Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Dec,  1893. 
Examination  of  Beeszvax. 
587 
ing  acid  or  alkaline  salt  and  hydrogen  is  simultaneously  disengaged. 
For  example,  when  melissylic  alcohol  is  distilled  with  potassium 
hydroxid  the  alcohol  is  decomposed,  hydrogen  being  evolved  on  the 
one  hand  and  potassium  melissate  formed  on  the  other,  or  recalling  a 
more  familiar  example  where  potassium  acetate  is  formed  by  treat- 
ing ordinary  alcohol  in  a  similar  manner.  The  constituents  of  wax, 
not  alcohols,  are  not  affected  by  this  treatment,  consequently  by 
measuring  the  volume  of  hydrogen  evolved,  from  a  given  weight, 
the  proportion  of  alcohols  can  be  approximately  estimated.  C. 
Hell,1  H.  Strurcke2  and  F.  Schwalb3  applied  the  above  reaction  to 
beeswax  long  before  MM.  A.  and  P.  Busine4  did,  but  it  was  these 
last  two  investigators  who  simplified  the  apparatus  and  studied  the 
conditions  of  success.  They  proceed  as  follows:  melt  2-10  gms.  of 
the  wax  in  a  porcelain  dish,  mix  with  an  equal  weight  of  pulverized 
caustic  potash,  mix  the  mass  again  with  three  or  four  times  its 
weight  of  pulverized  caustic  potash,  then  introduce  the  mixture  into 
a  flask  and  heat  on  a  mercury  bath  to  2500  C.  for  two  hours.  The 
reaction  begins  at  1800  C.  The  volume  of  hydrogen  evolved  by 
one  gram  of  the  wax  varies  from  5 3- 5— 57* 5  cc,  at  0°  C.  and  760 
mm.  pressure,  corresponding  to  a  percentage  of  melissic  alcohol 
varying  from  52-5-56-5. 
Determination  of  Hydrocarbons. — The  hydrocarbons  are  deter- 
mined very  readily  by  treating  the  residuum  of  the  preceding  deter- 
mination with  an  appropriate  solvent,  such  as  ether.  In  the  above 
residue  all  the  acids  of  the  wax  and  the  alcohols  have  been  transformed 
into  a  state  of  alkaline  salts,  while  the  hydrocarbons  alone  remain 
intact.  Hydrocarbons  are  found  in  wax  in  almost  constant  quantity, 
varying  from  12-72-13-78  per  cent. 
The  writer  did  not  execute  the  last  two  operations  because  the 
apparatus  of  M.  Dupre  was  not  available. 
The  Iodine  Number. — By  treating  wax  with  iodine  a  new  number 
is  obtained  which  is  of  considerable  value  for  analytical  purposes. 
This  number  was  determined  by  the  conventional  method,  Hubl.5  The 
1  1884,  Ann.  Chem.  (Liebig),  223,  269  ;  Cliem.  Ztg.,  8,  859. 
2  1884,  Ibid,  223,  295  ;  Chem.  Ztg.,  8,  860. 
3  1886,  Ibid,  235,  106. 
A  1890,  Bull.  Soc.  Chim.  (3),  3,  567  ;  Chem.  Ztg.  Reper.,  14,  225. 
5  1884,  Dingl.  poly.  J.,  253,  281  ;  J.  Chem.  Soc.,  46,  [435  ;  Am.  Chem.  J., 
6,  285  ;  J.  Soc.  Chem.  Ind.,  3,  641. 
