510 Metals. MINER 
excefs of the gas being prefent. It is of a deep orange- 
colour, and fufes at a fnuch lefs heat than foda. 
Sodium combines with fulphur and phofphorus. When 
fodium and fulphur are heated together in a velfel filled 
with vapour of naphtha, they unite with all the figns of 
fplendid combuftion, the fulphur fupplying the place of. 
oxygen. The compound is of a grey colour, producing 
fulphat of potafh by expofure to the air. Their propor¬ 
tions ought to be 44 fodium to 15 fulphur for the firft, and 
44 to 30 for the fecondi, fulphuret. Sodium has a fimilar 
effefit upon phofphorus, by which the phofphuret of fo¬ 
dium is produced. It has no known action upon carbon, 
azot, or hydrogen. 
Sodium combines with many of the metals, forming pe¬ 
culiar alloys. With potaffium, in a fmall proportion, it 
forms an alloy, which, agreeably to other alloys, is more 
fufible than either of the metals. The alloy is of lefs fpe- 
cific gravity than either of the metals, a circumftance not 
common with other metallic alloys. The latter faft goes 
to prove that there is not a great affinity between the two 
metals. One part of fodium renders 40 of mercury folid, 
at the common temperature. When they combine* heat 
is difengaged. It alfo combines with tin, without chang¬ 
ing its colour. When thefe alloys are expofed to the air, 
the fodium is gradually feparated, by combining with the 
oxygen of the atmofphere. 
Barium. —Soon after the difcovery of potaffium and 
fodium, Dr. Davy fubjefted barytes to the fame decom- 
poling power. He firft expofed the moiftened earth in 
contaft with mercury to the Galvanic battery. He found 
that the mercury loft much of its fluity by being alloyed 
with a metal. This amalgam, on being expofed to the air, 
became covered with a cruft of barytes. When the fame 
was thrown into water, hydrogen gas W'as evolved, and 
barytes formed. This proved the prefence of a metallic 
fubftance, capable of decompofmg w'ater, which was the 
bale of barytes. Dr. Davy next mixed the moiftened 
earth with one-third its weight of red oxyd of mercury, 
and placed them upon a plate of platinum in a fmall ca¬ 
vity, where was lodged a globule of mercury. Thefe ma¬ 
terials being covered with a thin film of naphtha, the 
plate was connefted with the pofitive fide of the battery, 
the mercury with the negative, the two metals being te- 
parated by the earth and the red oxyd of mercury. By 
the influence of a powerful battery an amalgam was foon 
formed. This amalgam was then introduced into a bent 
glafs tube,, and the mercury diftilled off. 
Dr. Davy has given the name of Barium to this metallic 
fubftance. Dr. Clarke calls it Plutonium. It is a white 
metal of the colour of filver, different from potaffium. It 
is folid at the common temperature, but becomes liquid 
at a heat little fliort of rednefs. It is not volatile at a red 
heat. When expofed to the air, it foon abforbs oxygen, 
becomes tarnifhed, and ultimately falls down in the ftate 
of white powder, having returned to its original ftate by 
the abforpiion of oxygen. When this metal is thrown 
into water, the latter is decompoled with great rapidity, 
hydrogen is evolved, and barytes formed. The fpecific 
gravity of this metal is greater than that of potaffium or 
fodium, fmce it finks in water, and even in lulphuric acid. 
Dr. Davy thinks its fpecific gravity four or five times that 
of water. It appears to be a malleable metal, fmce it is 
capable of being flattened at the common temperature. 
It forms imperfedt alloys with filver, gold, and platinum, 
and more perfeft with iron and copper. Thomfon's Annuls 
of Philofophy, vol. viii. p. 152. 
Calcium.— This is the name given by Dr. Davy to the 
metal procured from lime. This metal he did not fucceed 
in obtaining in a pure ftate, as in the inftances of potafh 
-and foda. He fufed a portion of lime and potafh together, 
and expofed this compound to the aftion of the Galvanic 
battery, in the fame way he had done potafh and foda. 
