sesquicarbonate of
ammonium, in slight excess; gently evaporate and crystallise by
refrigeration. Diuretic, discutient, and antilithic.--_Dose_, 3 to 10 gr.,
or 20 to 30 drops of a saturated solution, 3 or 4 times a day; in gout,
rheumatism, and calculus, accompanied with the lithic-acid diathesis; also
in rickets and certain forms of dyspepsia.
=Ammonium Suc'cinate.= _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ SUC'CINAS, L. _Prep._ 1. Succinic
acid, 1 part; water, 4 parts; dissolve, neutralise with solution of
ammonia, or of ammonium carbonate, in slight excess, and evaporate, and
crystallise as directed under the 'benzoate' or 'phosphate,'--_Dose_, 2 to
10 gr.
=Ammonium, Sul'phate of.= (NH_{4})_{2}SO_{4}. _Syn._ SULPHATE OF OX'IDE OF
AMMONIA; AMMO''NIÆ SUL'PHAS, L,; SULFATE D'AMMONIAQUE, Fr.; SCHWEFELSAUER
AMMONIUM SALZ, Ger.; Glauber's SECRET SALT[dagger], G. SECRET SAL
AMMONIAC[dagger], SAL AMMONI'ACUM SECRE'TUM GLAUBE''RI[dagger], &c. Crude
sulphate of ammonia exists in considerable quantity in the soot from
pit-coal; and it is obtained, as a secondary product, from the ammoniacal
liquor of gas-works and animal charcoal manufactories. These last are its
chief sources. It is also found native, associated with sal ammoniac, in
the neighbourhood of volcanoes, under the name of '_mascagnine_' or
'_massagnine_,'
_Prep._ 1. (Medicinal.) Saturate dilute sulphuric acid with
sesquicarbonate of ammonia, in slight excess; filter, gently evaporate,
and crystallise.
2. (Commercial.) From gas-liquor or bone-spirit, saturated with weak oil
of vitriol, and, the clear portion of the liquid, after repose decanted,
concentrated by rapid evaporation, and crystallised, in the manner noticed
under AMMONIUM, CHLORIDE OF.
_Prop._ Crystals, long, flattened, six-sided prisms; soluble in 2 parts of
cold, and 1 of boiling water; fuses, with loss of one atom of water, at
about 280° Fahr.; and is volatilised, with entire decomposition, at about
535°. Even its solution, by long boiling, becomes acid from loss of
ammonia. The anhydrous salt does not exist.
_Uses, &c._ Pure sulphate of ammonia is diuretic, aperient, resolvent, and
stimulant.--_Dose_, 10 to 30 gr. It is now seldom employed in medicine.
The crude sulphate is principally used in the preparation of sal ammoniac
and sesquicarbonate of ammonia, and for manure. "A mixture of 10% of this
sulphate with 20% of bone-dust, some gypsum, and farm-yard manure, forms a
very fertilising compost, applicable to a great variety of soils" (Ure);
and we may add--greatly superior to a very large portion of what is now so
commonly vended under the name of 'guano.'
_Concluding remarks, Patents, &c._ The manufacture of sulphate of ammonia,
on the large scale, has been unavoidably explained in treating on the
salts of that base already noticed. All that is necessary is to saturate
with sulphuric acid the solution of ammonia, crude or otherwise, and
obtained in any manner; and then to evaporate the solution until the salt
crystallises out. At other times, however, instead of adding the acid to
the ammoniacal liquor, the latter, either at once, or after treatment with
lime, is submitted to distillation, and the evolved alkaline vapour is
passed into the acid (previously somewhat diluted), contained in a large
receiver or cistern, or a series of them; the salt being obtained from the
resulting solution in the usual manner. By re-solution and a second
crystallisation the sulphate is generally obtained sufficiently pure for
all commercial purposes; but when the salt is intended for use as manure,
or (unless very rough) for conversion into sal ammoniac, this need not be
had recourse to.
Among modifications and improvements, not previously noticed, may be
mentioned--
1. That of Dr Richardson (Patent dated Jan., 1850), who mixes SULPHATE OF
MAGNESIA with the crude ammoniacal liquor, and thus forms a double
sulphate of magnesia and ammonia, from which he obtains the SULPHATE OF
AMMONIA by sublimation.
2. That of Michiel (Patent dated April, 1850), who prepares sulphate of
ammonia by means of OXYSULPHATE OF LEAD obtained by roasting galena
(sulphide of lead), by exposing it in a crushed state and thin layers for
2 or 3 hours, to the heat of a reverberatory furnace. The resulting
mixture of sulphate and oxide of lead is reduced to the state of coarse
powder, and well worked up with the ammoniacal liquor, when SULPHATE OF
AMMONIA and sulphide and carbonate of lead are produced by the mutual
reaction of the elements present. The first is removed by treatment with
water; and the residuum serves for the manufacture of lead compounds, or
may be reduced to the metallic state by fusion in the usual manner.
3. That of Mr Laming (Patent dated Aug., 1852), in which a stream of
SULPHUROUS ACID GAS is transmitted through the liquor containing the
ammonia, either in the free state or as carbonate, by which SULPHITE OF
AMMONIA is formed. This salt he oxidises, and thus converts into the
SULPHATE OF AMMONIA, by agitation and free exposure to the air.
Sulphate of ammonia, like the hydrochlorate, may also be obtained by
saturating stale urine with the acid, and subsequent evaporation and
crystallisation. See AMMONIA; AMMONIA, CARBONATES OF; AMMONIUM, CHLORIDE
OF, and MANURES, &c.
=Ammonium, Sulphide of (neutral).= (NH_{4})_{2}S. _Prep._ Saturate strong
solution of ammonia with pure sulphuretted hydrogen gas; then add a second
portion of solution of ammonia, equal to that first used, and preserve it
in a well-stoppered bottle.
=Ammonium, Sulphydrate of.= NH_{4}HS. _Syn._ SULPHIDE OF AMMONIUM,
HYDROSULPHIDE OF AMMONIUM, HYDROSULPHATE OF AMMONIA. _Prep._ By passing
sulphuretted hydrogen gas, to saturation, through a mixture composed of
strong solution of ammonia, 1 part, and distilled water, 4 parts.
_Props._ Prepared as above, it has a very f[oe]tid odour. When pure it is
wholly volatilised by heat, and does not disturb a solution of sulphate of
magnesium. Mineral acids decompose it, with the evolution of sulphuretted
hydrogen. By keeping, it decomposes and acquires a yellow colour. This
yellow coloration does not, however, render it unfit for use as a reagent;
but it must be borne in mind that it will now deposit sulphur when mixed
with acids. In this state it proves valuable as a reagent to detect
hydrocyanic acid, and as a solvent to separate metallic sulphides thrown
down by sulphuretted hydrogen.
_Uses, &c._ It is principally employed by chemists as a reagent to
precipitate metals, to separate metallic sulphides, &c.; and by the
perfumers as a mordant in dyeing hair. In _medicine_ it has been used by
Cruickshank, Rollo, and others, to check the morbid appetite, and to
increase the action of the stomach and general tone of the system in
diabetes mellitus. It has also been used by Brauw, Gruithuisen, and
others, in old pulmonary and vesical catarrhs. It is a powerful sedative,
lessening the action of the circulatory system, causing nausea, vomiting,
vertigo, drowsiness, &c.--_Dose_, 3 to 6 drops, three or four times daily,
mixed with pure water, and instantly swallowed. In large doses it is
poisonous.
_Ant._ Very dilute solution of chlorine, or of chloride of lime or soda,
followed by a powerful emetic, or the stomach-pump. When the vapour has
been respired, free exposure to fresh air, with the head a little
elevated, and copious affusions of cold water, with moderate draughts of
brandy-and-water, and the use of the smelling-bottle (ammoniacal) should
be adopted. If need be, artificial respiration should be attempted, and
the air around the patient should be slightly impregnated with the fumes
of chlorine or chloride of lime.
=Ammonium, Persulphide of.= _Syn._ BOYLE'S FUMING-LIQUOR, HOFFMAN'S
VOL'ATILE SPIRIT OF SULPHUR, &c.; AMMO''NIÆ PERHYDROSUL'PHAS, A.
PERHYDROSULPHURE'TUM, &c. Authorities differ as to the constitution of
this liquid, which, since its introduction by Beguin in 1650, has passed
under more 'aliases' than perhaps any other preparation. Its precise
position amongst the ammonia-compounds is still undecided.
_Prep._ 1. (Beguin.) Sulphur, 1 lb; quick-lime, 1/2 lb; sal ammoniac, 4
oz.; mix and distil.
2. (Boyle.) Sulphur and sal ammoniac, of each, 5 oz.; quick-lime, 6 oz.;
as last.
3. (Liebig.) Agitate the common hydrosulphate of ammonia with pure
sulphur, until the latter ceases to be dissolved; and, after repose,
decant the clear liquid.
_Prop., &c._ An orange-yellow, fuming, f[oe]tid liquid, of an oily
consistence, having the characteristics of the common sulphydrate in a
remarkable degree. It may prove an excellent medicine. "Useful for wounds
and ulcers." (Beguin.) Diluted with three parts of spirit of wine, it
formed the LIQUOR ANTIPODAG'RICUS of F. Hoffman; of which we are told that
about 30 drops acted as a strong sudorific; and applied externally, mixed
with camphor, "it relieved pain like a charm." (Hoffman.) The sulphides of
ammonium are now scarcely ever employed as remedies.
=Ammonium, Sul'phite of.= (NH_{4})_{2}SO_{3}.7Aq. _Syn._ AMMONIÆ SULPHIS,
L. Prepared by passing sulphurous acid gas into a solution of ammonia. It
is crystallisable and very soluble in water.
