242 



THE ANALYSIS OF BUTTER FAT. 



supposed, attempted to estimate this by distillation, but finally 

 relinquished the method on account of discordant results, due 

 largely to the bumping of the liquid and the use of too strong an 

 acid. 



Reichert proposed saponifying 2*5 grammes of butter with 

 caustic soda and alcohol, evaporating off the alcohol, adding 50 c.c. 

 of water and 20 c.c. dilute sulphuric acid, and distilling 50 c.c. 

 in a weak current of air. This method a though Reichert himself 

 calls it Hehner's method, is now known as the Reichert process. 

 He showed that butters took a constant amount of deci-normal 

 alkali for neutralisation, while fats and artificial butters took 

 very small quantities (0-3 c.c.), and coconut oil took about 

 3 c.c. ; he proposed 14-0 c.c. as the mean for genuine butters, 



Fig. 31. Reichert -Wollny Apparatus. 



and 13-0 c.c. as a limit ; he showed also that mixtures of butter 



N 

 and margarine took quantities of alkali equivalent to the 



amount of butter they contained. 



Meissl proposed saponifying 5 grammes of butter fat in a flask 

 of about 200 c.c. capacity with 2 grammes of caustic potash and 

 50 c.c. of 70 per cent, alcohol, and driving off the alcohol on 

 the water-bath. The resulting soap is dissolved in 100 c.c. of 

 water, and 40 c.c. of dilute sulphuric acid (1 to 10) are added 

 and the solution distilled with a few small pieces of pumice ; 

 110 c.c. are collected, filtered, and 100 c.c. titrated with deci- 

 normal alkali. In common with Reichert and the earlier experi- 

 menters, he used litmus as an indicator, but the superiority of 



