THE NONMETALLIC MINERALS. 



429 



Bituminous . 



2. BITUMEN SERIES. 



Under this head are included a series of hydrocarbon compounds 

 varying in physical properties from solid to gaseous and in color 

 from coal black through brown, greenish, red, and yellow to colorless. 

 Unlike the members of the series already described, they are not the 

 residual products of plant decomposition in situ, but are rather, in 

 part at least, distillation products from deeply buried organic matter 

 of both animal and vegetable origin. The different members of the series 

 differ so widely in their properties and uses that each must be dis- 

 cussed independently. The grouping of the various compounds as 

 given below is open to many objections from a strictly scientific stand- 

 point, but, all things considered, it seems best suited for the present 

 purposes. 1 



Tabular classification of hydrocarbons.'* 



Gaseous Marsh gas (Natural gas). 



Fluidal Petroleum (Naphtha). 



.,. fPittasphalt (Maltha). 



\iscous and sem.sohd Minera] ^ 



I Asphalt, 



Elastic (Elaterite. 



\Wurtzillite. 

 fAlbertite. 



8011(1 Grahamite. 



'Uintaite. 

 Succinite. 



Resinous.. Copalite. 



Torbanite. 

 Ambrite. 



Cerous ( waxy) . . . f Ozokerite. 



"IHatchettite. 



Tabular classification or grouping of natural and artificial bituminous compounds. 



Mixed with limestone, "asphal- fSeyssel, Val de Travers, Lobsan, Illi- 

 tic limestone." I nois, and other localities. 



Mixed with silica and sand, "as- f California, Kentucky, Utah, and other 

 phal tic sand." I localities. "Bituminous silica." 



Mixed with earthy matter, "as- f 



phaltic earth " ^ Trinidad, Cuba, California, Utah. 



(.Bituminous schists... f Canada, California, Kentucky, Virginia, 



\ and other localities. 

 (Thick oils from the distillation of petro- 

 "l leum. "Residuum." 



Viscous (Gas-tar. 



IPitch. 



Solid 



Refined Trinidad 

 tic of asphaltite. 



Gritted asphaltic 

 pounds. 



asphaltic earth. Mas- 

 mastic. Paving com- 



'See article What is Bitumen? by S. F. Peckham, Journal of the Franklin Insti- 

 tute, CXL, 1895, pp. 370 to 383. 



2 W. P. Blake, Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, XVIII, 

 1890, p. 582. 



