Comlmatlons of different Metals and Chlorine, b'c. 89 



I have found to afford merely water and sulphuret of anti- 

 xiiony *. 



To ascertain the proportion of antimony in the butter of 

 antimony Gos^grains of this substance colourless and cry- 

 stallized, weighed in water, were heated in a solution of 

 hydrosulphuret of potash. The whole of the antimony 

 was dissolved, and the hydrosulphuret of potash bemg iw 

 excess, there was no precipitation on cooling. The solu- 

 tion was decomposed by muriatic acid, and the golden 

 sulphur thus thrown down was collected on a filter, well 

 washed and dried ; heated slowly to redness in a glass tube, 

 steam in plenty was disengaged with very slight traces of 

 sulphur, and sulphuret of antimony remained, which fused 

 into one mass weighed 45 grains. According to the ex- 

 periments of Proust, which I have repeated with the same 

 result, sulphuret of antimony contains 7-l"l per cent, of 

 metal. Hence 43 grains of sulphuret or the 603 of butter 

 of antimony, from which the sulphuret was procured, must 

 contain 33"35 of metal ; and considering the remainder 

 27*15 of the 60'5 as the proportion of chlorine, 100 of the 

 butter of antimony seem to consist of 



39-58 chlorine 



6042 antimony 



10000 



This compound, as it yields when decomposed by water 

 jhe submuriated protoxide, may be called antimoniane or 

 stibiane. 



A compound of bisn)uth and chlorine has been long 

 known bearing the name of the butter of bismuth. It is 

 obtained i)oth when bismuth is heated with corrosive sub- 

 limate and calomel. Two parts of corrosive sublimate to 

 one part of metal, I have found good proportions for its 

 preparation. There is some difficulty in j)rocuring it pure and 

 entirely free from the mercury revived ; tliis is most readily 

 effected by keeping the butter of bismuth in fusion, at a 

 temperature just below that at which mercury boils ; the 

 mercury slowly subsides and collects in the bottom of the 



• Tliesc results appear to me to demonstrate the truth of M. Proust's 

 opinion, thai the golden sulphur is a hydrosulpliuiettcil oxide of antimony. 

 From my ciptriments, the only diflcrfnce of composition between kermcs 

 niineral and the preceding compound seems to consist in the former con- 

 taining a smaller pronorlion of sulphuretted hydrogenc than the latter; for 

 I have obtained by the decomposition of kermcs mineral, by heat, a com- 

 pound of sulphuret of antimony and protoxide, and I have converted kermcs 

 into the golden sulphur by means of water impregnated with sulphuretted 

 ^ydrugcuc- 



vessel, 



