Chemistry and Physics. 141 



SCIENTIFIC INTELLIGENCE 



I. Chemistry and Physics. 



1. Occurrence of Argon with Helium in a Mineral. — Kitchen 

 and Winteeson have found that the mineral raalacone is radio- 

 active, and that it gives off argon as well as helium when heated. 

 The origin of the material used for their experiments is not given, 

 but it is stated that crystallized specimens were employed. An 

 analysis indicated the presence of 0.33 per cent of uranium, an 

 amount which was sufficient to account for only a small portion 

 of the radio-activity, and it is suggested, but not shown, that the 

 mineral may have contained some radium. A portion of the 

 mineral was subjected to fusion with potassium acid sulphate, 

 and the evolved gases were collected and analyzed. Disregard- 

 ing the sulphur dioxide and oxygen resulting from the acid sul- 

 phate, the gases collected per hundred grams of mineral were : 



Carbon dioxide 33*24 c0 



Hydrogen 0-57 



Nitrogen 0*34 



Argon 2*82 



Helium 0*94 



Although the argon found amounts to only 0*005 per cent of the 

 mineral by weight, its detection is interesting as being the first 

 instance of such an occurrence. The authors say that this fact 

 has been demonstrated by three experiments, so that it is beyond 

 doubt, but they give no description of the analysis of the gase- 

 ous mixture, or of the method used for identifying the argon. 

 The authors have made a further analysis of the mineral with 

 the following results : 



Y 2 3 

 Si0 2 Zr0 2 Fe 2 3 MgO CaO U 3 8 Ce 2 3 , etc. H 2 



22-53 67-78 4-93 0"70 0-41 0-33 0*09 1-84 = 98-57 



From this they derive the formula Zr 3 Si 2 O 10 , but this conclusion 

 is not convincing in view of the closely agreeing results on the 

 composition of this mineral by several previous investigators, 

 leading to the formula ZrSi0 4 with some water. — Jour. Ghem. 

 Soc, lxxxix, 1568. h. l. w. 



2. Researches on High Percentage Ozone Gas. — In a paper 

 read before the British Association at the York Meeting, 1 906, 

 E. Ladenburg has described some observations which point to 

 the existence of an allotropic modification of oxygen similar to 

 ozone, but differing from it in containing a greater number of 

 atoms in the molecule. The object of the research was the 



Am. Jour. Sci. — Fourth Series, Vol, XXIII, No. 134.— February, 1907. 

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