Polishes).—Some experience is necessary to reproduce a handsome black
luster. Into a cup filled with water throw a little liver of sulphur
and mix well. Scratch the silver article as bright as possible with
the scratch brush and dip into the warm liquid. Remove the object
after 2 minutes and rinse off in water. Then scratch it up again and
return it into the liquid. The process should be repeated 2 or 3 times,
whereby a wonderful glossy black is obtained.
«Ornamental Designs on Silver.»—Select a smooth part of the silver, and
sketch on it a monogram or any other design with a sharp lead pencil.
Place the article in a gold solution, with the battery in good working
order, and in a short time all the parts not sketched with the lead
pencil will be covered with a coat of gold. After cleaning the article
the black lead is easily removed with the finger, whereupon the silver
ornament is disclosed. A gold ornament may be produced by reversing the
process.
«Separating Silver from Platinum Waste.»—Cut the waste into small
pieces, make red hot to destroy grease and organic substances, and
dissolve in aqua regia (hydrochloric acid, 3 parts, and nitric acid,
1 part). Platinum and all other metals combined with it are thus
dissolved, while silver settles on the bottom as chloride in the shape
of a gray, spongy powder. The solution is then drawn off and tested
by oxalic acid for gold, which is precipitated as a fine yellowish
powder. The other metals remain untouched thereby. The platinum still
present in the solution is now obtained by a gradual addition of sal
ammoniac as a yellowish-gray powder. These different precipitates are
washed with warm water, dried, and transformed into the metallic state
by suitable fluxes. Platinum filings, however, have to be previously
refined. They are also first annealed. All steel or iron filings
are removed with a magnet and the rest is dipped into concentrated
sulphuric acid and heated with this to the boiling point. This process
is continued as long as an action of the acid is noticeable. The
remaining powder is pure platinum. Hot sulphuric acid dissolves silver
without touching the platinum. The liquid used for the separation of
the platinum is now diluted with an equal quantity of water and the
silver expelled from it by means of a saturated cooking salt solution.
The latter is added gradually until no more action, i. e., separation,
is perceptible. The liquid is carefully drawn off, the residue washed
in warm water, dried and melted with a little soda ashes as flux, which
yields pure metallic silver.
The old process for separating silver from waste was as follows: The
refuse was mixed with an equal quantity of charcoal, placed in a
crucible, and subjected to a bright-red heat, and in a short time a
silver button formed at the bottom. Carbonate of soda is another good
flux.
«Silvering Glass Globes.»—Take 1/3 ounce of clean lead, and melt it
with an equal weight of pure tin; then immediately add 1/2 ounce of
bismuth, and carefully skim off the dross; remove the alloy from the
fire and before it grows cold add 5 ounces of mercury, and stir the
whole well together; then put the fluid amalgam into a clean glass,
and it is fit for use. When this amalgam is used for silvering {642}
let it be first strained through a linen rag; then gently pour some
ounces thereof into the globe intended to be silvered; the alloy
should be poured into the globe by means of a paper or glass funnel
reaching almost to the bottom of the globe, to prevent it splashing the
sides; the globe should be turned every way very slowly, to fasten the
silvering.
«Silvering Powder for Metals.»—Copper, brass, and some other metals
may be silvered by rubbing well with the following powder: Potassium
cyanide, 12 parts; silver nitrate, 6 parts; calcium carbonate, 30
parts. Mix and keep in a well-closed bottle. It must be applied with
hard rubbing, the bright surface being afterwards rinsed with water,
dried, and polished. Great care must be exercised in the use of the
powder on account of its poisonous nature. It should not be allowed to
come in contact with the hands.
«Silver Testing.»—For this purpose a cold saturated solution of
potassium bichromate in pure nitric acid of 1.2 specific gravity is
employed. After the article to be tested has been treated with spirit
of wine for the removal of any varnish coating which might be present,
a drop of the above test liquor is applied by means of a glass rod and
the resultant spot rubbed off with a little water.
A testing solution of potassium bichromate, 1 ounce, pure nitric acid,
6 ounces, and water, 2 ounces, gives the following results on surfaces
of the metals named:
───────────────+──────────────────+────────────────
Metal. │ Color in one │ Color of mark
│ minute. │ left.
