DISRUPTIVE DISCHARGES OF ELECTRICITY THROUGH 



FLA^IES. 



By FRANXIS E. XIPHER. 

 {Read April 21, 1911.) 



In a paper published by the Academy of Science of St. Louis^ 

 the author pointed out the essential difference in character between 

 the eft'ects of X-rays in the ionization of air and that produced in a 

 column of air exposed to the positive terminal of an influence 

 machine. 



The action of X-rays is to dislodge negative corpuscles from 

 some of the air molecules and load them upon others. Such a mass 

 of air is said to have the property of conduction. Some of the mole- 

 cules in it will accept negative corpuscles from those to whom they 

 have delivered them or from the terminal of a negatively charged 

 electrometer. Other molecules will deliver their overload of nega- 

 tive corpuscles to an electrometer terminal from which negative cor- 

 puscles have been drained, or to the molecules which they have robbed. 

 If left to itself such a mass of air soon loses its property of conduc- 

 tion. The average corpuscular charge of a molecule in such a mass 

 of air is the normal amount. 



In a mass of air which forms the positive column due to the 

 action of an influence machine the negative corpuscles have been 

 drained, or are being drained into the positive or exhaust terminal. 

 In air of ordinary pressure it is found that in air thus drained of 

 negative corpuscles, a disruptive discharge dift'uses into the drained 

 region. The disruptive channel widens and apparently ceases to 

 have a disruptive character within the region thus drained. In a 

 few cases the disruptive channel has re-formed on the other side 

 of such a cloud-like mass which had apparently drifted over the 

 photographic plate and away from the positive terminal. 



^ Trans., Nos. i and 4, Vol. XIX., and Xo. i, Vol. XX. 



397 