=Ammonium, Sulphocyanide of.= NH_{4}CNS. _Prep._ 1. Neutralise
hydrosulphocyanic acid with ammonia, and gently evaporate the solution to
dryness, by the heat of a water bath.
2. Digest hydrocyanic acid with yellow sulphydrate of ammonium, and, after
a time, evaporate as before.
A deliquescent, white, saline mass, very soluble in water, but seldom
employed out of the laboratory in a pure state. Of late it has been
obtained in quantity as a crude product of the gas-liquors.
=Ammonium, Tartrates of.= Of these there are two:--
=Ammonium, Neutral Tartrate of.= (NH_{4})_{2}C_{4}H_{4}O_{6}. _Syn._
AMMO''NIÆ TAR'TRAS, L. _Prep._ Saturate a solution of crystallised
tartaric acid, 150 grs.; with sesquicarbonate of ammonium, 118 grs.; and
either evaporate the solution at a gentle heat, and crystallise; or
evaporate to dryness, and powder the residuum.
_Prop., &c._ Prismatic crystals, or a crystalline mass; soluble and
efflorescent. Its medicinal properties and doses resemble those of citrate
of ammonium.
=Ammonium, Bitartrate of.= NH_{4}HC_{4}H_{4}O_{6}. _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ
BITAR'TRAS, L. _Prep._ To a strong solution of tartaric acid add another
of sesquicarbonate of ammonium, or of tartrate of ammonium, as long as a
precipitate falls; which must be collected and dried.
_Prop., &c._ A crystalline powder, only slightly soluble in water, closely
resembling ordinary cream of tartar. It is diaphoretic, diuretic, and
deobstruent, and is frequently, though improperly, sold for the preceding
preparation.
=Ammonium, Valerianate of.= NH_{4}C_{5}H_{9}O_{2}. _Syn._ AMMO''NIÆ
VALERIA'NAS, L. _Prep._ Saturate valerianic acid with strong solution of
ammonia, and evaporate the resulting liquid to a syrupy consistence at a
heat under 175° Fahr.; then add twice its volume of alcohol, and, after
agitation, allow it to crystallise by spontaneous evaporation.--_Dose_, 2
to 8 or 10 gr.; in neuralgia, epilepsy, hypochondriasis, hysteria, low
fevers of an intermittent kind, &c.; also in dyspepsia and debility
complicated with these affections.
=AMMONI'ACAL.= [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ AMMONIACA'LIS, L. Pertaining to, or
possessing the odour or properties of, ammonia. See AMMONIA, &c.
=AMMONI'ACUM.= _Syn._ GUM AMMONIACUM, G. AMMO''NIAC[dagger]; GOMME
AMMONIAQUE, Fr.; AMMONIAK, Ger. A gummy-resinous exudation from the stem
of _dorema ammoniacum_, in tears and masses, of a pale cinnamon colour,
brittle, and when broken has a white and shining surface. Collected in
Persia and the Punjaub. (B. P.)
Gum ammoniacum has an unpleasant odour, especially when heated, and a
nauseous and slightly bitter taste. It is a mild, stimulating
expectorant and emmenagogue; and its effects on the system resemble
those of assaf[oe]tida except in being weaker. Externally, it is
resolvent.--_Dose_, 10 to 30 gr. in pills or emulsion.
_Doses for Animals._ HORSE, 2 to 4 drachms. CATTLE, 2 to 4 drachms. SHEEP,
1/2 to 1-1/2 drachm. PIG, 1/2 to 1-1/2 drachm. DOG, 10 to 20 grains.
Either by bolus or emulsion.
=Ammoniacum, Strained'.= _Syn._ PREPARED AMMONIACUM; AMMONI'ACUM
PRÆPARA'TUM (Ph. L.), L. _Prep._ (Ph. L. 1851.) Boil ammoniacum in water
just sufficient to cover it; strain the mixture through a hair sieve, and
constantly stirring, evaporate in a water bath, until, on cooling, it
becomes hard. The product, owing to a loss of volatile oil, is much weaker
than the unprepared gum-resin. The process is only necessary with rough
lump ammoniacum.
=Ammo''niated.= _Syn._ AMMONIA'TUS, L. In _pharmacy_, _perfumery_, &c.,
applied to preparations containing ammonia.
=AMMO'NIO-, Ammon'ico-.= In _chemistry_, a common prefix to double salts
containing ammonia; as ammonio-citrate, a.-chloride, or a.-tartrate of
iron, &c. See the respective metals.
=AMONTILLADO.= [Sp.] See SHERRY and WINE.
=AMORPH'OUS= (-morf'-us). _Syn._ AMORPH'US, L.; AMORPHE, INFORME,
DIFFORME, Fr.; AMORPHISCH, MISGEBILDET, MISSGESTALTET, Ger. Shapeless. In
_chemistry_ and _mineralogy_, applied to substances devoid of regular or
crystalline form; as a lump of chalk, the majority of precipitates, &c.
The corresponding substantives are AMORPH'ISM, AMORPH'OUSNESS*
(_amorphis'mus_, L.; _amorphisme_, Fr.).
=AMPHIB'IA= (f[)i]b'-y'[)a]). [L. pl.; prim. Gr.] _Syn._ AMPHIB'IANS
(-y[)a]nz), AMPHIB'IALS (-y'[)a]lz). Animals that possess the faculty of
living both in water and on land. In _modern zoology_ it is restricted to
those animals which possess both gills and lungs; as the _batrach'ia_ or
frog tribe. The term is also often applied, colloquially, to otters,
seals, walruses, crocodiles, &c., none of which can breathe under water,
although, from the languid nature of their circulation, they are able to
remain a long time in it.
=AMPHIB'IOUS= (y'[)u]s). _Syn._ AMPHIB'IUS, L.; AMPHIBIE, Fr.; BEYDLEBIG,
Ger. In _botany_ and _zoology_, having the faculty of growing or living
both on land and in water. See AMPHIBIA.
=AM'PHITYPE= (-fe-). See PHOTOGRAPHY.
=AMYGDALIN.= C_{20}H_{27}NO_{11}.3Aq. This substance exists in bitter
almonds. It crystallises in pearly white plates, which are odourless and
almost tasteless. It is nearly insoluble in hot and cold water and in cold
alcohol, but soluble in boiling alcohol. To prepare amygdalin, boil
well-pressed cake of bitter almonds twice in strong alcohol; strain
through linen, and press the residue; remove any oil that may appear, heat
the liquid again, and filter. In a few days part of the amygdalin
crystallises out. Concentrate the residuary liquor to a sixth part, and
add ether, which will throw down the amygdalin. Press it between blotting
paper, wash it with ether, and set aside to crystallise.
=AMYG'DALOID= (-loyd). _Syn._ AMYGDALOID'AL; AMYGDALOÏ'DES (-d[=e]z), L.;
AMYGDALOÏDE, Fr. Almond-shaped. In _mineralogy_, amygdaloid is
'toadstone.'
=AMYKOS= (Galen, Upsala). A cosmetic and mouth-wash. Claims to be prepared
according to an English patent. It is an aqueous extract of 420 grms.
cloves, boiled in a gallon of water, in which 420 grms. of pure glycerine
are dissolved, and to which 210 grms. of borax are added. (Hager.)
=AMYKOSASEPTIN= is linen saturated with a hot solution of borax.
(Nyström.)
=AMYLA'CEOUS= ([)a]m-e-l[=a]'-sh'[)u]s). _Syn._ AMYLA'CEUS, L.; AMYLACÉ,
Fr. Of or like starch; consisting of or abounding in starch; starchy. See
FOOD, NUTRITION, STARCH, &c.
=AM'YL= (-[)i]l). C_{5}H_{11}. The radical of the fusel-oil compounds
(AMYL-SERIES).
=Amyl, Acetate of.= C_{5}H_{11}C_{2}H_{3}O_{2}. _Syn._ PEAR-OIL. _Prep._
From fusel-oil, 1 part; acetate of potassa (dry), 2 parts; concentrated
sulphuric acid, 1 part; distilled, with the usual precautions, from a
glass retort into a cool receiver. The distillate is purified by washing
it with very dilute solution of potassa, and redistilling it from fused
chloride of calcium. A little litharge added to the liquid in the retort,
before rectification, will remove any sulphurous odour, should it be
present.
_Prop., &c._ Liquid, limpid, colourless; insoluble in water; soluble in
alcohol; boils at 272° Fahr.; alcoholic solution of potassa converts it
into an acetate of that base, with reproduction of fusel-oil.
_Obs._ The odour and flavour of this preparation are those of the
Jargonelle pear. It is now extensively manufactured, and, after dilution
with alcohol, is sold under the name of ESSENCE OF JARGONELLE PEAR, for
flavouring liqueurs and confectionery.
=Amyl, Vale'rianate of.= C_{5}H_{11}C_{5}H_{9}O_{2}. _Syn._ APPLE-OIL,
A.-ESSENCE, &c. This compound is abundantly formed during the preparation
of valerianic acid from potato oil, and is recognised by the offensive
odour of rotten apples evolved during the process. By treating the crude
product of the distillation with a weak solution of pure potassa, the
valerianic acid is removed, and the volatile oil obtained nearly pure.
Dissolved in rectified spirit it forms the 'APPLE-ESSENCE' now so much
employed as a flavouring ingredient for confectionery and liqueurs. See
FRUIT ESSENCES, VALERIANIC ACID, &c.
