HANDBOOK 
OF 
PHARMACY 
EMBRACING THE 
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF PHARMACY 
AND THE 
ART OF DISPENSING. 
FOR 
STUDENTS OF PHARMACY AND MEDICINE, PRACTICAL 
PHARMACISTS, AND PHYSICIANS. 
BY 
VIRGIL COBLENTZ, Ph.G., A.M., Phil.D., 
PROFESSOR OF THEORY AND PRACTICE OF PHARMACY AND DIRECTOR OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL 
LABORATORY IN THE COLLEGE OF PHARMACY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK. 
WITH 
THREE HUNDRED AND NINETY-FIVE ILLUSTRATIONS. 
PHILADELPHIA: 
P. BLAKISTON, SON & CO., 
IOI2 WALNUT STREET. 
1894. Copybight, 1894, by P. Blakiston, Son & Co. 
Wm. F. Fell & Co., 
ELECTROTYPERS AND PRINTERS, 
1220-1224 SANSOM STREET, 
PHILADELPHIA. PREFACE. 
In preparing this Handbook, the author’s aim was to supply 
to the student of pharmacy a compendious and yet sufficiently 
detailed text-book for systematic study, and to those exercising 
the art a trustworthy guide to be consulted in daily practice. In 
accordance with this general plan, particular care has been 
bestowed upon the explanation of all operations and methods 
usually occurring in dispensing establishments and laboratories 
designed on a small scale. To give anything like a full account 
of modern apparatus, appliances, and methods pursued in large 
manufacturing establishments would have enlarged the work 
unnecessarily, without practical benefit to the dispensing apothe- 
cary. 
The present work is divided into four parts, viz.: Physical 
and Mechanical Operations; Galenical Pharmacy; the Art of 
Dispensing; and Volumetric Analysis. 
Part I, which treats of the general principles, and physical or 
chemical operations in their general application, presents what 
may be called the theory of pharmacy. A thorough knowledge 
of the subjects embraced in this section is of vital importance to 
the apothecary, in order to enable him to control the quality of 
the medicinal substances which he purchases or dispenses. He 
who is unable to apply the proper tests or make the necessary 
determinations himself, is compelled to rely upon statements at 
second hand, and is thus handicapped not only in the manage- 
ment of his own business, but will be unable to secure the confi- 
dence of the public or of the medical profession, either of whom 
will, sooner or later, find out the shallowness of his knowledge. 
This portion of the work, and such of the succeeding portions 
as appeared to require it, have been profusely illustrated with 
drawings, diagrams, and cuts of apparatus and appliances, care- 
fully selected from the best sources, both domestic and foreign. 
Processes which have become antiquated have been either entirely 
omitted, or are only briefly described. Some processes, as for 
instance that of grinding and powdering drugs on a large scale, 
have practically ceased to come within the province of the dis- 
pensing pharmacist, and demand machinery which is beyond the 
requirements of the latter; it has, therefore, received only a very 
brief mention. But the processes of grinding and powdering 
drugs on a small scale, and the most suitable apparatus for this 
purpose, have been treated of in detail. Such subjects as the 
III IV 
PREFA CE. 
determination of melting and boiling points, evaporation, subli- 
mation, desiccation, solution and solubility, crystallization, decan- 
tation, filtration, etc., have also been discussed at length, particu- 
larly for the benefit of students and beginners. Especial care 
has been bestowed on the subjects of maceration, percolation and 
expression. 
Part II treats of the various classes of galenical preparations. 
Each class is described and explained as fully as its importance 
warrants, and in connection with each class are given descriptions 
and explanations of the processes of those preparations which 
require a commentary. Particular attention has been given to 
the explanation of the several steps of the processes involving 
chemical reactions by means of equations or diagrams, and the 
method of testing, as well as the application of volumetric methods 
of assay, are fully explained. Working processes are, as a rule, 
only given in the case of those preparations which require a com- 
mentary. For all others, the reader or student is referred to the 
U. S. Pharmacopoeia, which he is expected to consult, and which 
this work is not designed to replace. 
In connection with many of the more important preparations, 
examples or exercises are given which will assist in acquiring a 
thorough understanding of the reactions and calculations involved 
in the explained process. 
Whenever necessary, syllabi or tables of the various prepara- 
tions have been given under the several classes. 
Part III embraces the Art of Dispensing. In the section 
treating on Prescriptions, the aim of the author has been to 
make it as practical as possible. Foreign methods of prescrip- 
tion writing and dispensing have been treated of, wherever 
thought necessary, alongside of those prevailing in this country, 
and a chapter added on homoeopathic pharmacy, which is found 
to be a necessary occupation of the regular apothecary in some 
sections of the country. Much care has been devoted to the 
chapters on explosive or dangerous prescriptions, and on incom- 
patibilities. The series of characteristic prescriptions, to which 
explanatory comments are added, will also, it is hoped, be found 
generally useful. 
Owing to the prominence which the new Pharmacopoeia gives 
to the volumetric methods of assay, it has been thought not only 
useful, but quite necessary to present this subject somewhat more 
at length in Part IV, so as to make the student and general user 
of the book thoroughly familiar with it. It is an old experience 
of teachers that students approach this subject frequently with 
reluctance, as it appears to many of them at first difficult; but 
that they nearly all quickly master it, as soon as they under- 
stand the simple basis upon which the whole rests. 
The author desires to acknowledge his indebtedness for valu- 
able advice and assistance received from Charles Rice, Phil. D., PREFACE. 
V 
of New York City. Likewise, acknowledgments are due to Prof. 
J. U. Lloyd, of Cincinnati, Ohio; also, Mr. A. Zimmerman, Ph.G., 
and Mr. W. H. Madison, Ph. G., for assistance rendered. 
Many of the illustrations in this book were selected from vari- 
ous text-books and works of reference, which necessarily demand 
proper acknowledgment. It was found impracticable to mention 
the source in each separate instance, hence the author deemed it 
best and proper that a list of these be given in detail here, viz.:— 
Arbeitsmethoden fiir Organisch-Chemische Laboratorien; Lassar-Cohn. 
Leipzig: Leopold Voss. 
Arzneiverordnungslehre ; R. Kobert. Stuttgart: F. Enke. 
Atlas zu deu fliichtigen Oelen ; K. L. Vetters. Weimar : F. Voigt. 
Atlas zu den fetten Oelen ; G. Bornemann. Weimar : F. Voigt. 
Die Neueren Arzneimittel; B. Fischer. Berlin : J. Springer. 
Ganot’s Physics ; E. Atkinson. New York : Wm. Wood & Co. 
Kommentar zum Arzneibuch fiir das Deutsche Reich ; H. Hager, B. 
Fischer and C. Hartwich. Berlin : J. Springer. 
Commentar zur siebenten Ausgabe der oesterreichischen Pharmacopoe ; F. 
Schneider und A. Vogl. Wien : C. Gerald. 
Lehrbuchder Organischen Chemie ; V. Meyer und P. Jacobson. Leipzig : 
Veit & Co. 
Lehrbuch der Anorganischen Chemie; (Graham-Otto), A. Michaelis. 
Braunschweig : F. Vieweg und Sohn. 
Mohr’s Lehrbuch der Titrirmethode; A. Classen. Braunschweig : Vieweg. 
Manual of Analytical Chemistry ; J. Muter. Philadelphia : Blakiston & Co. 
Ostwald’s Outlines of General Chemistry ; J. Walker : Macmillan & Co. 
Proceedings of the American Pharmaceutical Association. 
Physikalisch-Chemische Methoden ; J. Traube. Leipzig : L. Voss. 
Pharmaceutisches Manual ; E. Dieterich. Berlin : J. Springer. 
Real Encyclopaedic der Pharmacie; E. Geissler, J. Miller. Leipzig: 
Urban & Co 
Redwood’s Pharmacy, Proctor. 
Treatise on Chemistry ; Roscoe and Schorlemmer. Macmillan & Co. : 
London. 
Schule der Pharmacie, I; E. Mylius. Berlin : J. Springer. 
Lehrbuch der Pharmaceutischen Chemie ; E. Schmidt. Braunschweig : 
Vieweg und Sohn. 
Technik der Experimental Chemie ; R. Arendt. Leipzig : Leopold Voss. 
The Art of Dispensing, Chemist and Druggist. London. 
Chemiker-Zeitung; G. Krause, Cothen. 
Pharmaceutische Centralhalle ; H. Hager und E. Geissler, Dresden. 
New York City, 
September, 1894. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
INTRODUCTION. 
PAGE 
Terms and Definitions, 1 
Pharmacopoeias, History of, 1 
Pharmacopoeias, Table of, 2 
Pharmacopoeia Nomenclature, 3 
PART I. 
CHAPTER I. 
Weights and Measures, 7 
Units of Length, Time, Mass, 7 
Ancient Standards, 8 
Modern Standards, 8 
Tables of Various Systems of Weight and Measure 20 
Balances, Various Systems, 21 
Weights, 30 
Measuring Vessels, 32 
CHAPTER II. 
Specific Gravity ; Density, 
Standards, 34 
Specific Gravity of Solids, 35 
“ “ by Displacement in Graduated Cylinder, 36 
“ of Insoluble Bodies Heavier than Water, 36 
“ “ “ “ “ Lighter “ “ 37 
“ “ “ Soluble Bodies, 38 
“ “ “ Liquids, 38 
“ “ “ “ by means of Pycnometer, 38 
“ “ “ “ ‘‘ “ “ Hydrometer, 40 
“ “ “ “ “ “ “ Specific Gravity, Balance, ... 45 
“ “ “ “ “ “ “ Jolly’s Spiral Balance, 46 
“ “ “ “ “ “ “ Sprengel Sp. Gr. Tube, 47 
“ “ “ “ “ “ “ Given Weight of Di f. Volumes, . 48 
“ “ “ “ “ “ “ Lovis’ Sp. Gr. Beads, 48 
“ “ “ Fats, 49 
Specific Volume, 49 
Exercises in Specific Gravity and Specific Volume, 50 
Tables of Specific Gravity, 51 
CHAPTER III. 
Heat : Various Applications in Pharmacy, 52 
Valuation of Heat, 52 
Apparatus for Generation of Heat, 53 
Measuring of Heat, 57 
Testing Thermometers, 61 
Boiling Point, 62 
Melting Point, 63 
Melting and Congealing Point of Fats and Waxes, 65 
vii VIII 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER IV. page 
Heat : Operations Requiring a High Degree of Heat, 67 
Blowpipe, 67 
Crucibles, 68 
Ignition, Fusion, Calcination, Deflagration, Torrefaction, Carbonization, . 69 
CHAPTER V. 
Heat : Operations Requiring a Lower Degree of Heat, 71 
Evaporation, 71 
Evaporating Vessels, 72 
Vacuum Apparatus, 76 
Baths, 81 
CHAPTER VI. 
Distillation, 85 
Fractional Distillation, 95 
Destructive Distillation, 97 
Pharmaceutical Stills, 98 
CHAPTER VII. 
Sublimation, 105 
CHAPTER VIII. 
Desiccation, 108 
Desiccators, Ill 
Drying Gases and Liquids, 113 
CHAPTER IX. 
Comminution, 115 
Drug Mills, 116 
Pulverization, 119 
Sifting, 120 
Trituration (Mortars, Spatulas), 121 
Levigation, 125 
Elutriation, 126 
Trochiscation, 127 
CHAPTER X. 
Solution, 128 
Solubility, Conditions Governing, 128 
Solvents used in Pharmacy, 129 
Solutions, Various Kinds, 130 
Solution of Gases, 131 
Density of Solutions, 133 
Changes of Volume and Temperature by Solution, 133 
Determination of Solubility, 134 
Percentage Solutions, 137 
Rules and Examples for Dilution and Fortification, 138 
CHAPTER XL 
Diffusion—Dialysis, 141 
CHAPTER XII. 
Crystallization, 143 
Systems of Crystallography, 143 
Methods of Crystallization, 147 
Growing of Crystals, 149 
Draining Crystals, Crystallizing Vessel, 150 
Effect of Solvents on Crystallization, 151 IX 
CHAPTER XIII. page 
Granulation, 152 
CHAPTER XIV. 
Exsiccation, 153 
CHAPTER XV. 
Deliquescence and Efflorescence, 154 
Deliquescent and Efflorescent Bodies, 154 
Effects of the Exposure of Chemicals to Light and Air, 154 
CHAPTER XVI. 
Precipitation, 156 
Various Causes of Precipitation, 156 
Objects of Precipitation, 157 
Different Classes of Precipitates, 157 
Fractional Precipitation, 159 
CHAPTER XVII. 
Decantation, 161 
Siphons, 162 
Pipettes, • . . 164 
Wash Flask, 165 
Collection and Washing of Precipitates, 165 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
COLATION, 168 
CHAPTER XIX. 
Filtration, 170 
Filter Paper, 170 
Methods of Folding Filter Paper, 171 
Maxims to be observed in Filtering, 174 
Funnels, 176 
Upward Filtration, 178 
Special Filtering Apparatus, 178 
Hot Filtration, 179 
Rapid Filtration, 180 
CHAPTER XX. 
Clarification, 184 
By Application of Heat, 184 
By Mechanical Appliances, 184 
Use of Gelatin, 184 
Use of Insoluble Bodies, 184 
Use of Alcohol 185 
CHAPTER XXI. 
Decoloration, 186 
CHAPTER XXII. 
Separation of Immiscible Liquids, 187 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
Extraction, 189 
Maceration, 189 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. X 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER XXIV. page 
Percolation, 191 
History, 191 
Theory, 192 
Percolators, 193 
Moistening and Packing, 197 
Various Steps of Operation, 197 
Various Forms of Percolating Apparatus, 199 
Pressure Percolation, • 204 
Vacuum “ • 206 
Hot Percolation or Extraction, 207 
CHAPTER XXV. 
Expression, 210 
Screw Presses, 210 
Hydraulic Press, 212 
Centrifugal Machines for Laboratory Use, 213 
PART II. 
GALENICAL PHARMACY.—SOLUTIONS. 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
Aqueous Solutions. 
