TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION B. 467 
Collieries, in Crook by Darlington, and the Messrs, Pease are so satisfied with the 
work done, that to the 25 ovens with which the above results were obtained as 
regards bye-products, 25 more ovens are being added. The yield of coke in the 
above experiment was excellent, viz. 77 per cent. of the coal used. It has been 
stated that the coke drawn from the Carvés’s ovens, after watering to effect rapid 
cooling, becomes too wet. This could easily be obviated by drawing immediately 
into underground vaults, adding a little water to choke out combustion, and fasten- 
ing on the lids of the vaults. 
In the Caryés’s ovens large charges of 4} tons are used, and these can be 
coked in 48 hours. The gas is drawn from the ovens by an exhauster so slowly 
that a slight pressure is always caused to exist in the ovens so as to prevent air 
being sucked in. This gas is then condensed, and scrubbed to separate tar and 
ammonia water, and finally returns to the ovens, under the bottoms and around 
the sides of which it circulates through bottom and side flues. On entering the 
bottom flue by a jet contained in an annular tube, air is also drawn in and mixed 
with the gas to effect the perfect combustion of the latter. But this air has 
already received a preliminary heating to as high as 600° C. by passing in circu- 
lating flues from the outside air, these flues enwrapping and co-circulating so to 
speak with hot and waste gas flues which thus serve to heat up the air in the air- 
flues. Thus the waste gases pass in their flues in the opposite direction taken by 
the air drawn through its flues towards the annular pipe, by which it is mixed 
with the fuel-gas as it enters the bottom flue of the oven furnace, 
This improvement of a subsequent heating of the air has raised the temperature 
attainable in the ovens from 2,200° to 3,000° Centigrade. 
Finally, the Carvés's tar contains large quantities of naphthalene and anthra- 
cene, as well as benzol, toluol, xylol, and carbolic acids, and so far as I know it is 
the only coke-oven tar furnished which is really and completely identical with the 
coal tars of the gas-retorts. 
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25. 
The following Report and Papers were read :— 
1. Report of the Committee for Investigating Isomeric Naphthalene 
Derivatives—See Reports, p. 132. 
2. On the alleged Direct Union of Nitrogen and Hydrogen.* 
By H. Brereton Baker. 
Doubt having been expressed as to the statement by Mr. Stillingfleet Johnston? 
that the elements nitrogen and hydrogen may be caused to unite directly, the 
following experiments were undertaken to test the accuracy of his results. 
Pure nitrogen was obtained by exposing moist phosphorus in air contained in a 
bell-jar, the absorption of oxygen being rendered complete by passing the gases 
through three wash-bottles of potassium pyrogallate. Pure hydrogen was prepared 
by dissolving zinc in sulphuric acid, and passing the gas through two cylinders 
containing marbles soaked in potassium permanganate solution. The two gases 
were dried by passing through a wash-bottle of strong sulphuric acid. They were 
tested for ammonia by passing them through a tube containing Nessler’s solution. 
They were then passed over heated spongy platinum, and into a second tube of 
Nessler’s solution. 
Three experiments were made, two lasting for an hour and a half each, while 
‘the third was carried on for two hours, In the last experiment the platinum 
1 Chem. News, Oct. 19, 1883. 2 Jour. Chem. Soc. 1881. 
HH2 
