THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMACY. 
JANUARY,  1877. 
ON  THE  USE  OF  PETROLEUM  BENZIN  IN  PHARMACY. 
By  L.  Wolff. 
[Read  at  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting,  December  19.) 
Petroleum  benzin  has  been  frequently  proposed  and  variously  exper- 
imented with  by  different  operators,  with  the  view  of  substituting  the 
much  higher  priced  ether  in  preparing  oleoresins,  and  has  been  repeat- 
edly found  to  not  answer  the  purpose  intended  for  it.  ("A.  J.  Ph.," 
1872,  page  208).  Although  its  valuable  solvent  powers  for  fatty  mat- 
ter, wax  and  essential  oils  cannot  be  disputed,  it  fails  to  extract  the 
resins  and  the  active  ingredients,  which  are  of  the  utmost  importance 
in  oleoresins.  Ginger  treated  with  benzin  yields  an  oil  containing  all 
the  odoriferous  properties  thereof,  but  extracting  none  of  the  pungent- 
tasting  resin  for  the  remedial  properties  of  which  it  is  justly  celebrated, 
and  which  subsequent  to  the  benzin  process  is  readily  dissolved  from  it 
by  ether  or  alcohol.  Buchu  under  a  like  treatment,  as  reported  by 
another  contributor  of  this  journal  on  this  subject,  gives  an  oily  sub- 
stance devoid  of  the  diuretic  properties  of  the  leaves,  though  possess- 
ing their  specific  odor.  Cubebs,  though  completely  exhausted  by  it  of 
its  fixed  and  essential  oils,  fails  to  yield  its  cubebic  acid  to  it,  black 
pepper  its  piperin,  and  wormseed  its  resin  and  santonin  ;  but  all  of  the 
mentioned  substances,  and  many  more  which  have  been  subjected  to 
the  same  process,  are  readily  deprived  of  their  fixed  and  essential  oils, 
leaving  them  inodorous,  seemingly  dry  and  incoherent,  powders,  that 
are,  if  treated  with  alcohol,  ether  or  chloroform,  readily  deprived  of 
their  resins,  thus  affording  a  method  for  obtaining  them  separate  from 
wax,  fixed  and  essential  oils. 
Its  extraordinary  solvency  for  essential  oils  destines  benzin  for 
an  important  place  in  pharmacy,  and  oils  derived  by  its  aid  from  cin- 
namon, cloves  and  other  drugs  are,  if  their  odor  is  any  indication  of 
