AucustT 3, 1899] 
NATURE 317 
PHOTOGRAPAIC RESEARCHES ON PHOS- 
PHORESCENT SPECTRA; 
On VIcTORIUM, A NEW ELEMENT ASSOCIATED WITH 
YTTRIUM." 
ik has long been known that certain substances -en- 
closed in a vacuous glass bulb phosphoresce brightly 
when submitted to molecular bombardment from the 
negative pole of an induction coil. The ruby, emerald, 
diamond. alumina, yttria, samaria and a large class of 
earthy oxides and sulphides emit light under these cir- 
cumstances. Examined in a spectroscope the light from 
some of these bodies gives an almost continuous spec- 
trum, while that from others, such as alumina, yttria and 
samaria, gives spectra of more or less sharp bands and 
lines. Since 1879 I have been working on these phos- 
phorescent spectra, chiefly in connection with the earths 
of the yttria group, and by chemical fractionation I have 
succeeded in separating from this group bodies whose 
phosphorescent spectra consist chiefly of single groups 
of lines, other groups being absent. For the last six 
years the research has been extended beyond the visible 
spectrum, and photographs of the ultra-violet portion of 
the spectra are now being taken witha spectrograph with 
a complete quartz train. Some of the results of this 
investigation were exhibited at the soirée of the Royal 
Society on May 3. A preliminary mention of the dis- 
covery of a new element was made in my address to the 
British Association in September last, when I provision- 
ally called it Monium; but for several reasons I now 
consider the name Victorium more appropriate. 
The complicated scheme of fractionation carried on for 
so many years is illustrated in the accompanying dia- 
gram. This must be considered only as an indication of 
the methods employed, and not as an actual represent- 
ation of every operation through which the material has 
passed. Crude yttria, from samarskite, gadolinite, cerite 
and other similar minerals, is the raw material. The 
first operation is to free it roughly from earths of the 
cerium group—an operation effected by taking advantage 
of the fact that the double sulphates of potassium and 
the yttrium metals are easily soluble in saturated potass- 
ium sulphate solution, while the corresponding double 
sulphates of the cerium group of metals are difficultly 
soluble. 
After this preliminary treatment, the crude yttria is 
converted into nitrate, represented by the topmost circle 
on the diagram. The nitrate is exposed to heat until it 
fuses to a clear liquid, care being taken to distribute the 
heat uniformly through the mass. Presently the liquid 
_ mass commences to decompose, giving off red vapours. 
After this has proceeded for a little time, the fused mass 
is carefully poured into water, and the liquid well boiled. 
A white precipitate of basic nitrate forms, while the unde- 
composed nitrates remain in solution. These are separated 
by filtration—the precipitate going to the right and the 
solution to the left. The basic nitrate is dissolved in 
nitric acid, and the right and left solutions are then 
evaporated to dryness and fused as before. Partial de- 
composition by heat again divides each of these portions 
into two lots, soluble and insoluble. The soluble from 
the left-hand lot goes still further to the left, and its 
insoluble portion to the right. The soluble from the 
right-hand portion goes to the left, where it mixes with 
the insoluble from the other portion, while its insoluble 
portion goes still further to the right. This series of 
operations is continued for as long a time as the material 
will hold out. From a description, the process seems 
to be more complicated than it really is, but a study of 
the diagram and the direction of the arrows makes it clear. 
The number of times this operation is performed varies 
1A paper read before the Royal Society, May 4, by Sir William 
Crookes, F.R.S. 
2**On the Methods of Chemical Fractionation,’ British Association, 
Birmingham Meeting, 1886 ; Chemical News, vol. liv. p. 131. 
NO. 1553, VOL. 60] 
with each lot of earth fractionated. The portisns sub- 
mitted to fusion rapidly diminish in quantity, and the 
FRACTIONATION BY 
FUSION OF NITRATES. 
FRACTIONATION BY a 
CRYSTALLISATION 
OF OXALATES. SR 
8 
@ 
FRACTIONATION BY 
PRECIPITATION WITH 
SULPHATE OF POTASH. 
VICTORIUM. 
Fic. 1. 