=AMYL NITRITE.= _Syn._ AMYL NITRIS, B. P. Produced by the action of nitric
or nitrous acid on amylic alcohol.--_Dose._ By inhalation, the vapour of 2
to 5 minims. To be used with caution. It may be produced by passing a
stream of nitrous acid gas through purified amylic alcohol at a
temperature of 132° C.
For other methods of preparing it consult 'Wood and Bache's United States
Dispensatory, 1877.' Mr Umney ('Pharm. Journal') says that true nitrite of
amyl should be made by passing nitrous acid into amylic alcohol which has
been previously submitted to a fractional distillation, until the portion
retained for use has a boiling point of 132° C. A nitrate so prepared,
when deprived of any excess of acid it may contain by rectification over
fused carbonate of potash, will have a boiling point of 98°-99° C.
=AM'YLENE= (-e-l[=e]ne). C_{5}H_{10}. [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ AM'ILENE*;
AMYLE'NA, AMYLE'NUM, L. A peculiar volatile, liquid hydrocarbon,
discovered by Cahours.
_Prep._ From fusel-oil repeatedly distilled along with either anhydrous
phosphoric acid, or a concentrated solution of chloride of zinc; the
product being repeatedly rectified at a low temperature, until the boiling
point sinks to 102° Fahr.
_Prop., Uses, &c._ An ethereal liquid, lighter than water, having an
aromatic odour, slightly alliaceous. Sp. gr. of vapour, 2·68. Its vapour
was several times successfully employed, by the late Dr Snow, as a
substitute for ether and chloroform in producing anæsthesia, being, though
less agreeable, also less pungent, and consequently easier to breathe,
than either of them; but its use has since been given up owing to doubts
as to its safety, two or three deaths having followed its inhalation.
=ANADOLI= (Kreller, Nuremburg). An oriental tooth-powder. Powdered soap,
42 parts; starch powder, 44 parts; levantine soapwort, 12 parts; oil of
bergamot and lemon to flavour. (Wittstein.)
=ANÆMIA.= Deficiency of blood.
=ANÆSTHE'SIA= ([)a]n-[=e]z-the'-zh'[)a]; -sh'[)a]; -th[=e]ze'y'[)a]r).
[L.; prim. Gr.] _Syn._ ANESTHÉSIE, Fr. In _pathology_, diminished or lost
sense of feeling.
In _surgery_ and _obstetrics_, the production of temporary anæsthesia, for
the purpose of rendering operations painless, relieving the pangs of
childbirth, &c., is effected by the use of--
=ANÆSTHET'ICS.= _Syn._ ANÆSTHET'ICA, L.; ANESTHÉTIQUES, Fr. In
_pharmacology_ and _surgery_, substances or agents which diminish or
destroy sensibility, or which relieve pain. In its full extent this term
includes both anodynes and narcotics; but it is now more generally
confined to those substances which greatly diminish common sensibility, or
entirely remove susceptibility to pain. Among the most useful, safe, and
powerful of this class are chloroform, ether, nitrous oxide, and intense
cold; besides several chlorinated compounds, such as the bichlorides of
ethylen, methylen, and carbon.
More than 1500 years ago the Chinese are said to have used a preparation
of hemp, or _ma-yo_, to annul the pain attendant upon cauterisation and
other surgical operations. Mandragora (mandrake) was employed for a
similar purpose by the Greeks and Romans; and we learn that as early as
the thirteenth century the vapour from a sponge filled with tinctures of
mandragora, opium, and other sedatives was used for a similar purpose.
Baptista Porta, in his work on natural magic printed in 1597, mentions a
quintessence extracted from medicines by somniferous menstrua, of the
nature of which he leaves us in ignorance. This quintessence was to be
preserved in leaden vessels very perfectly closed, lest the aura should
escape, for the medicine would vanish away. Furthermore, he adds, "when it
is used, the cover being removed, it is applied to the nostrils of the
sleeper, who draws in the most subtle power of the vapour by smelling, and
so blocks up the fortress of the senses, that he is plunged into the most
profound sleep, and cannot be roused without the greatest effort." Dr Iron
suggested that the volatile substance was sulphuric ether, which he says
had been described more than fifty years before Porta wrote his book. In
the year 1800 Sir Humphry Davy suggested the employment of nitrous oxide,
or laughing gas, as it was then termed, for minor operations in surgery,
and in 1828 Dr Hickman proposed carbonic acid as an anæsthetic. The vapour
of sulphuric ether had been used in his practice by Dr Pearson as early as
1795, for the relief of spasmodic asthma. The fact that sulphuric ether
was capable of producing insensibility was demonstrated by American
physicians; viz. by Godwin in 1822, Mitchell in 1832, Jackson in 1833, and
Wood and Bache in 1834; but the first practitioner to employ it to prevent
the pain of an operation was Dr Morton, a Boston dentist, who successfully
used it for this purpose in 1846. On the 19th of December of the same year
Mr Liston, of University Hospital, London, and Mr Robinson, a dentist,
operated upon patients who had been rendered insensible by means of the
inhalation of the vapour of ether.
Throughout the year 1847 ether was employed as an anæsthetic both in
England and France, but towards the end of that year the anæsthetic
properties of chloroform were pointed out by Flourens. The first, however,
to introduce this agent into surgical and obstetric practice was Dr I. T.
Simpson, of Edinburgh. In 1849 a work on the inhalation of ether was
published by Dr Snow, who afterwards introduced a new anæsthetic, viz.
amylene, which was capable of producing effects similar to those of
chloroform; but as two patients out of but a small number who inhaled the
vapour of amylene died, this latter soon fell into discredit, and
consequent disuse.
Except in dental practice, in which nitrous oxide gas is the anæsthetic
invariably employed, chloroform is almost universally used in surgical
operations, one advantage it possesses over ether being its much more
rapid action, although this latter property must be regarded as one which
constitutes the risk which, although very slight (when the exceedingly
small per-centage of deaths resulting from its administration is taken
into account), undoubtedly attends its inhalation.
Dr Sansom says of chloroform:--"The cause of its danger is its power of
paralysing the cardiac and other motor sources of circulation. This
property resides in large and sudden doses of its vapour." He strongly
recommends its dilution by air and alcohols. He further remarks that all
anæsthetics modify the endosmotic condition of the blood discs, and
contends that they affect the supply of arterial blood by altering the
calibre of the channels which convey it. He advocates the substitution of
one anæsthetic for another during the inhalation.
Methylene dichloride, introduced by Dr B. W. Richardson, is said to
possess the disadvantage of causing considerable depression.
The mode of administering these agents is by causing the patient to inhale
their vapour mixed with air.
Sometimes they are poured on to a sponge or a handkerchief, or piece of
lint, either of which is then applied to the mouth and nostrils of the
patient in such a manner that the air which passes into his lungs is
saturated with the vapour. Except in extemporised cases, however, this
method is pretty well abandoned, a proper apparatus having supplanted the
sponge or handkerchief, &c. Part of the apparatus consists of a graduated
bottle containing the anæsthetic, by means of which the operator is
enabled to tell how much of this latter is being consumed, and thus to
regulate the quantity inhaled.
The first effect that results from the administration of anæsthetics is a
form of intoxication, caused by the action of the anæsthetic agent on the
cerebral lobes, and as this action extends to the cerebellum, the patient
becomes incapable of directing his movements--an effect like that caused
by intoxication from alcohol.
In the next stage the spinal cord is attacked, unconsciousness supervenes,
and all powers of motion and sensation are lost. The individual is now
said to be in a state of anæsthesia; but the heart continues to beat,
respiration is not impeded, and the other essential functions of the body
go on as usual.
Should, however, the exhibition of the anæsthetic agent be incautiously
continued too long, the bodily temperature falls, the movements of
respiration and circulation become impaired, the heart ceases its action,
and death finally ensues. The introduction of anæsthetics into surgical
practice has been of great and invaluable service to the operator. The
patient being motionless and free from pain, the surgeon is enabled to
perform the operation at his ease, and consequently more efficiently;
moreover, in the reduction of dislocations and of hernia, the muscles
being flaccid, the obstacle produced by their contraction is removed. M.
Velpeau endeavoured to produce local anæsthesia, or insensibility of the
part of the body to be operated upon, by means of a freezing mixture
composed of ice and salt; this method, however, was found impracticable,
and was soon abandoned. Since then local anæsthesia as introduced by Dr
Richardson, when had recourse to, is effected by means of a spray of ether
directed on the part, the intense cold produced by the rapid evaporation
of the ether entirely depriving the part of sensation. It is said that
the pain resulting from the application of this method is a great barrier
to its use.
Amongst anæsthetics, nitrous oxide gas occupies an important place, its
use, as before stated, being almost wholly confined to operations in
dental surgery.[55] As in the case of ether, the American practitioners
were the first to employ nitrous oxide as an anæsthetic. Attention was
directed to its anæsthetic properties in 1844 by Mr Horace Wells, an
American dentist, but little interest seems to have been awakened by his
application of it, since it was not until 1863 that Dr Cotton, of New
York, drew attention to the subject by performing an operation on a
patient under its influence.
[Footnote 55: The 'British Medical Journal' for 1868 states it was used
successfully at the Ophthalmic Hospital, Moorfields.]
In March, 1868, Dr Evans, residing in Paris, after a visit from Dr Cotton,
directed the attention of medical men in England to the value of nitrous
oxide as an anæsthetic in dental surgery, and shortly afterwards it was
first employed to produce anæsthesia at the Dental Hospital. Nitrous oxide
is obtained from nitrate of ammonia, and the particulars of its
preparation may be found by referring to the article NITROUS OXIDE.
