S40 ^^ YARIOUS CirrMICAL ACTIONS. 



'i^Vthout diluting the vnlric acid of 40^ of Messrs. Coustou 

 and Co. at Paris. I use this same acid, to convert sugar 



Patty matter into Q:?alic acid; and, vhcther I employ it of its full 



torn sugar. strength, or diluted with equal parts of water, I constantly 

 obtain a little greasy matter, when I conduct the process in 

 the large way on a vapour bath. 



Sugar treated On treating the same sugar three times snccossiTcly with 



with mtncaad.gqyal portions of this^cid^ either concentrated or diluted, 

 the first portion occasions a broM-n colour, and produces 

 a smell of burnt sugar. And when the action of the nitric 

 acid has (icased, we already perceive some of this grease 

 swimrning at the top; and it appears to be farther in- 

 creased by the successive addition of the other two portions 

 of acid, which cause the brown colour and smell of burnf 

 sugar to disappear, forming a great abundance of oxalic 

 acid, and a small quantity of the laalic and citric acids. 

 Perhaps, if the gasscs were collected, we should find a littl« 

 acetic acid also. 



No oil from it '^^ satisfy myself whether the sugar gave rise to the for*. 



by boiling. mation of the grease, 1 examined one of the largest sized 

 sUjgar-loaves, wJiieh I commonly use. I divided it into two 

 equal portions, the first consisting of the outer part of the 

 loaf, the second of the inner. Kach of these portions 1 

 boiled for a few minutes in three times its weight of water. 

 No grease swam on either of these solutions of sugar, after 



Frobably from they were cold; but as they were not very clear, I began 

 ^^^^' to suspect, that, the sirup for common sugar being clari- 

 fied with bullock's blood by the sugar ?3aker«, the gelatinous 

 part of this animal substance unites in some measure with" 

 -the particles of sugar by a forced and confused crystal- 

 lization, and, when acted upon by nitric acid, may give 



None from tine rise to the separation of grease. 1 was not long before! 

 sugar or cuudv. . ^ , ,i. , . * 



satisned myself, that my suspicion was just, for, on making 



oxalic acid with some fine w hite sugarcandy, and at th» 



game time with the finest loaf sugar I could procufCj 



neither of these showed any signs of grease. 



Fat oils sepa- Fat oils in their natural state have not the least action 

 rated from -ooap? , , • , • i , , .i. , 



byanacidac- ^^^ asphaltum, jews' pitch, or copal: but if they be re* 



quire a solvent duced to a soap, and afterward separated by any acid, 



^ '^' they not only exert a strong solvent power on these sub- 



^tancds^ 



