AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTRY — AGROTECHNY. 611 



of 3 subcommittees, on water, phosphoric acid, and iron and aluminum, and the 

 worli of 20 analysts. 



The forms of phosphorus in cotton-seed meal, J. B. Rather {Texas 8ta. 

 Bui. l.'/O, pp. 3-16). — The preliminary portion of this work shows that fat in 

 cotton-seed meal does not interfere with the extraction of the phosphorus 

 compounds and their determination by the official volumetric method, ileal 

 washed with ether yielded 0.213 per cent of phosphorus soluble in 0.2 per cent 

 hydrochloric acid; unwashed meal 0.235 per cent. The lower results obtained 

 when washing are thought possibly to be due to the extraction of lecithin. 



Other tests showed that the phosphorus extracted by 0.2 per cent hydro- 

 chloric acid was much lower than the published results for water-soluble phos- 

 phorus. The phosphorus not extracted from meal by 0.2 per cent hydrochloric 

 acid could not be precipitated by acidifying the alkaline (ammonia) extract 

 with hydrochloric acid. The method of Forbes et al. (E. S. R., 23, p. 303) 

 was not found to include any appreciable amounts of meta- and pyrophosphoric 

 acids in the determinations of inorganic phosphorus. 



" The phosphorus soluble in 0.2 per cent hydrochloric acid was about 25 

 per cent of the total phosphorus. The inorganic phosphorus (Forbes method), 

 in the samples of cotton-seed meal examined was less than 5 per cent of the 

 total phosphorus. The phosphorus in the hydrochloric acid extract of cotton- 

 seed meal capable of being precipitated by magnesia mixture and not soluble 

 in acid alcohol was about 16 per cent of the total phosphorus. After extrac- 

 tion with 0.2 per cent of hydrochloric acid the phosphorus remaining was in- 

 soluble in water but nearly completely soluble in 0.2 per cent ammonia. Mag- 

 nesia mixture precipitated most of the phosphorus extracted by ammonia. 

 Practically all of the phosphorus was precipitated from the aqueous extract 

 of cotton-seed meal by lead subacetate and by copper acetate. The principal 

 compounds containing phosphorus were separated, which give the same reac- 

 tion as those relied upon for proving the presence of meta- and pyrophosphoric 

 acid. We have no evidence that the samples of cotton-seed meal examined con- 

 tain either pyrophosphoric acid or metaphosphoric acid." 



See also a previous note by Crawford (E. S. R., 23, p. 8). 



Lutein obtained from egg yolks, R. Willstatter and H. H. Escher (Hoppe- 

 Seylcr's Ztschr. Physiol. Chem., 76 {1912), No. 2-3, pp. 21.'t-225, pi. 1; abs. in 

 Chem. Abs., 6 {1912), No. 6, p. 761). — The coagulum obtained by treating with 

 alcohol yolks from 6,000 eggs, which weighed 110 kg., when extracted with 

 acetone gave an extract containing lutein. The cholesterol and lecithin were 

 precipitated from the acetone solution with petroleum ether, and 4 gm. of crude 

 lutein was obtained by crystallizing from the concentrated petroleum-ether 

 solution. With the exception of the melting point, which was between 192 and 

 393° C, the substance simulated xanthophyll. It differed from carotin in that 

 it was more soluble in ethyl and methyl alcohol. 



Soy-bean oil, H. Matthks and A. Dahle {Arch. PJiarm., 249 {1911), No. 6, 

 pp. Jf24-.>f35; abs. in Jour. Soc. Chem. Indus., 30 {1911), No. 18, p. 1124).—'' Soy- 

 bean oil contains 94 to 95 per cent of fatty acids (present as glycerol esters), 

 of which about 15 per cent consist of saturated acids (palmitic acid) and about 

 SO per cent of liquid unsaturated fatty acids. The latter were found to consist 

 of about 70 per cent of oleic acid, about 24 per cent of linolic acid, and about 6 

 per cent of llnolenic acid. Samples of the oils labeled ' purified ' and * nnpurifled ' 

 had the following characters, respectively: Specific gravity at 15° C, 0.9260, 

 0.9265 ; solidifying point, —11.5° C, —12° C. ; refractive index at 40° C, 1.4680, 

 1.4680; acid value, 5.7, 1.71; saponification value, 192.3, 194.3; iodin value 

 (Hiibl, after 18 hours' action), 131.3, 132.6; Reichert-Meissi value, 0.75, 0.75; 