Immense quantities of the gas are used in dental operations. It has been
computed that in 1870 Messrs Coxeter and Barth could not have prepared
much less than 60,000 gallons in London alone. To fit it for transit it is
reduced by compression. Fifteen gallons may thus be diminished in volume
until it fills an iron bottle holding a quart. Five or six gallons of the
gas are, on an average, required for each patient. In the preparation of
nitrous oxide for surgical purposes Dr Evans advises it to be made at
least 24 hours before it is used, and further recommends its being
thoroughly washed. An apparatus for the preparation of the gas was devised
by Mr Porter, a description of which will be found in the 'Transactions of
the Odontological Society of Great Britain' for 1868, in which also
mention is made of a face-piece for its administration, the invention of
Mr Clover. By means of this latter instrument the desiderata that the
nitrous oxide should be inhaled without admixture with atmospheric air,
and contamination arising from the expired air given off by the patient,
are accomplished, for it has been found that when excitement and talking
attend the inhalation of the gas, these effects are due to the presence of
the carbonic acid thrown off by the lungs.
When inhaled in the ordinary way, nitrous oxide gas induces exhilaration
and narcotism, without asphyxia. When, however, the atmospheric air is
carefully excluded, it produces, as we have just seen, anæsthesia without
exhilaration. The time required to produce anæsthesia varies from 25 to
120 seconds, by from 10 to 60 inhalations. A patient has been subjected
for 10 minutes to its action without experiencing any unpleasant symptoms
or after effects. Mr Randle says it is perfectly safe in all short
operations, and possibly in long ones also, provided there is due
admission of air at proper intervals. It seems tolerably certain that
nitrous oxide is largely absorbed by the blood-corpuscles, and it is
probable that its presence in them may temporarily act to the exclusion of
oxygen, and thus prevent for a time that combination of oxygen with
hæmoglobin upon which the red colour of the corpuscles depends. Chemistry,
however, has failed to show that nitrous oxide is decomposed in the blood,
or that it exerts any of the chemical properties of oxygen on the
constituent elements of the blood. Whenever the slightest anæsthetic
effect is communicated to the nervous system, a simultaneous effect is
produced upon the medulla oblongata, the spinal chord, as well as upon the
cerebrum and cerebellum.
The whole available force in the body is undoubtedly due to oxidation.
This oxidation is accomplished by means of the blood, and it is therefore
evident that a continuous flow of oxygenated blood to the nerve centres is
necessary as a source of power and of sensibility, as well as for the
reintegration of nerve tissue. Any deficiency of oxygen in the blood is
followed by a decreased arterialisation of the whole volume of the blood.
Under these conditions the exhalation of carbonic acid is relatively less
rapid than its formation, and life cannot continue if the blood in the
arteries becomes thoroughly venous, as well in colour as in character.
That nitrous oxide, when inhaled, changes the colour of the
blood-corpuscles is evidenced by the livid appearance of the face and
mucous surfaces; the latter, indeed, is a characteristic accompaniment of
its administration, and the darkened colour of the blood may be observed
as it flows from the severed vessels. This colour of the blood is probably
in part due to uneliminated carbonic acid; but that nitrous oxide
possesses in a high degree the property of darkening the blood-corpuscles
may be easily demonstrated by directing a jet of the gas for a few seconds
upon a little arterial blood in a test tube. Yet, from what has previously
been advanced on this point, this latter result may more strictly be due
to physical than to chemical causes. An interruption of the circulation in
any part of the organism is soon followed by local insensibility in the
tissues from which the blood supply may have been withdrawn; and it is
beyond dispute that, during the anæsthetic state, the circulation of the
blood through the capillary system becomes diminished in velocity. A
tendency to stasis begins to appear, accompanied at the same time by a
considerable reduction in the supply of arterial blood. These are facts
that admit of experimental demonstration, as does also another fact, viz.
that during the period of insensibility produced by the inhalation of
nitrous oxide the brain itself is in a state of comparative anæmia. In
short, it appears most probable that an arrest of the capillary
circulation through the brain, to which several writers have attributed a
potential influence as the cause of anæsthesia, is simply, so far as it
may exist, a result of it.
The anæsthesia produced by the inhalation of nitrous oxide would,
therefore, appear to be referable to an altered condition of the blood,
whereby the molecular dynamic changes are interfered with, this
interruption being probably due either to the retention of carbonic acid,
or to the presence of nitrous oxide; or, as the result of both conditions,
to the exclusion of oxygen.
For minor operations nitrous oxide possesses many advantages over other
anæsthetics. The principal of these is its safety. In America, in 200,000
cases in which it had been administered, there was only one case of death.
Furthermore its use is not contra-indicated in patients having any
constitutional derangement, nor for women who are either pregnant or
suckling.
Nitrogen, coal-gas, and carbonic acid have also been employed as
anæsthetics.
The 'British Medical Journal' for June 13th, 1868, contains an account of
some experiments performed by Dr Burdon Sanderson, at Middlesex Hospital,
with nitrogen. It seems to have been longer in producing insensibility
than nitrous oxide, but no lividity of countenance accompanied, nor
sickness or headache followed, its administration.
=ANALEP'TIC.= _Syn._ ANALEP'TICUS, L.; ANALEPTIQUE, Fr. Restorative; that
recruits the strength lost by sickness.
=Analep'tics.= _Syn._ ANALEP'TICA, L.; ANALEPTIQUES, Fr. In
_pharmacology_, &c., restorative medicines and agents.
=ANAL'YSIS= (-e-s[)i]s). [Eng. L., Gr.] _Syn._ ANALYSE, Fr.; AUSLÖSUNG,
ZERLEGUNG, Ger. In a gen. sense, the resolution of anything, whether an
object of the senses or of the intellect, into its elementary parts. In
_chemistry_, the resolution or separation of a compound body into its
constituent parts or elements, for the purpose of either determining their
nature, or, when this is known, their relative proportions. It is divided
into QUAL'ITATIVE ANALYSIS and QUAN'TITATIVE ANALYSIS; and these again
into PROX'IMATE ANALYSIS and UL'TIMATE ANALYSIS. The first consists in
finding the components of a compound, merely as respects their nature or
names; the second, in finding not merely the component parts, but also the
proportions of each of them; the third gives the results in the names of
the proximate or immediate principles or compounds which, by their union,
form the body under examination; whilst the fourth develops the chemical
elements of which it is composed.[56] An analysis may also be made to
determine whether a certain body is or is not contained in a compound (as
lead in wine); or it may be undertaken to ascertain all the constituents
present; the extent of an investigation being merely limited by the object
in view.
[Footnote 56: Thus, suet consists of olein, palmitin, and stearin. These
would form the 'terms' of the PROXIMATE ANALYSIS of this substance. But
olein, palmitin, and stearin consist of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The
ULTIMATE ANALYSIS of suet would, therefore, have reference to the elements
carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.]
For success in chemical analysis a thorough acquaintance with the various
properties of bodies is required, as well as aptitude in applying this
knowledge in discriminating them, and separating them from each other.
Judgment and expertness in manipulation are, indeed, essential
qualifications. The method pursued must likewise be such as to attain the
object in view with unerring certainty, and in the most expeditious
manner. "The mere knowledge of the reagents, and of the reactions of other
bodies with them, will not suffice for the attainment of this end. This
requires the additional knowledge of a systematic and progressive course
of analysis, or, in other words, the knowledge of the order, and
succession, in which solvents, together with general and special reagents,
ought to be applied, both to effect the speedy and safe detection of every
individual component of a compound or mixture, and to prove with certainty
the absence of all other substances. If we do not possess this systematic
knowledge, or if in the hope of attaining an object more rapidly, we
adhere to no method in our investigations and experiments, analysing
becomes (at least in the hands of a novice) mere guesswork, and the
results obtained are no longer the fruits of scientific calculation, but
mere matters of accident, which sometimes may prove lucky hits, and at
others total failures." (Fresenius.)
=ANALYSIS, SPECTRUM.= More than half a century ago Sir John Herschel
employed the prism in the analysis of coloured flames, and in 1834 Fox
Talbot, by means of the same instrument, distinguished the difference
between the spectra given by strontium and lithium, notwithstanding the
similarity of the two in colour. But it was reserved for Messrs Kirchkoff
and Bunsen, as the inventors of the spectroscope, to devise the only
efficient method of analysing flame, and, at the same time, to furnish
chemists with a means whereby they may detect with unerring certainty the
presence of any known element by observing the spectrum it gives when such
element is submitted to a temperature sufficiently high for it to emit a
luminous vapour. That certain chemical substances when heated in the flame
of the spirit-lamp or the blow-pipe, or any other source of comparatively
white light, imparted characteristic colours to the flame, was a fact that
had long been known to chemists; for example, when a salt of sodium was so
treated, an intense yellow colour was imparted to the flame. A salt of
potassium produced under the same circumstances a violet, strontium, a
crimson colour, &c. These results could only be produced when the
substance under examination contained but one of the salts in question. If
more than one were present, this method of qualitative analysis was
comparatively, if not wholly, valueless, because the specific colour
communicated to the flame by the presence of one element would be masked,
and, consequently, destroyed by the colour developed by the vapour of
another or other elements. For instance, so much more vivid is the yellow
colour given to flame by sodium salts than the violet tint imparted by
those of potassium, that a very small trace of sodium prevents the unaided
eye from perceiving the violet, even when the potassium compound is
present in large quantity.
Very different optical effects, however, follow if the rays from the
various-coloured flames are made to pass through a prism. As is well
known, if a ray of ordinary white light is made to traverse a prism, when
it issues from the prism it has become decomposed or dissected into seven
luminous rays of as many different colours, the coloured image thus
produced being called a prismatic spectrum, or simply a spectrum.
