164  PALMITIC  ACID  FROM  THE  MAFURRA  TALLOW. 
and  composed  of  a  highly-colored  liquid  acid,  and  a  solid  acid 
which  constitutes  0-55  of  the  total  weight. 
The  liquid  acid  forms  a  mass  under  the  influence  of  hyponitrous 
acid,  and  furnishes  a  product  analogous  to  elaidic  acid  ;  by  dry 
distillation  it  decomposed  into  carburets  of  hydrogen  and  sebacic 
acid  ;  with  oxide  of  lead  it  forms  a  salt  which  is  soluble  in  ether  , 
in  fact  it  possesses  all  the  characters  of  oleic  acid. 
The  solid  acid,  when  pure,  is  perfectly  white  and  sparkling  ; 
its  point  of  solidification  is  permanent  at  320«9  F.,  and  it  then 
forms  a  crystalline  friable  mass ;  its  alcoholic  solutions  form  a 
mass  on  cooling  This  acid  furnishes  an  ammoniacal  salt,  which 
is  soluble  with  the  assistance  of  heat,  but  insoluble  in  the  cold ; 
its  nacreous  potash  and  soda-salts  are  decomposed  by  water ;  its 
lead-salt  fuses  at  about  229°  F.,  and  afterwards  sets  into  an 
opake  amorphous  mass.  The  ether  which  it  forms  with  alcohol 
is  fusible  at  75Q»2  F.,  &c.  These  appear  to  be  all  the  properties 
of  the  ethalic  or  palmitic  acid  indicated  by  MM.  Dumas  and  Stas. 
Analyses  of  the  acid,  of  the  ether,  and  of  the  lead-  and  silver- 
salts,  showed  the  composition  of  the  acid  to  be  C32H3204. 
Thus  palmitine  is  furnished  in  abundance  by  palm-oil  and  the 
Mafurra  tallow,  the  only  two  vegetable  substances  which  contain 
it ;  for  we  cannot  take  into  the  account  the  grains  of  coffee,  which, 
according  to  M.  Rochleder,  contain  it  in  small  proportion. 
Experiments  of  another  kind  have  shown  us  the  extreme 
facility  with  which  Mafurra  tallow  is  distilled  after  saponification 
with  sulphuric  acid. 
This  fatty  matter,  treated  with  lime  like  common  tallow,  and 
submitted  to  cold  and  hot  presses,  gave  excellent  results  ;  but 
we  think  that  the  preference  should  be  given  to  the  former 
method,  unless  we  can  succeed  in  obtaining  the  tallow  free  from 
coloring  matter. 
The  Mafurra  seed  is  very  abundant,  and  easily  collected,  in 
Mozambique,  Madagascar  and  the  Isle  of  Bourbon,  which  is  not 
unimportant,  especially  at  a  moment  when  the  principal  sub- 
stances for  lighting  are  at  such  a  high  price.  The  Mafurra  tallow 
is  undoubtedly  far  superior  to  palm-oil,  both  for  working  and 
for  the  amount  of  solid  matter  which  it  yields. — Qhem.  G-az.from 
Oomptes  Rendus,  Oct  29,  1855. 
