^e'cimbe^QoT"}    New  Preparations  Containing  Soap.  589 
This  is  to  be  used  the  same  as  simple  sapoform,  in  2  or  3  per 
cent,  solution  in  water. 
The  water  used  for  diluting  any  of  these  antiseptic  solutions  con- 
taining soap  is  of  considerable  importance.  To  obtain  perfectly 
clear  solutions  the  water  used  should  be  perfectly  pure,  or  at  least 
free  from  any  of  the  well-known  soap  precipitants,  such  as  lime  or 
aluminum. 
Petrox  or  oxygenated  petrolatum.  Under  this  name  a  formula  was 
published  in  The  American  Journal  of  Pharmacy  (1901,  p.  220) 
that  appears  to  have  given  trouble  to  some  pharmacists.  The  for- 
mula was  as  follows : 
Liquid  paraffin  (or  white  mineral  oil)  100  c.c. 
Oleic  acid  .  ,  .  50  c.c. 
Spirit  of  ammonia  25  c.c. 
Add  the  oleic  acid  to  the  mineral  oil,  shake  well,  add  the  spirit  of 
ammonia  and  again  shake.  The  only  precautions  necessary  are  to 
use  materials  that  will  conform  to  the  U.S. P.  tests  for  purity  and 
strength.  It  is,  of  course,  essential  to  use  spirit  of  ammonia  and 
not  ammonia  water,  or  spirit  of  hartshorn  so  called,  as  this  will  not 
give  a  clear  solution  unless  the  water  is  evaporated  off,  a  process 
requiring  considerable  time  and  attention. 
Petrox  iodiney  a  6  per  cent,  solution  of  iodine  in  simple  petrox. 
This  is  readily  made,  providing,  of  course,  the  base  has  been  mixed 
correctly.  If  water  of  ammonia  has  been  used,  a  clear  solution  is 
not  readily  obtained.  If  the  alkali  is  in  excess,  even  slightly,  the 
mixture  will  separate,  after  the  addition  of  the  iodine,  into  two 
layers  —  the  upper  clear  layer  being  composed  of  the  greater 
amount  of  the  mineral  oil,  while  the  lower  layer  contains  the 
ammonia  soap,  iodine  and  some  of  the  mineral  oil  in  solution.  If 
the  acid  be  largely  in  excess,  it  appears  to  facilitate  the  precipita- 
tion of  the  iodine. 
This  preparation,  at  best,  is  not  a  stable  one,  and  cannot  be  made 
to  be  permanent  to  be  efficient.  It  is  readily  prepared  extempo- 
raneously, the  base  itself  being  permanent  and  stable.  This  prep- 
aration, when  fresh  and  free  from  precipitated  ammonium  iodide,  is 
such  an  efficient  and  eminently  satisfactory  one  that  it  should 
readily  appeal  to  pharmacists  as  a  point  to  make  with  physicians  in 
their  neighborhood. 
Ammonia  soap  may  also  be  utilized  in  making  a  preparation  to 
sell  as  a  clothes  cleaner  or  grease  chaser. 
