C H E M I 
The refidue of the diftillation of the fuming liquor of 
Libavius, exhibits phenomena equally interesting -with 
thofe of the liquor ltfelf. The upper part and the neck 
of the retort are covered with alight, white, and greyifh, 
crult, which, according to the experiments of Rou.elie 
the younger, contains-a. l'mall quantity of the fuming 
liquor, concrete muriat of tin, or corneous tin, mercu¬ 
rial muriat, and running mercury; the bottom of the 
veffel contains an. amalgam of mercury and tin, above 
which is a corneous tin of a light grey, folid and com¬ 
pact, which may be volatilized by a ftronger heat. 
Fluoric acid, dilfolves the oxyds of tin, and forms with 
it a gelatinous mafs, the properties of which are but little 
known. The boracic acid difl'olves tin by boiling in 
water, and (hoots with it into final! irregular granular 
■cryftals. In the fire this fait melts into an opake grey 
(lag. Phofphoric acid combines by the afliftance of heat 
- with tin, and forms with it a fait difficultly foluble in 
water. Phofphat of tin is ea(ily changed into a glafs like 
fubftance in the fire. Phofphoric acid precipitates tin 
from its folution in aqua regia; but the affinity of this 
compared with the other acids is not known. Pure tar¬ 
taric acid has no perceptible action on tin; but a folu- 
tion of tartarit of potaffi boiled with water and tin dif- 
folves a conliderable quantity of this metal, and forms 
with it an ealily foluble, permanent, needle-fhaped fait. 
Tin diffolved by heat in oxalic acid at firft becomes black, 
and is afterwards covered with a grey powder. An elaltic 
fluid is difengaged, which does not appear to have been 
examined. The l'olution has an aultere take, and affords, 
by evaporation, prihnatic cryftals. By quick evapora¬ 
tion a horny-like mafs is formed, which gives a copious 
precipitate with alkalis. Oxyd of tin dilfolves eafily in 
oxalic acid. The oxalat of tin has always an excels of 
acid, and is difficultly foluble in water. Acetic acid dif- 
folves tin only in a (mall quantity. The folution, which 
has a metallic fade, foon becomes muddy, and depofits a 
white oxyd. This combination does not cryftallize. The 
oxyd of tin dilfolves readily in acetic acid. If fpirit of 
wine be added to this dilution after it has been evapo¬ 
rated to the confidence of affyrup, crydals of acetat of 
tin are obtained, which are hard, heavy, white, tranfpa- 
rent, and tadelefs. This fait is decompofed by the i'ul- 
phuric, muriatic, and nitric, acids, and by fire. The ci- 
trat and malat of tin are unknown. The benzoic acid, 
according to Trommfdorff, afts direfily neither on tin 
nor its oxyd; but benzoat of potafli is faid to decom- 
pofe the muriat of tin, and to form with the tin a fait 
difficultly foluble even in boiling water. Prufliat of pot- 
afii precipitates tin white from its folution in muriatic 
acid. The precipitate by the gallic acid is of a white 
grey colour. 
An oxyd of tin is prepared with three parts of putty 
of tin, and fix parts of nitrat of potafli: Put this mix¬ 
ture into a crucible, and keep it over a drong fire for 
four hours: let it cool, and walla it to feparate the oxyd 
of tin ; then take fix parts of this oxyd of tin, and mix 
with four parts of fulphur ; put this mixture into a wide 
crucible, which is to be only one-third full; introduce 
an earthen cover, Hoped off fo that it may go into the 
crucible, and leave a hollow of only about eight lines 
above the contents of the crucible; then lute on a pro¬ 
per head over the crucible. Put the crucible, thus le- 
cured, into a larger, which is to contain lome And alfo; 
thus the crucible containing the mixture, which is to 
form what is called mufirve gold, is in a fand-bath. Place 
the apparatus immediately over the grate of a common 
furnace, and raile the fire with care. In general, for the 
formation of fine mufive gold, it mud be prepared with a 
gentle heat, long continued : the' degree of heat necef- 
lary to lublime muriat ot ammoniac is what is required 
here, and it diould be kept up for eight or ten hours : it 
will be no detriment to continue the fire even a longer 
time, provided it be not increaied ; for, with this degree 
of beat, the mufive gold will not be decompofed. The 
VOL. IV. No/197. 
