Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1890-12-06
FACTS ABOUT CARBON.
Charcoal, Coke and the Diamond All {
Same Thing,

Charcoal, Coke and the Diamond All the
Same Thing.
Do you know what charcoal is and
where it comes from2 1t is not dug out
of the ground as our ordinary coal is, but
is obtained by heating wood in closely
covered place. Gases are driven off, and
what is left of the wood is charcoal
Charcoal is one form of carbon; coke,
another kind of fuel, is a form of carbon;
and, though it is so unlike the other
forms, the beautiful diamond is also pure
carbon.
We can make charcoal for ourselves,
writes Estelle NJ. Hart in the Christian
Union. Place some wood shavings in a
test tube; fit a glass tube, and apply heat
with the alcohol lamp. A gas will be
driven off from the tube, and the wood
sha7ings will have become charcoal.
Coke is what is left of the coal from
which illuminating gas is made. Though
it is used for fuel it is not very durable.
To make coke, powder some bituminous
coal and heat in test tube as in the
experiment with the wood shavings;
when the gas is driven off coke will re-
main.
Carbon is used to take oxygen from the
ores of metals. Many metals are found
combined with oxygen, and in order to
get the pure metal the oxygen has to be
taken from the ore. To show how this
may be done, place any small piece of
lead oxide on a piece of charcoal, and
heat it by directing the fame of the
alcohol lamp upon it by means of a
blow-pipe. The carbon-that is, the
charcoal-and the oxygen of the lead
oxide will unite when heated, and a
drop of pure lead will be left on the
charcoal.
A blow-pipe can be made by heating
| piece of glass tubing two or three inches
| from the end. When it is sufficiently
heated, pull it apart, thus leaving a
| tapered end. Now heat the long piece
of the tube again enough to bend it at
right angles about three inches from
this point.
Carbon is used to absorb impurities.
Put some boneblack "a form of carbon)
into filter paper which is fitted to a
funnel. Through the funnel pour some
water, mixed with ink, into a glass below.
| The water will be clear after pouring
1t through the paper two or three times.
There is gas formed of carbon and
oxygen which is called carbonic acid
gas, or carbon dioxide. This is very
important gas for us to know something
about, for we breathe it out from our
lungs at every breath. We can do some
| experiments which will show something
| about 1T. First, let us find out how to
make it, Use the same bottle that was
used in making hydrogen. Put some
| pieces of marble or bits of chalk, as may
be most convenient, in the bottom of the
bottle; pour hydrochloric acid upon it,
and carbonic acid gas will be given off.
which may be caught over water.
This gas will not allow candle to
burn in it. If we lower a lighted candle
into bottle of carbonic acid gas the
fame will be extinguished, and the gas
itself will not burn, as the hydrogen did.
Carbonic acid gas, or carbonic dioxide,
as chemists are most apt to call it.,
when dissolved in water, forms an acid.
Any acid will turn blue htmus paper
red. Litmus is a vegetable substance
prepared from lichens. Pour some
water into bottle where there is carbon
dioxide, and dip piece of blue litmus
paper into the solution, and the blue
paper will instantly be turned red. This
paper can be purchased in small pieces.
A leaf Of purple cabbage will also be
turned red If dipped into the solution.
ter. If bottle Of lime-water can not
easily be purchased, prepare it by allow
ing a piece of lime the size of hens
egg to remain in a quart of water for
several hours. Strain the liquid through
filter paper placed in funnel. Carbon
dioxide always turns ime-water milky
white. Pour some of this clear lime
water into a bottle of the gas and see
the result for yourself.
We can prove that we exhale this gas
from our lungs by breathing through a
glass tube into bottle Of clear lime
water. The water is turned white,
showing the presence of carbon dioxide.
I With every breath that we inhale we
take oxygen from the air into our lungs.
But we do not exhale it again. So when
we have been in a closed room long
time we have taken a great deal of the
oxygen out of the air and have replaced
it with carbon dioxide. We could not
live if we did not have oxygen to
breathe. Did you ever have a headache
because you were in a crowded room
where there was no fresh air? That was
because all the people in the room had
been taking the oxygen out of the air
into their lungs, and had been replacing
1t with carbon dioxide. If several peo-
pie were left in closed room long
enough without having fresh air they
would die, because they would have used
up all oxygen in the air.
| This shows us how necessary it is to
| have the rooms in our houses, and espe-
cially our sleeping rooms, where we
spend so many hours at a time, well
ventilated. If 1t is possible to do SO and
avoid draught, it is always we'll to
have window partly open in sleep
ing-room. At any rate, for several hours
of each day the windows should be
thrown wide open, so that the air from
which we have been taking the oxygen