VELOCITY OF REACTION. HETEROGENEOUS SYSTEMS 133 

 EQUILIBRIUM IN SOLUTION OF TRIACETIN AT i8C. (A. E. TAYLOR) 



The calculated values are found according to the law of 

 Guldberg and Waage, under the assumption that the first 

 figure (88) is correct. As will be seen, the figures found for 

 the action of lipase agree better with the theory than those 

 for the catalytic action of the sulphuric acid. As probably 

 the same end-value is reached, be the catalytic agent sul- 

 phuric acid or lipase, we conclude that the spontaneous 

 hydrolysis of triacetin would reach the same end- value, 

 and that the catalysor only accelerates the process, as is 

 generally assumed and especially set forth by Ostwald. 



This circumstance, that equilibria are reached under the 

 action of ferments, so that the reaction may be carried in 

 the one or in the other direction, is a direct illustration of 

 the fact that we may apply the laws of physical chemistry 

 to biological science. The first discovery that ferments 

 may synthetise as well as decompose was made by Hill l in 

 1898 and excited a very great interest. He found that it 

 is possible to synthetise a maltose (according to Emmer- 

 ling, 2 it is an isomaltose) from glucose by means of yeast, 

 according to the formula : 



2 C 6 H 12 6 



C 12 H 22 O n 



H 2 0. 



1 Hill: Journ. Chem. Soc. t 73. 643 (1898). 



2 Taylor: University of California Publications, Pathology, Vol. I., 33 and 

 65 (1904). For references on literature see this last memoir. 



