6 P. C. Ray— O/i 2Iercnron£ Nitrite. [No. ], 



Evidence as to the salt being a nitrite pure and simple. 



As the C rum- Fran kl and does not enable as to disorimiiiate between 

 the nitrate and the nitrite, use was made of the well known reactioa 

 between urea and nitrous acid.* 



It was found that the solution of the ous and ic salt was only 

 slowly and imperfectly acted upon by dilute sulpliaiic acid, it was 

 therefore treated with pure caustic soda and warme;!. In this way 

 the nitrite was converted into an alkaline salt. 



Substance = 0"7285 gram. ; Vol. of Sol. =100 o.c. 



After absorption of COg by strong lye : 



4 c.c. sol. = 2-85 c.c. N (t = 32^0. 



5 do. =3-55 do. j 



10 do. =7-10 do. 'p = 756ra.m. 



Whence NO =117 per cent. 



As the urea also gives up the whole of its nitrogen aocordino" to tlie 

 equation given below, the experimental error is thus diminished by half. 



2HN0, 4- CON2H^ = C02-t-2N2 + 3H20. 



Dunstan and Dymond's method of estimating nitrites was also 

 applied ; but in tliis case it is extremely difficult to prevent leakage of 

 traces of air. The result in genernl was rather high. 



The mean of the several estimations of nitric oxide is IL'74. 



Disci^ssion of the I(,esults and Theoretical Cojisiderations, 

 The results accord well with the formula : 

 HgN02+l/2H20.t 





Tlieory. 



Found. 



Hg = 200-00 



78-48 



78-55 



(NO - 30-00 

 ( = 1600 



11-77 



11-74 



6-27 





1/2H20 = 900 



3-53 





255-00 100-00 



On dilution with a sufficiently large quantity of water, the salt 

 moreover undergoes -dissociation ; thus : 



Hg2(N0,)2 = Hg + Hg(N0,)2, 



* For details of this process see " A gasomefcric method of determining nitrous 

 acid, " by P. F. Frankland. Cliem. Soo. Jour. LI II, 364. 



t While correcting the proofs I may as well mention here thnt the salt has 

 the formula HgoNOj. Since the memoir was presented to the Society, 1 have made 

 repeated analyses of it, the mercury being estimated as sulphide, as phosphorous 

 acid gives very low results in presence of nitrous acid. The percentage of '" free " 

 mercury has been found to be 31-41, that in the ic salt, 31-41 and that in the 

 ous salt, 17-8 : total 80-62. Theory for Hg^NO^ requires SrS. 