Aqu.e Medicate, 217 
Medicated Waters prepared by Direct Solution, 217 
“ “ “ “ Intermediate Solution, 218 
“ “ “ “ Distillation, 218 
Explanatory Text, 221 
Table of Official Medicated Waters, 225 
Injectiones 226 
Liquores, 227 
Explanatory Text, 227 
Table of Official Liquors, 243 
Infusa, . • 244 
Various Methods of Preparation, 245 
Table of Official Infusions, . 246 
Decocta 247 
Table of Decoctions, 247 
Mucilagines, 248 
Table of Official Mucilages, 248 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
Acetous Solutions. 
Aceta 249 
Table of Official Vinegars 249 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
Alcoholic or Hydroalcoholic Solutions. 
Spiritus, 250 
Spirits prepared by Direct Solution, 250 
Spirits “ “ Chemical Reaction, 251 
Spirits “ “ Distillation, 251 
Explanatory Text, 251 
Table of Official Spirits, 250 
Vina Medicata, 256 
Table of Official Wines, • 257 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
XI 
PAGE 
Tincture, 258 
Menstruum, 258 
Strength, 258 
Preparation, 259 
Preservation, . 261 
Tincture Herbarum Recentium, .... 261 
Succi, 262 
Explanatory Text—Assays of Tinctures, 262 
Syllabus of Tinctures, 267 
Extracta Fluida, 269 
Menstruum, 269 
Percolation, 270 
Repercolation, 270 
Percolation and Maceration with Expression, 272 
Maceration and Percolation in Vacuo, 273 
Preservation, 273 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
Saccharine Solutions. 
Syrupi, 275 
Various Methods of Preparation, 275 
Clarification, 277 
Preservation, 277 
Explanatory Text, 278 
Table of Official Syrups 283 
Mellita and Oxymellita, 284 
Elixiria 285 
CHAPTER XXX. 
Glycerine Solutions. 
Glycerita 286 
Table of Official Glycerites, 286 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
Oleic Acid Solutions. 
Ole ata, 287 
Preparation by Solution, 287 
Preparation by Chemical Reaction, 288 
Explanatory Text, 289 
CHAPTER XXXII. 
Ethereal Solutions. 
OleoresiNz®, 290 
Various Methods of Preparing, 290 
Table of Official Oleoresins, 291 
Collodia, 292 
Table of Official Collodions, 292 
MIXTURES. 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
Linimenta, 293 
Table of Official Liniments, 293 
Mistura?, 294 
Table of Official Mixtures, 294 XII 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
PAGE 
Emulsiones, 295 
Theory of Emulsification, t 295 
Continental, English and other Methods, 296 
Various Emulsifying Agents, 297 
Emulsification of Special Drugs, 300 
Notes, 301 
Table of Official Emulsions, 302 
SOLIDS. 
I. FOR INTERNAL USE. 
CHAPTER XXXIV. 
PULVERES, 303 
Preparation, 303 
Dividing, 304 
Cachets, 305 
Gelatin Capsules, Hard and Elastic, 307 
Filling Capsules, 307 
Table of Official Powders, 310 
Triturationes, 310 
Oleosacchara, 311 
Confectioner, 312 
Massas, 312 
Explanatory Text, 313 
Trochisci, 314 
Various Forms, Pastilles, Ovoids, Bacilli, 316 
Table of Official Troches, 317 
Pilulas, 318 
Massing, 318 
Excipients, Liquid, 322 
Excipients, Solid, 323 
Classification of Various Substances to be Massed, 324 
Coating, Varnishing, Silvering, Sugar, Gelatin, Keratin and Salol, . . . 326 
Tablettas, 331 
Tablet Triturates, 331 
Compressed Tablets, 335 
Extracta, • 341 
Methods of Preparation, 341 
Physical Character and Preservation, 343 
Table of Official Extracts 343 
Explanatory Text, Assays, 344 
Abstracta 349 
Resinas, 350 
Table of Official Resins, 350 
Resinoids (Eclectic) 350 
II. FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
CHAPTER XXXV. 
Unguenta, 352 
Bases, 352 
Made by Fusion, 352 
“ “ Mechanical Admixture, 352 
“ “ Chemical Reaction, 354 
Preservation and Dispensing, 354 
Table of Official Ointments, 354 
Explanatory Text, . , 355 
Cerata, 357 
Table of Official Cerates, 357 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
XIII 
PAGE 
Emplastra, 358 
Plasters Proper, 358 
Resinous Plasters, 358 
Spreading and Perforation, 358 
Explanatory Text, 361 
Table of Official Plasters, 361 
Charts, 362 
Suppositoria, 363 
Bases, 363 
Hand Rolled, 365 
Moulded, 365 
Compressed, 368 
Various Moulds 370 
Suppository Capsules and Hollow Cacao-Butter Suppositories, 371 
General Remarks, 372 
PART III. 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
The Art of Dispensing. 
The Prescription, 375 
Parts of the Prescription, Analysis, 375 
Grammatical Construction, 376 
Doses, 379 
Abbreviations, 379 
Abbreviation of Latin Terms and Phrases, 380 
Foreign Prescriptions 383 
Cabalistic Signs and Abbreviations, 384 
Metric Prescriptions, 385 
Table of Terms occurring in French and German Prescriptions, .... 385 
Homoeopathic Dispensing, • 388 
“ Prescriptions, ... • 388 
Table of Solubilities, 390 
Explosive Mixtures, 390 
Incompatibles ; Pharmaceutical, Therapeutical and Chemical, 394 
Examples of Incompatibles, classified, 394 
Typical Prescriptions explained, 399 
PART IV. 
CHAPTER XXXVII. 
Volumetric Analysis, 413 
Definitions, 413 
Various Standard Solutions, 413 
Indicators, 414 
Apparatus Employed, 415 
Measuring Flasks and Cylinders, .415 
Pipettes, 415 
Burettes, 415 
Preparation of Standard Solutions, with Exercises, 419 
Alkalimetry, Exercises in estimation of various alkalies, 422 
Acidimetry, “ “ “ “ “ acids, 427 
Standard Solution of Silver Nitrate. —Estimations of Halogens.—Volhard’s 
Method.—Estimation of HCN, KCN, etc., . . 429 
Standard Solution of Iodine.—Estimation of Arsenous Oxide, Sulphurous 
Acid and Sulphites.—Hyposulphites, etc., . . 432 
Standard Solution of Sodium Hyposulphite.—Estimation of Iodine, Chlor 
ine, Bromine, Iron in Ferric Salts, 434 XIV 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
PAGE 
Standard Solution of Potassium Dichromate.—Estimation of Metallic Iron 
and various Ferrous Salts, 436 
Standard Solution of Potassium Permanganate.—Estimation of Hydrogen 
Dioxide, Barium Dioxide, Iron, Ferrous Salts, Hypophosphorous 
Acid and Hypophosphites, 439 
Standard Solution of Bromine.—Estimation of Phenol, 443 
APPENDIX. 
Table of Atomic Weights, 447 
Table of Solubilities, 448 
List of Pharmacopceial Chemicals and Reagents, 455 
Table of Thermometric Equivalents, 461 
Table of Equivalents of Weights and Measures, 466 
Table of Equivalents of Measures of Length, 472 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
FIG. PAGE 
1. The Pound Weight—Ancient and Modern Standards, 9 
2. Position of Stopper for Dropping, 13 
3-5. Vials for producing Drops, • • 14 
6. Metric Diagram, 18 
7. Balance, 21 
8. Beam with Movable Fulcrum, 22 
9. Analytical Balance, 23 
10. Prescription Balance, 23 
11. Hand Scales, .... 24 
12. Proper way of Holding Hand Scales, 24 
13. Army Prescription Scales, 25 
14. Counter-Balance, 25 
15. Counter-Balance (Laboratory), 26 
16. Counter-Balance (Dispensing), 26 
17. Gorham Dispensing Balance, 26 
18. Fairbank’s Druggists’ Scale, 27 
19. Balance for Weighing Solutions, 27 
20. Physician’s Vest-pocket Scale, 27 
21. Counter Scale, 28 
22. Box Prescription Scale, 28 
23. Torsion Counter Scale, 29 
24. Torsion Counter Scale, 29 
25. Torsion Prescription Scale, 29 
26. Triple Graduated Beam, 29 
27. Avoirdupois Iron Weights, 30 
28. Metric Iron Weights, 30 
29. Cup Weights (Troy), 30 
30. Block Weights, 30 
31. Prescription Weights (Metric), 30 
32. Analytical Weights, 30 
33. Aluminum Wire Weights, 31 
34. Aluminum Grain Weights, . 31 
35. Apothecaries’ Coin Weights, 31 
36. Apothecaries’ Brass-foil Weights, 31 
37. Brass Metric Weights, *. . . 31 
38. Aluminum Wire and Foil Weights (Metric), 31 
39. Porcelain Measuring Cup, 32 
40-2. Graduates, 32 
43-5. Cubic-Centimeter and Minim Measures, 33 
46. Hydrostatic Balance, 35 
47. Immersion of Solid (Specific Gravity), 35 
48. Pycnometer, 38 
49. Pycnometer with Thermometer, 39 
50. Squibb’s Pycnometer, 40 
51. Weighing Hydrometer, 41 
52. Scale Hydrometer, 41 
53. Nicholson’s Hydrometer, 41 
54. Rousseau’s Densimeter, 42 
55. Baume’s Hydrometer (Heavy Liquids), 43 
56. Baume’s Hydrometer (Light Liquids), 43 
57. Squibb’s Urinometer with Cylinder, 44 
58. Westphal Specific Gravity Balance, . . 45 
59. Beam of Westphal Balance, showing Position of Weights, 46 
XV XVI 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
FIG. PAGE 
60. Mohr’s Specific Gravity Balance, 47 
61. Jolly’s Spiral Balance, 47 
62. Sprengel Specific Gravity Tube, 48 
63. Specific Gravity of Solid Fats (Westphal Balance), 48 
64. Specific Gravity of Solid Fats (Areometer), 48 
65. Alcohol Lamp, 52 
66. Berzelius’ Alcohol Lamp, 52 
67. Barthel Spirit Lamp, 53 
68. Bunsen Burner, 54 
69. Bunsen Burner, in Sections 54 
70. Bunsen Flames, 55 
71. Bunsen Burner (Seven-tubed), 55 
72. Erlenmeyer’s Burner, 55 
73. Fletcher’s Solid Flame Heating Burner, 56 
74. Fletcher’s Gas Stove 56 
75. Gas Stove, 56 
76. Instantaneous Water Heater, 56 
77-8. Blast Lamp with Cross Section, 57 
79. Thermometer (Milk-glass Scale), 58 
80. Thermometer (Graduated on Tube), 58 
81. Fahrenheit, Centigrade, Reaumur Thermometers, 58 
82. Boiling-point Determination, 61 
83. Fractionating Flask (Measurements) 62 
84. Apparatus for Fractional Distillation, 63 
85. Drawing Out Tubing, 64 
86. Capillary Tubes for Melting Point Determinations, 64 
87. Melting Point Tubes in Position, 65 
88. Taking Melting Point in Bath of Sulphuric Acid, . 65 
89. Long-neck Flask for Melting Point Determinations, 66 
90. Air Bath for Melting Point Determinations, 66 
91. Tubes for Fusing Point Determination, 66 
92. Sectional View of Bunsen Flame, 67 
93. Blowpipe, 67 
94. Blowpipe Flame, 68 
95. Crucibles, Hessian, Graphite, Platinum, Porcelain, Clay, Copper, ... 68 
96. Ignition with Blast Lamp, 69 
97. Mechanical Stirring Apparatus for Evaporating Fluids 72 
98. Mechanical Stirring Apparatus, 72 
99. Cascade Evaporator (Siebert), 73 
100-1. Evaporation, 74 
102. Evaporating and Crystallizing Dishes, 75 
103. Evaporating over Direct Flame, 76 
104. Evaporating with Properly Regulated Flame, 76 
105. Evaporating with Flame Unnecessarily High, 76 
106. Pharmaceutical Vacuum Apparatus, 77 
107. Vacuum Apparatus (Sectional View), 78 
108. Hempel’s Evaporator, 79 
109. Bath for Evaporating Inflammable Liquids, 79 
110-11. Draught Chambers, 80 
112. Copper Water-Bath, 81 
113. Iron Water-Bath, 81 
114. Iron Water Bath with Constant Level, 81 
115. Water-Bath with Constant Level (Kekule), 81 
116. Water-Bath with Constant Level, 81 
117. Water-Bath (Landolt), 82 
118. Steam Evaporating Kettle, 82 
119. Iron Sand-Baths, 82 
120. Filling Sand-Bath, 82 
121. Tripods, 83 
122. Fleck’s Air-Bath, 84 
123. Simplest Form of Distillation, 85 
124. Distillation (Improvised Condenser), ... 85 
125. Distillation, 86 
126. Fractionating Flask with Thermometer, 86 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
XVII 
FIG. PAGE 
127. Flask with T-Tube for Fractionating, 86 
128. Glass Retorts, 87 
129. Filling Retort, 87 
130. Earthenware Retorts, 87 
131. Lead Retort, 87 
132. Liebig Condenser (Improvised), 88 
133-5. Liebig Condensers (Various Forms), 88 
136. Distilling Apparatus with Worm Condenser, 89 
137. Distilling with Air Condenser, 89 
138. Pinch-cocks, 90 
139. Adj ustable Pinch-cocks, 90 
140. Retort Stand, 91 
141. Receivers, 91 
142. Adapters (Various Forms), 91 
143. Retorts with Adapters, . . . . • 92 
144. Position for Breaking a Tube, 92 
145. Bending Tubing, 92 
146. Properly and Poorly Bent Tubing, 92 
147. Mohr’s Cork Borer, 93 
148. Cork File, 93 
149. Lever Cork Press, . . 94 
150. Rotary Cork Press, 94 
151. Flask with Upright or Reflux Condenser, 94 
152. Soxhlet’s Spherical Condenser, 94 
153. Apparatus for Distillation in Current of Steam, 95 
154. French Column Apparatus, 96 
155. Retorts for Destructive Distillation, 97 
156. Laboratory Copper Still, 98 
157. Curtman Still (Sectional View), 98 
158. Beck’s Pharmaceutical Still, 99 
159. Edel’s-Hood Still, 100 
160. Prentiss Still, 100 
161. Remington Still (Sectional View), 100 
162. Automatic Water Still, 101 
163. Curran Water Still, 101 
164. Mitscherlich Condenser, 102 
165. Rice’s Pharmaceutical Still, 103 
166. Experimental Sublimation of Sulphur, 105 
167. Oddo’s Sublimation Apparatus, 105 
