r 



DISCUSSION OF CHEMICAL DATA. 87 



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DISCUSSION OF TABULATED DATA. 



Potash. The average percentage of potash for the 100 samples is 

 38.07 per cent, with a range of from 24.55 to 54.54 per cent. The 

 results on the Massachusetts samples show the highest percentages, 

 the State average being 47.46 per cent, while the Canadian samples 

 have the lowest average potash content, namely, 32.77 per cent. 

 With the exception of these, all of the State averages are very near 

 the general average figure. 



Lime. The average lime content of the ash is 21.88 per cent with 

 extremes of 13.20 and 36.36 per cent. The state averages show that 

 the northern States and Canada have the highest percentages, namely, 

 New Hampshire, 26.49 per cent; Vermont, 24.11 per cent; Canada, 

 25.25 per cent; Michigan, 22.59 per cent; and Maine, 21.55 per cent. 

 The West Virginia sample shows only 17.61 per cent. The relation 

 between the lime and the insoluble ash is constant, providing the ash 

 of the maple sample does not contain much silica. 



Per cent of potash divided by per cent of lime. The average figure for 

 this ratio is 174, the highest noted being 327. This average figure 

 corresponds to the figure obtained by dividing the per cent of soluble 

 by the per cent of insoluble ash as given on page 79, the average 

 being 1.70 and the maximum 3.86. Of the 100 samples there were 5 

 cases in which the percentage of lime was higher than that of potash, 

 giving a ratio below 100. These are No. 6398 in Indiana, with a figure 

 of 77; No. 6675 in New Hampshire, 96; No. 6732 in Vermont, 98; 

 and Nos. 6897 and 6906 in Canada, with ratios of 92 and 83, respec- 

 tively. This preponderance of lime over potash, as before stated, is 

 probably due to a supersaturation of malate of lime in the new sirup, 

 a part of which may be thrown down as a sediment on long standing. 

 In most of the cases cited the per cent of insoluble ash is higher than 

 that of soluble ash, which would indicate the explanation given. 



Among the ratios calculated from Schroeder's tables of maple-sap 

 ash there are two below 100, showing that in these samples there was 

 more lime than potash. The other ratios are very near those found 

 for the sirup, with two exceptions, Nos. 288 and 206 being lower. 

 This may be accounted for by the fact that more of the lime than pot- 

 ash is removed in the evaporation of the sap to sirup. In both cases 

 the ratio is fairly constant. 



Phosphoric acid. The average content of phosphoric acid is 5.39 

 per cent, with extremes of 1.08 and 12.90 per cent. Six samples 

 out of the 100 show very high percentages as compared with the 

 others: Nos. 6461 and 6444 of Michigan, with 11.54 and 10.63 percent, 

 respectively; No. 6671 of New Hampshire, with 10.15 per cent; and 

 Nos. 6375, 6379, and 6649 of Ohio, with 11.75, 10.36, and 12. 90 per cent, 

 respectively. The manufacturing and inspection data show that four 