───────────────+──────────────────+────────────────
Pure silver │ Bright blood-red │ Grayish white
.925 silver │ Dark red │ Dark brown
.800 silver │ Chocolate │ Dark brown
.500 silver │ Green │ Dark brown
German silver │ Dark blue │ Light gray
Nickel │ Turquoise blue │ Scarcely any
Copper │ Very dark blue │ Cleaned copper
Brass │ Dark brown │ Light brown
Lead │ Nut brown │ Leaden
Tin │ Reddish brown │ Dark
Zinc │ Light chocolate │ Steel gray
Aluminum │ Yellow │ No stain
Platinum │ Vandyke brown │ No stain
Iron │ Various │ Black
9-carat gold │ Unchanged │ No stain
───────────────+──────────────────+────────────────
The second column in the table shows such change of color as the
liquid—not the metal—undergoes during its action for the period of 1
minute. The test liquid being then washed off with cold water, the
third column shows the nature of the stain that is left.
In the case of faintly silvered goods, such as buttons, this test
fails, since the slight quantity of resulting silver chromate does not
become visible or dissolves in the nitric acid present. But even such
a thin coat of silver can be recognized with the above test liquor,
if the bichromate solution is used, diluted with the equal volume of
water, or if a small drop of water is first put on the article and
afterwards a little drop of the undiluted solution is applied by means
of a capillary tube. In this manner a distinct red spot was obtained in
the case of very slight silvering.
A simpler method is as follows: Rub the piece to be tested on the
touchstone and moisten the mark with nitric acid, whereupon it
disappears. Add a little hydrochloric acid with a glass rod. If a
white turbidness (silver chloride) appears which does not vanish upon
addition of water, or, in case of faint silvering or an alloy poor
in silver, a weak opalescence, the presence of silver is certain.
Even alloys containing very little silver give this reaction quite
distinctly.
«Pink Color on Silver.»—To produce a beautiful pink color upon silver,
dip the clean article for a few seconds into a hot and strong solution
of cupric chloride, swill it in water and then dry it or dip it into
spirit of wine and ignite the spirit.
SILVER, IMITATION: See Alloys.
SILVERING: See Plating.
SILVERING OF MIRRORS: See Mirrors.
SILVERING, TEST FOR: See Plating.
SILVER FOIL SUBSTITUTE: See Metal Foil.
SILVER NITRATE SPOTS, TO REMOVE: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods.
SILVER-PLATING: See Plating.
SILVER, RECOVERY OF PHOTOGRAPHIC: See Photography.
SILVER SOLDERS: See Solders. {643}
SILVER, TO CLEAN: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods.
SILVER, TO RECOVER GOLD FROM: See Gold.
SILVERWARE POLISHES: See Polishes.
SIMILOR: See Alloys.
SINEWS, TREATMENT OF, IN MANUFACTURING GLUE: See Adhesives.
SYRUP (RASPBERRY): See Raspberry.
SYRUPS: See Essences and Extracts.
SIZING: See Adhesives.
SIZING WALLS FOR KALSOMINE: See Kalsomine.
SKIN-CLEANING PREPARATIONS: See Cleaning Preparations and Methods.
SKIN OINTMENTS: See Ointments.
SKIN FOODS: See Cosmetics.
SKIN TROUBLES: See Soap.
«SLATE:»
«Artificial Slate.»—The artificial slate coating on tin consists of a
mixture of finely ground slate, lampblack, and a water-glass solution
of equal parts of potash and soda water glass (1.25 specific gravity).
The process is as follows:
I.—First prepare the water-glass solution by finely crushing equal
parts of solid potash and soda water glass and pouring over this 6 to
8 times the quantity of soft river water, which is kept boiling about
1 1/2 hours, whereby the water glass is completely dissolved. Add
7 parts finely crushed slate finely ground with a little water into
impalpable dust, 1 part lampblack, which is ground with it, and grind
enough of this mass with the previously prepared water-glass solution
as is necessary for a thick or thin coating. With this compound the
roughened tin plates are painted as uniformly as possible. For roofing,
zinc plate may be colored in the same manner. The coating protects the
zinc from oxidation and consequently from destruction. For painting
zinc plate, however, only pure potash water glass must be added to the
mixture, as the paint would loosen or peel off from the zinc if soda
water glass were used.
II.—Good heavy paper or other substance is saturated with linseed-oil
varnish and then painted, several coats, one after another with the
following mixture:
Copal varnish 1 part
Oil of turpentine 2 parts
Fine, dry sand, powdered 1 part
Powdered glass 1 part
Ground slate 2 parts
Lampblack 1 part
SLIDES FOR LANTERNS: See Photography.
SLUGS ON ROSES: See Insecticides.
