88 American Fisheries Society 



this country on the Eastern and Western coasts. Livers 

 of other fish than the cod help to increase the supply of 

 this oil. Cod oil, on cooling, deposits "stearine" which 

 may be used for soap-making, while the expressed oil is 

 employed in the leather industry. In December, 1913, 

 domestic cod oil was selling for 37 cents a gallon. 



TORPEDO LIVER OIL. 



The liver of the torpedo yields a large amount of oil ; 

 one liver weighing 15 pounds gave one gallon of oil. The 

 unrefined oil obtained by steaming the livers is a very 

 light yellow oil, of slight fishy taste and odor, and de- 

 posits no stearine when cooled. Treatment of the oil with 

 bleaching powder seemed to improve the quality only 

 slightly, the physical and chemical properties remaining 

 practically unchanged. An exceedingly clear, light col- 

 ored and odorless product was obtained when the crude 

 oil was subjected to the action of steam. The oil was 

 heated by steam, a current of steam was passed through, 

 and drawn out under reduced pressure. Thus all vola- 

 tile aldehydes (the odor of acrolein was decidedly no- 

 ticeable in preparing the crude oil from the livers) , free 

 fatty acids of low boiling point, and all those products 

 causing the fishy odor, were removed. 



The oil was hydrogenated at a temperature of 200° C. 

 in the presence of reduced nickel. Hydrogen was simply 

 bubbled through the oil which was placed in a vessel 



TABLE II. 



PROPERTIES OF CRUDE AND REFINED TORPEDO LIVER OIL. 



Acid Saponifl- iodine Viscosity Density 

 number cation number at 50°c. at 80°c. 

 number 



Crude oil 0.70 165.4 110.2 0.2097 0.9013 



Oil treated with 



bleaching powder. . . 0.73 .... 104.0 0.2156 



Oil treated with 



steam 104.6 0.2142 0.9049 



Oil treated with 



hydrogen 0.91 .... 97.2 0.2629 0.9066 



! 



