CARBON DIOXIDE A S A MEASURE OF THE EFFICIENCY OF VENTILATION.' B\-E L I . F N
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ROM the time of Hippocrates who gave as tlie sanitary riiaxirn "pure air, pure water and pure soil," air has been placed first among the requirements of good sanitation. I t is nevertheless a lamentable fact that, as Mr. LVoodbridge has well expressed it, " t h e city which speiids millions i i i water works for pure water supply and for sewerage for foul water removal. is still found tightening its pnrse strings wlieii a few thousands are asked for to provide for pure air supply to, a i d foul air discharge from its school roonis." T h e reason of this apathy is riot far to seek. Chemists and sanitarians have seriously disagreed anioiig themselves a5 to what constituted ' ' had air. ' ' People live and apparently thrive among the most nauseous odors. while under more favorable conditions they sicken and die. One theorist has givcii a reason only to be forced to the wall bj, another quite as plausible. Between them the ad\Tocate of pure air finds slight hearing. It is o111y withiii recent years that a knowledge of the significant fact that not to air itself nor even to tlie bad odors it carries, but to tlie dust particles bearing living germs and spores is to be attributed the spread of disease, therefore filtered air like filtered water has becoine a necessit). where dust cannot be avoided by scrupulous care. Xiid ti(j\v with our increased kiiowledge of tlic causes which lead to liability to disease it seems probable that tlie cheiiiist and sanitarian m a y at 1xst unite i n R winni,ig fight for pure air. 111 R word, the new staiidpoiiit relates to t!ie resistarm which healthy blood nuti tissue piesent to tlie attacks of disease. This resistance is, we believe, due to the perfect nutrition of the blood corpuscles and this is largelj. depeiident oti the inhalation of air containing sufficient oxygen. I n vitiated air the blood becomes quickly loaded with iiiiperfectly oxidized products which cause derangenient niore or less serious arid filially render the individual, wlio is poisoned frorii 1 Abstract
of a p a p e r rend before tlir World's Coilpress of Chrnii.ts. August 26, I&J.
CARBON DIOXIDE AS A MEASURE, ETC.
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utthin rather than front without, more liable to succumb to disease If this view is in any measure correct it is important that chemists combine to urge upon the community the importance of a sufficient supply of air, especially in school rooms, and it is to be hoped that these views will command more respect than heretofore. I t is notorious that even college halls and fine public buildings which should be examples, are in fact the worst of any buildings. T h e Laboratory of Sanitary Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has had, for the past nine years, exceptional opportunities for the study of the relation of the amount of carbon dioxide to the efficiency of the ventilation, in that the Walker building is supplied with mechanical ventilation under the direction of an expert and in full control of the engineer who has records for all these years of the arnount and temperature of air supplied to eazh room, and of the temperature of these rooms taken four times each day. During these nine years some 5000 determinations of the amount of carbon dioxide have been made in these rooms by some zoo students. Many problems have been studied and several reports published; without burdening this paper with details, to state a few of the conclusions reached may stiriiulate others to add to our too meagre knowledge on this subject.' T h e outside air of the space around the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, varies from 3.7 to 4.2 parts carbon dioxide per 10,000. T h e deterioration of the air as shown in the empty rooms is 1 Papers relatiiig to the poiuts discussed, coiitributed iu whole or iu part from the Laboratory of Sanitary Chemistry : " O n the Determiuatiou of Organic Matter in Air." T h e i i i , by Marion Talbot. Tedno1ox.v Quarter@, I , 1887-8. " T h e Nuinber and Distribution of Micro-orgauiuins ill the Air of the Bostou City Hospital with some Carbon Dioxide Deteriniuatioiis." By Greerileaf X. Tucker iu the tweutieth an:iual report of the State Board of Health. of Massachusetts. " A Critical Study of the Heating and Ventilatioii of the Walker buildiirg, Massachusetts Institute of Technology" By S . H. Woodbridge. Ttch,rolug.v ~ ) u u r t d y ,2, p. 76 and 192,rSS8+. " T h e Deteriniuation of Carbon Dioxide in the Air of Buildiiigd." By A. H . Gill.Jour~rra1 o/ Analyfical aud Applied ChemistIialls : ~ i i dtira.iviiig rooiiis, reading rooiiis. etc., u.11ich a:-?open anti i i i \vliicli people arcconstaiitiy moving, is iiiaiii!aiiietl a t :ibout ,s .o part:: as an a\.crage of examinations during eig-lit yc-ars. I n tlie riiiitli year t1iei.c has heeii 3.11 iiicrease tliie to xi1 iiicrrasetl iiiiiiii;i:r of lerturtrooiiis oil tlie second floor. Tlie air of iiiost of the lecture I-ooiiic; iias coiitaiiictl from six t o eight p a r t s , of tlie 1arg:cr croivded lialls for zoo or iiioi'e students. ten to twelve parts nccorditig to ivcatlier. n-lietlier it is clear ant1 dr!, a i i c t ivitli n stroiig wiiiti. or svlietlier the air is loatlctl with moisture and is still. I=roiii this esperieiice it \voultl sc'eiii tliat stutieiits caii ivork \\-ell iii n clc:tii room \vitli a1)out seven parts 1 x 1 1 0 . 0 0 0 of c2rh;ii tliosirlc : !iiuch iiiorc tlinri tliis cnustrs t l u l l i i e s ~ :tiid , aiiytliiiix CI\W tliirtwii p;irts t~iiisesi l l most cnseb n i i nliiirist itiip barrier t o tlie iull acqiiisitioii of kno\vletlge. IYlieii churches, 1iai1s, aiid lwtui-e roniiis usual1~-show fro111 fourteeii to cigliteeii 1Jaytq p r ro,cioo i i i tweiit! iiiiiiutes after tlie xuclieiicc as~c;iil)lcs,it i s iiot stc:iiixe tli:it cioqueiice oftell fa i 1s to nro 11:;e e i i t 11usi :is111.
A N INTERNATIONAL INDEX TO CHEillCAL LITERATURE.' l i s t i . C ' A n K I X , . r o s 1k~r:roS.
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U K I X G o m of iiiy 11il.iliographical tours i n ICiirope, ai1 eniiiierit librarian of a German University remarked : ' ' You Americans are doing more and better work i i i bibliography than all tlie nations of Europe takeii together." And this lie said iiot in flatter)- but as the espi-essioli of an earnest conviction. Later I expressed surprise that Gernians with such splendid collections of books and other adrxntages should leal-e it to Aiiiericans to cross the Atlantic and wrest from Europe inaterials for general aiitl special bibliographies. To this lie proiiipt,ly replied : ' ' Acli nieiti Freund, das Geld fehlt ! " I shall iiot attempt to demolistrate the accuracy of the gentleman's statements, as it would involve coniparisons, and these 1Kead before t h e \Vorld's Coiigress of C h e u i s t s . Ailgust
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