SMARAGDINE: See Alcohol (Solid).
SMUT, TREATMENT FOR: See Grain.
«SNAKE BITES.»
About 25 years ago, Dr. S. Weir Mitchell and Dr. Reichert published
results of their investigations of snake venom which indicated that
permanganate of potassium may prove of material value as an antidote to
this lethal substance. Since that time permanganate has been largely
used all over the world as a remedy when men and animals were bitten
by poisonous snakes, and Sir Lauder Brunton devised an instrument by
means of which the permanganate may be readily carried in the pocket,
and immediately injected into, or into the neighborhood of, the wound.
Captain Rodgers, of the Indian Medical Service, recently reported
several cases treated by this method, the wounds being due to the bites
of the cobra. After making free crucial incisions of the bitten part,
the wound was thoroughly flushed with a hot solution of permanganate
of potassium, and then bandaged. Recovery occurred in each instance,
although the cauterant action of the hot solution of permanganate
of potassium delayed healing so long that the part was not well for
about 3 weeks. About 12 or 13 years ago, Dr. Amos Barber, of Cheyenne,
Wyoming, reported cases in which excellent results had followed this
method of treatment. {644}
«Soaps»
(See also Cleaning Compounds and Polishes.)
«ANTISEPTIC SOAP.»
I.—Various attempts have been made to incorporate antiseptics and
cosmetics with soap, but for the most part unsuccessfully, owing to the
unfavorable action of the added components, a good instance of this
kind being sodium peroxide, which, though a powerful antiseptic, soon
decomposes in the soap and loses its properties, while the caustic
character of the oxide renders its use precarious, even when the soap
is fresh, unless great care is taken. However, according to a German
patent, zinc peroxide is free from these defects, since it retains its
stability and has no corrosive action on the skin, while possessing
powerful antiseptic and cosmetic properties, and has a direct curative
influence when applied to cuts or wounds.
II.—The soap is prepared by melting 80 parts of household soap in a
jacketed pan, and gradually adding 20 parts of moist zinc peroxide (50
per cent strength), the whole being kept well stirred all the time. The
finished mixture will be about as stiff as dough, and is easily shaped
into tablets of convenient size.
III.—Take 50 parts, by weight, of caustic soda of 70 per cent, and free
from carbonic acid, if possible; 200 parts, by weight, of sweet almond
oil; 160 parts, by weight, of glycerine of 30° Bé.; and sufficient
distilled water to make up 1,000 parts by weight. First, dissolve the
alkali in double its weight of water, then add the glycerine and oil
and stir together. Afterwards, add the remainder of the water and keep
the whole on the water bath at a temperature of 140° to 158° F., for 24
to 36 hours; remove the oil not saponified, which gives a gelatinous
mass. Mix 900 parts, by weight, of it with 70 parts, by weight, of 90
per cent alcohol and 10 parts, by weight, of lemon oil, and as much
of the oil of bergamot and the oil of vervain. Heat for some hours at
140° F., then allow to cool and filter on wadding to eliminate the
needles of stearate of potash. The liquid after filtering remains clear.
«Carpet Soap.»—
Fuller’s earth 4 ounces
Spirits of turpentine 1 ounce
Pearlash 8 ounces
Rub smooth and make into a stiff paste with a sufficiency of soft soap.
«To Cut Castile Soap.»—A thin spatula must be used. To cut straight,
a trough with open ends made with 1/2-inch boards should be taken,
the inside dimensions being 2 7/8 inches wide, 3 3/4 inches deep,
and about 14 inches long. Near the end a perpendicular slit is sawed
through the side pieces. Passing the spatula down through this slit
the bar is cut neatly and straight. For trimming off the corners a
carpenter’s small iron plane works well.
«COLORING SOAP.»
The first point to be observed is to select the proper shade of flower
corresponding with the perfume used, for instance, an almond soap is
left white; rose soap is colored pink or red; mignonette, green, etc.
The colors from which the soapmaker may select are numerous; not only
are most of the coal-tar colors adapted for his purpose, but also a
very great number of mineral colors. Until recently, the latter were
almost exclusively employed, but the great advance in the tar-color
industry has brought about a change. A prominent advantage of the
mineral colors is their stability; they are not changed or in any way
affected by exposure to light. This advantage, however, is offset in
many cases by the more difficult method of application, the difficulty
of getting uniform shades. The coal-tar colors give brilliant shades
and tints, are easy to use, and produce uniform tints. The specific
gravity of mineral colors being rather high, in most cases they will
naturally tend to settle toward the bottom of soap, and their use
necessitates crutching of the soap until it is too thick to allow the
color to settle. For mottled soap, however, vermilion, red oxide, and
ultramarine are still largely employed.