168. Bruehl’s Sublimation Apparatus, 106 
169. Sublimation of Benzoic Acid (Small Scale), 106 
170. Sublimation of Benzoic Acid (Hager’s Apparatus), 106 
171. Apparatus for the Preparation of Calomel, 107 
172. Drying Closet (Sectional View), 109 
173. Copper Drying Oven, 110 
174. Copper Drying Oven (Double Wall), Ill 
175. Iron Drying Oven, Ill 
176. Watch-glasses for Weighing Powders, Ill 
177. Bell-glass Desiccator, Ill 
178. Hempel’s Desiccator, 112 
179. Vacuum Desiccator, 112 
180. Gas Wash Bottles, 113 
181. Drying Tube (Chloride of Calcium), 113 
182. Drying Jar (Chloride of Calcium), 113 
183. Poulain’s Pulverizing Works, 115 
184. Enterprise Drug-Mill, 117 
185. Hance Drug-Mill (Cross Section), 117 
186. Hance Drug-Mill (Showing Parts), . 118 
187. Pulverization of Corrosive or Poisonous Substances, 119 
188. Hunter’s Sifter and Mixer, 12o 
189. Trituration, 121 
190. Motion Described by Pestle in Trituration, 121 
191. Iron Mortars, 122 
192. Wedgwood Mortar, 123 XVIII 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
FIG. PAGE 
193. Porcelain Mortar (Shallow), 123 
194. Porcelain Mortar (Deep), 123 
195. Glass Mortar, .... 123 
196. Agate Mortar, 123 
197. Ointment Spatula, 124 
198. Pill Spatula, 124 
199. Horn Spatulas, 124 
200. Powder Spatula, 124 
201. Porphyry Slab and Muller, 125 
202. Levigating Mortar, 125 
203. Elutriation 126 
204. Mould for Levigated Chalk, 127 
205. Table of Curves of Solubility for Nitrates, .... 130 
206. Apparatus for Generation, Washing, and Solution of Gases, 131 
207. Preparation of Chlorine Water, 132 
208. Weighing Bottle, 134 
209. The Lysimeter, 136 
210-11. Dialysers, 142 
212-17. Crystals, Regular or Isometric System, 144 
218-25. “ Tetragonal and Hexagonal Systems, 145 
226-29. “ Rhombic or Ortho rhombic System 145 
230-32. “ Monoclinic System, 146 
233-34. ‘ ‘ Triclinic System, 146 
235-36. Growing Crystals, 149 
237. Draining Crystals, 150 
238. Crystallizing Vessel, 150 
239. Beaker Glasses, 159 
240. Precipitating Jar, 159 
241. Decantation with Guiding rod, 161 
242. Careless Decantation, 162 
243. Decanting over Greased Rim, 162 
244-5. Decanting with Siphon, 163 
246. Siphon Apparatus, 163 
247. Siphons with Suction Tubes, 163 
248. Rinsing out Precipitates, . . 164 
249. Pipettes, 164 
250. Suction Arrangement for Pipettes, 165 
251. Wash or Spritz Flask, 165 
252. 3, 4. Automatic Filtering and Washing Apparatus, 166 
255. Automatic Filtration of Volatile Liquids 167 
256. Straining Bag 168 
257. Strainer Frame, 168 
258-9. Forcible Straining, 169 
260-3 Folding Filters, .... 172 
264. Folding Filter, 172 
265-71. Folding Filters, 173 
272. Plaited Filter 174 
273-4. Decanting Fluids on Filter, 175 
275-6 Filtering Stands . . 175 
277. Filtering into Bottle, . .’ 176 
278. Chemist’s Cover, 176 
279. Properly Shaped Funnel, 176 
280. Proper and Faulty Shaped Funnels, 177 
281. Ribbed or Fluted Funnel, 177 
282. Filter for “ Upward Filtration,” 178 
283. Apparatus for “ Upward ” Filtration of Oils, 179 
284. Perforated Filtering Cone, 179 
285. Jacketed Funnel, 180 
286. Dieterich’s Jacketed Funnel, 180 
287. Liebreich’s Steam Coil Jacket for Hot Filtration, 180 
288. Water Pump, .181 
289. Rapid Filtration, 181 
290. Suction Flask for Rapid Filtration, 182 
291. Funnel with Perforated Disc, 182 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
XIX 
FIG. PAGE 
292. Perforated Porcelain Disc (Kaehler and Martini’s), 182 
293. Rapid Filtration (Improvised Apparatus), 183 
294. Separating Funnel (Stoppered), 187 
295. Separating Funnel (Currier), 187 
296. Separating Flask (Pear shape), 187 
297. Separation of Fluids by Capillary Pipette, 188 
298-9. Separation of Immiscible Fluids by Siphon, 188 
300. Real’s Press (Percolator), 191 
301. Cylindrical Glass Percolator, 193 
302. Conical, “ “ 193 
303. Metal Percolator, 193 
304. Apparatus for Percolation, 196 
305. Graduated Receiving Jar, 196 
306. Christ-Dieterich Percolator, 200 
307. Percolator (Warmbrunn-Quilitz), 200 
308. Siphon Percolator (Squibb’s), . . . 201 
309. “ “ ( “ ' ) 203 
310-11. Lentz’s Pressure Percolator, 205 
312. Percolator with Air Pump, 206 
313. Lewin’s Extraction Apparatus, 207 
314. Currier’s Extraction Apparatus, 208 
315. Tincture Press, • 211 
316. Differential-Arm Screw-Press, 211 
317. Witt’s Pharmaceutical Press, 211 
318. Enterprise Screw Press, 212 
319. Knee Lever Press, 212 
320. Hydraulic Press, 213 
321-22. Centrifugal Machines, 214 
323. Laboratory Centrifugal Machine, 214 
324. Apparatus for the Distillation of Volatile Oils, 219 
325. Squire’s Infusion Mug, • . . . . 245 
326. Infusion Mug, with Bath, 245 
327. Alien’s Nitrometer (Curtmann), 253 
328. Percolation with Volatile Solvent, 290 
329. Soxhlet’s Extraction Apparatus, 291 
330. Seidlitz Powder Measure, 304 
331. Diamond Powder Divider, 304 
332-34. Powder Folders, 305 
335. Apparatus for Sealing Cachets (Chapereau), 306 
336. Apparatus for Sealing Cachets (The Konseal), 306 
337. Capsule Moulds, 307 
338. Globular and Ovoid Capsules, 308 
339. Elastic Gelatin Capsules, . . 308 
340. Hard Gelatin Capsules, 308 
341. Davenport Capsule Filler, 308 
342. Raymond Capsule Filler, 309 
343. Acme Capsule Filler, 309 
344. Troches (Various Forms), 314 
345. Rolling Out Mass for Troches, 315 
346. Troche Cutting Machine, 316 
347. Ovoids, 316 
348. Mouth Pastilles, 316 
349. Pill Mortar, 320 
350. Pill Tile, 320 
351. Pill Pestle, 320 
352. Pill Roller (Sectional View), 320 
353. Pill Spatula, 320 
354. Pill Machine, 321 
355. Pill or Plaster Press, 321 
356. Pill Finisher, 322 
357. Pill Finisher (Adjustable), 322 
358. Pill Silverer, . . 327 
359. Gelatin Pill Coating Machine (Maynard), 329 
360. Gelatin Pill Coating Machine (Patch), 329 XX 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
FIG. PAGE 
361. Tablet Triturate Mould, 331 
362. Compressed Tablet Mould, 339 
363. Compressed Tablet Machine, 339 
364. Ointment Spatula, 353 
365. Plaster Spatula, 358 
366. Forms for Spreading Cerates or Plasters, 359 
367-68. Plaster Block and Iron, 359 
369. Plaster Perforating Machine (Lentz), . 360 
370. Suppositories (Rectal), 363 
371. Wellcome’s Improved-shaped Suppository, 363 
372 Wellcome’s Improved-shaped Bougie, 363 
373. Suppository Moulds, 367 
374. See’s Suppository Mould, 367 
375. Blackmann’s Suppository Mould, 367 
376-77. The Perfection Suppository Machine, 369 
378. Suppository Machine (W., T. & Co.), 369 
379. Bougie Press, 370 
380. Gelatin Suppository Capsules, ... 371 
381-82. Hollow Cacoa-Butter Suppositories, 372 
383. Cabalistic Prescription Signs, 384 
384. Measuring Flasks, 415 
385. Measuring Cylinder, 415 
386. Burette operated with Pinch-cock, . 416 
387. Device for Dropping from Burettes, . . . 416 
388. Burettes with Glass Stop cocks, 416 
389. Meniscus, . . 417 
390. Reading of Meniscus, 417 
391. Burette with Enameled Sides, 418 
392. Effects produced by Meniscus, 418 
393. Erdmann Float, 418 
394. Burette Stand, 419 
395. Burette in Position, 419 HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
INTRODUCTORY. 
The term “ Apotheke” was applied in olden times to 
a place of storage for wines, books, etc. From this is derived 
“apothecary” (Lat. apothecarius). Since the Middle Age, it is 
restricted to those localities where medicinal substances are kept 
and dispensed. 
The term Pharmacy, is derived from the Greek pharmakon 
meaning medicine. It is the art which treats of the 
identification, preparation, testing, and dispensing of medicinal 
substances. 
A Pharmacopoeia (from tpappaxov, medicine, and ««&, to make) 
is a code for the use of the apothecary and physician, which em- 
braces the definitions, descriptions, physical and chemical proper- 
ties, tests and methods of preparation of medicinal agents. 
The earliest work,* which may be compared to our modern 
pharmacopoeias, and of which we have any definite knowledge, 
is an Egyptian treatise, preserved to us in the Papyrus Ebers, 
dating back to 1552 B. C. This contains a large number of formu- 
las, some of them quite complex, the ingredients being ordered 
by certain weights and measures. Nothing else has been pre- 
served to us, in the nature of such a work, within historic times, 
until we descend to the age of Hippocrates (about 460 to 377 B. C.), 
who, with his disciples founded a school of medicine, gradually 
rendering the employment of formularies, to secure uniformity in 
the preparation of medicines, necessary. Real formularies, how- 
ever, were not composed until much later, about the time of Andro- 
machus, Nero’s court physician (about 60 A. D.). After Galen’s 
time, their number gradually increased, but it was not until about 
the thirteenth century that more elaborate works (usually called 
“Antidotaria”) made their appearance. The Arabian physicians 
and their translators during the middle age considerably enriched 
the literature in this direction. The first work which really de- 
serves the name of a pharmacopoeia was composed by Valerius 
Cordus, and was published, after his death, by the city of Nurem- 
berg, in 1546. It was customary in those times to apply the name 
of “Dispensatorium” to formularies of this kind, and up to com- 
paratively recent times, the term Dispensatory has been used, in 
*A very exhaustive article on the subject of Pharmacopoeias and History of Pharmacy, by Dr. 
Chas. Rice, will be found in “A Reference Handbook of the Medical Sciences,” Vol. V and Supple- 
ment Vol.—Wm. Wood & Co., N. Y. 
1 2 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
various countries, in the sense of our “pharmacopoeia,” while we 
now usually apply it to unofficial commentaries on the latter. 
The first United States Pharmacopoeia (in English and Latin) 
was published in Boston in 1820; this has been followed since by 
a new edition every ten years, prepared by a Committee of Revision 
appointed or elected by a convention of medical and pharmaceu- 
tical colleges and societies. Nearly all foreign pharmacopoeias are 
issued by the authority of their respective governments; the 
United States Pharmacopoeia is not thus issued, but at the same 
time it is recognized by our government. 
There are a number of smaller countries which have no national 
pharmacopoeia, but recognize those of other countries; among 
these, the South American States and West Indies, recognize gen- 
erally the Spanish with, in some instances, the French Pharmaco- 
poeia. In China, the foreign apothecaries employ their various 
national pharmacopoeias; while the natives usually follow a volu- 
minous work, entitled Pun-tsao, dating back to about 1560 B. C. 
Any work which takes up the various official (pharmacopoeial) 
and non-official remedies, and treats upon them exhaustively, in 
all their applications and uses in Medicine and Pharmacy, is called 
a “ Dispensatory.” 
TABLE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PHARMACOPCEIAS. 
Country. 
Title of Pharmacopceia. 
Language. 
Number of 
Remedies. 
Entered into 
Force. 
Austria, .... 
Pharmacopcea austriaca. Edi- 
tio septima. 
Latin. 
(578) 
1890 
Belgium, .... 
Pharmacopcea Belgiea. Editio 
secunda. 
Latin and 
French. 
1140 
1885 
Chili, 
Farmacopea Chilena. 
Spanish. 
— 
1886 
Denmark, . . . 
Pharmacopcea Danica. Editio 
tertia 
Danish. 
584 
1893 
England, .... 
British Pharmacopceia. 
English. 
898 
1885 
(Supplement 1889) 
Finnland, . . . 
Pharmacopcea Fennica. Editio 
quarta. 
Latin. 
400 
(about) 
1885 
France, .... 
Codex medicamentarius; Phar- 
macopee fran<;aise. 
French. 
2039 
(about) 
1884 
Germany, . . . 
Arzneibuch fur das Deutsche 
Reich ; dritte Ausgabe. 
German. 
603 
1891 
Greece, 
‘EAAtjvlkt) 4>ap/xaKO7rotca. 
Latin and 
Greek. 
976 
1868 
Hungary, . . . 
Magyar Gyogyszerkonvy. MA- 
sodik kiadAs. 
Latin and 
Hungarian. 
576 
1888 
Japan, 
Pharmacopcea Japonica. Edi- 
tio altera. 
Latin. 
448 
1891 
Italy, 
Farmacopea ufficiale del regno 
d’Italia. 
Italian. 
597 
1892 
Mexico, .... 
Nueva Farmacopea Mexicana. 
Spanish. 
— 
1884 
(Supplement 1890) 
Netherlands, . . 
Pharmacopcea Neer]andica. 
Editio tertia. 
