TRANSACTIONS 



OF THE 



^oba :^rotian institute of ^cieua. 



sp:ssion of 1910-1911 



The Optical Activatiox of Eacemic Beomcamphoe 

 Caeboxtlic Aero bt Meaxs of Catalysts : The 

 Specificity of Catalysts. — By Hexey Jeemain ^ilAUDE 

 Ceeightox^ M. a., M. Sc.^ De. Sc, Lecturer on Physical 

 Chemistry, Dalhousie University, Halifax, iST. S.* 



Read February 19th, 1912. 

 IxTEODFCTIOiq". 



Methods for the resolution of racemic bodies into their 

 optically active components date back to the time of Pasteur. 

 In an investigation on the salt, formed by racemic tartaric acid 

 with einchonicine, he found that at first almost pure cinchoni- 

 cine 1- tartrate cyrstallised out from solutions of the racemate, 

 while most of the cinchonicine d- tartxate remained behind in 

 the mother liquid. Pasteur also found, when yeast was added 

 to a solution of ammonium racemate, that the inactive solution 

 became laevo-rotatary after a time, and that finally it was 

 possible to separate 1- tartaric acid from the liquid. In this 

 case the d- component is consumed t)y the ferment. By 

 means of yeast and other ferments,. LeBeV- was able to obtain 

 amyi- and several other alcohols in an active condition ; 



♦Published in this part by permission of the council. 

 1. Le Bel, J. A.; Compt. rend., 87, 213, (1878); 89, 312. (1879); BulL 

 .see. chim., 7, (3), 551. 



Pkoc. & Trans. X. S. Inst. Sci,, Vol. XIII. Tkans.— 1. 



