54 



FIXING AND HARDENING AGENTS 



volumes of water must be taken to reduce one hundred volumes of the 

 original alcohol to the required grade. 



Table for Diluting Rectified Spirit (circa 96 per cent.) 



Alcohol is an easily oxidisable substance. Chromic aeid, for 

 instance, easily oxidises it, first into aldehyde, and then into 

 acetic acid. It follows that alcohol should not be combined in 

 mixtures with oxidising agents of notable energy. Further, 

 alcohol is a reducing agent, and therefore should not be combined 

 with easily reducible substances. These remarks particularly 

 apply to chromic acid. See §§ 43-45. 



For fixing, alcohol is a very third-class reagent, only to be 

 used alone where better ones cannot be conveniently employed, 



