202 
INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS. 
“ The root of the young plant is also used in cases of 
ascites and anasarca, when it acts as a diuretic.” (Dr. Thornton) 
Watt’s Dictionary. 
The Kapok tree, Eriodendron anjractuosum, grows in almost all tropical 
countries and resembles the cotton plant, in that it yields a fruit containing 
flne'flbrous material in which the seeds are embedded. The Bast Indian tree, 
Bombax malabaricum is also known as “ kapok ” and in commerce no distinc- 
tion is made between the oils derived from these two sources. The seeds 
contain about 23 per cent of oil, and yield about 17 per cent by pressing. 
Expressed oils yielded by ‘ kapok ' seeds from Java, East Africa, Ceylon, and 
Ecuador had the following characters : sp. gr. at 15°C. 0-9285 to 0'9326 ; refrac- 
tometer reading at40°C. 51*7 to 597; iodine value, 85 24 to 9378; saponif. value 
189-2 to 194-5. Reichert-Meissl value, 0'20 to, 0 66; Polenske value, 0'40; acid 
value, 18-5 to 210-2 ; insoluble fatty acids, 95'60 to 9576 p. c. The fatty acids 
had : iodine value, 80"8 to 98-96 ; saponif value, 199 0 to 2027 ; solidif pt., 26 9"C 
to 31-8° ; m. pt., 32-2 to 34'2’. The expressed oil from Bombax seeds had : sp. gr. 
0-9800 ; refractometer reading at 40 ! ’C-, 57’0 ; iodine value, 73-59 ; saponif, value, 
194-3 ; acid value, 8"0.; insoluble fatty acids, 95'61 p. c. The fatty acids from 
kapok oil yield a hexabromide melting at 112° to 1 14 r C. Kapok oil resembles 
Cotton seed oil, and gives a strong reaction with Halphen's reagent ; it is not, 
however, used so extensively as cotton seed oil for edible purposes. — J. 
O. Ind. September 15, 1913. Page 874. 
The air-dried kapok seeds contain 25-6 per cent of fatty oil. The oil 
does not become entirely clear till warmed to 28°-29'C. The sp. gr. atJ5°C is 
0"9218 for expressed commercial oil, and 0-9198 for extracted oil. The refractive 
index at 40°C is 1-4630. When dissolved in toluene, the oil is optically inactive. 
In Engler’s viscometer, the viscosity is 11*5 at 20"'C. compared with water. 
The iodine value of the expressed oil was 887, and 93-3 to 94'5 for the 
extracted oil. The acid values were 2t'6 for expressed oil and 3 4-4'6 
for extracted oil. The saponification values were 192-3 for the expressed 
oil, and 196-3 for the extracted oil. The acid values were 21*6 for 
expressed oil /and 3'4-4’6 for extracted oil. The saponification values 
were 192-3 for the expressed oil and 196 3 for the extracted oil. The Reichert 
— Meissl value was 0‘8, and the Polenske value varied between 0-14 and 0'34. 
The fatty acids melted at 34°-35 < ’C, and when freed from phytosterol they 
melted at 36’C. Characteristic reactions were obtained by the Halphen, 
Becchi and nitric acid tests. The oil did not show any drying properties 
It was found to consist principally of the triglycerides of palmitic, oleic, and 
linolic acids. A small amount of a phytosterol, m. pt. 138°C was isolated. 
J. C. Ind. September 30, 1918, page 917. 
