METALLIC OXIDES. 317 



ing to find that the same kind of combinations likewise exists 



between the different degrees of oxidification of the same 



radical. It is known, that M. Gay Lussac, by extremely in- The same doc* 



teresting researches, has found that 100 p. in volume of azote J n " e a Pphed 



w - r to the bases 



gas combine with 50 p. in volume of oxigen gas, to form the of acids; e. g. 



nitrous oxide, — thai with 100 p. of oxigen they form nitrous az ? re and 

 gas, and with 200 p. nitric acid. The series would here 

 be 1,2, 31, 4, which is contrary to all analogy with other bo- 

 dies. The irregularity of this series did not escape the attention 

 of this learned chemist ; but he endeavoured to remedy it by 

 considering nitrous acid as composed of three volumes of nitrous 

 gas, and one volume of oxigen gas. The analogy with 

 the other oxides combined with the results of sny experiments 

 on the nitrites is here, in fact, 1, 2, 3, 4 $ and that the nitrous 

 oxide, such as it is found in the nitrites, is composed of 100 p. 

 in volume of azote, and 150 p. in volume of oxigen. But if 

 we consider that, probably, neither the nitrous nor the nitric 

 acid are capable of existing together in insulated states, as is 

 also the case with many other acids j and that when nitrous 

 acid is produced, the result would be a combination of the 

 nitrous with the nitric acid as oxided bodies, and in such pro* 

 portion that each shall contain an equal quantity of oxigen, 

 the quantity of oxigen absorbed will be precisely what was 

 found by M. Gay Lussac. 



(Here the annotation ends ) 

 A very interesting question remains to be considered respect- The yellow- 

 ing the oxides of antimony. What is their chemical nature ? and the bine 

 tim .. .. ... ^ oxides ot an- 



ls the yellow oxide a superoxide, or has it the properties of an timony have 



acid? The following experiments will prove, that the yellow the .character* 

 oxide, as well as the blue, possess the characters of acid;, and 

 that the yellow oxide may be considered as an acidum stibicum> 

 and the blue as an acidum stibiosum. 



(a) Combinations of the acidum stilicum with saline bases, 

 stibiates. 



I burned 10 grammes of antimony in powder, with 60 Combination* 



grammes of pure nitre in a silver crucible, and the mass was °* ac - stibi * 



, , , . . , ,. , , . cum (or yellow 



heated during an hour in the highest temperature the vessel oxide) with 



could support. I pulverized the white mass which was thus »aMn« bases. 



obtained, washed it with cold water as long as any nitrate of gtibiateof 



potash potash. 



