2O ELECTROLYSIS AND ELECTROS YNTKESIS 



trolysis and a slow current of the gas is conducted 

 through the solution during the operation. 



Propionic Acid. The electrolysis of a concentrated 

 solution of sodium propionate was carried out by 

 Jahn 1 and yielded, when the density of the currents 

 employed was not too great, hydrogen, ethylene, and 

 carbon dioxide, but no butane. 



Butyric Acid. The two butyric acids were elec- 

 trolyzed by Bunge. 2 With isobutyric acid it was 

 not possible to obtain hexane, but the normal acid 

 yielded some butane besides larger quantities of 

 propylene. 



The great influence of concentration, current den- 

 sity, and especially of temperature is again empha- 

 sized in the researches of Bunge. The various 

 conditions which were followed by the individual in- 

 vestigators explain sufficiently the frequent differences 

 occurring in the results. The repetition of an elec- 

 trolytic experiment is only possible when an exact 

 statement of all the factors is given. This require- 

 ment is, however, entirely omitted in the published 

 experiments above mentioned. 



Careful and reliable investigations on the electroly- 

 sis of the potassium salts of butyric and isobutyric 

 acids have been published by M. F. Hamonet. 3 His 



1 Grund. d. Elektroch., 1895, 293. 



8 Journ. d. russ. phys. Gesellsch., I, 525. 



3 Comp. rend., 123, 252. 



