Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 159 



bined water ; this water appears certainly to have taken the place 

 of the muriate of ammonia, with which it was previously in combina- 

 tion, for when the substance is heated after having been completely 

 dried it disengages a large quantity of ammoniacal gas, without 

 undergoing any change of appearance. If it be heated with oxide 

 of copper a considerable quantity of water is obtained, amounting 

 to 24*27 per cent. 



100 parts gave 92*47 of phosphoric acid, equivalent to 40*68 of 

 phosphorus. The determination could not be exactly made ; too 

 little was always obtained, on account of the formation of nitrous 

 acid. 0*193 gramme gave a quantity of azotic gas which indicated 

 28*526 per cent. ; but estimating by the deficiency of weight re- 

 quired to make 100 with the phosphorus and water, it should be 

 rather more than 35 per cent. 



M. Liebig concludes its composition to be nearly 



1 atom phosphorus 196* 155 40*4? 



2 atoms azote 177*4-36 365 



1 atom water 112*479 231 



485*670 1000 



If the vapour of heated muriate of ammonia be passed over solid 

 chloride of phosphorus, the muriate is decomposed, and a solid 

 shining white substance remains, which resists the action of heat, 

 and which is phosphuret of azote nearly pure • its chemical pro- 

 perties are identical with those procured by means of the liquid 

 chloride already mentioned, but it always contains from about 

 1*5 to about 3 per cent, of chlorine, from which it is difficult to sepa- 

 rate it. — Ann. de Chim. et de Phys., torn. lvii. p. 426. 



CRYSTALLINE FORM OF KUPFERBLUTHE. 



Professor Luckow of Jena has ascertained that the kupferblvithe 

 of the German mineralogists, "capillary red oxide of copper," cry- 

 stallizes in six-sided prisms, which afford cleavages parallel to the 

 faces of a rhombohedron of 99 1 15'. This mineral is chemically 

 identical with the octahedral oxide of copper, and therefore affords 

 a new instance of dimorphism. 



TEMPERATURE OF VAPOURS FROM BOILING SOLUTIONS. 



Professor Rudberg has ascertained, by a series of careful experi- 

 ments, that the temperature of the vapour arising from a boiling so- 

 lution of any salt is independent of the nature and quantity of the 

 salt, and is absolutely the same as that of the vapour of pure water 

 under the same atmospheric pressure. 



This is in direct opposition to the statements of Biot, Gay-Lussac, 

 and Pouillet, who assert that the temperature of the vapour arising 

 from a boiling saline solution is the same as the temperature of the 

 highest stratum of the liquid. 



The translator of the preceding notice was unable to detect any 

 difference between the temperature of the vapour of water and that 

 of a solution of common salt which boiled at 221° Fahr. 



