Page:Experimental researches in chemistry and.djvu/126

1844.] of 75° below 0°, and the solid portion was heavier than the liquid.

When in the solid state it gives off so little vapour, that the eye is not sensible of its presence by any degree of colour in the air over it when looking down a tube 4 inches in length, at the bottom of which is the substance. Hence the pressure of its vapour at that temperature must be very small.,

Some hours after, wishing to solidify the same portion of euchlorine which was then in a liquid state, I placed the tube in a bath at -110°, but could not succeed, either by continuance of the tube in the bath, or shaking the fluid in the tube, or opening the tube to allow the full pressure of the atmosphere; but when the liquid euchlorine was touched by a platinum wire it instantly became solid, and exhibited all the properties before described. There are many similar instances amongst ordinary substances, but the effect in this case makes me hesitate in concluding that all the gases which as yet have refused to solidify at temperatures as low as 166° below 0°, cannot acquire the solid state at such a temperature.

Nitrous Oxide.—This substance was obtained solid by the temperature of the carbonic acid bath in vacuo, and appeared as a beautiful clear crystalline colourless body. The temperature required for this effect must have been very nearly the lowest, perhaps about 150° below 0°. The pressure of the vapour rising from the solid nitrous oxide was less than one atmosphere.

Hence it was concluded that liquid nitrous oxide could not freeze itself by evaporation at one atmosphere, as carbonic acid does; and this was found to be true, for when a tube containing much liquid was freely opened, so as to allow evaporation down to one atmosphere, the liquid boiled and cooled itself] but remained a liquid. The cold produced by the evaporation was very great, and this was shown by putting the part of the tube containing the liquid nitrous oxide, into a cold bath of carbonic acid, for the latter was like a bot bath to the former, and instantly made it boil rapidly.

I kept this substance for some weeks in a tube closed by stopcocks and cemented caps. In that time there was no action on the bitumen of the graduation, nor on the cement Of the caps; these bodies remained perfectly unaltered.