The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-12-09
new AIR TESTS.
Prof. Meadowcroft Made
Demonstrations With
the Liquid Last
Night.
GUEST or CARTERET CLUB
Audience OF Two Hundred
Saw Some interesting
Illustrations.


Some practical demonstrations with
hquified air. given under the direction Of
Prof. Meadowcroft last evening at the
Carteret Club on Bergen avenue, were
thoroughly appreciated by the fashionable
audience Of two hundred guests who
crowded into the lecture room. The tests
were novel and some evoked considerable
applause.
Prof. M~eadowcroft, in his preliminary
remarks referred to the manufacture OF
the air, going into details and explaining
each step since 1887 that led to its success
full production. He told of its low temper
allure, of the power it had and of the
effect it had upon the atmosphere If a
certain quality were allowed to escape.
His audience was deeply absorbed in each
test and watched the progress of the
demonstrations keenly.
One test, more interesting than some
others, was the production of the air on
the platform, the professor showing how
the air expanded when released and how
1t was formed into liquid again. In ac-
complishing this, he took a glass tube,
to which was attached a small rubber
balloon. Into the tube a small quantity
of the air was poured and in expanding it
spent its force in Initiating the balloon. BY
placing the glass tube in a pan of the
liquid air, the air which had evaporated
into the balloon, was condensed again to
liquid air. The feat was a most interest
ing one.
He showed how perfectly dry the air is,
by placing a handkerchief into a small
pan of the liquid air. The linen came out
--uf--Af- 49, + 49, -~o1xo 40 % o
in water, placed it in the liquid air and 1t
became as hard as a rock. within four
seconds. This he tore UP and distributed.
"A crisp ~ewspaper, as he termed it.
was next made. The paper was put in the
air with the result that 1t could be
crumbled between the fingers. A steak,
g grapes and raisins were similarly
treated. Each article was frozen as hard
as rocks. Hammers were produced to
break them. These were sent among the
guests, many of whom kept some for
souvenirs. A hammer was made by some
mercury, which underwent the freezing
process, and this was used to drive nails.
Alcohol. which never freezes unless sub
jected to a temperature two hunared de-
grees below the zero mark, was quickly
formed into ice. This experiment, he
professor explained, was dangerous, be-
cause alcohol contained a great deal OF
hydro-carbon. Rubber was rendered as
brittle as candy by being subjected to the
air for a few seconds.
A kettle of air placed on a cake OF ice
showed how much colder the air was than
the ice. The air fairly boiled while on the
ice. The ice, the professor said, was not
frozen, and could be rendered a great
many degrees colder. The same kettle was
placed on a fire. Ice quickly formed in
the can. Carbonic acid gas was thus
formed on the outside of the can, a hin
but seldom witnessed.
Steel was melted by placing 1t in hqui-
fed oxygen after the nitrogen had passed
off. The flame produced was a bright yell
low. So intense was the heat that parts
Of the steel were embedded in the glass.
A stick of carbon such as IS used to
produce the arc, light, was placed IN a
glass of liquified oxygen This carbon re-
quires a heat of 1000 degrees before 1t pro-
duces the ineandescent light. The car
light showing the terrific heat of the oxy-
gen. This glass of oxygen was placed
within a dipper of liquifed air, making a
difference of three hundred and twelve de-
grees more, and the light from the carbon
did not diminish. This feat was also APP
plauded. The effect the air had upon. TIM
copper and iron was also shown along
with several other equally interesting
tests.