IV. — CHEMISTBY. 



Art, LXXVIII. — Preliminary Note on the Presence of one or more Hydro- 

 carbons of the Benzol Series in the American Petroleum, also in our 

 Petroleums. By William Skey, Analyst to the Geological Survey 

 Department. 



[Eead before the Wellington Philosophical Society, Vlth August, 1878.] 

 It is generally supposed that the benzol series of hydro-carbons is not 

 represented by any constituent of American petroleum, nor even as far as I 

 knovi^ in any true petroleum at all. Any way, so far as the American oil 

 is concerned, we have it reported in the special report on the Petroleum of 

 Pennsylvania by the Geological Survey there that Dr. Genth "believes 

 that the series of hydro-carbons characteristic of those which furnish 

 aniline, etc., do not exist in our American oils."- And, again, Dana informs 

 us in his latest edition of System of Mineralogy that " none of this series 

 were detected by Pelonze and Cahours in the Pennsylvania petroleum." 



However, some time ago I had, on behalf of the Customs authorities 

 here, to examine some of our so-termed benzine for what is chemically 

 kno^sm as benzol — hydro-carbon ; and for this I employed the test recom- 

 mended by Prof. Hoffman — a test which is based upon the fact that benzol 

 loses a portion of its hydrogen when warmed with nitric acid; the re- 

 mainder combines with a portion of decomposed acid to form intro-benzol, 

 and this product, when placed in contact with nascent hydrogen, is by 

 the loss of oxygen transformed into the alkaloid aniline — a substance 

 which is by certain easy oxidizing processes converted to others which 

 are remarkable for their intensity and variety of colour, forming the well- 

 known coal-tar colours. 



The results of his test were, that I entirely failed to get any colour 

 reaction; but I obtained a quantity of nitro-oils, from which I succeeded in 

 separating one which by deoxidation yielded a substance which exhibited 

 all the general properties of an alkaloid ; thus it is soluble in water, com- 

 bines with acids, and, when dissolved in either, gives precipitates with tannic 

 acid, mercm'o-iodide of potassium, and sulpho-cyanide of zinc. It is an oil, 

 at common temperatm-es, possessing a dark brown colom*, and, like aniline, 

 it gives an intense yellow colom' to pine-wood. 



