516 



EXPERIMENT STATION EECORD. 



[Vol. 38 



vinasse, after acidifying with sulphuric acid, the analyses of the three salts 

 resulting being shown in the following table : 



Results of fractional crystallization of distillery vinasse solution. 



Of the three fractious the 13rst is the mo.st impure, as it contains a con- 

 siderable quantity of calcium sulphate, but by means of repeated recrystal- 

 lization these salts would be raised in purity according to the demands of the 

 market, though it would be difficult to effect such operations in a sugar factory 

 economically. 



" In conclusion, the authors mention another method for the utilization of 

 some of the fertilizing elements of vinasse, namely, that of precipitating the 

 nitrogenous matter with lime. In this process the lime is added to the vinasse 

 in the proportion of 1 or 2 per cent and the precipitate formed is separated by 

 filter presses, a fairly dry and hard mass with 1.9 per cent of nitrogen and 58 

 per cent of water being thus produced. In their experiments along this line, 

 the lime was added to the vinasse in various proportions at different tempera- 

 tures, being in some tests boiled and in others left to precipitate without being 

 heated at all." It was found that " the lime served only to extract a small pro- 

 portion of the nitrogenous substance of the vinasse, so it is concluded that it is 

 not worth while to adopt this method on a large scale with Tucumiln molasses." 



The rate of ammonia formation from cyanamid, C. Kullgeen (Svensk 

 Kern. Tidskr., 29 (1911), No. 2, pp. 4O-U; abs. in Chem. Abs., 11 (1911), No. 15. 

 p. 2253). — Samples of lime nitrogen containing 16.8 and 18.1 per cent nitrogen 

 were dissolved in water and heated in an autoclave to certain given tempera- 

 tures from 120 to 180° C for equal periods of time, after which the ammonia 

 evolution was determined. It was found that at a temperature of 120° in 15 

 minutes 11.3 per cent of the nitrogen had been converted into ammonia, in 45 

 minutes 31 per cent ; at 160° in 15 minutes 48.5 per cent, in 45 minutes 83.7 

 per cent; and at 180° in 15 minutes 75.2 per cent. The reaction follows the 

 equation k=(l/t) log A/(A — X), in which A represents the original nitrogen 

 and X that at the end of the time t. The values for k for each temperature 

 increased about 50 per cent for each 10°, the averages for each set of determina- 

 tions for 10° intervals beginning with 120° being 0.00362, 0.0046, 0.00687, 0.0111, 

 0.0177, 0.027, and 0.0403. 



Comparison of lime nitrogen with ammonium sulphate, J. M. Geerts 

 (Arcli. Suikerindus. Nederland, Indie, 24 (1916), No. U, PP- 1118-1180, fig. 1; 

 Meded. Proefstat. Java-Suikerindus., 6 (1916), No. 15, pp. 436-^98, fig. i).— This 

 is a fourth report (E. S. R., 37, p. 123) of fertilizer experiments on Java sugar 

 cane soils in which tests comparing lime nitrogen with ammonium sulphate were 

 made. 



Out of 59 tests it was found that ammonium sulphate gave generally better 

 results than lime nitrogen in both cane and sugar production, and on both light 

 and heavy soils. Lime nitrogen gave better results on light soils than on heavy 

 soils. The use of lime nitrogen previous to planting and as a top-dressing 

 showed that partial use of the fertilizer before planting is preferable to its total 