This phenomenon is owing to the prism refracting or bending out of its
course the beam of light sent through it, and to each coloured ray of
which the beam is made up being differently refracted.
"If, however, instead of the white flame coloured flames are examined by
means of a prism, the light being allowed to fall through a narrow slit
upon the prism, it is at once seen that the light thus refracted differs
essentially from white light, inasmuch as it consists of only a particular
set of rays, each flame giving a spectrum containing a few bright bands.
Thus, the spectrum of the yellow soda flame contains only one fine bright
yellow line, whilst the purple potash flame exhibits a spectrum in which
there are two bright lines, one lying at the extreme red, and the other at
the extreme violet end. These peculiar lines are always produced by the
same chemical element, and by no other known substance; and the position
of these lines always remains unaltered. When the spectrum of a flame
tinted by a mixture of sodium and potassium salts is examined, the yellow
ray of sodium is found to be confined to its own position, whilst the
potassium red and purple lines are as plainly seen as they would have been
had no sodium been present."[57]
[Footnote 57: Roscoe.]
Equally characteristic and well-defined spectra, the bands in which have
each an invariable and fixed position in the spectrum, are also produced
when the coloured flames arising from heating to the requisite point the
remaining salts of the alkalies and alkaline earths are examined by the
prism. On the opposite page the first spectrum shows some of the fixed
dark lines that are always observed when a solar beam is examined by the
spectroscope. These lines are compared with the position of some of the
more important bright lines furnished by the spectra of the metals of the
alkalies and alkaline earths, when their chlorides are heated upon a loop
of platinum wire introduced into the flame of a Bunsen gas-burner. The
characteristic bright lines given by each metal are denoted by the letters
of the Greek alphabet, the earliest letter indicating the most strongly
marked lines.
In the potassium spectrum the most characteristic bright lines are the red
line K [Greek: a], and violet line K [Greek: b]. In the case of sodium
nearly the whole of the light is concentrated on the intense yellow double
line Na [Greek: a]. In the lithium spectrum a crimson band, Li [Greek: a],
is the prominent line; Li [Greek: b] is seldom visible, but at the
elevated temperature of the voltaic arc an additional blue line becomes
very intense. In the spectrum of cæsium two lines in the blue, Cs [Greek:
a] and Cs [Greek: b], are strongly marked. In rubidium the lines Rb
[Greek: a] and Rb [Greek: b] in the blue, and Rb [Greek: g] in the red are
almost equally specific. Thallium is recognised by the intense green line
Il [Greek: a]. The spectra of the metals of the alkaline earths are
equally definite, though more complicated.
By means of the spectroscope quantities so inconceivably minute as the
33,000th of a grain of chloride of rubidium, the 170,000th of a grain of
chloride of cæsium, the 2,500,000th of a grain of sodium, and the
6,000,000th of a grain of lithium, have been detected, and have revealed
themselves to the sight by their characteristic bands in the spectrum.
Hence it is that in making use of this branch of analysis the chemist has
been enabled to show the universality of many elements hitherto regarded
as being very sparingly distributed throughout the globe.
Thus lithium, which until lately was supposed to be one of the rare
elements, has been found as a constituent of tea, tobacco, milk, blood,
and in almost all spring waters. Furthermore, the prodigiously sensitive
reactions afforded by the spectroscope have not only revealed the presence
of infinitesimal quantities of known elements, but have led to the
discovery of new ones which had escaped detection by the older and less
delicate processes of analysis. It was by means of spectrum analysis that
the two alkali metals, cæsium and rubidium, were discovered by Bunsen and
Kirchkoff in 1860 in a mineral water at Durkheim, and that Mr Crookes in
1861 discovered the metal thallium in the deposit found in the flue of a
pyrites furnace; whilst still more recently Messrs Reich and Richter, in a
spectrum examination of a zinc ore from Freiberg, discovered the metal
indium.
[Illustration]
The most brilliant spectra are given by those salts which are the most
easily volatilised, such as the chlorides, iodides, and bromides of the
different metals. But it is only the metals of the alkalies and alkaline
earths that give spectra that are characteristic. When it is desired to
obtain the spectra of the other metals, they may be raised to the
requisite temperature by means of the electric spark, which in passing
through the two points of the metal operated upon volatilises a minute
quantity of it, and thus enables it to emit its particular light. The
electric sparks are best obtained by means of Ruhmkorff's coil. Thus each
metal may be made to yield a spectrum which specially belongs to it, and
to it alone. When the electric discharge is sent through a compound gas or
vapour, owing to the intense temperature generated separation of its
constituents must take place, since the spectra produced are those of the
elementary components of the gas. The permanent gases give each their
peculiar spectrum when they are strongly heated, by which they may be
recognised; thus the spectrum of hydrogen is composed of three bands, one
being bright red, one green, and the other blue. Nitrogen gives a very
complicated spectrum.
The accompanying figure exhibits a very complete form of the spectroscope
adapted to a single prism.
[Illustration]
P represents a flint-glass prism supported on the cast-iron tripod F, and
retained in its place by the spring _c_. At the end of the tube A nearest
the prism is a lens, placed at the distance of its focus for parallel rays
from a vertical slit at the other end of the tube. The width of the slit
can be regulated by means of the screw _e_. One half of this slit is
covered by a small rectangular prism designed to reflect the rays
proceeding from the source of light D, down the axis of the tube, whilst
the rays from the source of light E pass directly down the tube. By this
arrangement the observer stationed at the end of the telescope B is able
to compare the spectra of both lights, which are seen one above the other,
and he can at once decide whether their lines coincide or differ. _a_ and
_b_ are screws for adjusting the axis of the telescope so as to bring any
part of the slit at _e_ into the centre of the field of vision.
The telescope as well as the tube C is moveable in a horizontal plane
around the axis of the tripod. The tube C contains a lens at the end next
to the prism, and at the other end is a scale formed by transparent lines
on an opaque ground; it is provided with a levelling screw, _d_. When the
telescope has been properly adjusted to the examination of the spectrum,
the tube C is moved until it is placed at such an angle with the telescope
and the face of the prism, that when a light is transmitted through the
scale the image of this scale is reflected into the telescope from the
face of the prism nearest the observer. This image is rendered perfectly
distinct by pushing in the tube which holds the scale nearer to the lens
in C, or withdrawing it to a greater distance, as may be required. The
reflected lines of the scale can then be employed for reading off the
position of the dark or bright lines of the spectrum, as both will appear
simultaneously overlapping each other in the field of the telescope.
By turning the tube C round upon the axis of the tripod any particular
line of the scale can be brought to coincidence with any desired line of
the spectrum. Stray light is excluded by covering the stand, the prism,
and the ends of the tube adjoining it with a loose black cloth. The
dispersive power upon the spectrum may be much increased by using several
prisms instead of one. Kirchkoff used four prisms in his experiments upon
the solar spectrum. Great care must be observed in placing the prisms; the
refracting edge of each prism must be exactly vertical, and the position
of minimum deviation for the rays to be observed must be obtained.
The preceding remarks have reference to the spectra produced when the
vapours of certain elements are evolved in flame derived from artificial
sources. When, however, solar light is examined by the spectroscope,
results entirely the reverse follow.
If a beam of sunlight be sent through the slit of the spectroscope, the
prismatic image is seen to be intersected by a number of fine black lines,
varying in thickness and intensity, and invariably occupying the same
relative position in the solar spectrum. These lines were first noticed so
far back as 1815 by a German optician, Frauenhofer, after whom they were
named Frauenhofer's lines; but it was not until the invention of the
spectroscope that the origin of these lines could be accounted for. By so
arranging the instrument as to cause the spectrum from a solar beam, and
that from a metallic element, to fall upon the field of the telescope, so
that the solar spectrum shall be above the other, both being perfectly
parallel; the bright bands or lines of the metal are all seen to be
continued in the dark solar lines, for, as may be seen by consulting the
plate of the different spectra, several lines are sometimes produced by
one element alone. If, for instance, the sodium and solar spectra are thus
compared, the bright yellow sodium line will be found to agree exactly
not only in position, but also in intensity and breadth, with one of the
dark solar ones. And the same thing occurs when the comparison is made
with many of the other metals, the bright lines in the respective spectra
furnished by them are each coincident with a particular dark line in the
solar spectrum, and from every dark line in the latter a corresponding
bright one can be found amongst the spectra of the metals. From what has
just been stated, the inference seems irresistible that this coincidence
between the dark solar lines and the bright lines of the metals cannot be
accidental, but must be due to some intimate connection between them, and
that this is the case can be proved beyond refutation by a simple
experiment, in which the bright metallic lines can be changed into dark
ones, corresponding in every particular with those of the solar spectrum.
Thus the bright yellow soda lines coincident with Frauenhofer's lines can
be converted into dark ones by allowing the rays from a strong source of
white light to pass through a flame coloured with sodium, and then making
them fall upon the slit of the spectroscope. If we examine the spectrum
obtained by this means, instead of seeing the usual bright double band
upon a black ground, there will be presented to our sight a double dark
line, corresponding exactly with the position and width of the sodium
line, and instead of the black ground there will be a continuous spectrum
of white light, as in the solar spectrum.
The explanation of this remarkable phenomenon is due to Kirchkoff, and is
as follows:--When any substance is heated sufficiently to render it
luminous, rays of a certain and definite degree of refrangibility are
given out by it; whilst the same substance has also the power of absorbing
rays of this identical refrangibility. In the above experiment, therefore,
the yellow flame absorbed the same kind of light as it gave out, a
corresponding decrease of intensity in its own particular position in the
spectrum occurred, and a dark line showed itself in consequence.
