Am.  Jour.  Pharm.) 
May,  1920.) 
Caffeine  from  Coffee  Soot. 
stance.  Since  there  is  considerable  demand  for  caffeine,  the  collec- 
tion of  coffee  soot,  if  established  upon  a  profitable  basis,  would  re- 
sult in  an  added  source  of  income  to  coffee  roasting  firms. 
In  order  to  interest  roasters  in  the  collection  of  the  "soot,"  a 
statement  regarding  the  probable  price  which  might  be  obtained 
for  it  is  pertinent.  No  market  price  has  been  thoroughly  estab- 
lished for  this  article,  because  it  varies  greatly  in  caffeine  content. 
Specimens  recently  examined  in  the  Pharmaceutical  Research 
Laboratories  of  the  H.  K.  Mulford  Co.,  Philadelphia,  ranged  all 
the  way  from  0.08  to  22.2  per  cent,  in  caffeine  content. 
Some  AnaIvYSKs  of  Coffee  Soot. 
Sample  Caffeine 
No.  Content.  Source  of  Sample,  i 
1   22  .20%  Flue  of  roaster. 
2   18.30%  Flue  of  roaster. 
3   1 1 . 94%  Inner  walls  of  roaster. 
4  ,   3  25%  Ceiling  of  roaster, 
5   1 .76%  Dust  collector  on  roof  (mixed  with  chaff). 
6   0.70%  Flue  of  roaster. 
7   4-i8%  Flue  of  roaster. 
8   1.20%  Flue  of  roaster, 
9   7. 10%  Flue  of  roaster, 
10   11.20%  Flue  of  roaster. 
12   0.08%  Flue  of  roaster. 
13   4.42%  Ceiling  of  roasting  room. 
14   15  30%  Flue  of  roaster. 
Since  tea  fluff,  tea  siftings,  and  damaged  tea,  which  contain 
from  I  to  5  per  cent,  of  caffeine,  are  commonly  used  raw  materials 
for  the  production  of  caffeine,  it  is  evident  that  collections  of  coffee 
soot  with  similar  caffeine  contents  would  be  excellent  material  for  the 
production  of  caffeine  and  should  command  a  price  approximately 
equal  to  that  of  these  tea  materials.  These  tea  materials  were 
quoted  around  loc.  per  lb.  during  December,  1919.  It  is  encourag- 
ing to  report  here  that  one-half  of  the  coffee  soot  samples  which  we 
have  examined,  possessed  caffeine  contents  which  were  well  above  the 
maximum  content  of  the  starting  materials  obtained  from  tea. 
A  statement  regarding  the  probable  amount  of  soot  collectable 
from  roasters  in  a  given  time  would  also  be  pertinent,  but  un- 
1  None  of  the  commercial  roasters  from  which  these  samples  were  obtained, 
were  equipped  with  collectors  for  the  express  purpose  of  collecting  the  "soot," 
and  only  one  (No.  5)  was  equipped  with  a  dust  collector. 
