Reynolds — Report on Glucimim. 731 



LYI. — Eepoets yrom the Chesiicax Laboratory of Tei:s'ity College, 

 Dttblix. By J. EiiEESojf Reynolds, M. D., M. R. I. A., Professor 

 of Chemistry, University of Dublin. 



1^0. 1. — Ok GLTJCiNUii : its Aioiiic "Weight and Specific Heat. 



[Eead April 10, 1876.] 



Amongst the few rare elements found in Ireland is the metal Gliiei- 

 niim or Beryllium, which occurs in the well-known alumino-giucinic 

 silicate, beryl or "emerald;" this mineral is found in comparatiye 

 abundance, though in a rough state, in the granites of Donegal, 

 and is somewhat less freely distributed through the granites of the 

 Mourne Mountains in the county of Down. As the " atomic weight " 

 of glucinum has not yet been definitely fixed by the determination of 

 the specific heat of the metal, it seemed desirable that we in Ire- 

 land should make the necessary crucial experiments. Hence, about 

 seven years ago, I commenced to collect the crude Irish beryls or 

 " emeralds," and ultimately succeeded in obtaining 3 kilogrammes 

 of the dressed mineral, from which I prepared nearly 350 grammes of 

 the pure glucinic oxide. 



I have to thank my friend Mr. "William Harte, C. E., the ex- 

 cellent County Surveyor of Donegal, for the valuable assistance he 

 kindly afforded me in collecting much of the mineral from which 

 the glucinic oxide was prepared. 



The satisfactory nature of the results of a set of preliminary experi- 

 ments with the material at my disposal must be my apology for 

 laying a short communication upon the subject before the Academy, 

 at a very early stage of the investigation. 



Some glucinic oxide was converted into the anhydrous chloride by 

 the action of chlorine upon it at a full red heat in presence of finely 

 divided carbon; and the metal was subsequently procured by the action 

 of metallic sodium on the pure sublimed glucinic chloride. The reduc- 

 tion was efi'ected by heating a suitable mixtui'e in a platinum vessel, 

 but the temperature was not allowed to rise sufiiciently to liquefy the 

 mass ; and on removal of the material from the crucible those portions 

 which had been in contact with the platinum were rejected. The 

 resulting mixture of sodic chloride and reduced glucinum was then 

 fused under common salt in a lime crucible ; this precaution was 

 taken in order to avoid contact with siliceous compounds. Con- 

 siderable loss occurred in this operation ; but I succeeded in obtaining 

 a small coherent mass of metallic glucinum, which latter was found 

 to agree in characters with the metal described by Debray,-" though 



* Anncdes de Chimie ct de Fhysique : Iroislcmc scric, tcu;. xLv., p. o (1855). 