He obtained by this means a metallic fubftance, which 
differed from the metal of potafh in being lefs fufible, and 
A. L O G Y. Metals. 
took fire as foon as it was formed. He fucceeded better by 
moiftening the lime, and mixing it with red oxyd of mer¬ 
cury. Thefe were placed upon a plate of platinum, con¬ 
nected with the pofitive end of the battery. A cavity 
being made in the mixed mafs, a globule of mercury, 
weighing about fixty grains, was placed in it, and a con¬ 
nexion formed between the mercury and the other end 
of the battery by means of a platinum wire. By this 
means, the lime underwent decompofition ; its metallic 
bafe combining with the mercury. This amalgam was 
then diftilled in a glafs tube, filled with the vapour of 
naphtha ; by which the mercury, to a certain extent, w'as 
expelled, leaving a white mafs of a metallic appearance, 
and of the colour of filver. This fubftance, which no 
doubt w'as the balls of lime, had fo great an attraction for 
oxygen, that Dr. Davy could not fucceed in examining 
its properties before it was burned and re-converted into 
lime. This metal is lighter than water. 
Glucium. —Of this metal, the bafe of the earth called 
Glucinum, or glucine, we have not met with any parti¬ 
culars to add to thofe few given in p. 461. 
The foregoing metals are all malleable, in a greater or 
lefs degree. 
II. Brittle Metals. 
Bismutum, Bifmuth.—Generic characters: reddifii- 
wliite, loft, brittle, compofed of broad brilliant plates ad¬ 
hering to each other; fpecific gravity, 9-822: eafily melt¬ 
ing, and forming firft a yellowfilh and then a red oxyd ; in 
a ftrong heat burning with a faint blue flame and emitting 
a yellow fmoke, fufible with borax into a brown glafs: 
foluble in acids, and depofiting a white precipitate if its 
folution in nitric acid be diluted with water. 
1. Bifmutum nativum, or native bifmuth : unalloyed, 
entirely foluble in nitric acid, with metallic luftre. Found 
in Sweden, France, Saxony, Wirtemberg, Tranfylvania, 
&c. generally accompanied by cobalt ores, in a matrix of 
red jalper, hornftone, quartz, and heavy fpar : colour white 
with a lhade of red, and the furface often tarniffied red, 
yellow', or purple-; fometimes it is cryftallized in four- 
fided tables of indiftinCf cubes, but has moftly the form 
of fmall plates lying over each other: before the blowpipe 
it leaves a filvery-white head, w'hich at laft evaporates in 
a yellowilh-white fmoke. For the general qualities and 
ufes of Bismuth, lee that word, vol. iii. and the article 
Chemistry, vol. iv. p. 273. 
2. Bifmutum ochraceum, oxyd of bifmuth, or bifmuth 
ochre : friable or powdery, very foft, earthy, effervefeing 
with acids. Found ufually accompanying other ores of 
bifmuth, fometimes compact or difleminated, but gene¬ 
rally covering the furface of other ores in a loofe friable 
form : colour yellowilh-grey, paffinginto alhy-grey,green, 
or yellow. It is fometimes found cryftallized in cubes or 
four-fided plates. 
3. Bifmutum fulphuratum, or fulphuret of bifmuth : 
with metallic luftre, tin or fteel grey, not entirely foluble 
in nitric acid, emitting fulphurous flame and fmoke 
when thrown on hot coals. . There are two varieties : a. 
Yellowilh-white, Alining; combined with arfenic and ful¬ 
phur. Biuiffi-white, laminar; combined w'ith fulphur 
only. Both are found in the mines of Great Britain, 
Sweden, Saxony, Bohemia, and Hanover, generally ac¬ 
companied by quartz, albeftus, or fparry iron-ore, maffive 
or difperled, feldom in acicular or capillary prifms : co¬ 
lour from tin-white to lead-grey, with the furface often 
iridefcently tarniihed : texture lamellar or radiated. Spe¬ 
cific gravity, from 6-131, to 6-467. Contains from 60 to 
95 per cent, of bifmuth. 
4. Bifmutum martiale, or martial bifmuth : grey, with 
metallic luftre, not entirely foluble in nitric acid, emit¬ 
ting fulphurous flame and fmoke when thrown on hot 
coals. Found near Gillabek in Norway ; of a yellowilh- 
grey appearance, and radiated texture : it fomewiiat re- 
fembles martial pyrites, and contains iron added to bif¬ 
muth and fulphur. 
Stibium 
