﻿IV. 
  — 
  CHEMISTBY. 
  

  

  Art, 
  LXXVIII. 
  — 
  Preliminary 
  Note 
  on 
  the 
  Presence 
  of 
  one 
  or 
  more 
  Hydro- 
  

   carbons 
  of 
  the 
  Benzol 
  Series 
  in 
  the 
  American 
  Petroleum, 
  also 
  in 
  our 
  

   Petroleums. 
  By 
  William 
  Skey, 
  Analyst 
  to 
  the 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  

   Department. 
  

  

  [Eead 
  before 
  the 
  Wellington 
  Philosophical 
  Society, 
  Vlth 
  August, 
  1878.] 
  

   It 
  is 
  generally 
  supposed 
  that 
  the 
  benzol 
  series 
  of 
  hydro-carbons 
  is 
  not 
  

   represented 
  by 
  any 
  constituent 
  of 
  American 
  petroleum, 
  nor 
  even 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  

   knovi^ 
  in 
  any 
  true 
  petroleum 
  at 
  all. 
  Any 
  way, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  the 
  American 
  oil 
  

   is 
  concerned, 
  we 
  have 
  it 
  reported 
  in 
  the 
  special 
  report 
  on 
  the 
  Petroleum 
  of 
  

   Pennsylvania 
  by 
  the 
  Geological 
  Survey 
  there 
  that 
  Dr. 
  Genth 
  "believes 
  

   that 
  the 
  series 
  of 
  hydro-carbons 
  characteristic 
  of 
  those 
  which 
  furnish 
  

   aniline, 
  etc., 
  do 
  not 
  exist 
  in 
  our 
  American 
  oils."- 
  And, 
  again, 
  Dana 
  informs 
  

   us 
  in 
  his 
  latest 
  edition 
  of 
  System 
  of 
  Mineralogy 
  that 
  " 
  none 
  of 
  this 
  series 
  

   were 
  detected 
  by 
  Pelonze 
  and 
  Cahours 
  in 
  the 
  Pennsylvania 
  petroleum." 
  

  

  However, 
  some 
  time 
  ago 
  I 
  had, 
  on 
  behalf 
  of 
  the 
  Customs 
  authorities 
  

   here, 
  to 
  examine 
  some 
  of 
  our 
  so-termed 
  benzine 
  for 
  what 
  is 
  chemically 
  

   kno^sm 
  as 
  benzol 
  — 
  hydro-carbon 
  ; 
  and 
  for 
  this 
  I 
  employed 
  the 
  test 
  recom- 
  

   mended 
  by 
  Prof. 
  Hoffman 
  — 
  a 
  test 
  which 
  is 
  based 
  upon 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  benzol 
  

   loses 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  its 
  hydrogen 
  when 
  warmed 
  with 
  nitric 
  acid; 
  the 
  re- 
  

   mainder 
  combines 
  with 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  decomposed 
  acid 
  to 
  form 
  intro-benzol, 
  

   and 
  this 
  product, 
  when 
  placed 
  in 
  contact 
  with 
  nascent 
  hydrogen, 
  is 
  by 
  

   the 
  loss 
  of 
  oxygen 
  transformed 
  into 
  the 
  alkaloid 
  aniline 
  — 
  a 
  substance 
  

   which 
  is 
  by 
  certain 
  easy 
  oxidizing 
  processes 
  converted 
  to 
  others 
  which 
  

   are 
  remarkable 
  for 
  their 
  intensity 
  and 
  variety 
  of 
  colour, 
  forming 
  the 
  well- 
  

   known 
  coal-tar 
  colours. 
  

  

  The 
  results 
  of 
  his 
  test 
  were, 
  that 
  I 
  entirely 
  failed 
  to 
  get 
  any 
  colour 
  

   reaction; 
  but 
  I 
  obtained 
  a 
  quantity 
  of 
  nitro-oils, 
  from 
  which 
  I 
  succeeded 
  in 
  

   separating 
  one 
  which 
  by 
  deoxidation 
  yielded 
  a 
  substance 
  which 
  exhibited 
  

   all 
  the 
  general 
  properties 
  of 
  an 
  alkaloid 
  ; 
  thus 
  it 
  is 
  soluble 
  in 
  water, 
  com- 
  

   bines 
  with 
  acids, 
  and, 
  when 
  dissolved 
  in 
  either, 
  gives 
  precipitates 
  with 
  tannic 
  

   acid, 
  mercm'o-iodide 
  of 
  potassium, 
  and 
  sulpho-cyanide 
  of 
  zinc. 
  It 
  is 
  an 
  oil, 
  

   at 
  common 
  temperatm-es, 
  possessing 
  a 
  dark 
  brown 
  colom*, 
  and, 
  like 
  aniline, 
  

   it 
  gives 
  an 
  intense 
  yellow 
  colom' 
  to 
  pine-wood. 
  

  

  