Latin and 
Dutch. 
533 
1890 
Norway 
Pharmacopcea Norvegica. Edi- 
tio tertia. 
Norwegian. 
— 
1898(f) 
Portugal, .... 
Pharmacopea Portugueza. 
Portuguese. 
1600 
(about) 
538 
1876 
Roumania, . . . 
Pharmacopcea Romana. 
Roumanian. 
1874 
Russia, 
Rossiiskaja Pharmakopeya. 
Russian. 
808 
1891 
Sweden, .... 
Pharmacopcea Suecica. Editio 
octava. 
Swedish. 
— 
1893 
Switzerland, . . 
Pharmacopcea Helvetica III. 
German- 
French-Italian. 
1038 
1894 
Spain, 
United States of 
Farmacopcea oficial Espanola. 
Sexta edicion. 
Spanish. 
1598 
1884 
America, . . . 
Pharmacopoeia of the United 
States of America. Seventh 
decennial revision. 
English. 
994 
1893 3 
INTRODUCTORY. 
In earlier times, the different pharmacopoeias or treatises ap- 
peared entirely in the Latin language; of late years, however, 
the text of these works has usually been written in the native 
language of the country in which it is issued, the Latin being 
retained in the various titles. 
Latin has been retained, chiefly because, being a dead language, 
it is not subject to the various changes and modifications of the 
different modern tongues. Even with the employment of Latin, 
various pharmacopoeias differ slightly in their nomenclature; thus 
in the case of the chemicals, one will place the electro-positive, 
another the electro-negative element first; for instance, sulphate 
of iron is variously named Ferrum sulphuricum, Ferri sulphas, 
Sulphas ferri and Sulphas ferrosus. Some pharmacopoeias employ 
the term kalium for potassium and natrium for sodium. In the 
Dutch, Danish, and Swedish pharmacopoeias, the titles of the 
chemical salts are expressed by treating the base as an adjective 
placed after the general name of the salt, corresponding, for 
example, to the English “Sodic Sulphate.” For Potassii acetas 
or Kalium aceticum they have Acetas kalicus; for Sodii bro- 
midura or Natrium bromatum they have Brometum natricum; 
for Bismuthi subnitras or Bismuthum subnitricum they have 
Subnitras bismuthicus. 
The various parts of the text of each article in the U. S. Phar- 
macopoeia are arranged in the following order:— 
1. The official Latin title. 
2. The English title. 
3. In the case of chemicals, the symbolic formula and mole- 
cular weight. 
4. In certain cases, one or more synonyms. 
5. Definition, wherever necessary. 
6. Mode of keeping, where necessary. 
7. Description, physical, chemical, or botanical, followed, where 
necessary, by tests of identity, purity, and strength. 
8. Preparations which may be considered as forms of adminis- 
tration of the drug. 
1st. The Official Latin Title.—This is expressed in Latin, and 
is intended to express concisely the nature of the chemical, drug, 
or plant-part recognized. The U. S. P. ignores all remedies not 
included in itself, hence only that part of a drug or plant is 
used which it recognizes. Thus, under the title Aconitum, the 
Pharmacopoeia refers only to the tuber, and to no other part of 
the Aconitum napellus. When two different parts of a plant are 
recognized, then the Latin name of the particular part is added 
to the title; thus, “Belladonna Folia” for belladonna leaves, and 
“Belladonna Radix” for the root. For the galenical prepara- 
tions, such titles are selected as will most nearly indicate the 
nature or the composition of the preparation, attention being 
given also to simplicity and brevity of expression. Thus, “ Pulvis 
Ipecacuanhas et Opii ” indicates at once the composition of the 4 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
powder; but where several constituents enter into the composi- 
tion of a preparation, the title includes only the main constituent, 
the remainder being indicated by the term compositus. 
The various pharmacopoeial titles conform to the rules of 
Latin grammar.* Thus, we write: Solution of Potassa, Liquor 
(nominative) Potassa) (genitive); Cyanide of Mercury, Hydrar- 
gyri (gen.) Cyanidum (nom.); Pills of Phosphorus, Pilulae (nom. 
plural) Phosphori (gen.). Where there are two different oxides, 
iodides, or salts of the same base, a distinguishing adjective is 
usually appended in order to discriminate between the two; 
thus, we distinguish the two chlorides of mercury by the adjec- 
tives “ corrosivum ” and “ mite,” respectively. 
When an adjective is employed, it must agree in gender with 
the principal noun; thus, the masculine form “compositus” 
(compound) becomes “composita” with feminines, and “com- 
positum ” with neuters. We write Pulvis Cretse Compositus 
(masc.), Tinctura Benzoini Composita (fem.), and Decoctum Sar- 
saparillae Compositum (neut.). 
2d. The English Title.—That is, the English name which the 
Pharmacopoeia selects or coins to designate the article. Very 
generally, this is identical with the vernacular name of the 
article, or that by which it is known in the market. In some 
cases the Pharmacopoeia coins a new name, for valid reasons. 
In the case of vegetable drugs, the genus name of the plant is 
often selected as the official English title, so that in many cases 
the official Latin title and the English title are identical. 
3d. The Symbolic Formula and Molecular Weight.—In writing 
the symbolic formulas of acids, the replaceable hydrogen atoms 
are written before the other elements (thus, HC1, H2SO4, H3PO4, 
HC2H3O2, etc.). A period is used in the case of some com- 
pounds, where it is desired to show the existence of several inti- 
mately connected radicals or constituents (thus, in Ammonium 
Carbonate, NH4HCO3.NH4NH2CO2). Water of crystallization 
is separated from the formula of its salt by a + sign. 
4th. The Synonym, that is, the name by which the article is 
popularly known.—Synonyms are only added where special rea- 
sons exist ; for instance, where the English title introduced by the 
Pharmacopoeia is not usually employed in commerce, or where a 
change has been made either in the Latin or English title, and 
attention is to be drawn to this. For example, under the title 
“ Hydrargyri Oxidum Rubrum ” we have the synonyms “ Red 
Mercuric Oxide ” and “ Red Precipitate ; ” this latter name arises 
from its old title, “ Mercurius Precipitatus Ruber.” Salts of 
hydrochloric acid have formerly been called muriates, the term 
being derived from muria (salt water). 
The term Cremor (creme) was applied during the Middle Age 
to substances which separated on the surface of a fluid ; later, 
* A good work of reference is Robinson’s “Latin Grammar of Pharmacy and Medicine.” INTRODUCTORY. 
5 
this term was applied to all precipitates; hence this title was given 
to the acid potassium tartrate (argols) which precipitates on the 
sides of wine casks, being called Cremor tartari, hence the source 
of the synonym, Cream of Tartar. These synonyms are some- 
times misleading and inaccurate; for instance, sugar of lead for 
Plumbi acetas, or white vitriol for Zinci sulphas, or blue vitriol 
for Cupri sulphas. 
5th. The Pharmacopoeial Definition.—This is not necessary in 
all cases, but, where applied, it embraces in a few words a de- 
scription of the chemical or botanical nature and source of the 
substance. Thus, the U. S. P. defines Coca as “ the leaves of 
Erythroxylon Coca Lamarck (nat. ord. Linese),” and Gallic Acid 
as “an organic acid, usually prepared from tannic acid.” 
6th. Modes.of Keeping.—In those instances where the prepara- 
tion or drug is sensitive to the influence of air, light, heat, etc., 
the Pharmacopoeia specifies that certain precautions should be 
taken in regard to its proper preservation. 
7th. The Description.—This is intended to be a concise state- 
ment of the characteristic physical properties of the drug, followed 
wherever necessary, and particularly so in the case of chemicals, 
by tests of identity and purity. PART I. 
CHAPTER I. 
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES* 
A perfect system of Metrology should bear a simple relation 
to some constant and indestructible object, the length or size of 
which is known or can be readily determined with accuracy. 
Any three units (of which no one is derivable from the other two) 
may be selected as fundamental units. In the systems in present 
use the units of Length, Mass, and Time have been set aside as 
fundamental units, and the various systems of absolute units 
differ only as to the particular unit selected for measurement of 
Length, Mass, and Time. Mass and Weight are not identical. 
Mass is constant; it is the quantity of matter. Weight is the 
force with which the mass is drawn toward the center of the 
earth. The weight of Mass varies. When a body (Mass) is 
attached to a spiral balance (Jolly’s) and weighed at the sea- 
level, then on a mountain-top, it will be found to have decreased, 
and at the equator it will weigh less than at the poles. At the 
equator of the sun a pound would -weigh 27.62 lbs., owing to the 
difference in the force of gravity. When we say a body weighs 
10 pounds, we mean that the body is drawn toward the earth 
with ten times the force with which the standard pound is drawn 
toward the earth. 
The Unit of Time is the Second. This is stthrto °f mean 
solar day. 
The Unit of Length, recognized as the standard in England 
and North America, is the English Yard of 36 inches. The yard 
and inch were formerly based upon a standard yard-stick in the 
custody of the British Board of Trade. Later on, it was found 
that a pendulum swinging seconds of time in vacuo at the level 
of the mid-tide in the latitude of London, measured 39.13929 
inches, such as are derived from the standard yard. Should the 
latter become lost or destroyed, therefore, a new standard yard 
identical with the present one may readily be constructed. 
The Unit of Length, or absolute standard, is the Meter, a 
ten-millionth part of the earth’s quadrant (from pole to equator). 
As this unit was based on calculation, a practical standard was 
* A good work of reference is Oldberg’s “ Manual of Weights and Measures.” 
7 8 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
constructed by marking the above-mentioned distance on a bar 
made of an alloy of Platinum and Iridium (chosen because of its 
great hardness and durability) preserved in the French Archives. 
Copies of this were furnished to all nations who bore a share of 
the expense, among others, to this country. The meter is the 
compulsory standard of measure in all civilized countries except 
the United States and Great Britain; it is the recognized standard 
for all scientific observations. 
The Unit of Weight.—The British standard Pound is a cer- 
tain mass of platinum in the London Standards Office. If one 
cubic inch of distilled water, in vacuo, weighs 252.892 grains, 
then the standard pound contains 5760 of these grains. 
The unit of weight is the Kilogramme, a mass of platinum kept 
in the French Archives, copies of which were also furnished to 
certain other countries, among them the U. S. A. This is the 
weight of Ttyjjo Part °f a cuhic meter, or the weight of one cubic 
decimeter of distilled water at its greatest density (4° C.). 
Weight * has always been determined from Measure. From the 
remotest of times, we find various physical standards of weight 
and measure. The ancient Egyptians employed the Cubit and 
Foot, for which the human body furnished the basis. The Greek 
Talent was obtained from a cubic foot of water, and the Mina, 
or the part of this, is nearly identical with the modern 
Pound. Two distinct pounds have always been in use, one for 
monetary, and one for commercial purposes. 
The oldest known set of standard weights was discovered in 
the ruins of Nineveh by Mr. Layard. The earliest standard in 
England was the old Saxon pound, identical with the old Apoth- 
ecaries’ pound of Germany (5500 Troy grains). The Pound 
Sterling was determined from this weight in silver. 
In 1266, Henry III decreed the following standards: “ 32 grains 
of wheat from the middle of the ear, well dried, should weigh a 
pennyweight, of which 20 should go to the ouncetwelve such 
ounces made the pound, eight pounds one gallon of wine. 
The denomination of the grain originated with the French. 
The term “ Troy,” as applied to this system, is derived from the 
fact that it was brought from the East at the time of the Crusades, 
and first adopted at Troyes, a commercial town of France. The 
Troy weights were readily adopted by jewelers and apothecaries 
for the sake of convenience. The term “Karat” is employed by 
jewelers, being equivalent to four Troy grains; when meant to 
express the fineness of gold, the karat means the twenty-fourth 
part; thus, 14-karat gold means of gold and of base metal. 
Troy weights are no longer employed in medicine. Sometimes 
* True and Apparent Weight.—The Zrwe weight of a body is its weight “ in vacuo.” The appar- 
ent weight is its weight in air under ordinary conditions of atmospheric pressure and temperature. 
This apparent weight of a body weighed in any medium, as air or water, is less than its true weight, 
the difference being the weight of the air or water displaced by the body itself, less the weight of the 
air or water displaced by the weights used. In pharmacy and ordinary commercial weighing the 
apparent weight only is considered. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
9 
the words “Troy ounce” are employed,meaning the apothecaries’ 
ounce. Both are the same, being, however, differently subdivided. 
Fig. 1. 
The Pound Weight—Ancient and Modern Standards.* 
1. Exchequer Standard Avoirdupois Pound of Queen Elizabeth. 2. Assyrian Bronze Lion Standard 
Weight. 3. Assyrian Stone Duck Standard Weight. 4. Form of Modern Local Standard 
Avoirdupois Weight. 5. Official Secondary Standard Pound of Gilt Metal. 6. Imperial Stand- 
ard of Platinum. 7. Platinum Troy Pound of the Royal Society. 8. Platinum Troy Pound of 
the Standard Department. 9. Standard Troy Pound of 1758. ’ 10. Exchequer Standard Troy 
Pound of Queen Elizabeth. 
24 grains,.... 1 pennyweight. 
20 pennyweights, 1 ounce 480 grains. 
12 ounces, 1 pound, 5760 grains. 
Troy Weight. 
Signs. 
Grain, Gr. or gr. 
Ounce, Oz. or oz. Troy. 
Pound, lb. 
* Illustration taken from article by F. H. Taylor, Western Druggist, 1892, p. 175. 10 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Apothecaries’ Weight. 
20 grains, 1 scruple. 
3 scruples, 1 drachm, 60 grains. 
8 drachms, 1 ounce, 480 grains. 
12 ounces, 1 pound, 5760 grains. 
Grain, Gr. or gr. 
Scruple, 9. 
Drachm, 
Ounce, 2. 
Pound, ib. 
Signs. 
AVOIRDUPOIS WEIGHT. 
This system first appears in use at the time of Edward III 
(1327-1377), who decreed that “ we will, and establish, that one 
weight, one measure, and one yard be throughout the land, and 
that woolens and all manner of avoirdupois be weighed.” The 
term “avoirdupois” is derived from aver or avoirs (Fr.), meaning 
“ havings,” the old appellation for portable goods, chattels, etc., 
and poids (Fr.), meaning “weight,”—“aver de pois,” goods of 
weight. In time, the term lost its meaning, and later, at the time 
of Henry VIII (1532), it was ordered that “ beef, pork, mutton, and 
veal shall be sold by weight” called “ haverdupois;” hence, in 
early times, the term was applied to goods themselves, and later 
on to the system of weights employed for these kinds of goods. 
