ON  SPIRITUS  ETHERIS  NITROSI  AND  NITRIC  ETHER.  59 
degrees  of  purity  of  the  coal  or  shale  naphtha.  The  naphtha 
so  treated  is"  then  washed  with  pure  water  or  with  a  solution  of 
an  alkali,  and  submitted  to  distillation  in  an  ordinary  still.  These 
operations  are  repeated  until  it  is  sufficiently  pure  for  the  various 
purposes  to  which  it  may  be  applied.  For  certain  purposes  on 
a  large  scale,  it  is  only  necessary  to  take  a  commercial  coal 
naphtha  and  distil  it  at  a  temperature  which  does  not  exceed 
212°  Fahrenheit. 
This  benzine,  or  purified  coal  naphtha,  is  applicable  to  the 
removal  of  fatty,  or  oily  matters  from  animal  and  vegetable 
substances, — Annals  of  Pharmacy^  Nov.  1854. 
ON  SPIRITUS  ETHERIS  NITROSI  AND  NITRIC  ETHER. 
By  Dr.  F.  Mohr. 
When  nitric  acid,  water  and  alcohol,  are  distilled  with  one 
another,  a  reaction  ensues,  in  consequence  of  which  the  liquid 
continues  to  boil  after  the  removal  of  the  fire.  The  nitric  acid 
is  deoxidized;  nitric  oxide,  the  vapor  of  aldehyde,  and  carbonic 
acid,  are  evolved,  and  in  the  residue  several  oxygenated  bodies, 
particularly  oxalic  acid,  remain.  The  distillate  contains,  as  the 
chief  product,  the  ether  of  nitrous  acid,  which  is  commonly 
termed  nitric  ether.-  The  nitrous  ether  is  obtained  from  all  pro- 
portions of  alcohol,  and  nitric  acid,  particularly,  by  strong 
dilution.  On  the  contrary,  by  strong  concentration  of  the  acid 
an  explosive  decomposition  readily  results,  and,  with  strong  excess 
of  alcohol,  the  latter  passes  over  in  a  pure  condition.  The  pre- 
paration of  nitric  ether  is  divided  into  two  parts,  namely,  its 
production  and  rectification. 
The  production  of  this  ether  ensues  when  nitric  acid,  alcohol,  # 
and  water  are  heated,  and  the  volatile  products  pass  over  them- 
selves by  the  heat  of  the  reaction.  By  these  means  it  happens 
that  the  ether  distils  over  as  free  as  possible  from  alcohol,  which 
does  not  occur  when  the  formula  of  the  Prussian  Pharmacopoeia 
is  followed,  as  from  the  large  quantity  of  strong  spirit  there 
ordered,  the  spirit  passes  over  at  first  alone,  and  the  formation 
of  ether  commences  only  when  a  large  portion  of  the  alcohol  has 
already  distilled  over. 
Mohr  found,  by  experiments  on  the  preparation  of  this  ether, 