For transparent soap mineral colors are not applicable, as they would
detract from their transparency; for milled toilet soap, on the other
hand, they are very well adapted, as also for cold-made soaps which
require crutching anyway until a sufficient consistency is obtained to
keep the coloring material suspended.
A notable disadvantage in the use of aniline colors, besides their
sensitiveness to the action of light, is the fact that many of them
are affected and partly destroyed by the action of alkali. A few of
them are proof against a small excess of lye, and these may be used
with good effect. Certain firms have made a specialty of manufacturing
colors answering the peculiar requirements of soap, being very easy of
{645} application, as they are simply dissolved in boiling water and
the solution stirred into the soap. To some colors a little weak lye is
added; others are mixed with a little oil before they are added to the
soap.
For a soluble red color there were formerly used alkanet and cochineal;
at present these have been displaced to a great extent, on account of
their high cost, by magenta, which is very cheap and of remarkable
beauty. A very small amount suffices for an intense color, nor is a
large proportion desirable, as the soap would then stain. Delicate
tints are also produced by the eosine colors, of which rose bengal,
phloxine, rhodamine, and eosine are most commonly used. These colors,
when dissolved, have a brilliant fluorescence which heightens their
beautiful effect.
The following minerals, after being ground and washed several times in
boiling water, will produce the colors stated:
Hematite produces deep red.
Purple oxide iron produces purple.
Oxide of manganese produces brown.
Yellow ocher produces yellow.
Yellow ocher calcined produces orange.
Umber produces fawn.
Cinnabar produces medium red.
There are also a number of the azo dyes, which are suitable for soaps,
and these, as well as the eosine colors, are used principally for
transparent soaps. For opaque soaps both aniline and mineral reds
are used, among the latter being vermilion, chrome red, and iron
oxide. Chrome red is a basic chromate of lead, which is now much used
in place of vermilion, but, as it becomes black on exposure to an
atmosphere containing even traces only of sulphureted hydrogen, it is
not essentially adapted for soap. Vermilion gives a bright color, but
its price is high. Iron oxide, known in the trade as colcothar, rouge,
etc., is used for cheap soaps only.
Among the natural colors for yellow are saffron, gamboge, turmeric, and
caramel (sugar color); the first named of these is now hardly used,
owing to its high cost. Of the yellow aniline colors special mention
must be made of picric acid (trinitrophenol), martius yellow, naphthol
yellow, acid yellow, and auramine. If an orange tint is wanted, a
trace of magenta or safranine may be added to the yellow colors
named. The use of some unbleached palm oil with the stock answers a
similar purpose, but the color fades on exposure. A mineral yellow is
chrome yellow (chromate of lead), which has the same advantages and
disadvantages as chrome red.
Of the blue aniline colors, there may be used alkali blue, patent blue,
and indigo extract. Alkali or aniline blue is soluble only in alkaline
liquids; while patent blue is soluble in water and in alcohol. Both
blues can be had in different brands, producing from green blues to
violet blues. Indigo extract, which should be classed among the natural
colors rather than among the tar colors, is added to the soap in
aqueous solution.
Of ultramarine there are two modifications, the sulphate and the
soda. Both of these are proof against the action of alkali, but are
decomposed by acids or salts having an acid reaction. The former is
much paler than the latter; the soda ultramarine is best adapted for
coloring soda soaps blue. The ultramarine is added to the soap in the
form of a fine powder. Smalt is unsuitable, although it gives soap a
color of wonderful beauty because a considerable quantity of it is
required to produce a deep color, and, furthermore, it makes the soap
rough, owing to the gritty nature which smalt has even when in the
finest powder. By mixing the blue and yellow colors named, a great
variety of greens are obtained. Both component colors must be entirely
free from any reddish tint, for the latter would cause the mixture to
form a dirty-green color.
Of the colors producing green directly the two tar colors, Victoria and
brilliant green, are to be noted; these give a bright color, but fade
rapidly; thereby the soap acquires an unsightly appearance. For opaque
soap of the better grades, green ultramarine or chrome green are used.
Gray and black are produced by lampblack. For brown, there is Bismarck
brown among the aniline colors and umber among the earthy pigments.