In the same manner and under similar conditions the spectra of many other
substances have been reversed.
Reasoning on these facts, Kirchkoff has been able to account for the
presence in the solar spectrum of Frauenhofer's dark lines. He supposes
that in the luminous atmosphere surrounding the sun the vapours of various
metals are present, each of which would give its characteristic system of
bright lines; but behind this incandescent atmosphere containing metallic
vapour is the still more intensely heated solid or liquid nucleus of the
sun, which emits a brilliant continuous spectrum, containing rays of all
degrees of refrangibility.
When the light of this intensely heated nucleus is transmitted through the
incandescent photosphere of the sun, the bright lines which would be
produced by the photosphere are reversed, and Frauenhofer's dark lines are
only the reversed bright lines which would be visible if the intensely
heated nucleus were no longer there.
The correctness of this theory has been rigorously tested by Kirchkoff
himself, who submitted the solar spectrum to a most minute and searching
examination.
As a result of the knowledge thus obtained, the presence of certain metals
in the sun's atmosphere was an inevitable deduction. The metals hitherto
detected in the solar photosphere are--iron, sodium, magnesium, calcium,
chromium, nickel, barium, copper, zinc, strontium, cadmium, cobalt,
manganese, aluminium, and titanium. Hydrogen also exists in large quantity
as an incandescent gas, and gives rise to the red protuberances that may
be observed during a total eclipse.
During the total eclipse of 1869, M. Janssen, a French astronomer, was
enabled to obtain and figure the specimen of these red protuberances,
which, taken exclusively from that source of light, gave not dark lines,
but bright ones, corresponding in position with those of hydrogen,
magnesium, and sodium.
The fixed stars, unlike the moon and planets, which shine only by
reflected light, are not merely illuminated by self luminous bodies, and
yield spectra, which show them to contain many elements known to us; their
spectra are crossed by dark lines similar to, but not identical with those
given by the sun's light. The spectrum yielded by the star Aldebaran shows
it to contain hydrogen, sodium, magnesium, calcium, iron, tellurium,
antimony, bismuth, and mercury; in the spectrum of Sirius only sodium,
magnesium, and hydrogen have been found; whilst in that of Orionis there
is an absence of hydrogen. Most of the nebulæ and comets give spectra in
which there are only bright lines. It is hence inferred that these
celestial bodies are composed of masses of glowing gas, and, unlike the
sun and stars, do not consist of a solid or liquid mass surrounded by a
gaseous atmosphere. In the nebulæ hydrogen and nitrogen only have been
found; and in comets, principally carbon.
=ANANAS HEMP= (_Ananassa sativa_, _S. Brumelia ananas_, as well as other
species). This hemp comes from the West Indies and Central and South
America, where the common ananas is cultivated. It is rather inferior to
some varieties for spinning.
=ANASTATIC PRINTING.= See PRINTING and ZINCOGRAPHY.
=ANATHERIN BALSAM.= The following formula is published by the Netherlands
Society:--Tincture of myrrh, 160 grms.; tincture of catechu, 80 grms.;
tincture of guaiacum, 40 grms.; tincture of rhatany, 40 grms.; tincture of
cloves, 30 grms.; spirit of cochlearia, 20 grms.; oil of cassia, 20 drops;
otto of roses, 1 drop; proof spirit, 630 grms.
=ANATHERIN BALSAM= (J. G. Popp, Vienna). A mouth-wash. Red sandal wood, 20
parts; guaiacum wood, 10 parts; myrrh, 25 parts; cloves, 15 parts;
cinnamon, 5 parts; oils of cloves and cinnamon, of each, 2/3 part; spirit,
90 per cent., 1450 parts; rose water, 725 parts. Digest and filter.
Dr Hager, who gives the above, says that on the expiration of the patent
the following formula was published, but that a preparation made from that
process had only a distant resemblance to the actual compound. Myrrh, 1
part; guaiacum wood, 4 parts; saltpetre, 1 part; to be macerated for a
night with corn brandy, 120 parts; spirit of cochlearia, 180 parts. Then
distil of this 240 parts, in which are to be digested for 14 days garden
rue, cochlearia, rose leaves, black mustard, horseradish, pellitory root,
cinchona bark, club-moss, sage-vetiver, and alkanet root, of each 1 part.
Strain and filter, and to each 120 parts of the filtrate add 1 part of
spirit of nitrous ether. (Hager.)
=ANATOM'ICAL.= _Syn._ ANATOM'ICUS, L.; ANATOMIQUE, Fr.; ANATOMISCH, Ger.
Belonging to anatomy or dissection.
=Anatomical Prepara'tions.= Objects of interest in both surgical and
pathological anatomy, and specimens in natural history, preserved by
subjecting them to antiseptic processes, to which is also frequently added
injection with coloured fluids (which subsequently harden), amalgams, or
fusible metal, in order to display more fully the minute vessels, or the
microscopic anatomy of the several parts. See FUSIBLE ALLOY, INJECTIONS,
PREPARATIONS, PUTREFACTION, SKELETONS, SOLUTIONS, &c.
=ANCH'OVY= (-ch[=o]'-). _Syn._ ANCHOIS, Fr.; ANCHOVE, ANSCHOVE, Ger.;
ACCIUGHE, ANCHIOVE. It.; ANCHOVA, Port., Sp. The _clu'pea encrasic'olus_
(Linn.), a small fish of the herring tribe, closely resembling the English
sprat. It is common in the Mediterranean, and occurs in the greatest
abundance and of the finest quality about the island of Gorgona, near
Leghorn. It is taken in the night, during May, June, and July.
Anchovies are prepared for sale or exportation by salting or pickling
them--the heads, intestines and pectoral fins having been first removed,
but not the scales, and afterwards packing them, along with rock-salt, in
the small kegs in which they are imported into this country. The small
fish are valued more than the larger ones. For the table they are often
fried to a pale amber colour, in oil or butter; having previously been
scraped clean, soaked for an hour or two in water, wiped dry, opened
(without dividing the fish), and had the back-bones removed. Before being
put into the pan they are usually highly seasoned with cayenne; and after
being again closed, are dipped into a rich light batter. They are also
divided into fillets, and served as sandwiches, or in curried toasts.
Anchovies are also extensively potted (POTTED ANCHOVIES), and made into
butter (A.-BUTTER), and into sauce (A.-SAUCE), particularly the last.
The anchovy has a fine and peculiar flavour, and is eaten as a delicacy
all over Europe. It was known to the Greeks and Romans, who prepared from
it a kind of garum for the table. It is said to be aperitive, stimulant,
and stomachic.
The high price of genuine Gorgona anchovies has led the fraudulent dealer
to either substitute for them, or mix with them, fish of a less expensive
kind. The most frequent SUBSTITUTIONS are Dutch, French, and Sicilian fish
of allied species or varieties, sardines and even the common sprat. The
genuine Gorgona fish is about the length of one's finger; and may be known
by its silvery appearance; by the greater thickness of its head, which is
sharp-pointed, with the upper jaw considerably the longest, and the mouth
deeply divided; the dusky brown colour of its back,[58] and the pink
salmon colour of its flesh. When only 3 months old, its flesh is pale;
when of 6 months, rather pink; when of 10 to 12 months (or in its prime),
a beautiful deep pink colour; and when much older, darker, but less
lively. The fin-rays, varying in number with the age of the fish, are--
Yarrell. Hassall.[59]
Dorsal 14, 16 (?).
Pectoral 15, --
Ventral 7, --
Anal 18, 19 (?).
Caudal 19, 26 (?).
These fins are delicate in structure and greenish-white; and the membranes
connecting the rays almost transparent. "The length of the head, compared
with the length of the body alone, is as 1 to 3; the depth of the body but
2-3rds of the length of the head, and compared to the length of the whole
fish is as 1 to 7;" the tail is deeply forked, the gill covers are
elongated, and the scales of the body large and deciduous." "The breadth
of the eye is 1-5th of the length of the whole head."[60] Dutch fish may
be generally known by being deprived of the scales, and the French fish by
their larger size; and both by the paler or whiter colour of their flesh;
and sardines and sprats by the flesh being white. The genuine fish may
also be known by the pickle, after repose or filtration, being of a clear
pinkish colour, without any red sediment; whilst that from spurious kinds
is turbid and red only when agitated, and deposits a heavy red sediment
(Armenian bole, Venetian red, or red ochre) on repose. See BUTTER,
POTTING, POWDERS, SAUCES, &c.
[Footnote 58: The colour of the top of the head and back is, in the recent
fish, blue, with a tinge of green. (Yarrell.)]
[Footnote 59: Counted, by Dr A. H. Hassall, in fish in the preserved
state.]
[Footnote 60: Yarrell's 'British Fishes'.]
=Anchovies, Brit'ish.= See SPRATS.
=ANCHU'SIC ACID= (-k[=u]'z[)i]k). See ANCHUSINE.
=ANCHU'SINE.= (-k[=u]'z[)i]n). [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ ANCHU'SIC ACID*,
PSEU'DO-ALKANN'INE*, PSEUDO-ALKA''NIUM*; ANCHUSI'NA, L. The resinoid
constituting the colouring matter of alkanet-root (which _see_).
