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Acetylene. 99 



blow it out, and the luminous part of the fishtail flame 

 almost touches the jet, while in a gas flame a large blue 

 zone separates the luminous part from the jet. 



By exploring the flame with a bit of platinum wire, it 

 is easy to see, by the intensity with which it glows, which 

 is the hottest part, and also to recognize that the luminous 

 part deposits soot on any cold object. 



These experiments led to the idea of constructing a 

 new form of burner for acetylene gas, in which the jets 

 should be very fine and very perfect in form, and which 

 should give the best probable access of air, and which 

 should bring a very small section of metal in contact 

 with the flame in order to avoid smoke and the deposit of 

 soot. 



The form eventually chosen is shown by the 

 sketch. The burner is made of brass with 

 nickel or steel tips. The extreme points in 

 contact with the flame may be tipped with 

 platinum or silver, but steel answers the pur- 

 pose quite well. The most essential feature 

 is that the tips should not be larger than -^^ 

 inch in diameter. These burners abstract 

 very little heat from the flame and consequently give 

 more light than the usual form for the same candle power. 

 They do not smoke with any height of flame. They burn 

 acetylene advantageously with the 10- to 20-candle-power 

 light to which we are accustomed. Lava tips are not well 

 suited to such small flames, because the section in contact 

 with the flame is about 20 times larger and abstracts so 

 much heat that the metal setting for several inches in 

 length becomes very hot. Loss of heat occasions loss of 

 light. 



It is particularly important in burning acetylene that 

 a large supply of air should be drawn into the flame by 

 the suction of the gas jets which issue from the two 

 orifices of the burner. The steel jets described above 



