Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1900-04-17
NEW SCIENTIFIC PARADOX.
Extreme Cold Nny TIE Utilixed For
Promoting Combustion.

Extreme Cold Mny TIE UtiliScd For
Promoting Combustion.
Making ice by steam is 1T the same
time fascinating absurdity and .
practical reality. The chief agent
most artificial refrigeration. wild
by the compression and expansion OF
ammonia or by other methods. is burn
ing coal placed under the boiler of an
engine The eminent Swiss chemist
RaouI Pictet now offers the world =
similarly patadoXieai scheme. He pro-
poses Ia utilize the extremely low tetli-
pelature of liquid air 10 produce means
for promoting combustion. Within the
last few ia. lie has described proc
rss OF automatically separating the
hrer principal constituents OF the at
nos!lhrre-oXyg gen. nitrogen and ear
| tonic acid By gently forcing cur
cent of ordinary mir through apparatus
that has been previously chilled with
liquid air he reduces each of the gases
| 10 the same form AMI as The change OF
condition oceUts Inequalities ia their
weight head them 10 escape through
separate channels into different reser-
vol.-s. The method - simple. Ingenious
Two Substances which are thus OH
tained have commercial value ana
are airealy articles of merchandise.
These are oxygen aud carbonic acid
Owing to its singular reluctance to
form chemical associations nitrogen is
commercially an almost worthless ele-
ment NJ. Pictct. however. hopes to
find n way To make nitric acid out Of IL.
In -. 4 "A
three of his products would he utilized.
Carbonic acid is extensively employed
I'm the preparation Of car,onated wa
tiers. Aud oxygen plays wonderfully
helpful part in restoring sufferers from
pneumonia and in other ways is n sery-
ant of man 1t is suggested that il
may also lind valuable application In
blast furnace practice. greatly facili-
tating the evolution of heat for The re-
duction of ores Should this prop~ri-
ton prove feasible and should the cost
be sufficiently low the production Of
cheap oxygen might become the most
important feature of NJ Pictet's newly
announced invention.
Ii is not inconcrivable indeed that
the manufacture Of oxygen for metal
lurgieai purposes may he the most i'm
mediate If not the most precious fruit
or the system of liquefying air with
which the names OF Tripler, Osfergrpn.
Linde and HaIDpson are associated.
HE principal uses of liquid air that
nave been contemplated during the last
year or two are as an explosive In
war and rock blasting. as source OF
power and "A refrigerating agent.
Though MIR friplcr has amply demon
strated the terrific rendiug force that
can be developed by this means. en-
cheering experts have not vet been
able TO obtain with it such uniform
results az with dynamite.
For the propulsion of submarine for.
pedoes and for certain other nIechan-
icai operations requiring a small
amount of stored power liquid air ia
likely TO prove advantageous. Possf
bly, Ii may in time be adapted IN tho
autohobiie. tut it's cost Is likely TO re-
main prohibitive for such undertakings
as dfiNinG steamships aud running
'FaiaS- FROM rPfrigerafing work. TO
winch " would seem TO tie peculiarly
suited u rs al presenf dcharred by The
lnpossihility Of preserving - for any
iehgth OF time Ike ire. IL evaporat..s
too rapidly for practical service.
But the value OF oxygen. nitrogen
ana carbonic acid. which NJ pic,et
hquehes while separating them. docs
hot depend on their remaining I'm a
iiquid form. They can be utilized ..a,,at-
~ We'll perhaps even more. eonven-
lenfiy. IN gaseous condition Hence
no difficulty Is likely to IL. ..xty.ri.nc..a
In storing them for days or weeks II
necessary. before slsvoiing them TO iI,,.
objects for Which they are naanufac-
tUred.-Naw 1nrt. I-rit...r.