All goods bought by the apothecary are weighed by the avoir- 
dupois system. For instance, a |-ounce vial of morphine does not 
contain | of 480 grains, but | of 437.5 grains, or 54.68 grains; or 
one ounce of sulphate of quinine is 437.5 grains, and not 480. 
Avoirdupois Weight. 
437.5 grains, 1 ounce, 
16 ounces, 1 pound, 7000 grains. 
100 pounds, ... 1 hundredweight. 
20 hundredweights, 1 ton. 
27.34 Troy grains, . . 1 drachm. 
16 drachms, ... 1 ounce. 
Signs. 
Ounce, Oz. or oz. 
Pound, . Ib. 
Hundredweight, cwt. 
Ton, T. 
We have one unit common to all, viz.: “ the grain.” The Troy- 
ounce contains 42.5 grains more than the Avoirdupois ounce. 
The Troy pound contains 1240 grains less than the Avoirdupois 
pound. 
Avoirdupois, . . 437.5 grains in ounce, .... 7000 grains in pound. 
Troy, J80.0 grains in ounce, .... 5760 grains in pound. 
Difference, 42.5 grains. 1240 grains. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
11 
The term “ grain,” is derived from Latin “ granum,” and was 
originally based on the weight of a grain of wheat * as already 
stated. Its value is now derived from the weight of a cubic inch 
of distilled water, weighed in vacuo against brass weights, at 
60° F., under a barometric pressure of 30 inches; this, according 
to the latest calculation, is said to be 252.892 grains. 
In 1834, the English standards of weight and measure, con- 
sisting of a yard and a pound Troy of brass, were destroyed at the 
burning of the Houses of Parliament. Prior to this, great con- 
fusion existed, three different gallons being in use: The Wine 
gallon of 231, Corn gallon of 268, and Ale gallon of 282 cubic 
inches. After this, a revision and restoration was resolved upon, 
since the duplicates of the standards of brass had suffered oxida- 
tion. A cubic inch of distilled water weighed in air, against 
brass weights (of density of 8.3) at the temperature of 62° F., 
and the barometer at 30 inches (760 Mm.), was determined to be 
equal to 252.458* grains, of which the standard Troy pound con- 
tains 5760. As to the unit of length, they adopted the length of 
a pendulum, swinging seconds of mean time, in a vacuum, at the 
level of mid-tide in the latitude of London (or 39.13929 inches). 
From this is now derived the new British standard yard, which 
is the length at 62° F., between two marks, on the gold plugs of 
a bronze bar in the Standards Office, London, being 36 of the 
before-mentioned inches. 
The Imperial gallon contains 277.24 cubic inches; the Wine 
gallon being 231 cubic inches. In 1826 this set of weights and 
measures was finally adopted as a rival to the Metric system, 
which was then being introduced from France. This system is 
now employed in medicine and pharmacy in Great Britain. The 
Imperial standard pound is declared to be the weight of an 
avoirdupois pound in a vacuum. The Imperial standard of 
platinum balances the brass weights in a vacuum. The volume 
of 70,000 grains, or 10 avoirdupois pounds, of pure water at 62° 
F., and barometer at 30 inches, is the Imperial gallon. The Im- 
perial pint is divided into 20 fluidounces, and weighs at 62° F. 
20 avoirdupois ounces. The gallon, quart, and pint are nearly 
20 per cent, larger than the corresponding volumes in wine 
measure. The fluidounce is about four per cent, smaller than the 
United States fluidounce. 
The weights and measures employed in the United States are 
assumed to be copies of the units of length, and of the old wine 
and Winchester measures, formerly employed in England, which 
were discarded years ago. 
In 1827 the United States procured a copy of the British brass 
Troy pound for the use of the Mint. This was declared by law in 
*The value now employed by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey is 252.333 grains, based 
on the French determination of the mass of a cubic decimeter of water at its maximum density. 12 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
1873 to be the “standard Troy pound of the Mint of the United 
States, to which the coinage thereof shall be regulated.” This is 
the only actual standard we have, a copy of a standard long 
discarded. Our wine gallon of 231 cubic inches was many 
years ago abolished by England. So our present system of 
weights and measures rests upon discarded standards. The 
Metric System was made lawful, though not compulsory, by 
Act of Congress in 1866. 
(The unit of capacity for liquids is the wine gallon of 231 cubic inches.) 
United States Liquid Measure. 
Signs. 
4 gills,1 pint. Gill,gi. 
2 pints, ... 1 quart. Pint,pt. 
4 quarts, .... 1 gallon. Quart,qt. 
Gallon,gal. 
United States Apothecaries’ or Wine Measure. 
60 minims, . . 1 fl. drachm. 
8 fl. drachms, . 1 fl. ounce, . 480 minims. 
16 fl. ounces, . 1 pint, . . . 128 fl. drachms, . 7680 minims. 
8 pints, ... 1 gallon, . . 128 fl. ounces, . 1024 fl. drachms, . 61,440 minims. 
Signs. 
Minim, 
Fluidrachm, fg. 
Fluidounce,flj. 
Pint,O. 
Gallon, Cong, or C. 
Distilled Water at 15.5° C. (60° F.). 
1 minim, 0.95 grains weight. 
60 minims, ... 1 fluidrachm, .... 56.96 “ “ 
480 “ ... 1 fluidounce, .... 455.69 “ “ 
7,680 “ ... 1 fluid pint,7,291.11 “ 
61,440 “ ... 1 fluid gallon, .... 58,328.88 “ “ 
(1 Imperial Gallon, 277.274 cubic inches.) 
60 minims, . . 1 fl. drachm. 
8 fl. drachms, . 1 fl. ounce, . 480 minims. 
20 fl. ounces, 1 pint, . . . 160 fl. drachms, . 9600 minims. 
8 pints, ... 1 gallon, . . 160 fl. ounces, . 1280 fl. drachms, . 76,800 minims. 
Imperial Measure, B. P. 
Equivalents of Imperial Measure in United States Fluid Measure. 
(The Imperial Gallon being the weight of 10 avoirdupois pounds of distilled water at 60° F. (15.5° C.). 
Imperial Measure. United States Wine Measure. 
1 minim. 0.96 minims. 
1 fluidrachm, .... 57.60 “ 
1 fluidounce, .... 460.86 “ ... 7.68 fluidrachms. 
1 fluid pint, ... 9,217.34 “ ... 19.202 fluidounces. 
1 gallon 73,738.75 “ ... 9.601 pints. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
13 
We have thus four different ounces: the Troy of 480 grains, 
the Avoirdupois of 437.5 grains, the Fluidounce of 455.69 grains,* 
the Imperial B. P. fluidounce of 460.86 (U. S.) minims. 
The Minim is a very convenient unit of fluid measure; it is 
nearly equal to the average “ drop ” of distilled water. A minim 
of distilled water at normal temperature weighs 0.95 grains. The 
drop varies in size. The measurement of liquids by drops does 
not give uniform or accurate results. A drop is the resultant of 
three forces,—gravity, cohesion, and adhesion,—and as these vary, 
so do drops vary in size; heavy mobile liquids form small drops, 
viscid liquids form large drops. The quantity of liquid in the 
vessel, the rapidity of dropping, the size and shape of the lip of 
the vessel (influencing the adhesive force), and the temperature of 
the liquid, are all conditions which influence the size of drops. 
Aqueous solutions average .... 50 to 60 minims to the fluidrachm. 
Fixed oils “ . . . 65 to 80 “ “ “ “ 
Volatile oils “ .... 90 to 110 “ “ 4‘ “ 
Alcohol and alcoholic liquids . . 120 to 140 “ “ “ ‘‘ 
Ethereal liquids (chloroform) . . . 200 to 300 “ “ “ “ 
Foreign pharmacists, who are accustomed to weigh fluids, 
measure the fluid in drops for quantities weighing less than two 
Fig. 2. 
Position of Stopper for Dropping. 
grammes. Some pharmacopoeias state that, on an average, from 
20 to 25 drops of distilled water are equivalent to one gramme 
(one cubic centimeter). Among these, some give tables of the 
number of drops equivalent to the gramme of each of the 
official liquids. Thus water, aqueous solutions, fixed oils, heavy 
volatile oils, tinctures, fluid extracts, etc., may be reckoned as 
20 drops to the gramme, light volatile oils, ethereal liquids 
(Spiritus /Etheris Compositus, Spiritus 2Etheris, etc.), as 25 drops, 
and ether as 50 drops to the gramme. When drops are to be 
measured, the bottle should not be over three-fourths filled ; then 
by means of the stopper, moisten the neck and lip, and allow 
* Variously stated as 455.6216, 455.6994, and 455.6910 grains. Consult Oldberg’s “ Manual of 
Weights and Measures.” 14 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the liquid to flow slowly past the stopper held at an angle to 
the lip (Fig. 2). This insures more regularity in the size of the 
drops, and prevents the liquid from forming a stream. 
There area great variety of arrangements for producing drops; 
none however, are capable of producing drops of the same size 
from different liquids. 
Fig. 3. 
Fig. 4. 
Fig. 5. 
Vials for Producing Drops. 
It is customary for many pharmacists to note on the label of 
the dispensing bottle the number of drops to the gramme in each 
special case. 
APPROXIMATE MEASURES. 
The following is the approximate capacity of the various 
household measures:— 
A tumblerful,fSviij. 
A teacupful, 
A wineglassful, ij. 
A tablespoonful,f£ iv. 
A dessertspoonful, 
A teaspoonful,fg j. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
15 
A TABLE SHOWING THE NUMBER OF DROPS IN A FLUIDRACHM, ALSO THE WEIGHT OF ONE FLUI- 
DRACHM IN GRAINS AND GRAMMES FOR EACH OF THE PREPARATIONS NAMED. 
From, a list by S. L. Talbot, Printed in “Era Dose Book," and corrected to agree with the U. S. P, 1890. 
DROPS IN A FLUIDRACHM. 
Name. 
1 DROPS IN FLUI- 
DRACHM, 60 MIN. 
WEIGHT 
OF FLUI- 
DRACHM. 
Name. 
DROPS IN FLUI- 1 
DRACHM, 60 MIN. 
WEIGHT 
OF FLUI- 
DRACHM. 
1 In 
Grains. 
CO 
In 
Grains. 
— ® 
Acetuni Opii, 
90 
61 
3.95 
Liquor Hydrargyri Nitratis, . 
131 
123 
7.97 
Scillie, 
68 
57 
3.69 
lodi Compositus, 
63 
59 
3.82 
Acidum Aceticum, 
108 
58 
3.75 
Potassa, 
62 
58 
3.75 
Aceticum Dilutum 
68 
55 
3.56 
Potassii Arsenitis, 
57 
55 
3.56 
Carbolicuni, 
111 
59 
3.82 
Soda Chlorata, 
63 
62 
4.01 
Hydrochloricuni, 
70 
65 
4.21 
Zinci Chloridi, 
89 
88 
5.70 
Dilutum, 
60 
56 
3.62 
Oleoresina Aspidii, 
130 
52 
3.36 
Hydrocvanicum Dilutum, . . 
60 
54 
3.49 
Capsici, 
120 
51 
3.30 
Lactieum, 
111 
66 
4.25 
Cubeba 
123 
52 
3.36 
Nitricum, 
102 
77 
4.98 
Oleum zEthereum, 
125 
50 
3.24 
Dilutum, 
60 
58 
3.62 
Amygdala Amara, 
115 
55 
3.56 
Nitrohydrochloricum, .... 
76 
66 
4.27 
Expressum, 
108 
48.5 
3.14 
Phosphoricum Dilutum, . . . 
59 
57 
3.69 
Anisi, 
119 
54 
3.49 
Sulphuricum, 
128 
101 
6.54 
Bergamottae, 
130 
46 
2.98 
Aromaticum, 
146 
53 
3.43 
Can, 
132 
50 
3.24 
Dilutum, 
60 
58.5 
3.79 
Caryophylli, 
130 
57 
3.69 
Sulphurosum, 
59 
55 
3.56 
Cinnamdmi, 
126 
53.5 
3.46 
JEther, 
178 
39 
2.52 
Copaiba, 
123 
49.5 
3.20 
Alcohol, 
146 
44 
2.85 
Cubeba, 
125 
51 
3.30 
Dilutum 
137 
49 
3.17 
Faniculi. 
125 
53 
3.43 
Aqua, 
60 
55 
3.56 
Gaulthena, 
125 
62 
4.01 
Ammonia Fortior, 
66 
50 
3.24 
Juniperi, 
148 
49 
3.17 
Destillata, 
60 
53.5 
3.46 
Lavandula Florum, 
138 
52 
3.36 
Balsamuni Peruvianum, .... 
101 
60 
3.88 
Limonis, 
129 
47 
3.04 
Bromum, 
250 
165 
10.69 
Mentha Piperita, 
129 
50 
3.24 
Chloroformum, 
250 
80 
5.18 
Ricin i 
77 
51.5 
3.33 
Copaiba, 
110 
51 
3.30 
Rosa, 
132 
47 
3.04 
Creosotum, 
122 
56.5 
3.66 
Rosmarini, 
143 
50 
3.24 
Extractuni Belladonna Radicis 
Sassafras, 
133 
58 
Fluiduni, 
156 
57 
3.69 
Terebinthina, 
136 
45.5 
2.94 
Cimicifuga Fluiduni, .... 
147 
48 
3.11 
Tiglii, 
104 
50 
3.24 
Cinchona Fluidum, . . 
138 
58 
3.75 
Spiritus zEtheris Compositus, . 
148 
45 
2.91 
Colchici Radicis Fluiduni, . . 
160 
37 
3.69 
zEtheris Nitrosi, 
146 
47 
3.04 
Seminis Fluidum, 
158 
55 
3.56 
Ammonia Aromaticus, . . . 
