KEEPING U P WITH CHEMISTRY
F. W. FOX. is an excellent source of vitamin C. The concentration in the averare leaf is about four times that found in citrus fruit juices. a his was indicated fir;t by thr indophmul rrhaicln and ihcn wasconfinned 1,). biological test. Althuuvh tlw urt~lntdactivit?rapidly dinlinisllrs when the cells are rlamaccd.. . orcliminnrv rrorrimrnti indiratr that much of the vitamin remains after &&kg, and that it is possible to dry the plant in such a way that alfalfa meal of high activity can be obtained. Since alfalfa is also rich in vitamins A and E and is also unusually rich in minerals such as Ca and Fe, the possibility of using certain types of the young plant as a human food, either as a green salad, cooked like spinach, or in the E. D. W. form of a dry meal is worthy of consideration. Evidence of enzymatic destruction of the vitamin A value of alfalfa during the curing process. S. M. HAUGE. J . Bid. Chem., 108, 331-5 (Feb., 1935).-Alfalfa was treated by some methods which were favorable to enzyme activity and b y other methods which inhibited enzyme action. The effect of these treatments on the vitamin A value of alfalfa was determined. Evidence is presented which shows that enzymes are directly responsible for the destruction of the vitamin A value of alfalfa during the curing process, and that sun's rays have only an indirect effect by producing temperatures which accelerate enzyme E. D. W. activity. The arsenic content of honey and hees after dusting with arsenicals. G. LOCKEHANN.Z. Unfwsuch. Lebensm., 69, 80 (Jan., 1935).-A field of rape in bloom was dusted with arsenicals. Soon after this the bees from neighboring hives died in masses. The question arose as t o whether the honey might contain sufficient As to make it unfit far food. Chemical analyses showed that the honey contained 1 part by weight of As in 5-10 million parts of honey. Since this amount lies within the limits of the normal occurrence of As in nature. the bonev can be used without fear. The bodies of the dead bees contained 1 part of As to 32,00048,000 parts by weight of bees. The lethal dose for man according to appropriate handbooks is 0.14.3 g. AszOaor 1-750.000 t o 1-250.000; for warm-blooded animals 0.015 g. A%Os to 1 kg. of body weight or 140,000. Since the As content of the hees was below the latter, it is possible that they were killed by a smaller dose. E. D. W. Solvent extraction in petroleum refining. J. T. WARD A ND H. 0. FORREST. Chem. & Met. Enc., 42,246-50 (May, 1935).To obtain lubricating oils of the highest quality five types of the constituents of ordinary lubricating oil fractions must be eliminated: (1) wax, to obtain a low pour point; (2) asphalt for several reasons, particularly its carbon-forming tendency; (3) compounds of very high viscosity, intermediate between asphalts and heaviest lubricating fractions, because of carbon-forming tendencies; (4) color bodies, to make oil marketable; (5) naphthenic compounds, which give low viscosity and low resistance t o oxidation. Compounds of selective solvent action which are used commercially to remove some of these are acetone, benzene, dichlorethyl ether, dichloro- and trichlorethylene, furfural, nitrobenzene, phenol, propane, cresols, sulfuric acid, and sulfur dioxide. I t is generally necessary to use distillation and treatment with acid and alkali in addition to solvents to remove all of these J. W. H. constituents. Alcohol-gasoline blends main topic a t Dearhorn conference. C h . & Met. Eng., 42, 285 (May, 1935).-At this conference it was reported that exhaustive tests wlth automobiles, trucks, buses, tractors, and airplanes bad proved that as a blend with gasoline, alcohol was unexcelled. No change in present engine design had been necessary. A mixture of one gallon of alcohol with ten of low-gwde gasoline had given 8 p e r cent. better mileage Antiscorbutic value of alfalfa. L. F. LEVY Biochem. J., 29, 884-8 (Apr., 1935).-Alfalfa
AND
of gum and carbon, Letter ac&lerat&n, espe&ally a t low speeds, and somewhat easier starting. The use of alcohol for motor fuel 1.W. H. would be a means of stabilizing agriculture. Synthetic alcohols and related products from petroleum. B. T. BnooKs. Ind. Ene. Chem.. 27, 278-87 (Mar., 1935).Synthesis of materials &om petroleum has become more important since such a variety of cheap materials is available from the cracking processes. Even such a cheap material as ethyl alcohol feels the o m ~ e t i t i o nfrom the svnthetic orodud made from s raw materiais from th; petroleum industry ethylene. ~ u i p l i e of
hydrocarbons were severe handicaps w&ch are being overcbme. In 1862 a liter of ethyl alcohol said to be made from ethylene from coal gas w a s shown in London. The introduction of oil cracking in 1912 was a great step forward, followed by the use of H2S04in refining. The first industrial production of alcohols from these cracked products was made about 1917, and isopropyl alcohol was made commercially in 1920. Recent developments in recovering unsaturated hydrocarbons with HnSOl and their physical separation have rendered practical the production of a number of alcohols including ethyl alcohol, formerly not considered practical. The conditions far the production of these alcohols and esters are discussed. D. C. L. Traces from tons. F. J. METZGAR.Ind. Eng. Chcm., 27, 112-6 (Jan., 1935)-In his address on accepting the Chemical Industry Medal for 1934, the author points out that the recovery of rare gases of the atmosphere has been accomplished with greater accuracy in the plant than by the refined methods of research; when in the recovery of Xe and Kr, the yield was apparently over 100% on the basis of previous determinations,
The amount of-& in air is i i b . in 44 to&. He 1 lb. in 755ions. Kr I ih in 17:3 tons, and Xe 1 lh. in 1205 tow S e and lie have lun hoilina puint- and rrmain uncondcnsed, conccntr:rtiny to abour : ' 5 1 S c and 15'7, llc Seoarati
