Notes on scientific, research. 153 



Finally the authors were successful in proving a fact of importance from a bio- 

 logical stand-point, that when dextrose is fermented with a pure culture of Bac. 

 Imtyliciis, Fitz, caproic acid and higher fatty acids resembling caprylic and caprinic 

 acids are formed. 



Of the four pinononic acids obtained from different primary bodies, the acid ob- 

 tained by Kerschbaum on oxidising verbenol from verbena oil was known to be 

 identical with the acid prepared by Blumann and Zeitschel 1 ) from the autoxidation 

 products of pinene (verbenol and verbenone). E. Fromm and R. Klein 2 ) now established 

 the identity of these two acids with the degradation-product obtained by Fromm and 

 Autin 3 ) from olibanol (of frankincense oil). Kerschbaum's pinononic acid semicarbazone 

 (from verbenone), when mixed with the semicarbazone of the acid from olibanol, 

 showed no depression of the melting point. In order to test the behaviour of the 

 fourth specimen of the acid, which had been obtained by Wagner and Ershtchikovski 4 ) 

 by oxidising pinene with permanganate, Fromm and Klein oxidised pure pinene (b. p. 156 

 to 158°; d lgo 0.8683), from French turpentine oil, with permanganate according to the 

 directions given. However, instead of the pinononic acid as expected they obtained 

 a pinononic acid contaminated by a small quantity of an acid of the m. p. 100°. They 

 are, therefore, of opinion that the acid obtained by Wagner and Ershtchikovski is 

 due to some impurity in their pinene, preferably to the autoxidation-products con- 

 taining verbenol and verbenone. For the reason of clearing up this question the 

 authors started some experiments on olibanol, without, however, arriving at the result 

 desired. (Cf. also p. 36 of this Report.) 



An extensive publication by O. Aschan on pinabietinic acid, which we dealt with 5 ) 

 following an abstract from the Swedish, has now appeared in Liebig's Annalen 6 ). The 

 crude material serving for the preparation of the acid was a pine oil called in Sweden 

 Tallolja. This pine oil results on evaporating the "black lye" (Schwarzlauge) of the 

 manufacture of sulphate cellulose and treating the soap obtained therefrom with sul- 

 phuric acid or acid sodium sulphate. The product is a dark, thick oil, soluble in 

 sodium carbonate, which by distillation with superheated steam can be separated into 

 readily and difficultly volatile fatty and resinous acids. It was from such a distillate 

 that Aschan obtained pinabietinic acid. 



By catalytic hydrogenation with hydrogen in xylene solution, K. W. Rosenmund 

 and F. Heise 7 ) obtained from benzyl benzoate and benzhydryl benzoate benzoic acid 

 (94 per cent.) and hydrocarbons. If increasing quantities of quinoline were added 

 (0.2 to 1 mgr. to 5 gr. of the ester) the ester saponification was gradually checked. 

 With toluene as solvent the reaction did not take place. 



Benzaldehyde, when treated in the same manner in xylene solution, yielded benzyl 

 alcohol (8 per cent.) and preferably dibenzyl ether (52 per cent). On addition of 

 quinoline in rising quantities, the proportion of the ether formed decreased in favour 

 of the alcohol. 



From benzyl alcohol and the corresponding acid chlorides H. A. Shonle and 

 P. Q. Row 8 ) prepared the following esters: — Benzyl laurate (m. p. 8.5°, b. p. 209 to 211° 

 [11 mm.], dg 0.9457, n 24 o 1.4812), benzyl myristate (m. p. 20.5°, b. p. 229 to 231° 



1 ) Cf. KepoH October 1913, 103. — 2 ) Liehig : s Annalen 425 (1921), 208. — 3 ) Cf. Report April 1911, 

 63. — *) Cf. Bert. Berichfa 29 (1896), 881. — 5 ) Cf. Bericht. (Germ, ed.) 1920, 149. — 6 ) Liebig's Annalen 

 421 (1921), 117. — 7 ) Burl. Bericht?- 54 (1921), 2038. — 8 ) Jou rn. Americ. chem. Soc. 43 (1921), 361. 