142 
48 
3.11 
Digitalis Fluidum, 
134 
62 
4.01 
Chloroformi, 
150 
48 
3.11 
Gelsemii Fluidum, 
149 
49 
3.14 
Mentha Piperita, 
142 
47 
3.04 
Hyoscyami Fluidum, .... 
160 
59 
3.82 
Syrupus, 
65 
72 
4.66 
Ipecacuanha Fluidum, . . . 
120 
60 
3.88 
Ferri lodidi, 
65 
77 
4.98 
Pareira Fluidum 
140 
51 
3.72 
Tinctura Aconiti, 
146 
46 
2.98 
Rhei Fluidum, 
158 
61 
3.95 
Belladonna Foliorum, . . 
137 
53 
3.43 
Sarsaparilla Fluidum Com- 
Cantharidis, 
131 
51 
3.33 
positum, 
134 
60 
3.88 
Cinchona Composita, .... 
140 
49 
3.17 
Senega Fluidum, 
137 
62 
4.01 
Digitalis, 
128 
53 
3.43 
Serpentaria Fluidum, . . 
148 
47 
3.07 
Ferri Chloridi, 
150 
53 
3.43 
Uva Ursi Fluidum, 
137 
60 
3.88 
lodi, 
148 
47 
3.04 
Valeriana Fluidum, .... 
150 
49 
3.17 
Nucis Vomica, 
140 
44 
2.85 
Veratri Viridis Fluidum, . . 
150 
50 
3.24 
Opii, 
130 
53 
3.43 
Zingiberis Fluidum, . . . 
142 
48 
3.11 
Camphorata, 
130 
52 
3.36 
Glyeerinum 
67 
68 
4.40 
Deod'orati 
110 
54 
3.49 
Liquor Acidi Arsenosi, .... 
57 
55 
3.56 
Valeriana, 
130 
52 
3.36 
Ammonii Acetatis, 
75 
56 
3.62 
Veratri Viridis, 
145 
46 
2.98 
Arseni et Hydrargyri lodidi, 
58 
55 
3.56 
Zingiberis, 
144 
46 
2.98 
Ferri Citratis, 
71 
72 
4.66 
Vinum Colchici Radicis,.... 
107 
55 
3.56 
Nitratis, . . 
59 
59 
3.82 
Colchici Seminis, 
111 
54 
3.49 
Subsulphatis, 
73 
83 
5.37 
Opii 
100 
55 
3.56 
Tersulphatis, 
83 
72 
4 66 
This originated in France in 1790, with the selection of a defi- 
nite value, the one ten-millionth part of the earth’s quadrant, 
the calculated distance from the earth’s equator to the pole; this 
METRIC SYSTEM, OR DECIMAL SYSTEM. 16 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
value can be calculated at any time it may be necessary. Any 
immaterial object may be taken as a standard for a system, pro- 
vided it represents a fixed and absolute value, which can always 
be calculated and reproduced, should the standard be lost. This 
is fulfilled by the Metric System. Its name originated from the 
Greek word pLpov, meaning “measure.” The original standard 
Meter, represented by the distance between certain marks on a 
bar of platinum, is preserved in the French Archives in Paris, 
duplicates of which have been furnished to a number of other 
countries. It is universally employed in scientific work, and is the 
legal standard in most European countries, except Great Britain, 
receiving official sanction in the English-speaking countries. 
Although Washington called the attention of Congress to the 
advantages of this system in 1795, and Madison in 1816, again 
later in 1821, it did not receive official recognition until the year 
1866, when, by act of Congress, it was declared “ lawful in the 
United States to employ the weights and measures of the metric 
system.” It was officially introduced into the Marine Hospital 
service, and later endorsed by various scientific societies. The 
U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1890 has adopted the system entirely. 
For the student, in learning this system, it is preferable to 
refrain from comparing each term, mentally, with the correspond- 
ing term in the system familiar to him. Such comparisons or 
conversions have, of course, frequently to be made, but while 
fixing the system into the memory, it is best to treat it independ- 
ently of any other system. 
The Metric System is based on the meter, which is the standard 
unit of linear measurement. 
The Standard Metric Unit of Weight is the weight of 
one cubic decimeter of pure water at 4° C., represented by a piece 
of metal preserved at Paris, called the Kilogramme. 
The Standard Unit of Volume is the Liter, which is the 
volume of one cubic decimeter of pure water at 4° C. (weighing 
one Kilogramme). 
Of these standards, there are a few derivatives commonly 
employed, namely, the cubic centimeter, which is a volume- 
capacity represented by a cube, each face of which is 1-100 of a 
meter, 1000 of these constituting a Liter. 
The Gramme is the weight of one cubic centimeter of pure 
water at its greatest density. 1000 grammes constitute the kilo- 
gramme. 
This system is called decimal, since the various units and parts 
thereof, are derived from the standard unit by a system of deci- 
mals (decern—10). 
On the same principle we divide our dollar into fractions, 
represented by tenths, hundredths, or thousandths, or into 
multiples thereof, by tens, hundreds, and thousands. For the sake 
of simplicity, a system of prefixes is employed derived from Greek ERRATA. 
Page 17.—The 25th, 26th, and 27th lines from the top should 
read, 
10 milligrammes = 1 centigramme = 0.01 gramme. 
100 “ = 10 “ 1 decigramme = 0.1 gramme. 
1000 “ =100 “ 10 “ 1.0 “ 
Page 19. — The 7th line should read decigramme instead of 
decimeter. 
Page 19. — The 8th line should read centigramme instead of 
centimeter. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
17 
numerals to express the upward scale, or multiple fractions, and 
from Latin numerals to express the downward scale, or decimal 
fractions. 
Greek 
increases 
Deca, ... 10 times. 
Hecto, . . 100 
Kilo, . . . 1000 “ 
Latin 
decreases 
Deci, . . . 1-10 part. 
Centi, . . 1-100 “ 
.Milli, . .1-1000 “ 
In the following table we find a general view of the system 
with its application of decimals:— 
1000. Kilometer, Km. 1000. Kiloliter, KI. 1000. Kilogramme, Kg. 
100. Hectometer, Hm. 100. Hectoliter, Hl. 100. Hectogramme, Hg. 
10. Dekameter, Dm. 10. Dekaliter, DI. 10. Dekagramme, Dg. 
1. Meter, M. 1. Liter, L. 1. Gramme, Gm. 
0.1 Decimeter, dm. 0.1 Deciliter, dl. 0.1 Decigramme, dg. 
0.01 Centimeter, cm. 0.01 Centiliter, cl. 0.01 Centigramme, cg. 
0.001 Millimeter, mm. 0.001 Milliliter, ml. 0.001 Milligramme, mg. 
M.,meter. 
Cm.,centimeter. 
Mm.,millimeter. 
L.,liter. 
Cc., cubic centimeter. 
Gm.,gramme. 
Cg.,centigramme. 
Mg.,milligramme. 
1 milligramme = 0.001 gramme 
10 milligrammes = 1. centigramme = 0.01 gramme 
100 “ 10. “ 1. decigramme = 0.1 gramme 
1000 “ 100. “ 10. “ 1.0 “ 
All of the before-mentioned terms are not in common use. 
Of measures of weights, the kilogramme (often called simply 
the Kilo), gramme, centigramme, and milligramme are usually 
employed in pronouncing a given weight. For instance, 16.143 
Gm. is not read “ sixteen grammes, one decigramme, four centi- 
grammes, and three milligrammes,” but 1116 grammes and 143 
milligrammes.” 
Of measures of capacity, only the liter and cubic centimeter are 
usually employed. 
Of measures of length, the meter, centimeter, and millimeter 
are commonly in use. In microscopic work, the thousandth part 
of a millimeter (micromillimeter—mkm ; also called micron, the 
symbol of which is m) is often employed. 
One side of the cube (Fig. 6) is supposed to measure one-tenth 
of a meter or one decimeter, and if each side be the same, the ca- 
pacity of the cube represents one liter (1000 Cc.); the lower edge 
is divided into ten parts, each representing in length the one- 
hundredth part of a meter, or one centimeter; the capacity of a 
cube constructed on this, represents one cubic centimeter, which 18 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
when filled with pure water at 4° C. weighs one gramme; the 
upper edge is subdivided into centimeters and millimeters, 
(urn)* . , 
For the purpose of approximately converting terms of the 
Metric into our own United States system, and vice versa, it is 
Fig. 6. 
Scale of Milxt 
3.9370432 Inches. 
I L itre = I OO O C.C. 
Metric Diagram—Comparison of Measures of Length, Capacity, Weight. 
not necessary, for practical purposes, to apply a series of rules, 
but merely to remember the comparative value of the chief 
standards. For instance :— 
1 meter (for measures of length), 39.37 inches. 
1 gramme (for measures of weight), .... 15.432 grains. 
1 cubic centimeter (for measures of capacity), 16 minims (30 Cc. = 1U. S. fiuidounce). WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
19 
From these we can readily calculate the different values:— 
1 meter, 39.37 inches. 
1 decimeter, 3.93 “ 
1 centimeter, 0 39 “ or about f of an inch. 
1 millimeter, 0.039 “ “ “ “ 
1 gramme, 15.432 grains. 
1 decimeter, 1.5432 “ 
1 centimeter, 0.15432 “ or about | of a grain. 
1 milligramme, 0.015432 “ “ “ “ 
1 kilogramme, 15432. “ “ “ 2.2 av. lbs. 
1 cubic centimeter, 16 minims, or about | U. S. fluidrachm. 
4 Cc., 1 fluidrachm. 
16 Cc., 4 “ 
32 Cc., 1 fluidounce. 
500 Cc., 16.9 fluidounces. 
1000 Cc., 33.8 “ 
The above figures are approximately correct and answer for all 
practical purposes. 
For table of equivalents of the various systems refer to the 
Appendix. 
For reading and writing the various quantities of the Metric 
system, the following examples may be given:— 
25 grammes are written, 25.0 (25X1.0, 25.0 ) 
25 decigrammes are written, . . . 2.5 (25 X 0.1, 2.5 ) 
25 centigrammes “ “ ... 0.25 (25X0.01, .... 0.25 ) 
25 milligrammes “ “ ... 0.025 (25 X 0.001, .... 0.025) 
or 
1000 grammes are written, . . . 1000.0 or 1 Kilo 1 Kg. 
500 “ “ “ ... 500.0 “ j Kg. 
250 “ “ “ ... 250.0 “ | Kg. 
100 decigrammes are written, . . 10.0 (100X0.1, . . . . 10. ) 
100 centigrammes “ “ . . 1.0 (100X0.01, .... 1.0) 
100 milligrammes “ “ . . 0.1 (100X0.001, . . . 0.1) 
1000 cubic centimeters are written, 1000 Cc., or 1 Liter. 
500 “ “ “ “ 500 Cc., “ i “ 
250 “ “ “ “ 250 Cc., “ J “ 20 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
EQUIVALENTS OF METRIC WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.* 
Avoirdupois Weight in Grammes. 
1-16 oz. = 1.772 grammes. 
% oz. = 3.544 grammes. 
U oz. = 7.088 grammes. 
% oz. = 14.175 grammes. 
1 oz. = 28.350 grammes. 
2 ozs. = 56.699 grammes. 
3 ozs. = 85.049 grammes. 
4 ozs. = 113.398 grammes. 
5 ozs. = 141.748 grammes. 
6 ozs. = 170.098 grammes. 
7 ozs. = 198.447 grammes. 
8 ozs. = 226.796 grammes. 
9 ozs. = 255.146 grammes. 
10 ozs. = 283.496 grammes. 
11 ozs. = 311.846 grammes. 
12 ozs. = 340.195 grammes. 
13 ozs. = 367.544 grammes. 
14 ozs. = 396 894 grammes. 
15 ozs. = 425.243 grammes. 
1 pound = 453.592 grammes. 
2 pounds = 907.18 grammes. 
3 pounds = 1360.78 grammes. 
4 pounds = 1814.37 grammes. 
5 pounds = 2267.96 grammes. 
6 pounds = 2721.55 grammes. 
7 pounds = 3175.14 grammes. 
8 pounds = 3628.74 grammes. 
9 pounds = 4082.33 grammes. 
10 pounds = 5435.92 grammes. 
U. S. Fluid Measure in Cubic Centimeters. 
1 minim = .06 cubic centimeter. 
2 minims = .12 cubic centimeter. 
3 minims = .18 cubic centimeter. 
4 minims = .25 cubic centimeter. 
5 minims = .31 cubic centimeter. 
10 minims = .62 cubic centimeter. 
20 minims = 1.23 cubic centimeters. 
30 minims = 1.85 cubic centimeters. 
1 fluidrachm = 3.70 cubic centimeters. 
2 fluidrachms = 7.39 cubic centimeters. 
3 fluidrachms = 11.09 cubic centimeters. 
4 fluidrachms = 14.79 cubic centimeters. 
5 fluidrachms = 18.48 cubic centimeters. 
6 fluidrachms = 22.18 cubic centimeters. 
7 fluidrachms = 25.87 cubic centimeters. 
1 fluidounce = 29.57 cubic centimeters. 
2 fluidounces = 59.14 cubic centimeters. 
3 fluidounces = 88.72 cubic centimeters. 
4 fluidounces = 118.29 cubic centimeters. 
5 fluidounces = 147.86 cubic centimeters. 
6 fluidounces = 177.44 cubic centimeters. 
7 fluidounces = 207.01 cubic centimeters. 
8 fluidounces = 236.59 cubic centimeters. 
1 pint = 473.17 cubic centimeters. 
1 quart = 946.35 cubic centimeters. 
1 gallon = 3785.51 cubic centimeters. 
Metric in United States Fluid Measure. 
1 cubic centimeter = 16.23 minims. 
2 cubic centimeters = 32.46 minims. 
3 cubic centimeters = 48.69 minims. 
4 cubic centimeters = 1.08 fluidrachms. 
5 cubic centimeters = 1.35 fluidrachms. 
10 cubic centimeters = 2.71 fluidrachms. 
25 cubic centimeters = 6.76 fluidrachms. 
30 cubic centimeters = 1.01 fluidounce. 
50 cubic centimeters = 1.69 fluidounces. 
100 cubic centimeters = 3.38 fluidounces. 
500 cubic centimeters = 16.90 fluidounces. 
1000 cubic centimeters = 38.81 fluidounces. 
Troy Weight in Grammes. 