=ANCHYLO'SIS= ([)a]ngk-e-). [L.; prim. Gr.] _Syn._ ANKYLO'SIS, ANCYLO'SIS
([)a]n-se-), L.; ANKYLOSE, Fr., Ger. In _pathology_, stiffness or
immobility of a joint naturally moveable. Anchylosis is either true or
complete, as when the extremities of the bones forming a joint are
reunited and immovable; or false, or incomplete, where the affection
depends upon a contraction of the tendons and ligaments surrounding the
joints, which nevertheless admit of a small degree of motion. For the
first there is no available remedy; for the second gentle and progressive
flexion and extension of the part daily (carefully avoiding violence),
friction with oleaginous and stimulating liniments, and the use of the hot
bath, vapour bath, or hot-air or Turkish bath, and electricity, have been
strongly recommended, and have frequently proved successful.
=ANCYLO'SIS.= See ANCHYLOSIS.
=ANDITROPFEN= (Kirchner and Menge Arolsen), for weak digestion. Senna, 20
parts; rhubarb, 3 parts; jalap, 6 parts; zedoary root, 2 parts; ginger, 2
parts; galangal, 3 parts; soda, bicarbonate, 5 parts; sugar, 15 parts;
water, 300 parts; spirit, 65 parts. After digestion this is to be strained
and mixed with an infusion of 30 parts of yarrow (with the flowers) in 300
parts of hot water. After standing some time filter. (Hager.)
=ANDROGRAPHIS PANICULATA.= (Ind. Ph.) _Syn._ KARIYÁT. _Habitat._ Commonly
in shady places all over India.--_Officinal part._ The dried stalks and
root (Andrographis Caules et Radix, Kariyat, Creyat). The stem, which is
usually met with, with the root attached, occurs in pieces of about a foot
or more in length, quadrangular, of a lightish-brown colour, and
persistent bitter taste.--_Properties._ Bitter tonic and stomachic, very
analogous to quassia in its action.--_Therapeutic uses._ In general
debility, in convalescence after fevers, and in the advanced stages of
dysentery.
_Preparations_:--
=Compound Infusion of Kariyát= (Infusum Andrographis compositum). Take of
Kariyát, bruised, 1/2 an ounce; orange-peel and coriander fruit, bruised,
of each, 60 grains; boiling water, 10 fluid ounces. Infuse in a covered
vessel for an hour and strain.--_Dose._ From 1-1/2 to 2 fluid ounces,
twice or thrice daily.
=Compound Tincture of Kariyát= (Tinctura Andrographis composita). Take of
kariyát root, cut small, 6 ounces; myrrh and aloes, in coarse powder, of
each 1 ounce; brandy, 2 pints. Macerate for seven days in a closed vessel,
with occasional agitation; strain, press, filter, and add sufficient
brandy to make two pints.--_Dose._ From 1 to 4 fluid drachms. Said to be
tonic, stimulant, and gently aperient, and to prove valuable in several
forms of dyspepsia, and in torpidity of the bowels.
=ANDROPOGON (CYMBOPOGON) CITRATUM.= Lemon Grass. (Ind. Ph.) _Habitat._
Commonly cultivated in gardens in India; also in Ceylon, upon a large
scale, for the sake of its volatile oil.--_Officinal part._ The volatile
oil (Oleum Andropogi Citrati, Lemon Grass Oil, Oil of Verbena), obtained
by distillation from the fresh plant; of a pale sherry colour,
transparent, extremely pungent taste, and a peculiar fragrant lemon-like
odour.--_Properties._ Stimulant, carminative, antispasmodic, and
diaphoretic; locally applied, rubefacient.--_Therapeutic use._ In
flatulent and spasmodic affections of the bowels, and in gastric
irritability. In cholera it proves serviceable by aiding the process of
reaction. Externally, as an embrocation in chronic rheumatism, neuralgia,
sprains, and other painful affections.
_Dose._ From 3 to 6 drops, on sugar or in emulsion. For external
application it should be diluted with twice its bulk of soap liniment or
any bland oil.
=ANDROPOGON (CYMBOPOGON) NARDUS.= CITRONELLE. (Ind. Ph.) _Habitat._ Madras
Peninsula and Ceylon. The volatile oil of this plant has similar
properties to _A. citratum_. and is used for the same purposes.
=ANDROPOGON PACHNODES.= (Ind. Ph.) The volatile oil of this plant
possesses similar properties to that of _A. citratum_, and is used for the
same purposes.
=ANELEC'TRIC= ([)a]n-e-). Non-electric; a non-electric.
=ANEMOM'ETER= ([)a]n-e-). _Syn._ ANEMOM'ETRUM, L.; ANÉMOMÈTRE, Fr.;
WINDMESSER, Ger. An instrument or apparatus for measuring the force or
velocity of the wind, or of a current of air. Various contrivances have
been adopted for this purpose. The anemometer of Dr Lind being also
applicable to the determination of the draught of a chimney, and the
strength of air-current, in ventilation, may be usefully described here:--
[Illustration]
_Uses and Appl._ The open end (_a_) is kept, by means of a vane, presented
to the wind, which acting on the surface of the water, or other liquid in
_b_, raises the level of the fluid in the arm (_c_). The difference of the
level of the fluid in the two arms of the instrument is the measure of the
force of the wind. To estimate the draught of a flue or chimney, the arm
(_c_) is placed in the chimney, and the orifice (_a_) in the
apartment.[61]
[Footnote 61: The anemometers now generally used in meteorological
observations are those of Mr Follet Osler, Dr Robinson, and Dr Whewell.
For a description of these instruments, see Phillip's 'Report on
Anemometry,' the 'Trans. of the Brit. Assoc.,' 1846, 'Trans. Royal Irish
Acad.,' &c.]
=ANEMOM'ETRY.= _Syn._ ANEMOME'TRIA, L.; ANÉMOMETRIE, Fr.; WINDMESSEN, Ger.
In _meteorology_, _physics_, &c., the art or act of measuring the velocity
or force of the wind, or of ascertaining its direction.
=ANEM'ONE= ([)a]-n[)e]m'-o-ne). _Syn._ ANEM'ONY; ANEM'ONE, L., Gr.;
ANÉMONE, Fr. The wind-flower. In _botany_, a genus of beautiful flowering
herbaceous plants, of the nat. ord. Ranunculaceæ. The double flowers of
some of the species are among the most elegant ornaments of our gardens.
Others are used in medicine. They are all acrid and stimulating.
=Anem'ones, Sea.= (-o-n[=e]z). _Syn._ AN'IMAL-FLOWERS[double-dagger], SEA
SUN'FLOWERS[double-dagger]. Animals of the genus _actin'ia_, so called
from the resemblance of their claws or tentacles, when expanded, to the
petals of a flower. They are of various colours, are generally fixed by
one end to rocks or stones in the sand, and are very voracious, being
accused of occasionally swallowing a mussel or a crab as large as a hen's
egg for a meal. They belong to the highly organised polypes of Cuvier.
=ANEMON'IC ACID.= See ANEMONINE.
=ANEMONIN.= A crystalline substance found in the leaves of several species
of anemone, viz. _A. pulsatilla_, _A. pretensis_, _A. nemorosa_. Water
distilled from these leaves, after some weeks, deposits a colourless
inodorous substance, which softens at 150° C, giving off water and acrid
vapours. It is purified by repeated crystallisation from boiling alcohol.
Anemonin is a poisonous body. It causes slight irritation when applied to
the skin. By the action of alkalies anemonin is transferred into anemonic
acid.
=ANEM'OSCOPE= ([)a]n'-e--Brande, Mayne). _Syn._ ANEMOSCO'PIUM, L.;
ANÉMOSCOPE, Fr.; ANEMOSKOP, Ger. An instrument to measure the force and
velocity of the wind. See ANEMOMETER.
=AN'EROID= (-royd)[62]. In _physics_, &c., not fluid, or not depending on
water or a fluid for its action; applied to a certain form of barometer
(which _see_)
[Footnote 62: That is--[Greek: a], _without_, [Greek: nêros], (the)
_watery_, [Greek: eidos], _form_, as correctly given by Brande. By some
strange mistake, Dr Mayne, in his new 'Expository Lexicon,' gives "[Greek:
a], priv., [Greek: aêr], air, terminal _-ides_," as the derivation of this
word; and marks it '_ane'roid_,']
=ANEURISM.= A tumour on an artery, produced by the rupture of the inner
coat of the vessel, and the blood getting between it and the outer coat.
=ANGEL'ICA= (-j[)e]l'-). [L., Port., Sp.; Ph. E. & D.] _Syn._ GARDEN
ANGELICA; ANGÉLIQUE, Fr.; ANGELIKA, A.-WURZEL, ANGELKRAUT, Ger. The
_angelica archangel'ica_ of Linnæus, an aromatic herbaceous plant with a
biennial, fleshy root, indigenous to the north of Europe, but frequently
found wild in England, and largely cultivated in our gardens. Dried root
(ANGELICA, Ph. E.), aperient, carminative, diaphoretic, and tonic; much
esteemed by the Laplanders, both as food and medicine;--fruit or seed
(ANGELICA, Ph. D.) resembles the root, but is weaker. The whole plant has
been extolled as an aromatic tonic. As a masticatory, it leaves an
agreeable glowing heat in the mouth. The aromatic properties of this plant
depend on a peculiar volatile oil and resin.
_Uses, &c._ It has been recommended in diarrh[oe]a, dyspepsia, debility,
and some fevers; but is now seldom used in medicine. _Dose_, 30 gr. to 1
dr. The dried root and seeds are used by rectifiers to flavour gin and
liqueurs; and the fresh root, tender stems, stalks, &c., are made by the
confectioners into an aromatic candy. See CANDYING, LIQUEURS, &c.
