Alcohol : its use and abuse / [W.S.G].

  • Greenfield, W. S. (William Smith), 1846-1919
Date:
1878
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Alcohol : its use and abuse / [W.S.G]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    if in a moist atmosphere, it dilutes itself by combining with water; and if cold pure alcohol and water are mixed, slight warmth is produced by their combination. On account of this property, and of preventing putre- faction, strong spirit is used to preserve animal and vegetable bodies and tissues, such as the various creatures seen in museum jars, fruits for the housewife, &c. And it very rapidly dries out the water from anything with which it comes in contact. Chemists tell us that this common or “ ethylic ” alcohol is made up of three elements, carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, and they represent its composition by the formula C2H60. When burnt with air or oxygen, it produces water and a substance called carbonic acid, which is identical with one of the gases constantly breathed out from our lungs; formed, too, by burning coal, gas, oil, or wood, charcoal, or coke, &c., and which is the substance in the air which makes it impure, unfit for breathing, and necessitates ventilation.* In whatever shape it is found naturally alcohol always results from the process of fermentation of substances containing sugar; and though the chemist can, by com- plicated processes, build it up in small quantities out of its original elements, this need not enter into our calcu- lations. To prepare pure alcohol from any of these fer- mentation products repeated distillation and other means * For other chemical details see works on Chemistry.