1-100 grain = 0.00065 gramme. 
1-64 grain = 0.00101 gramme. 
% grain = 0.00810 gramme. 
% grain = 0.01620 gramme. 
% grain = 0.03240 gramme. 
1 grain = 0.0648 gramme. 
1% grains = 0.0972 gramme. 
2 grains = 0.1296 gramme. 
5 grains = 0.3239 gramme. 
10 grains = 0.6479 gramme. 
20 grains = 1.2960 grammes. 
30 grains = 1.9440 grammes. 
60 grains 
(1 troy drachm) = 3.8880 grammes. 
2 drachms = 7.7760 grammes. 
4 drachms = 15.5520 grammes. 
1 ounce = 31.1035 grammes. 
2 . ounces = 62.201 grammes. 
3 ounces = 93.31 grammes. 
4 ounces = 124.41 grammes. 
5 ounces = 155.51 grammes. 
6 ounces = 186.62 grammes. 
7 ounces = 217.72 grammes. 
8 ounces = 248.82 grammes. 
9 ounces = 280.00 grammes. 
10 ounces = 311.03 grammes. 
11 ounces = 342.14 grammes. 
12 ounces = 373.24 grammes. 
14 ounces = 435.44 grammes. 
16 ounces = 497.65 grammes. 
24 ounces = 746.48 grammes. 
48 ounces = 1492.95 grammes. 
100 ounces = 3110.40 grammes. 
U. S. in Metric Linear Measure. 
= 6.35 millimeters. 
%inch = 12.70 millimeters. 
%inch = 19.05 millimeters. 
1 inch = 2.54 centimeters. 
2 inches = 5.10 centimeters. 
3 inches = 7.62 centimeters. 
4 inches = 10.20 centimeters. 
5 inches = 12.70 centimeters. 
6 inches = 15.24 centimeters. 
7 inches = 17.78 centimeters. 
8 inches = 20.32 centimeters. 
9 inches = 22.86 centimeters. 
10 inches = 25.40 centimeters. 
11 inches — 27.94 centimeters. 
12 inches = 30.48 centimeters. 
Metric Weights in Grains. 
.050 gramme = .772 grain. 
.100 gramme = 1.543 grains. 
.250 gramme = 3.858 grains. 
.500 gramme = 7.716 grains. 
1 gramme = 15.432 grains. 
2 grammes = 30.865 grains. 
3 grammes = 46.297 grains. 
4 grammes = 61.729 grains. 
5 grammes = 77.162 grains. 
10 grammes = 154.323 grains. 
25 grammes = 385.809 grains. 
50 grammes = 771.617 grains. 
100 grammes = 1543.235 grains. 
500 grammes = 7716.174 grains. 
1000 grammes = 15432.350 grains. 
* The Era Dose Book. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
21 
WEIGHTS. 
Weights are small pieces of metal (or glass, etc.) so adjusted as 
to correspond with the legal standards. Commercial weights are 
of iron, brass, or bronze. Analytical weights are made of brass, 
and should be plated with either gold or platinum, to protect 
them from corrosion or oxidation, which usually takes place in 
brass or other metals. Those of smaller denomination, from 0.5 
Gm. down, are usually made of aluminum or platinum. Weights 
of agate are also to be had; the value of these is at once apparent. 
The balance is any instrument based upon the principle of the 
equal or unequal lever, for determining the relative weights or 
THE BALANCE. 
Fig. 7. 
Balance. 
masses of bodies. A balance consists of an inflexible metallic 
beam (A B) supported horizontally, exactly over its center of 
gravity, by the fulcrum (n), which consists of a steel or agate 
prism, passing through the beam, and resting with its sharp edge 
upon two supports of steel or agate. At the extremities of this 
beam, pans are suspended in such a manner, that they may turn 
freely about axes passing through the extremities of the beam, 
and parallel to its axis of rotation. Thus we have three steel or 
agate edges; the middle one edge downward supporting the 
beam, and those at the extremities edge upward. On these are 22 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
supported the agate or steel plates to which the pans are attached. 
Every equal-arm balance possesses three important points,—the 
fulcrum (point of support) and the extremities of the two arms. 
At one extremity the force acts, and at the other the weight. 
The two arms must be precisely equal in length, the pans must 
also be of equal weight. To prove these two conditions, place 
two equal weights, one in each pan, until the beam becomes 
exactly horizontal, as shown by the pointer; then interchange 
the weights, and it will remain horizontal if the arms are equal. 
The center of gravity of the lever or beam should be as near as 
possible, yet immediately below, the fulcrum. 
In Fig. 8 the effect of a change in the position of the center of 
gravity, is shown by raising or lowering the fulcrum c by means 
of screw b. When the fulcrum is at the top of the groove, the 
center of gravity of the beam is below its edge, and the latter os- 
cillates freely about a position of stable equilibrium. By lower- 
ing the fulcrum it may be brought to the exact center of gravity, 
where the beam no longer oscillates, but remains in equilibrium 
Fig. 8. 
Beam with Movable Fulcrum. 
in all positions. When the fulcrum is brought below the center 
of gravity, the beam is in a state of unstable equilibrium and is 
overturned by the least displacement. 
In balances for heavy weights, the center of gravity is placed 
lower than in delicate instruments, for by this arrangement the 
beam oscillates more readily, though it requires a larger weight- 
to start it. 
Single Beam, Equal-Armed Lever Balances.—In a delicate 
or analytical balance, the axes of rotation are formed by agate 
knife edges bearing on polished agate plates. The beam is pro- 
vided with three agate edges, the middle one, edge downward, 
serving as support of the beam itself, and those at the extremities 
with knife-edges upward, on which are supported the agate plates, 
to which the pans are attached. The beam is made as light as pos- 
sible. There should also be a frame support to both the pans and 
beam, so that the beam may at any moment be released from 
contact with the agate plates, and the delicate knife-edges may not 
sustain injury from pressure or shocks. In order to define the 
position of the beam of the balance, a long metal pointer is fixed 
to it and oscillates with it. A small graduated index is fixed 23 
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
near the base of the pillar and the motion of the beam is observed 
by noting the motion of the pointer along this index. When the 
balance is in good adjustment, the pointer should be opposite the 
central mark of the in- 
dex, showing the beam 
to be horizontal. 
Levels should be 
placed in the glass 
case containing the 
balance, to show that 
it is in proper position, 
for a balance must 
always stand perfectly 
level? A balance is 
delicate when a very 
minute difference be- 
tween the weights in 
the pans, causes a per- 
ceptible deflection of 
the pointer. To assist 
this, the beam should 
be as light as possible 
consistent with its rig- 
idity. Since friction 
opposes the action of the forces, the number of points of friction 
should be as few as possible, and, in addition to this, the edges 
upon which the beam and pans are supported, should be made as 
hard as possible; hence agate is chosen with preference, as it is 
not liable to corrosion, like steel. In the more accurate balances, 
the beam is divided into ten 
parts with subdivisions, in- 
dicating milligrammes and 
tenths thereof. Above the 
beam is a brass rod, provided 
with a small hook, which can 
be moved back and forth from 
the outside. By its aid a 
small w’eight, in the form of a 
bent wire called a rider, usu- 
ally weighing 1 milligramme, 
may be placed on any of the 
divisions of the beam. By 
means of this, minute weigh- 
ings may be made where larger 
weights are not suitable. In 
weighing a body on an analytical balance, place it clean and dry 
upon one pan, then place a corresponding weight on the other 
pan, and slowly remove the frame supports of the arm and pans 
by means of the key; if on so doing, the indicator shows that one 
Fig. 9. 
Analytical Balance. 
Fig. 10. 
Prescription Balance. 24 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
pan is heavier than the other, restore the supports and change 
the weights accordingly, continuing this until the pointer swings 
equally about the center point, or remains stationary at the center. 
What has been said about the analytical balance also holds 
good for the prescription balance. 
Never load or unload a pan when the beam is rotating, but first 
arrest the scale-pans. 
Weights should be placed and removed by means of a pair of 
ivory-pointed pincers. 
Loads and weights must be placed on the pan carefully, and 
not suddenly. 
In weighing powders, employ watch-glasses, which should have 
been carefully adjusted to equilibrium. 
No fuming liquids should be weighed on a delicate balance, 
unless in a properly closed vessel. 
Each object, before being -weighed, should be wiped perfectly dry. 
Before attempting to load any balance, first see that the beam 
moves freely about, and finally rests in a state of equilibrium. 
An analytical or prescription balance should be kept in a dry 
and clean room, where there is but little variation of temperature, 
and should be enclosed in a suitable glass case. 
A balance should never be overloaded. Each one has its safe 
limit of capacity, and suffers accordingly when overtaxed. 
It is customary to place a wide-mouthed flask or capsule con- 
taining sulphuric acid or calcium chloride inside of the balance 
case, to keep the air as dry as possible. 
Hand Scales.—This form of scale consists of a brass beam 
MAXIMS. 
Fig. 11. 
Fig. 12. 
Hand Scales. 
Proper Way of Holding Hand Scales. 
with a central knife edge, which is enclosed, to protect it from dust 
and corrosion as much as possible. The two pans are of horn 
supported by silken cord from wire hooks, which are hung from 
perforations in each end of the beam; a pointer, perpendicular to 25 
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
the beam, oscillates between the supporting arms. In weighing, 
the scales should be grasped by the hook above (Fig. 12), between 
the thumb and fore-finger, the equilibrium of the beam being pre- 
served by holding the fourth and fifth fingers on either side. While 
the pans are loaded, any slight deviation to either side is felt at once 
by the indicator oscillating to the right or left; before the material 
is removed, the balance should be 
allowed to swing free. These hand 
balances, with care, can be used for 
weighing quantities as low as one centi- 
gramme. They should not be em- 
ployed for weighing alkaloids or po- 
tent drugs. For this purpose, only 
the sensitive prescription balance (Fig. 
10) should be employed. 
A similar form called the Army Bal- 
ance (Fig. 13), in which the beam is 
supported upon a rigid pillar, is very 
convenient for prescription use, but in- 
asmuch as they are made of brass and all the metal bearings are 
exposed, they soon corrode; the sensitive parts become filled with 
Fig. 13. 
Army Prescription Scales. 
Fig. 14. 
Counter Balance. 
dust, and the balance becomes worthless. Such a balance should 
be kept under a glass cover protected from moist air and dust. 
Fig. 14 illustrates a form of Counter Balance, which is very con- 26 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
venient and quite accurate. They should be lacquered to prevent 
rusting. 
Figs. 15, 16 illustrate two forms of the counter scale, in which 
the pans are above the beams; the one (Fig. 16) is provided with 
Fig. 16. 
Fig. 15. 
Counter Balance (Laboratory). 
Counter Balance (Dispensing). 
a graduated parallel bar, upon which a poise slides back and 
forth. This is very useful for counterpoise weighing. 
Single Beam, but Unequal-Armed Lever Balances.—The 
simplest form of these is the old steelyard or Roman balance, in 
which only the shorter arm bears a pan; the longer arm, by 
Fig. 17. 
Gorham Dispensing Balance. 
means of notches, is divided into a scale, over which slides a 
counterpoise weight. An embodiment of this same idea is the 
Gorham dispensing balance (Fig. 17) in which a rod or tube, slid- 
ing within a tubular arm, replaces the external movable weight. 
The same principle, is shown in the Fairbank’s druggists’ scale, 
in which the inequality in the length of a beam permits the use WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
27 
of a sliding counterpoise weight along the longer graduated 
arm. This possesses the advantage that it dispenses witli the 
use of small weights. Fig. 
19 illustrates a new form 
of Double Beam and Un- 
equal-Armed Balance, 
which is specially adapted 
for weighing liquids. It 
will weigh liquids up to 
ten kilos and over with an 
accuracy, that cannot be 
approached by ordinary 
methods. The scale is 
provided with two weigh- 
ing beams and sliding 
poises. One of these is 
divided into one hundred 
parts, each part represent- 
ing one gramme; the other beam is divided into ten parts, 
each representing one hun- 
dred grammes. A bar 
with a sliding poise is 
placed under and between 
the weighing beams, for 
the purpose of balancing 
the empty bottle or con- 
tainer, which is quickly 
done by sliding the poise 
along the bar until equi- 
librium is secured. 
A convenient form of vest-pocket prescription scale based on 
this principle, is that made by Shepard & Dudley, of New York. 
Fig. 18. 
Fairbank’s Druggists’ Scale. 
Fig. 19. 
Balance for Weighing Solutions. 
Fig. 20. 
Physician’s Vest-pocket Scale. 
It is very convenient for physicians, and answers very well as a 
substitute for the horn-pan balance. 
Compound Lever Balances.—This system is based on the 
old Robervahl balance, in which the pans are above a system of 28 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
levers (which is usually concealed in a box). In this system, 
practical convenience and rapidity are gained, at the expense of 
accuracy. The great objection to this form is that it will never 
vibrate as smoothly as the other forms of balances, because of the 
great friction in the numerous pivots. The Counter Scale, illus- 
Fig. 21. 
Counter Scale. 
trated in (Fig. 21), is constructed upon this principle, having a 
large number of points of friction. 
The Box Prescription Scale (Fig. 22) is constructed upon this 
same principle. These scales are, indeed, very convenient, being 
enclosed and protected from 
dust and air. They do not, 
however, long retain their 
accuracy, hence are not well 
adapted for prescription use. 
These defects of the Com- 
pound Lever Balance have 
been overcome to a great 
extent by the Springer Tor- 
sion Balance, in which the 
knife edge, upon which the 
old form of balance depends, 
is replaced by thin steel 
springs, stretched tightly 
between bearings, the center of the beam being fastened to the 
center of the strained spring and at right angles to it. Under this 
condition, the beam will vibrate precisely as an ordinary beam, 
balanced upon knife edges. Torsional resistance tends to hold 
the beam in a horizontal position. This is overcome, however, 
by placing an adjustable weight (supported on a perpendicular 
rod attached to the beam) just over the center of gravity; this 
has the tendency to produce unstable equilibrium, and induces 
vibration to either side. This weight (ball) can be raised or 
lowered on the perpendicular rod, thereby regulating sensitive- 
ness (Fig. 23); it is now replaced by two smaller weights, one 
on either side of the central frame (Fig. 24). From the illustra- 
Fig. 22. 
