Commercial and scientific notes on essential oils. 75 



to the method used in the Landes 1 ) in the course of about five months, was 

 approximately 1.3 kilos per tree. If the normal time of seven to eight months was 

 allowed, Palazzo thinks that the output could be increased to 1.8 kilos per tree. 



The product yielded on an average about 20 per cent, of turpentine oil with the 

 following properties: — di 5 o 0.8635, [«] D iso + 46.71°, n D150 1.4688, soluble in 7 parts of 

 90 per cent, alcohol, inflammation point 32 to 33°. When subjected to fractionated 

 distillation, the six first fractions (90.4 per cent.) passed over between 154 and 158° 

 and consisted almost exclusively of d-pinene. The 7 th and 8 th fractions boiled from 

 158 to 160° and from 160 to 163°, respectively. 



The methods for detecting and estimating toluene, xylene, solvent naphtha and 

 other coal-tar derivatives in turpentine oil, as suggested by Marcusson 2 ) and Krieger 8 ) 

 have not been found reliable by V. rZ. Grotlisch and W. C. Smith 4 ) especially if small 

 quantities are concerned. Grotlisch and Smith have therefore contrived a new method, 

 according to which the turpentine oil is first treated with dry hydrogen chloride. The 

 pinene hydrochloride formed is separated from the other liquid, which is then distilled 

 under reduced pressure The unchanged coal-tar oils pass over with the first part of 

 the distillate. This is sulfonated with fuming sulphuric acid and distilled with steam. 

 In the case of pure oil of turpentine, a very small quantity of a dark yellow volatile 

 oil of disagreeable smell is obtained: — index of refraction n D20 o slightly above 1.500. 

 If any mineral oil is present, an almost colourless product is obtained, having the 

 characteristic mineral oil odour and an index of refraction below 1.500, generally below 

 1.4800. If coal-tar derivatives were present, they can be recovered as such to the 

 extent of 45 per cent. The quantity present thereof is found therefore by multiplying 

 the result of the analysis with 2.2. —The sulphuric acid used must always have the 

 same concentration and contain 3 to 4 per cent, of free S0 3 . Otherwise the results 

 do not agree. This method is not strictly applicable to wood turpentine oil, unless 

 the adulteration exceeds 4 per cent., as small quantities of benzene hydrocarbons occur 

 as normal components of this oil. 



With reference to Salvaterra's article "On New Methods of Investigating Turpentine 

 Oil", in which the author declares that Herzfeld and Marcusson's method is not altogether 

 free from objection 5 ), ). Marcusson 6 ) points out once more the usefulness of his nitric 

 acid test for the determination of light petroleum in turpentine oil. According to these 

 explanations Marcusson's investigations of mixtures of light petroleum and turpentine 

 oil would prove that his method suffices completely for technical purposes. The nitric 

 acid method is applicable not only for turpentine oils, but also for pine oil and pinolene 

 and does not depend upon what sort of light petroleum is present. Even small quantities, 

 such as 2 to 3 per cent, of light petroleum, were still to be detected with his method. 



H. Heller 7 ) publishes an extract of H. Salvaterra's article on the investigation of 

 turpentine oils 8 ) discussed by us already, under the title of "New Methods for the 

 Investigation of Turpentine Oils". 



As C. M. Sherwood ) reports, the extraction of rosin, pine oil and turpentine 

 from dead pine wood was begun in 1909 by the Yaryan Naval Stores Co. at Gulfport 

 and Brunswick, Ga., Since 1921 this company works conjointly with the Hercules 



: ) Gemmage a vie or gemmage a mort; comp. Gildemeister and Hoffmann, The Volatile Oils, 2 nd edition, 

 vol. II, p. 69. — 2 ) Chem. Ztg. 36 (1912), 431. — 3 ) Ihid. 40 (1916), 972. — *) Jonrn. Ind. and Eng. Chem. 13 

 (1921), 792. — 5) Cf. Bericht (German) 1921, 49. — 6 ) Chem. Ztg. 45(1921), 418. — 7 ) Deutsche Parf. -Ztg. 7 

 (1921), 131. — 8 ) Cf. Bericht (German) 1921, 48. - 9 ) Chem. and Met. Engin. 25 (1921), 994. 



