C H E M I 
it to heat, which volatilizes a part of the fulphur. A 
very gentle heat muft be uled to reduce the grey oxyd of 
antimony : Take eight parts of the fulphurated grey oxyd 
of antimony, fix of tartar, and three of nitrat of potalh ; 
put thefe together into a crucible. Theproduft will be, 
according to the different affinities of the fubftances em¬ 
ployed, carbonic acid and azot, which are difengaged, 
a little carbonat of potafli, fulphure of potafh containing 
a little antimony, and lalfly fulpbat of potafh ; thefe 
three products are found in the crucible, befides the an¬ 
timony which lies at the bottom. This reduftion may 
be effefted with equal parts of grey oxyd of antimony and 
black flux, mixed with a little black foap. The black 
flux, in this operation, anfwers two intentions; the al¬ 
kali which it contains unites to the fulphur, which has 
not been diffipated from the ore by the aftion of the fire, 
and the coaly matter favours the reduftion of the metallic 
oxyd. This is the method of preparing, what is called 
the regulus of antimony in the huge way, for commercial 
purpofes. 
Antimony, when pure, is brittle, of a brilliant white, 
compofed of plates or leaves lying upon each other; it is 
generally made up in round flatted lumps, which prefent 
upon their furface a fort of cryftallization in the form of 
leaves of fern. The air changes it but little ; fometimes 
the furface becomes a little tarnifhed or dull. This me¬ 
tal has a very fenfible tafte oraftion on the ftomach, be¬ 
ing both emetic and purgative. It diffolves in the gaf- 
tric juice; and hence it was fuppbfed that antimonial 
pills would be a good purge : thele were called perpetual 
pills by the ancients. 
Antimony, melted in an open crucible, and then left 
to cool (lowly, will be found cryftallized in regular pyra¬ 
mids ; but, if ftrongly heated in clofed veflels, it is en¬ 
tirely fubiimed without decompcfition or alteration. But, 
when the evaporation is made in open veflels, it becomes> 
oxydated at the furface, and converted into a white fume. 
To obtain this oxyd, place the crucible in the furnace, 
not upright, hut (loping, or nearly horizontal, fo that 
its rim applies to the opening or door of the furnace ; it 
muft be luted with clay ; apply another crucible to its 
aperture to receive the oxyd. Heat the crucible to a 
white-red heat; remove the fecond crucible every half- 
hour, and apply another in its place: it is commonly fill¬ 
ed with a white fhining fubftance ; clear it out, and de- 
' tach with a feather what adheres to the crucible : this is 
what is improperly called fl-very flowers of regulus of an¬ 
timony, or /now of antimony. It is a fubiimed metallic 
oxyd, in very (lender, white, brilliant, needles. This 
fubftance has faline properties ; is not eafily foluble in 
water; and may be reduced to the metallic ftate by com- 
buftible bodies. This oxyd may alio be melted into an 
orange-coloured glafs, paler and more tranfparent than 
is made with the grey oxyd and fulphure of antimony. 
All combuftible matters aft more or lefs on antimony. 
Hydrogen gas alters its furface, and gives it a darker co¬ 
lour. It acts in a much more efficacious manner on its 
folutions. 
Antimony unites with phofphorus : Mix equal parts of 
phofphoric glafs and antimony ; add one-eighth part of 
.charcoal in powder, and melt the whole in a crucible. 
rThe refult is a white metallic brittle fubftance, which 
breaks into ftnall cubes : this is phofphorated antimony. 
Phol'phure of antimony may be produced alfo by putting 
in the phofphorus over the antimony : the crucible muft 
be taken off the fire as foon as the laft pieces of pliof- 
phorus are thrown in, or all the phofphorus would be 
volatilized. 