S T R Y. 291 
addition of a little water to the mixtures will make the- 
operation fucceed the better. Or, the experiment may 
be performed in a glafs retort: dillil the mixture with a 
gentle heat; a very fmall quantity of fulphur will be 
fublimed, a little fulphureous gas will be produced, and 
the mufive gold will be found in the retort. 
The following is another procefs for obtaining mufive 
gold : Make an amalgam with equal parts of tin and 
mercury. Fird heat a copper mortar, and put the mer¬ 
cury therein ; when it has acquired a certain degree of 
heat, pour in the melted tin; agitate and triturate the 
mixture till it becomes cold ; then mix with it fix parts 
of fulphur, and four of ammoniacal muriat. Put the 
whole into a matrafs, and place it on a land-bath, and 
heat it fo as to make the bottom of the matrafs of a dull 
red ; keep up the fire for three hours. This procefs pro¬ 
duces commonly very fine mufive gold. But if, indead 
of placing the matrafs on a fand-bath, it be put direftly 
on the coals, and the fire be made fierce, the mixture 
will take fire, and the mufive gold will be fublimed in the 
neck of the retort. 
Pelletier obtained a very beautiful mufive gold by dif- 
tilling together equal parts of mercury, muriat of am¬ 
moniac, tin, and fulphur. The explanation which this 
chemid gives of the different changes which, occur in 
this complicated procefs is fo extremely happy, that we 
cannot do better than place the whole of it immediately 
under the eye of the reader. “ The previous rubbing 
with the mercury helps to oxydate the tin. A difengagc- 
ment of hydrogen gas is produced by the re-a£lion of the 
muriat of ammoniac on the tin. The oxyd of tin which 
is formed decompofes the muriat of ammoniac, and the 
difengaged ammoniac, uniting with the fulphur, pafles 
over into the receiver in the form of. an ammoniacal ful- 
pliure. The -muriatic acid unites with the oxyd of tin, 
and forms with it muriat of tin, a very linall portion of 
which palfes over in diftillation; the other portion is af¬ 
terwards decompofed by the aftion of the fire, while the 
oxyd of tin which remains unites with the fulphur to 
form the mufive gold. The muriatic acid, which is vo¬ 
latilized, meeting with the ammoniac, combines with it, 
and produces muriat of ammoniac. In this procefs there 
is a portion of tin which has been Amply oxydated, and 
which in this ftate unites with the fulphur to form mu- 
five gold. There is alfo a portion of muriat of ammo¬ 
niac which elcapes decompofition, and which of courfe 
is fublimed. The mercury combines with the fulphur, 
and forms with it the fulphure of mercury, which palles 
over during diftillation. A l'mall portion of mufive gold, 
in beautiful plates, is fometimes found in the upper part 
of the veffel in which the fublimation is performed. The 
muriat of ammoniac, in being volatilized, carries along 
with it a fmall portion of the oxyd of tin ; and it is this 
portion of oxyd which in the moment of volatilization 
unites to the fulphur it meets with in a ftate of vapour, 
and forms with it the mufive gold that is attached to the 
upper part of the veffel. It is very neceffary in this pro- 
ceis to be cautious in the management of the fire ; for, if 
this be raifed too high, fulphureous acid gas will pals 
ever towards the end of the operation, and, ipttead of 
mufive gold, a black-coloured metallic fubftance, or com¬ 
mon fulphure of tin, will be obtained.” The different 
parts of this explanation will be fully illuftrated by the 
following experiments. 
Six hundred grains of fulphur being added to a folu¬ 
tion of fix hundred grains of tin in four ounces of mu¬ 
riatic acid, and evaporated by a gentle heat, a concrete 
fubftance was obtained. During the evaporation, copious 
vapours of muriatic acid were difengaged. This con¬ 
crete fubftance being reduced to a powder, was put into 
a retort, and expoled to a ftrong heat. Concrete muriat 
of tin, and afterwards a little fulphur, were fublimed in¬ 
to the neck of the retort. The refidue vyas mufive gold* 
of a beautiful colour. 
A mixture of equal parts of tin-filings, fulphur, and 
4 F muriat 
