DETKKMIXATION OF NICOTINE IX TORACCO. 



65 



the tobacco is .small less time is requirecL Ligroin is capable of 

 dissolving; only a very small quantity of ammonia gas, and even this 

 is rapidly given off when the solution is exposed to the air, and 

 especially when it is also agitated. It was found by experiment that 

 100 c. c. of ligroin saturated with ammonia, after being allowed to 

 stand one hour in an un.stoppered Erlonmeyer flask, retained less 

 than 5 milligrams of this base. On the other hand we have found 

 that no loss of nicotine Avhatever occurs when a solution of 0.3 gram 

 of the base in 100 c. c. of ligroin — equivalent to 5 per cent nicotine 

 in G gpams of tobacco — is allowed to stand several hours in an open 

 beaker at ordinary room temperature. Tobacco, esi^ecially after it 

 has been fermented, contains considerable quantities of ammonia, 

 but it was found that only a small proportion of this is contained in 

 the extract; hence the quantity dissolved is not sensibly affected by 

 the varj'ing amounts contained in different samples of tobacco. 



This fact is of importance, because it renders the subsequent 

 removal of the ammonia a very simple nuitter; in fact, even if no 

 attempt is made to remove the ammonia in solution the error result- 

 ing therefrom will not exceed 0.2 per cent. In the following table 

 the results given in i:)ercentages in column 1 were obtained without 

 the previous addition of ammonia, while those in column 2 Avere 

 obtained from the same samples after the addition of quantities 

 of ammonia in aqueous solution corresponding to 1.4 and 3.5 per cent, 

 respectively, for 6 grams of tobacco : 



A fair idea of the ammonia actually dissolved by the gasoline is 

 given by the results shown in the following table. The percentages 

 in column 1 were obtained by direct titration of the extracts, while 

 in the case of the first two experiments, the results of which appear in 

 column 2, a current of air was drawn through the extract for five 

 minutes before titrating, and in the last three experiments the solu- 

 tions w^ere allowed to stand an hour in unstoppered Erlenmeyer flasks 

 before making the titrations. 



102— vu 