«Garment-Cleaning Soap.»—The following is excellent:
I.—White soap, rasped or shaved 12 parts
Ammonia water 3 parts
Boiling water 18 parts
Dissolve the soap in the water and when it cools down somewhat, add
to the solution the ammonia water. Pour the solution into a flask
of sufficient capacity (or holding about three times as much as the
mixture) and add enough water to fill it about three-quarters full.
Shake and add, a little at a time, under active agitation, enough
benzine to make 100 parts. This constitutes the stock {646} bottle. To
make up the mass or paste put a teaspoonful in an 8-ounce bottle and
add, a little at a time, with constant agitation, benzine to about fill
the bottle. This preparation is a rapid cleaner and does not injure the
most delicate colors.
II.—Good bar soap, shaved up 165 parts
Ammonia water 45 parts
Benzine 190 parts
Water sufficient to make 1,000 parts
Dissolve the soap in 600 parts of water by heating on the water bath,
remove, and add the ammonia under constant stirring. Finally add the
benzine, and stir until homogeneous, and quite cold. The directions to
go with this paste are: Rub the soap well into the spot and lay the
garment aside for a half hour. Then using a stiff brush, rub with warm
water and rinse. This is especially useful in spots made by rosins,
oils, grease, etc. Should the spot be only partially removed by the
first application, repeat.
«Glycerine Soaps.»—Dr. Sarg’s liquid glycerine soap consists of 334
parts of potash soda soap, and 666 parts of glycerine free from lime,
the mixture being scented with Turkish rose oil and orange blossom oil
in equal proportions, the actual amount used being varied according to
taste. The soap should be perfectly free from alkali; but as this is a
condition difficult of attainment in the case of ordinary potash soaps,
it is presupposed that the soap used has been salted out with potassium
chloride, this being the only way to obtain a soap free from alkali.
Another variety of liquid glycerine soap is prepared from purified
medicinal soft soap, 300 parts; glycerine free from lime, 300 parts;
white sugar syrup, 300 parts; doubly rectified spirit (96 per cent),
300 parts. The mixture is scented with oil of cinnamon, 1 part; oil of
sassafras, 2 parts; oil of citronella, 1/2 part; oil of wintergreen,
1 part; African geranium oil, 1 part; clove oil, 1/2 part; oil of
bergamot, 3 parts; pure tincture of musk, 1/2 part. These oils are
dissolved in spirit, and shaken up with the other ingredients; then
left for 8 days with frequent shaking, and 3 days in absolute quiet,
after which the whole is filtered, and is then ready for packing.
«Iodine Soaps.»—In British hospitals, preference is given to oleic acid
over alcoholic preparations for iodine soaps, as the former do not
stain and can be washed off with soap and water. The following formula
is given:
I.—Iodine 1 av. ounce
Oleic acid 1 fluidounce
Alcohol 6 fluidrachms
Stronger water of ammonia 2 fluidrachms
This makes a soapy paste soluble in all liquids, except fixed oils.
II.—Iodine 1 av. ounce
Oleic acid 2 fluidounces
Stronger water of ammonia 3 fluidrachms
Paraffine oil, colorless, to make 20 fluidounces
III.—Iodine 1 av. ounce
Alcohol 5 fluidounces
Solution of ammonium oleate 1 fluidounce
Glycerine to make 20 fluidounces
The solution of ammonium oleate is made from oleic acid and spirit of
ammonia.
«Liquid Soaps.»—Liquid soaps, or, as they are sometimes called, soap
essences, are made from pure olive-oil soap by dissolving it in alcohol
and adding some potassium carbonate. Tallow or lard soaps cannot be
used, as they will not make a transparent preparation. The soap is
finely shaved and placed with the alcohol and potassium carbonate in a
vessel over a water bath, the temperature slowly and gradually raised,
while the mixture is kept in constant agitation by stirring. The soap
should be of a pure white color and the alcohol gives the best product
when it is about 80 per cent strength. After about three-quarters of an
hour to one hour, solution will be complete and a perfectly transparent
article obtained. This can be scented as desired by adding the proper
essential oil as soon as the mixture is removed from the water bath.
If an antiseptic soap is wanted the addition of a small amount of
benzoic acid, formaldehyde, or corrosive sublimate will give the
desired product. Liquid soaps should contain from 20 to 40 per cent of
genuine white castile soap and about 2 to 2 1/4 per cent of potassium
carbonate.
This is a common formula:
By weight
I.—Olive or cottonseed oil 60 parts
Caustic potash, U.S.P. 15 parts
Alcohol and water, sufficient of each.
{647}