A new Fulminating Silver. 267 
The new fulminating silver readily explodes by the electric spark, producing a loud 
report, and a reddish flame. I repeatedly succeeded in the experiment, by simply 
placing a little of it on the prime conductor, bringing a brass ball near it, and putting 
the machine in motion. I found that the very feeble charge remaining on the prime 
conductor, after giving the machine a few turns, was quite sufficient to explode it. 
The new fulminating silver is decomposed by a number of metals, as zinc, iron, 
copper, &c. in cases when it is put into water, and these metals severally introduced ; 
new fulminating compounds of each metal are in a little time produced. 
As the new fulminating silver may be formed from Howard’s fulminating silver, 
and may be readily converted into chloride of silver, (as has been stated ;) little diffi- 
culty was anticipated in ascertaining its composition ; and yet from the precautions to 
be observed, I made several experiments, (using both methods,) before I obtained 
any satisfactory results. In converting Howard’s fulminating silver into the new 
compound, a given weight of the former, well dried, was very cautiously put into a 
small phial, (nearly filled with pure water,) with about twice its bulk of fine zinc 
filings. The contents of the phial were occasionally agitated gently, and after some 
hours the fluid, (fulminating zinc, ) was filtered, and carefully treated with solution of 
crystallized nitrate of silver, until no farther precipitate took place. The new com- 
pound thus produced was then thrown on a filter, washed, dried at about 212° Faht. 
and weighed. In one experiment thus conducted, 1.41 grain of Howard’s fulminat- 
ing silver, afforded 0.87 grain of the new fulminating silyer ; but a portion could not 
be separated from the filter, which being dried, broken in pieces and heated, afforded 
successive explosions. The loss thus sustained, may be estimated at 0.03 grain, which 
being added to the 0.87 make 0.90. Making these results the basis of calculation, 
100 grains of Howard’s compound would afford about 63.8 grains of the new com- 
pound; for 1.41 : 0.90 :: 100: 63.8 nearly. Now, according to my analysis,* 
100 grains of Howard’s compound, contain 26.25 grains of fulminic acid, and 
63.8 : 26.25 :: 100 : 41.14 nearly. Hence, 100 grains of the new compound would 
consist of 
58.86 oxide of silver 
41.14 fulminic acid 
100.00 
and taking from my experiments the proportional number of fulminic acid as 42. 
hydrogene being unity : the new compound would consist of two proportions of ful- 
minic acid 2 x 42=84 and one proportion of oxide of silver 118, for 
58.86 : 41.14 :: 118 : 83.7 
In a second experiment, conducted like the first, 5.45 grains of Howard’s compound, 
* On a new acid and its combinations. rans. Royal Dublin Society, 1829. 
