og RESEARCHES ON SULPHUS AND PHOSPUOgUS. 



from their hy- Contain small quantities of the hydrurets of phosphorus an<l 



Urureu. sulphur ; and the production of a minute portion of suV- 



phuric acid in the slow combustion of sulphur is probably 



« ., , connected with the production of water. Though the 



Pure oxides of i i • t i i 



them never pure oxides of sulphur and phosphorus have never been 



yet obtained, obtained, yet, from the doctrine of definite proportions, 

 these bodies ought, under certain circumstances, to be 

 formed. And I am inclined to believe, that they some- 

 times exist in minute quantities, in common phosphorus 

 and sulphur, and, with hidrogen, give to them their vari- 

 able properties. 

 Phosphorus The colours of different specimens of phosphorus, as 



differs in co- ^^c;ll as of sulphur, dift'er considerably ; the red Colour 

 from a mix- of phosphorus, as it is commonly prepared, is proba- 

 ture of oxide, bly owing to a slight mixture of oxide. Common roll 

 sulphur is of a very pale yellow ; the Sicilian sulphur of 

 phvt^'^" an orange colour; and the sulphur distilled from iron 

 pyrites in vacuo, which arose in the last period of the 

 process, of a pale yellowish green colour. AU the late 

 experiments that I have made, as well as my former re- 

 searches, induce me to suspect a notable proportion of 

 oxigen in Sicilian sulphur ; which is probably owing to the 

 presence of oxide of sulphur, which may give rise to sul- 

 phuric acid in distillation ; or to sulphuric acid itself. 

 Action of oxi- Conceiving, that, if definite proportions of oxigen and 

 nmriatic acid hidrogen existed in sulphur and phosphorus, they ought 

 *' to be manifested in the agency of oximuriatic acid gas on 



tbese bodies, 1 made some experiments on the results of 

 these operations. In the first trial, on the combination of 

 •asttlphar, sulphur with oximuriatic acid gas, I employed 5 grains of 

 roll «tilphur,and admitted the gas into the exhausted retort, 

 from a vessel in which it had been in contact with warm 

 water : in this case more than half a cubical inch of 

 oxigen gas. and nearly two cubical inches of muriatic acid 

 gas, were produced. Suspecting in this instance, that 

 aqueous vapour had been decomposed, I employed cold 

 ^vater in the next experiment, and dried the gas by muriate 

 of lime ; in this case, though Sicilian sulphur was used, 

 no oxigen. gas was evolved ; and not half a cubical inch of 

 muriatic acid; the quantity, was the aariie as in the last 



experiment ; 



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