CHEMISTRY — RICHARDS. 2O3 



(6) The heats of neutrahzation of acids and alkalies, carried on with the 

 assistance of Dr. A. \V. Rowe. In this investigation also the adiabatic calo- 

 rimeter was used, and modified for use with the rapid reactions involved. 

 An important basis of this work is the specific heat of the reacting solutions ; 

 and it was quickly found that sufficiently accurate data for the purpose in 

 hand have not been published. Therefore a new method of determining the 

 specific heats of liquids — a method depending likewise upon adiabatic calo- 

 rimetry — was devised, and with it the necessary specific heats were deter- 

 mined. A preliminary paper concerning this method has already been pub- 

 lished (see Bibliography, pp. 45-52). A further statement of the results may 

 well be reserved for the final publication. The research will be continued 

 during the coming winter. 



(7) A research concerning the specific heats of the elements at low tem- 

 peratures. This work, begun in 1905 with the assistance of Messrs. G. E. 

 Behr and R. F. Jackson, was continued during last winter with the assistance 

 of Mr. F. G. Jackson. The specific heats of a large number of elements, es- 

 pecially metals, and of some other substances, between — 190° and +20°, as 

 well as between — 78° and -|-20°, were determined with care, the methods of 

 previous investigators being tested and compared. The results, taken in con- 

 nection with the results of others, furnish a clear idea of the widely differing 

 changes of specific heat suffered by different elements over wide ranges of 

 temperature. The different curves show a distinct relationship to the periodic 

 system of the elements and add another link to the chain of argument proving 

 the intimate relation of each form of material to all others. This research 

 has reached a stage where publication seems to be advisable, and the results 

 will be published as soon as possible. 



(8) An investigation concerning the energy changes involved in the dilu- 

 tion of the ammonium, zinc, cadmium, lead, tin, copper, thallium, and indium 

 amalgams, carried on with the assistance of Mr. R. N. Garrod-Thomas (of 

 Balliol College) and Dr. J. H. Wilson. This investigation is essentially a 

 continuation of the previous investigation by Dr. G. S. Forbes, described in 

 the reports given in Year Book No. 4. The objects of the research were to 

 test the deviations of the electromotive forces from those required by the gas 

 law, to test the equations of Helmholtz and Cady, and from the results to 

 obtain further evidence concerning the nature of fluid amalgams in particular 

 and liquid solutions in general. The results are interesting, amplifying as 

 they do the results of Richards and Forbes while confirming them, and at the 

 same time pointing out more than one inconsistency and inaccuracy in the 

 work of previous investigators. This investigation (which was divided into 

 two parts, each carried on by a separate assistant, using the same apparatus 

 in a manner economizing both time and experimental energy) is finished and 

 will be prepared for publication as soon as possible. 



