DETERMINATION OF NITROGEN. 141 
ART. XXV.—NEW METHOD TO DETERMINE THE AMOUNT 
OF NITROGEN IN ORGANIC COMPOUNDS. By MM. Var- 
rentrapp and Will. 
The necessity of a more simple and certain method of de- 
termining nitrogen, is rendered evident by the difficulties 
and uncertainties of the modes ordinarily pursued. The me- 
thods are of two kinds; one, the determination of the nitro- 
gen in the gaseous state, and from its volume comprises the 
modes hitherto followed ; the other, the determination from 
one of its compounds, of known composition, has not as yet 
been constituted a method. M. Dumas, in his researches on 
oxamide, has already determined the proportion of nitrogen 
under the form of ammonia, and the experiments of M. H. 
Rose, leaves no longer in doubt the possibility of obtaining 
the weight of ammonia, under the form of hydrochlorate of 
ammonia and platinum, with the greatest degree of exactitude. 
These facts, and the researches of M. Wohler, who arrived at 
the rigorous determination of nitrogen in uric acid, under the 
form of ammonia, and its weight in the state of hydrochlorate 
of ammonia and platinum, (as reported by M. Liebig,) in- 
duced us to hope that this would afford us a certain method 
for all bodies containing nitrogen, and we believe that our 
efforts have been crowned with success. 
The mode which we are about to describe is as simple in 
execution and as certain, as the determination of carbon and 
hydrogen by the method of Liebig, and affords as much exac- 
titude in its results. 
It is based on the manner in which organic bodies contain- 
ing nitrogen react with the hydrates of the alkalies at a high 
temperature ; it consists in the determination of the weight 
of the nitrogen, under the form of ammonia, that is from the 
hydrochlorate of ammonia and platinum or fiom the metallic 
platinum. 
