142 



Mr. Harold B. Dixon on 



acetylene — the substitution of nitrogen for the oxygen 

 required to burn the carbon from carbonic oxide to carbonic 

 acid increases the velocity of the explosion. These facts 

 seem only consistetit with the viezv that the carbon burns 

 directly to carbonic oxide, and the formation of carbonic acid 

 is an after-occurrence. 



§6. The experiments described above, as well as others 

 made with the same mixtures further diluted with nitrogen, 

 permitted an extended comparison between the theoretical 

 velocities calculated by Berthelot's formula (0) and the 

 actual rates (v). This comparison is made in the following 

 tables for electrolytic gas, diluted with oxygen and with 

 nitrogen ; for cyanogen burning to carbonic oxide, and 

 when this mixture is diluted with nitrogen ; for marsh gas, 

 ethylene and acetylene all burning to carbonic oxide and 

 steam, and for the same gases diluted with nitrogen. In 

 calculating 6, I made a correction for the gases being at the 

 ordinary temperature (13° C.) before explosion and not at 

 absolute zero ; the theoretical velocities are, therefore 

 rather higher than those given by Berthelot. This correction 

 raises the theoretical velocity of explosion of electrolytic 

 gas from 2831 metres per second (Berthelot) to 2900. 



Table XL 

 Electrolytic Gas with excess of Oxygen added. 



