CHLORINE. 85 



CHLORINE. OXYGEN. ATOMIC WEIGHT. 



1. Protoxide of chlorine. 1 atom _j_ 1 atom 5-5 



2. Tritoxide of chlorine 1 +3 7'5 



3. Quadroxide of chlorine 1 +4 8'5 



4. Chloric acid 1 +5 9-5 



5. Perchloric acid 1 +7 11-5* 



III. Hydrogen and chlorine, as far as we chlorine 

 know at present, unite in only one proportion, gen. hydr ' 

 constituting muriatic acid, the atomic weight of 

 which is 4'625. 



This acid is one of the most active and cor- 

 rosive with which we are acquainted. It is very 

 much used in chemical analyses, and indeed is 

 altogether indispensable in a laboratory. When 

 pure, it is a gas, the specific gravity of which is 

 1 '28472, being exactly the mean between the 

 specific gravities of chlorine gas and hydrogen 

 gas. 



I find that at the temperature of 69, one cu-^. uidr y i j u - 



L natic acid. 



bicinch of water is capable of absorbing 417*822 

 cubic inches of muriatic acid gas. The tempe- 

 rature of the liquid augments considerably, and 

 its volume, when cooled down to the tempera- 

 ture of the air, is 1-3433 cubic inch. It is ob- 

 vious from this, that 100 grains of acid of this 

 strength contain 103 cubic inches of acid gas ; 

 and a cubic inch of this acid contains 311-04146 



* The protoxide was analyzed by Davy, the tritoxide by Von Stadion, 

 the quadroxide by Davy. It has not been ascertained whether or not the 

 two last constitute really distinct substances. Chloric acid was first analy- 

 zed by Chenevix, and more correctly by Berzelius. Perchloric acid was 

 discovered and analyzed by Von Stadion. 



F 3 