=Angelica Atropurpu''rea.= [Linn.] _Syn._ AMER'ICAN ANGELICA; ANGELICA,
Ph. U. S. _Hab._ North America. Resembles garden angelica, but placed by
some botanists in a separate, though allied genus. It is a popular remedy
for flatulent colic, indigestion, and cardialgia, in the United States;
and is there regarded as tonic, cordial, and aphrodisiac.
=ANGEL'IC ACID. HC_{5}H_{7}O_{2}.= A volatile substance, noticed by L. A.
Buchner, jun., in angelica-root. It has a pungent sour smell, and a biting
acid taste; is sometimes fluid and oleaginous, and sometimes crystallised
in striated prisms.[63]
[Footnote 63: Schmidt's 'Jahrb.,' 1842.]
=ANGO'LA= _Syn._ ANGO'LA-WOOL, ANGO''RA-W., ANGO'NA-W., &c.; POIL DE
CHEVRON D'ANGORA, Fr.; (Engoor', Engour', or Engu'ri) TIFTIC, Tur. The
wool of 'ca'pra Angoren'sis' or the Angora-goat, of which the shawls of
Cashmere are made, and others in imitation of them. It is also used to
make plush, light cloths for paletôts which are repellent of wet, &c.; and
is extensively employed in France in the manufacture of lace more
brilliant than that of Valenciennes and Chantilly, and at half the price.
See ALPACA, SHAWLS, WOOL, &c.
=ANGOSTU'RA, Angustu'ra.= (-t[=u]re'-[)a]). See CUSPARIA.
=Angostura, False.= See BRUCEA, CUSPARIA and STRYCHNOS.
=ANGOSTU''RINE=, =Angustu'rine= (-[)i]n). See CUSPARIN.
=ANHYDRIDE.= Most, if not all modern chemists, adopting GERHARDT'S
practice of limiting the title of acid to a particular class of substances
which contain hydrogen, now regard all true acids as salts of hydrogen.
Formerly many bodies, such as silica or white arsenic, were looked upon as
acids, though if we adopt the foregoing definition they are not really so
until they have combined with water. Such bodies, because they contain no
hydrogen, are now distinguished as anhydrides; the substances, for
example, familiarly known as carbonic, sulphurous, and phosphoric acids,
must, upon the above principle, be designated carbonic, sulphurous, and
phosphoric anhydrides. We may also define an anhydride to be an oxide
which forms an acid on treatment with water.
=ANHY'DROUS= (-dr[)u]s; _an'hydrous_, as marked by Brande, is less usual).
_Syn._ AN'HYDRUS, L.; ANHYDRÉ, Fr.; WASSERFREI, Ger. Free from water; dry.
In _chemistry_ and _mineralogy_, a term frequently applied to substances,
as acids, alcohol, gases, salts, minerals, &c., which do not contain
either free or combined water. GASES may generally be rendered anhydrous
by passing them through a tube containing fused chloride of calcium, or
(_e.g._ AMMONIA and two or three others) quick-lime, in coarse powder; and
some of them, by passing them through concentrated sulphuric acid. SALTS
may generally be dried by cautiously submitting them to the action of
heat, or by exposure to a very dry atmosphere; and alcohol, and many other
volatile fluids, by careful distillation from chloride of calcium, or some
other highly hygrometric substance.
=AN'IL.= [Fr., Sp., L.] The indigof'era anil of botanists--one of the
plants yielding 'indigo'--a native of America, but now largely cultivated
in the East Indies. See INDIGO (and _below_).
=AN'ILINE=[64] (-een). [Eng., Fr.] C_{6}H_{7}N. _Syn._ PHENYL'AMINE;
ANILI'NA, ANILI'NUM, &c., L. A peculiar volatile organic base first
noticed by Unverdorben in empyreumatic bone-oil, and afterwards obtained
by Runge from coal-tar, and by Fritzsche, Zinin, A. W. Hofmann, and
others, as a product of various reactions, processes, and decompositions,
particularly those attending the destructive distillation of organic
bodies.
[Footnote 64: For a detailed account of the methods of preparing aniline
commercially, and of the dyes obtained therefrom, _see_ 'Dictionnaire de
Chimie,' par A. Wurtz.]
PREP. Aniline is now almost invariably obtained, on the large scale,
either directly or indirectly from coal-tar or indigo; and chiefly from
the basic oil or naphtha, or the nitrobenzol, of which the former is the
principal source. The following are the leading commercial and
experimental processes:
1. From COAL-TAR or COAL-TAR NAPHTHA:--The basic oil or basic portion of
coal-tar or coal-tar naphtha, forming the latter, denser, and least
volatile products of the distillation or rectification of these
substances, is strongly agitated, for some time, along with hydrochloric
acid in slight excess, a glass globe, or, on the large scale, a suitable
vessel of lead, or of enamelled iron, being employed for the purpose; the
clear portion of the liquid (containing the hydrochlorates of the bases
present) is then decanted and carefully evaporated over an open fire until
acrid fumes begin to be disengaged, when it is again decanted or filtered;
the clear liquor, or filtrate is next treated with potash or milk of lime
in excess, by which the bases--chiefly aniline and chinoline--are
liberated under the form of a brownish oil; the whole of the resulting
mixture is now submitted to distillation, the portion which passes over at
or about 360° Fahr., and which consists chiefly of crude aniline, being
collected separately; the product is purified by rectification and
recollection, once or oftener, at the same temperature, and, lastly, by
fresh treatment with hydrochloric acid and careful distillation with
excess of potash, or milk of lime, as before.
2. From NITROBENZOL:--_a._ (Zinin.) An alcoholic solution of nitrobenzol,
after saturation with ammonia, is treated with sulphuretted hydrogen,
until, after some hours, a precipitation of sulphur takes place; the brown
liquid is then repeatedly saturated with fresh sulphuretted hydrogen,
until no more sulphur separates, the reaction being aided by occasionally
heating or distilling the mixture; an excess of acid is next added, and,
after filtering the liquid, and the removal of the alcohol and unaltered
nitrobenzol by ebullition or distillation, the residuum is lastly
distilled with caustic potash, in excess. The ANILINE found in the
receiver may be rendered quite pure by forming it into oxalate of aniline,
repeatedly crystallising the salt from alcohol, and finally distilling it
with excess of caustic potassa, as before.
The following is a cheaper and more convenient process; and probably the
best, or one of the best, that has yet been invented for obtaining
aniline:--
_b._ (M. Béchamps.) From nitrobenzol distilled along with basic
protacetate of iron; or, what is better, by distilling a mixture of
iron-filings, 2 parts, and acetic acid, 1 part, with about an equal volume
of nitrobenzol, the reaction being assisted, whenever the effervescence
flags, by the application of a gentle heat. The liquor found in the
receiver consists of aniline and water, from which the first, forming the
lower portion, is obtained, after sufficient repose in a separator; or
more easily, by adding a very little ether, which by dissolving in the
aniline, causes it to rise to the surface, when it is at once decanted. A
very spacious glass or earthenware retort must be employed in the process,
as the mass swells up violently; and it must be connected with the
receiver, on the small scale, by means of a Liebig's condenser, and, on
the large scale, by an ordinary worm-pipe and tub, kept in good action by
a sufficient flow of cold water.
The apparatus for carrying out Béchamp's method was devised by Nicholson,
and is exhibited in the subjoined plate.
"It consists essentially of a cast-iron cylinder (A) of 10 hectolitres
(220 cubic gallons) capacity. A stout iron tube is fitted to this vessel,
reaching nearly to the bottom of the cylinder. The upper part of this tube
is connected with the machinery (G), while the surface of the tube is
fitted with steel projections. The tube serves to admit steam, as well as
acting as a stirring apparatus. Sometimes, instead of this tube, a solid
iron axle is employed, and in this case there is a separate steampipe (D).
Through the opening at K the materials for making aniline are put into the
apparatus, while the volatile products are carried off through E. H serves
for emptying and cleaning the apparatus. The S-shaped tube connected with
the vessel B acts as a safety valve. When it is intended to work with this
apparatus there is poured into it through K 10 parts of acetic acid at 8°
B. (sp. gr. 1·060), previously diluted with six times its weight of water;
next there are added 30 parts of iron filings, or cast-iron borings, and
125 parts of nitrobenzol, and immediately after the stirring apparatus is
set in motion. The reaction ensues directly, and is attended by a
considerable evolution of heat and vapours. Gradually more iron is added
until the quantity amounts to 180 parts. The escaping vapours are
condensed in F, and the liquid condensed in R is from time to time poured
back into the cylinder A. The reduction is finished after a few hours."
[Illustration]
3. From INDIGO:--Powdered indigo is added to a boiling and highly
concentrated solution of caustic potash, as long as it dissolves and
hydrogen gas is liberated; the resulting brownish-red liquid is evaporated
to dryness, and the residuum is submitted to destructive distillation in a
retort, which, owing to the intumesence of the mass, should be strong and
spacious. The ANILINE is found in the receiver under the form of a
brownish oil mixed with ammoniacal liquor, and by separation from the
latter, and subsequent rectification, is obtained nearly colourless. It
may be further purified, as in the preceding processes.--_Prod._ 18 to 20%
of the indigo employed.
4. By fusing, with proper precautions, a mixture of isatine and hydrate of
potassium (both in powder); a retort connected with a well-cooled
receiver, being employed as the apparatus. Said by Profs A. W. Hofmann and
Muspratt to be "the most eligible process for isolating" aniline.[65]
[Footnote 65: Muspratt's 'Chemistry,' i, 599.]
5. From anthranilic acid mixed with powdered glass or sand, and rapidly
heated in a retort.
6. By treating an alcoholic solution of benzine with a little zinc and
hydrochloric acid.