New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-06-18
VALUABLE ARTICLE OF COM-
MERGE.

| The charter of the Cuba and Louisiana
Mining and Paving Company has beer
printed in the REPUBLICAN,. Under this
charter an organization has been effected
the following gentlemen being chosen di
rectors A. Van Camp, president and gen
eral superintendent; A. B. Seelye, vice
president; z. Taylor, treasurer; j. r
Hastings, secretary; J. w. Fairfax, Thomas
F. Kerr and George Herbert
This company owns very extensive and
valuable asphaltum mines in the island OF
Cuba, and the work of exhuming and ship
| ping it to this country has already been in
| augurated. The uses to which this chap
papota las the Cubans call it) can be put,
| seem almost limitless; and we hazard
nothing in predicting rich rewards for the
gentlemen engaged in this enterprise. As
matter of public interest we publish the
analytical report of our respected fellow
| citizen, DR.. Jones, upon this new article of
| commerce; for that it will materially add to
the commerce of New Orleans is proven by
the fact that contracts for thousands of
tons of this material are now being negoti-
ated with leading street PAYERS in Chicago
and st. Louis.
Report on the chemical properties, econom-
ical application and value of the As
phalt or compact bitumen of Cuba, by
Joseph Jones, NJ. D., Phi. D., Professor
of Chemistry in the Medical Depart
ment of the University of Louisiana.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF CUBA ASPHALT.
Compact bitumen or mineral pitch,
smooth. hard, brittle, 5rownish black resin
Gus mineral fractura conchoidal odOr BIZ
luminous, becomes soft at 2l2, and melts at
a somewhat higher temperature: takes fire
easily and burns with a bright smoky flame;
when thrown into water sinks, the specific
gravity being l.O77; partially soluble in al
cohol. highly soluble in oil of turpentine
and other volatile oils, and in linseed oil,
olive oil, castor oil, lard oil, cotton seed oil,
and other fats; dissolved by alkalies and
alkaline carbOnates.
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF CUBA ASPHALT.
Consists chiefly of mixture of asphaltine
carbon 74.2, hydrogen 99 in 100 parts), and
petroline carbon S.2, hydrogen l2.1 in 100
parts.
One hundred parts of Cuba asphalt con-
tains 65 parts capable of yielding illuminat-
ing gas and volatile products, Is parts of car
bon, and 20 parts OF ash The greater part of
the volatile petrOline may be volatized by
distilling the asphalt with water. Asphal-
tine may be yolatized pure by heating
asphalt for forty-eight hours to $500 cent?
grade, whereby the petroline is completely
votalized Asphalt yields by dry distilla-
tion yellow OIL which. when treated with
nitric acid, is transformed into a resin hav-
ing the odor of musk and the taste of bitter
almonds. When asphalt oil is subjected to
fractional distillation it yields number of
oils gradually increasing in density.
VALUE OF CUBA ASPHALT AS A SOURCE OF
ILLUMINATING GAS.
The value of Cuba asphalt as a source of
illuminating gas was carefully investigated,
with the following results: In the first ex-
pertinent fifty grains yielded, upon dry dis
tillatiOn, at dull red heat, two hundred
cubic centimetres of illuminating gas of
superior quality and composed chiefly of
heavy carburetted hydrogen, which, as is
well known, is the most valuable of the two
gasses entering into the composition of illu-
minating gas. In second experiment, per-
formed with equal care, ten grains yielded
forty cubic centimetres of illuminating gas.
The two experiments, therefore, CORE
sponded exactly as to the amount of gas
yielded.
One pound avoirdupois of Cuba as
phalt Is capable of yielding one thousand
seven hundred and four cubic inches of IL
Eliminating gas, and one ton is capable of
yielding twenty-three thousand six hun
dred cubic feet of Illuminating gas of the
first quality. The gas generated from Cuba
asphalt burns with brightness at least two |
degrees more intense than that of ordinary |
Illuminating gas.
The following table, embodying results |
obtained by several experiments, present
data for the calculation of the relative value |
of Cuba asphalt for the generation of illu-
minating gas:
No,,. 80 oooI