344' Mr. Hennell 07i the Mutual Action 



stilled until 117 grains had passed over, consisting of water, 

 alcohol, and a portion of aether. The residue in the retort 

 liad not undergone any charring effect; and being diluted, 

 was precipitated by the acetate of lead : the quantity of sul- 

 phate of lead obtained, amounted to 804 grains, indicating 

 an increase in the quantity of sulphuric acid equivalent to 188 

 grains of sulphate of lead. 



6. A similar mixture of alcohol and sulphuric acid, made 

 at the time and in the same proportions as the two former, 

 Mas then distilled until two hundred grains had been received, 

 the greater part of which was aether ; the uncharred residual 

 matter in the retort being then diluted, was precipitated by 

 acetate of lead as before; 986 grains of sulphate of lead were 

 obtained. This contained nearly two-thirds of the sulphuric 

 acid first added, and the increase by distillation had been 

 much more than one-half of that which existed before the ap- 

 plication of heat : so that during the distillation, and simul- 

 taneously with the formation of aether, a quantity of sulpho- 

 vinic acid had been i-e-converted into sulphuric acid, and the 

 latter appeared to increase in quantity in proportion to the in- 

 crease of £Ether in the distilled products. 



7. A similar mixture of alcohol and acid, made at the same 

 time and in the same proportions as the three former, was then 

 distilled until two hundred grains had passed over*. Two 

 hundred grains of water were added to the contents of the re- 

 tort; 160 grains were distilled off; a second addition of two 

 hundred grains of water was made, and the distillation con- 

 tinued : a further addition of five hundred grains of water was 

 made, and the operation continued until as much product had 

 been separated as equalled the water added ; — the object was 

 to separate all the aither and alcohol possible, for the purpose 

 of ascertaining to what extent the conversion of sulphovinic 

 acid into sulphuric could be caiTied. No smell of sulphurous 

 acid was produced during the operation, nor did any charring 

 of the contents of the retort occur ; when precipitated by ace- 

 tate of lead, 1480 grains of sulphate of lead were obtained. 

 This is very little short of the 1 500 given by the acid when un- 

 acted upon by alcohol, and shows that nearly the whole of the 

 sulphovinic acid had been changed back into the state of sul- 

 phuric acid; and is completely at variance with the opinion, 

 that when sulphuric acid and alcohol act upon each other, 

 hj'po-sulphuric acid is formed. 



8. From these experiments it appeared probable that the 

 aether was the product of the decomposition of the sulphovinic 

 acid: but a mixture of equal weights of alcohol and sulphuric 

 acid contains, besides the sulphovinic acid, a considerable 



quantity 



