1825.] Antimony with Chlorine and Sulphur, 417 



position much corresponds with the composition' of those 

 substances ; and as oxide of antimony contains 3 atoms of oxy* 

 gen, the antimony must be combined with 3 atoms of chlorine in 

 the solid chloride, or it must contain per cent. 



^ Antimony- -. . . 54*85 



Chlorine 45*15 



100-00 



The analysis of chloride of antimony, however, by Dr. John 

 Davy, gave a different result. According to him, it consists of 



Antimony 60-42 



Chlorine 39-58 



100-00 



I, therefore, submitted it to a fresh analysis in the following 

 manner : — I poured water on a quantity of the chloride, and 

 then added tartaric acid till the liquid was perfectly clear, and 

 ceased to become milky by the subsequent addition of a large 

 quantity of w^ater. I next passed a current of sulphuretted 

 hydrogen through the liquid, till sulphuret of antimony ceased 

 to fall down. This sulphuret, which had an orange colour, was 

 washed on the filter, dried, and weighed, and then fused in a 

 glass tube ; it gave a black sulphuret of antimony, and merely 

 traces of sulphur, consequently it was sulphuret of antimony 

 containing 3 atoms of sulphur, or precisely that which ought to 

 be formed under the circumstances. But as it contained traces 

 of an excess of sulphur, in consequence of the sulphuretted 

 hydrogen having been passed for a very long time through the 

 liquid, 1 heated a part of the sulphuret in a bulb blown in the 

 middle of a glass tube, and passed over it a current of hydrogen 

 dried by chloride of calcium. The sulphuret of antimony was 

 decomposed, and I obtained antimony, sulphuretted hydrogen, 

 and traces of sulphur. 



The hquor, separated from the sulphuret of antimony, was 

 gently heated to drive off the sulphuretted hydrogen, but not the 

 hydrochloric acid, which cannot be separated from water by 

 heat when mixed with it in small proportion. The hydrochloric 

 acid was then precipitated by nitrate of silver. The chloride of 

 silver obtained had, however, a blackish colour, from a little 

 sulphuret of silver v/hich was mixed with it. The results of this 

 analysis gave 1*937 gramme (29'9 grs.) of antimony, and 6*886 

 grammes (106*3 grs.) of chloride of silver, equivalent to 1*699 

 gramme (24*7 grs.) of chlorine. The chloride of antimony, 

 therefore, is composed per cent, of 



Netjj Series, vol. x. 2 e 



