340 Report of the Department of Chemistry of the 



hydroxide and concentrating in vacuum. The crystalline salt 

 which then separated was washed, dried and analyzed. Apparently 

 no attempt had been made to recrystallize it and it is probable 

 that the substance had contained small quantities of impurities 

 which might be sufficient to account for the difference in analytical 

 results between his product and the repeatedly recrystallized salts 

 which we have analyzed. 



The composition of the purified salts described in this paper 

 agrees more closely with salts of inosite hexaphosphate than with 

 salts calculated on the basis of the usual phytic acid formula. 



EXPERIMENTAL PART. 

 ISOLATION OF THE SUBSTANCE FROM CORN. 



The corn used in these experiments was the ordinary corn meal 

 used as cattle feed at this station. Ground corn meal, 3500 grams, 

 was digested in 7 liters of 0.2 per ct. hydrochloric acid over night. 

 It was then strained and filtered and the clear amber-colored filtrate 

 precipitated by adding about 1| volumes of alcohol. After settling, 

 the precipitate was filtered and washed in dilute alcohol. The 

 precipitate was then dissolved in a small amount of 0.5 per ct. 

 hydrochloric acid and filtered from insoluble matter. This acid 

 solution gave only a very slight precipitate on the addition of alcohol. 

 The substance was therefore transformed into a barium salt_ by 

 precipitating with barium hydroxide to slight alkaline reaction. 

 After heating on the water-bath for some time the precipitate was 

 filtered and washed in water. It was again dissolved in 0.5 per ct. 

 hydrochloric acid, filtered and reprecipitated with barium hydroxide. 

 After standing over night the precipitate was filtered and washed 

 thoroughly in water. The substance was again dissolved in 0.5 

 per ct. hydrochloric acid, filtered and then precipitated by the 

 addition of an equal volume of alcohol. The precipitate after 

 settling was filtered and washed in dilute alcohol. The substance 

 was then precipitated three times more in the same manner and 

 after finally filtering, washing in dilute alcohol, alcohol and ether, 

 it was dried in vacuum over sulphuric acid. A white amorphous 

 powder was obtained which weighed 11.8 grams. The substance 

 gave no reaction for chlorides. The dilute nitric acid solution gave 

 no reaction with ammonium molybdate after warming for some time. 



The following results were obtained on analysis after drying at 

 105° in vacuum over phosphorus pentoxide to constant weight. 



Found: C = 7.25; H = 1.51; P = 16.65; Ba = 37.11 per ct. 



The carbon is somewhat high, otherwise the result agrees with 

 the calculated percentages for tribarium phytate, CeHisC^PeBas. 



Calculated: C = 6.42; H = 1.60; P = 16.60; Ba = 36.78 per ct. 