Sulphur alfo combines very readily with antimony, and 
forms an artificial ore, perfeftly firmlar to native fulphure 
of antimony. To obtain this combination, equal parts 
of fulphur and of the antimon)'' in powder are to be quick¬ 
ly melted in a crucible. A mineral in the form of nee¬ 
dles of a dark grey is produced, which never contains lb 
much as the half of its weight of fulphur, unleis one 
part and a half of the latter fubftance be ufed with one 
S T R y. 275 
part only of the metal. Alkaline fulphures, or livers of 
fulphur, completely diffolve anthnony, and form a yellovv- 
ifh mafs, from which antimoniated fulphur may be pre¬ 
cipitated by any acid, which gives it immediately an 
orange colour. Hepatic, or fulphurated hydrogen gas, 
afts on the folutions of this metal ablolufeiy in the fame 
manner as the hydrogen gas. This experiment may be 
made by pouring water charged with fulphurated hydro¬ 
gen over the white oxyd of antimony. By either method 
a yellow precipitate is formed. 
Arfenic, nickel, cobalt, and bifmuth, unite with an¬ 
timony ; the properties, however, of thefe feveral mix¬ 
tures, have not yet been fufficiently examined. But the 
action of acids on this metal has been more attended to. 
When concentrated fulphuric acid is flowly boiled on the 
regulus, the former is decompofed, and the latter partly 
oxydated ; a large portion of fulphureous gas is exhaled, 
and towards the end a fmall quantity of fulphur fublimes, 
a brownifh mafs remaining after the decompofition of the 
acid, which confifts of much metallic oxyd, cryftallized 
in needles, and a fmall proportion of metal, combined 
with the acid in the ftate of fulphat of antimony. The 
Inline part may be feparated by means of diftilled water. 
This fait, when brought to a dry ftate by evaporation, is 
very deliquelcent, and cannot be made to afford cryftals. 
Fire eafily decompofes it; pure water, the terreftrial fub¬ 
ftances, and alkalis, likewife feparate thefe-principles. 
The nitric acid afts in the fame manner as the fill- 
pliuric acid, but with more energy: the fait which is 
produced has the fame properties as the fulphat of an¬ 
timony. The muriatic acid, when hot, fsems complete¬ 
ly to diffolve the antimony; but, in cooling, the cal¬ 
cined part is precipitated, and muriat of antimony is 
retained, which may- be feparated by evaporating the 
liquor, but it is very deliquelcent. The nitro-muria- 
tic acid diffolves antimony better than the other acids; 
yet ltill a part of the oxyd is precipitated in tool¬ 
ing. The oxygenated muriatic acid burns antimony 
with great eale ; to this end it is reduced to powder, and 
thrown into a jar filled with this gas; the jar muft be 
very dry ; the metal burns rapidly, with a bright white- 
flame. Super-oxygenated muriat of antimony may be 
obtained by mixing luper-oxygenated muriat of mercury 
with antimony, in the manner to be related when we 
come to treat of mercury. Phofphoric acid alfo attacks 
antimony; but the fait thence arifing has not been yet 
afcertained. 
The aftion of alkalis with antimony is but little known. 
Nitrat of potafh is decompofed very readily by antimony. 
When equal parts of this metal and of nitre in powder 
are thrown by fmall portions at a time into a red-hot cru¬ 
cible, a ftrong detonation takes place, and the metal is 
burned by the afliftance of the oxygen afforded by the 
nitre. After this operation, the crucible is found to con¬ 
tain the fixed alkali or bafe of the nitre, and the anti¬ 
mony in the ftate of a white oxyd. This oxyd is called 
diaphoretic antimony ; modern chemifts call it oxyd of anti¬ 
mony by nitre . Antimony is not ufually employed in this 
operation, but the native fulphure of antimony, or its 
ore ; in which cafe, a larger quantity of nitre is required 
to be added; as for example, three parts to one ot this 
mineral, in order that not only the metal may be burned, 
but likewife all the fulphur to which it is united The 
reafon why the ore is preferred in this procels is, that the 
fulphur renders the detonation of the nitre more rapid, 
and Angularly facilitates the combuflion of the antimony. 
The matter that remains in the crucible after the deto¬ 
nation, is compofed of the oxyd of antimony, united 
partly to the fixed alkali of the nitre, and partly to a 
portion of the nitre which efcaped the detonation. It 
likewife contains a fmall quantity of fulphat of potafli, 
formed by the acid of the fulphur, and the fixed alkali 
of the nitre. This compound is called the folveut of 
Rotrou, or •unwajhed diaphoretic antimony. The matter 
being thrown into hot water, the faline part is diffolved, 
and the metallic oxyd remains fufpended. The water is 
poured 
