1864. | The Chemical Society. | 289 
At the meeting on March 3rd, a very interesting paper on the non- 
metallic impurities in Refined Copper, by Mr. Abel, was read. The 
metallic impurities in copper had been fully treated of in previous 
contributions by the same author. The impurities mentioned in the 
present paper are Oxygen, Sulphur, and Selenium. Oxygen exists in 
copper in the form of a suboxide of the metal, which is soluble in the 
fused copper. The exact quantitative determination of the oxygen 
was a matter of extreme difficulty, but the process now given by Mr. 
Abel makes it a comparatively simple matter. Pure copper decom- 
poses nitrate of silver, the latter metal being deposited, and a corre- 
sponding amount of nitrate of copper being formed. When, however, 
suboxide of copper is present a subsidiary action takes place, and inso- 
luble basic nitrate of copper is formed. The author, therefore, con- 
verts a known weight of the copper into nitrate by digesting with a 
neutral solution of nitrate of silver, collects and washes the silver and 
basic nitrate of copper on a filter, and subsequently digests with a 
known volume of weak standard sulphuric acid (one part to a hundred 
of water) to dissolve the basic nitrate of copper formed. The propor- 
tion of sulphuric acid neutralized in this operation is ascertamed by 
means of a standard solution of carbonate of soda, and the amount of 
oxygen or suboxide of copper is calculated therefrom. In the course 
of these experiments it was noticed that the physical structure of the 
metal afforded some indication of the amount of oxygen. Ingots Which 
exhibited depressions on the upper surface were invariably found to 
contain more oxygen than those which weye flat. The amount of 
oxygen present in Kapunda copper, we may add, was found to vary 
from -12 to -33 per cent. In Swansea copper in different stages of 
manufacture, Mr. Abel found the amount of oxygen to vary from 0°42 
per cent. in “ Dry” Copper, to 0:03 per cent. in “ Over poled.” While 
looking for carbon the author found selenium in copper, but in an 
excessively minute quantity, 0-003 per cent. It is worth mentioning 
that Mr. Abel could find no evidence of a combination of copper and 
carbon. Sulphur was found in very small quantity, but neither phos- 
phorus nor nitrogen could be detected. Silicon might be present in a 
portion of inclosed slag, but not in combination with the metal. 
At the same meeting a communication on the Synthesis of Leucic 
acid, was made by Dr. Frankland. Leucie acid has been obtained 
by the author synthetically, by the substitution of one atom of oxygen 
in oxalic acid, by two atoms of ethyl. This was effected by acting 
on oxalic ether with zinc ethyl. 
