ON THE SlfAPE OF STILUS, «qj 



VIII, 



On the Influence the Shape of a Still has on the Quality of 

 the Product of Distillation: by Mr. Ctjuaudau, Member 

 of the Pharmaceutical and several other Societies*. 



HEN Mr, Chaptal pointed out the fault of our com- shallow stills 

 mon stills, and proposed to substitute for them broad and proposed by 

 shallow alembics, I was one of the first, to consider the re- ai>ta * 

 form as very useful, and at the same time highly conducive 

 to the interest of the distiller. Accordingly, having had 

 occasion to write on the same subject, I proved, that I coin- 

 cided in opinion with Mr. Chaptal, by extolling the advan- 

 tages, that shallow stills possessed over deep ones. 



Though I had no foundation for my opinion but theory, and recom- 

 and the particulars advanced by Mr. Chaptal in support of mendea b y the 

 the system he proposed, I was far from thinking, that I 

 should have to retract the assertions I had made, and that 

 experience would destroy the plan of reform, the adoption 

 of which I had sought to promote. 



However, as it is the duty of a man, who studies useful but his opinion 

 improvements in the arts, not to compromise the progress now chan g ed » 

 of science, or sacrifice to selflove whatever tends to correct 

 the errours, into which he may have fallen, I hasten to 

 communicate to the physical and mathematical class of the 

 Institute the observations, that have arisen from the ob- 

 jections made to me by those, who have employed shallow 

 stills. 



In deep stills, the liquor, at a certain time, receives more In deep stills 

 heat, than it gives off by evaporation: the temperature then u 116 ^^ 110 ' 

 may rise, till it reaches the term at which the ebullition is 

 complete, an essential condition for effecting the combina- and finer fla- 

 tion of the alcohol with the aroma of the wine, before it is voured - 

 separated from it. 



No doubt shallow stills greatly shorten the time of distil- Distillation 



lation ; this is a fact, on which all distillers agree : but they <l m< ;ker m 



° J shallow «nes. 



* Sonnini's Biblotheque phyhico-eeonomique, 1808, torn. I, p. 106. 



say 



