The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-10-14
NOTES ON SCIENCE AND IND UsrRY.

surfing the regular mixing airing, and aging OF
cotton, thus fulfilling a long felt desideratum in
delivering that material from the bale to the
picker, II being necessary in effecting this that
too much care and expense be not involved.
This new system Is claimed IN he ideally perfect
for the purpose, and, In addition to its i'm
portancc a. controlling the future processes In
keeping the numbers even, is declared to be
ton supplied 70 the plckers, and is in every re-
spect thoroughly systematic. In line with each
opener picker or picker feeder i placed q travel,
a. the att r. Il placed on the platform at one
end and taken from It ut the other 1t is assured
the time 1t takes to travel from one end Of the
platform to the other; also, In the two processes
of loGding and unloading the platform, the cot
ton Is thoroughly mixed.
The subaqueous combustion OF fuel gas Is Sc
rously proposed by an English engineer. by a
novel kind OF method In the interior OF the bare
shell of n steam boiler there Is fixed what is
termed chamber seating, trued up, and upon
which rests conical chamber having an ar
rangemcnt around Its base which causes the two
surfaces to form, when In contact, a tight joint,
similar to that OF bell glass when used for cx-
pertinent with an air pump the cone or coinbus-
near the ~ bottom Of the boiler: there are
CS SrG ssds rr2m the
chamber will travel during its recoil
9t each explosion. IN practice, charge OF gas
having been injected into the inside of the cone,
1t Is Immediately fired, the result OF the ex-
plosion being that the combustion chamber re-
bounds upward from the chamber seating. thus
allowing the heated and expanded products OF
the combustion to escape direct into the lowest
stratum Of the water OF the boiler in the form OF
millions of little upward percolutlons. The COM
bustion chamber having settled down and form
cd tight Joint upon its seating. valve opens;
residual pressure remaining in the chamber,
which is caused to escape into a cylinder con-
tn1 thp q frnti hal ftar
forming Its duty. 1t exhausts.
Another method OF using peroxide. viz, for
the bleaching of straw. wood and similar hbres,
is announced. As explained, TO 100 litres of
soft cold water are added 1900 grams OF pure
crystalized oxalic acid, after which 900 gramG
peroxide of sodium are slowly stirred in; the
liquor, when this Is done. will still be acid.
CURING on this account to he made slightly al
ide. The stun to be bleached must he in an Alb
solutely clean condition and free from grease,
ana Is put int the alkaline bath OF the mixture
OF from 9O' To 100 f., when IL Is rinscd and
freed from any traces of yellow In a weak acid
hnth-tartariC. for instanCe--Or by slow driving In
the open air. The bath in question he used
over and over again, and TO save time may be
made stronger.
The practlcability OF transmitting long dis
lance given amount OF steam Is illustrated in
an account recently given by Mr.. Coke before
tlle SOClety III Engineers. III seems
that at a collery It was desired to carry steam
to water works about forty-fve hundred feet
over hill from the boiler plant. To do this
trough was made by mailing the edges of two
boards together, So that they formed right
angle, the trough being supported by two stakes
the trough; the pipe was va, laid IN the trough.
inverted trough placed at the top. To
allow expansion a bend was made to one side at
the top Of the hill, and then IL was turned back
TO It's original direction; large receiver was in
,r1dsr Sa In the pipe ana at the pump made Of
- inches, and serving also $ "a separator. As
the elevation vas some 500 feet above the sea.
tme the GG however, y fua III n tSe
desired purpose. costing, nothing for msnten-
ance aud giving no trouble.
The application of chemistry to tanning Is
now. according to Prof Sadtler. revolutionizlng
the manufacture of lighter feathers. The proc
ess involves treating the skin at first with weak
solution OF blchromate Of potash. TO which SUM-
Client hydrochlorc acid is added to liberate the
chronic acid. After the skins have taken up a
bright yellow color through their entire texture
they are drained and transferred to a bath of
hypo.ulphte OF soda, to which some acid is
added To liberate sulphurous acid, which reduces
,hs Ssd "a Th
Ia sulphuric acid, which liberates further por-
ton OF sulphurous acid until the whole of the
duced is OF a pale blush-grcen color. tough
and flexible and thoroughly resistant
tinguishing, il from all other forms OF leather,
a. the combination OF the hide fibre with the
its combination with tannin, aud yields less to
boiling water; the leather also can be dyed and
+ required 10 be done before the leather be-
comes dry, as its water repellent character Is
sGGh that once dried II cannot be wetted sGf
processes involving the use OF chrome alum and
other salts OF the sesquioxide OF chromium as
apparently the combination does not take place
so readily a. where the chromium Is obtained by
reduction from the bchrOmate under the influ-
ence OF reducing agents. II Is also mentioned
that basic chromium salts have, within com
paratively recent period, been proposed as suita-
BILE mineral tanning agents.
The fact has recently been ascertained, as the
result OF German Investigations, that the sui
phur In Goals may be chemically estimated, and
their adaptedness for gas making determined
before purchasing. In a manner capable Of being
turned To valuable practical account. BY this
method the coal TO be tested Is powdered and
pressed into a small platinum wire cylinder, TO
which a long platinum wire is attached, and
then burned The combustion is effected n an
trebly perforated india rubber stopper;
through this passes tube with glass stop
also two glass tubes, TO the lower ends OF
which two thick platinum wires are fused, one
OF these wires ,. carrying ihe platinum cylinder
into the tube so as TO establish a sure contact |
with the wires which lead the electricity, and |
when the current Is passed the platinum basket |
becomes white hot the combustion OF the coal |
is effected, and the gaseous products containing
the sulphur compounds are led OF through the |
stopcoCk and examined chemically.
simple method Of preparing phosphorus by |
is explained in the Berichts. Hydro |
gen ammonium sodium phosphate is fused In |
porcelain crucible until It is changed into a So
dium metaphosphate; aluminium turnings are
then dropped into the liquid, and the freed |
phosphate bursts into flame Now, II there |
be employed in the process a glass tube IN |
stead OF crucible, a slow current OF dry hydro
gen being passed over the mixture Of salt and |
the phosphorus dstils into the cool |
eT part OF the tube without the formation OF any |
hydrogen, the residue consisting |
" alumlna, sodium illuminate and a phOsphide |
Df aluminR. BY these steps in the process only |
some thirty per cent. Of the phosphorus In the
mineral used can be obtained, but the phOsphide
Is decompOsed entirely by heating with silica.