Box Prescription Scale. WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
29 
tions, the balance will be seen to consist of two beams (upper and 
lower), supported on three frames of like size. Over each of these, 
Fig. 23. 
Fig. 24. 
Torsion Counter Scale. 
Torsion Counter Scale. 
a steel wire (band) is stretched, which forms the support for the 
beam. 
Figs. 23, 24, illustrate two forms of counter scale which are 
sensitive to | grain, and will carry 
20 pounds without injury. The 
one shown in figure 24, is provided 
with a triple graduated beam with 
sliding weight, inside the glass case; 
this beam is graduated in the Metric, 
Troy and Avoirdupois systems. Fig. 
25, illustrates the prescription bal- 
ance, enclosed in a glass case with 
rider and adjustment, by means of 
which, from | grain to 8 ouncescan 
be weighed with the upper half of the 
graduated beam, and from J centi- 
gramme to 5 decigrammes, with the lower half. The balance is 
said to be sensitive to of a grain. 
Fig. 26. 
Triple Graduated Beam. 
The principal advantage possessed by this balance, is its freedom 
from friction; hence its greater accuracy; the only objection it is 
open to, is the unavoidable rigidity of the elastic wires. 30 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Care.—The Counter scale should be placed on a firm, level 
surface, where it will not be exposed to any jarring or corrosive 
vapors. It should be frequently cleansed with soft leather, care 
being taken to remove particles of dust that may collect on any 
exposed points; when used, the pans should always be covered 
with counterbalanced pieces of glazed paper, to avoid the adher- 
ing of moist powders, which, in time, would cause corrosion; when 
the pans are to be cleaned, they are best washed with warm soap- 
suds and well dried. Never scour the pans or any of the working 
parts of a balance. 
Weights.—The commercial weights are usually circular and 
flat; the older styles were made cup-shaped, fitting one into the 
other. These forms will answer very well for commercial pur- 
Fig. 27. 
Fig. 28. 
Fig. 29. 
Avoirdupois Iron Weights. 
Metric Iron Weights. 
Cup Weights (Troy). 
poses, for weighing by the pound, but will never do for weighing 
small amounts, where any degree of accuracy is required, since, 
owing to the numerous cavities, filth is apt to collect in them. It 
is always preferable to buy the so-called Block-weights, lacquered. 
These are conveniently arranged in regular order in a wooden 
block, thus enabling the user readily to find any desired weight; 
Fig. 31. 
Fig. 32. 
Block Weights. 
Prescription Weights (Metric). 
Analytical Weights. 
also, they do not receive the rough usage and wear in handling, 
as the cup-shaped form. Every apothecary should be provided 
with a set of accurate prescription weights (Fig. 31); these usually 
come in wooden blocks with hinged covers, and are generally 
made of brass, except those of denominations from 10 grains, or 
from 500 milligrammes down, which are usually made of alumi- 
num. Each box of weights should be provided with a pair of WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
31 
smooth-pointed pincers (preferably tipped with ivory), for the 
purpose of handling the weights. 
Never handle prescription or analytical weights with the fingers. 
Figs. 33, 34. 
Aluminum Wire Weights. 
Aluminum Grain W eights. 
The apothecaries’ coin brass weights, as usually employed 
throughout the country, are very inaccurate, owing to the careless, 
cheap manufacture, and constant rough handling and corrosion. 
The brass-foil grain weights are subject to the same objection; the 
Figs. 35, 36, 37, 38. 
Apothecaries’ Coin Weights. 
Brass-foil Grain Weights. 
Brass Metric Weights. 
Aluminum Wire Weights (Metric). 
Aluminum Metric Weights, 
best form of grain weights are those of aluminum wire, their 
angular form rendering them easily distinguishable; these do 
not corrode. 32 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
MEASURING FLUIDS. 
For the measurement of fluids, the apothecary employs almost 
altogether the glass graduate. This has entirely supplanted the 
old form of porcelain measuring cup, which 
being graduated inside, made it very difficult 
to measure off' fluids with any degree of accu- 
racy. Glass graduates are now furnished in 
various forms and designs; the tumbler-shaped 
is generally preferred, because of the ease with 
which it is cleaned. These are recommended 
for measuring quantities over one fluidounce 
(30 Cc.). Because of its smaller diameter near 
the bottom, the conical form admits the meas- 
uring of the smaller quantities with more 
accuracy; however, some forms of these are 
not as easily cleansed as those of wider bottom. Lately, an im- 
provement has been made by graduating measures doubly; upon 
one side, the U. S. fluid measures are marked, while on the other, 
measures of the metric system are indicated. For the accurate 
measurement of smaller volumes, small graduated cylinders are 
preferably employed. These are graduated into fluidrachms and 
minims, or cubic centimeters and fractions thereof. 
Fig. 39. 
Porcelain Measuring 
Cup. 
Fig. 40. 
Fig. 41. 
Fig. 42. 
Tumbler-shaped Graduate. 
“Acme” Graduate. 
Conical-shaped Graduate. 
Great care should be exercised in the selection of graduates, 
and only measures of guaranteed accuracy, or such which have 
been verified, should be accepted. It is advisable to select meas- 
ures in which the graduating mark passes entirely around the 
graduate, which assists in securing the level of the fluid with 
more accuracy. 
We cannot expect to measure accurately, if the graduate be WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
33 
held at an angle, instead of perpendicularly, as it should be. The 
measure should be grasped just above the base, between the 
thumb and forefinger, the weight being supported upon the other 
three fingers; and it should be held so that the rings of graduation 
are in a perfectly horizontal plane. 
In order to test the accuracy of a graduate or measuring cylin- 
der, it should be carefully counterbalanced on a pair of sensitive 
scales, then the requisite weight of distilled water corresponding 
to a given volume at 60° F. poured in, for which purpose the 
fluidounce may be reckoned equal to 455.69 grains, or the cubic 
centimeter equal to 1 gramme. Then the measure should be 
Fig. 43. 
Fig. 44. 
Fig. 45. 
Cubic Centimeter and Minim Measures. 
placed on a perfectly level surface, and the height of the water as 
compared with the marks of the measure carefully noted. 
For measuring very small volumes, such as 20 minims (or 1 Cc.) 
or less, the minim graduate should not be used, since there is a 
considerable loss of fluid in draining off, which adheres to the 
side of the measure. If the graduate can be rinsed out with other 
fluids subsequently entering the same mixture, the loss is avoided. 
Where such is not the case, recourse is had to the measuring 
pipette (page 165). 
These pipettes are constructed of various capacities ; the larger 
sizes, which usually have a bulb, hold 5, 10, 20, and 50 cubic 
centimeters respectively ; the smaller, which are plain, graduated 
tubes, hold one fluidrachm, graduated into fractions and minims, 
or one cubic centimeter divided into tenths CHAPTER II. 
SPECIFIC GRAVITY. DENSITY* 
Specific Gravity may be generally defined, as the weight of a 
body compared with the weight of an equal volume of some 
standard substance. For liquids and solids, the standard chosen 
is distilled water at 4° C. (39° F.). Specific gravity expresses a 
relative, and not an absolute value. It states how many times 
lighter or heavier the known volume of a body is, than the same 
volume of another, which is taken as a standard. When we say 
that the specific gravity of mercury is 13.5, we mean that 1 cubic 
centimeter, or 1 fluid ounce, or 1 liter, etc., of it is 13.5 times as 
heavy as the same volume of water. A knowledge of specific 
gravity often assists qualitative tests in the identification of miner- 
als, metals, salts, organic substances, fluids, etc. It often enables 
us to ascertain their purity, as the presence of foreign bodies exerts 
an influence upon their specific gravities, causing them to be raised 
or lowered. It enables us to tell at once what any given volume 
of a liquid should weigh, or conversely, what volume will be 
required to contain any given weight. From the specific gravity 
we can readily calculate the percentage strength of many fluids, 
such as acids, alkaline solutions, solutions of salts, etc. From 
the specific gravity of urine, the physician diagnoses certain 
diseases. 
Since all bodies expand or contract by change of temperature, 
it is necessary carefully to observe this when determining specific 
gravities, for 1 Cc. of water at the temperature of 4° C. or 39° F. 
(its greatest density) weighs 1 gramme, while the same volume 
at a temperature of 15.5° C. or 60° F. weighs 0.999 Gm. The 
standard volume of water for unity (1000) used for comparison, 
varies in different nations, being on the Continent of Europe 
generally taken at its maximum density (4° C.), in Great Britain 
at 16.6° C., and in the United States at 15.5° C., together with 
the Pharmacopoeia standard of 15° C. 
For general purposes, we express the value of any specific 
* On account of its more general use the term specific gravity is retained, although “ density” is 
more accurate. The former involves the consideration of the action of the earth’s attraction on the 
body to be examined. This attraction is not uniform over the whole of the earth’s surface, being 
1 to 2 per cent, less at the Equator than at the Poles. Practically, no difficulty arises from this fact, 
for we generally take the specific gravity or density of a body by means of a balance, in which case 
the relationship between object weighed and the weights, remains unchanged. When we employ 
the .Tolly spring balance (Fig. 61), the above difficulty arises, in which the object is less attracted at 
the Equator, than at other parts of the earth’s surface. 
34 35 
SPECIFIC GRA VITY. DENSITY. 
gravity to three places of decimals, which usually involves more 
or less error in the third place; however, where greater accu- 
racy is required, it is expressed to four, five, or more decimal 
places, the necessary corrections being applied to eliminate 
errors as far as possible. 
SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF SOLIDS. 
The methods for the determination of the specific gravity of 
solids depend on the principle discovered by Archimedes, that 
when a solid is immersed in water, it loses in weight an amount 
equal to the volume of water it displaces. The solid whose 
specific gravity is to be taken—assuming it to be insoluble in 
water—is well cleansed and freed from adhering moisture, then 
accurately weighed (denote this weight by x); then, by means 
of a horse-hair, silk thread, or fine platinum wire, it is suspended 
Fig. 46. 
Fig. 47. 
Hydrostatic Balance. 
Immersion of Solid. 
from one arm or pan of a balance, so that it is entirely sub- 
merged, and does not come in contact with the sides of the 
vessel holding the water (Fig. 47); its weight is then noted (denote 
by i/). A thermometer placed in the water indicates the tempera- 
ture (t). The specific gravity is then found by the rule (1):— 
“ Divide the tveight of the body in air by its loss of weight in 
water: the quotient will be the specific gravity.” That is, the specific 
gravity at the temperature t° is equal to 36 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Example:— 
A piece of metal weighs in air, 40 grammes. 
Immersed in distilled water (60° F.) it weighs, . . 35 “ 
Loss of weight in water, 5 “ 
Then its specific gravity at 60° F., ..... = —---— = - ~ = 8.00. 
40 — 35 5 
This determination may be carried out more expeditiously by 
means of the hydrostatic balance (Fig. 46), which consists of 
two counterbalanced pans (hung at unequal heights); under the 
shorter one is placed a hook, from which the body is suspended. 
The latter is first weighed alone in the usual manner in air, then 
immersed in the vessel of water at the proper temperature; this 
causes the short pan to become lighter. Weights are then added 
until the balance gains its equilibrium; the weight thus placed 
in the short pan to accomplish this, constitutes the loss of weight 
in water. 
Displacement in Graduated Cylinder.—Into a cylinder 
graduated in cubic centimeters, or better, fractions thereof, water 
of the proper temperature is poured, until it reaches some 
definite mark on the graduated scale. The body previously 
weighed in air is now dropped into it, which causes the level of 
water to rise, and thereby shows the exact bulk of water displaced 
by the solid; this is equivalent to the loss of weight in water, 
since each cubic centimeter of water weighs one gramme. Then 
apply the rule:— 
Example:— 
A piece of metal weighs, 3.0 grammes. 
The bulk of water displaced, 1.5 cubic centimeters = 1.5 Gm. 
3 0 
The specific gravity will be = 2.0. 
Separation of Different Insoluble Bodies by Means of their Specific 
Gravities.—This method is employed mainly by mineralogists for 
separating various minerals from crushed rock ore. Dense liquids 
of known specific gravity are employed, in which these solids will 
just float. For substances lighter than water, dilute spirits may 
be used; for those heavier than water, solutions of common salt, 
solution of mercuric nitrate, solution of potassio-mercuric iodide 
(3.196 sp. gr.), ethylene bromide, etc., are used. All that is neces- 
sary, is that the density of the liquid be known, it being pre- 
sumed that the solid is not acted upon by the fluid. 
Specific Gravity of Insoluble Powders Heavier than 
Water.—Weigh off a portion of the powder, then introduce it 
into a counterpoised specific gravity bottle, which is so con- 
structed as to hold a known weight (1000 grains, etc.,) of dis- 
tilled water. Some water is poured in, and the contents gently 
rotated so as to remove any air bubbles that may adhere to the 
powder, then the flask is filled to the mark indicating its capa- 
city, and weighed. From the weight of the powder in the air, SPECIFIC GE A CITY. DENSITY. 
37 
plus the known weight of water which the bottle will hold, sub- 
tract the weight obtained in the second operation. The remainder 
represents the weight of water displaced by the powder. Then 
apply the rule:— 
Example:— 
10 grammes of a powder is taken, poured into a counterpoised specific gravity bottle 
of 100 grammes’ capacity, which, when filled with water, weighs 108.8 Gm. 
10 grammes + 100 grammes = 110.0 grammes. 
Weight of flask containing water 
and powder, = 108.8 “ 
Difference or weight of water displaced 1.2 “ 
Therefore, the weight in air (10 grammes) divided by the loss of weight in water 
(1.2 grammes), gives us 8.33 as the specific gravity of the powder. 
This method may be employed for solids, provided they are in 
pieces of such size as to admit of being placed in the specific 
gravity bottle. 
Specific Gravity of Solids Insoluble in, but Lighter than 
Water.*—Inasmuch as such a body floats on the surface of 
water, it necessarily follows, that we must attach it to a heavier 
body in order to secure the submersion of both. The loss of 
weight of the heavy body in water must be known, and when 
this is deducted from the loss of weight of both together, the 
difference will give the amount of water displaced by the light 
body alone. The light body is first weighed in air, it is then at- 
tached to a sinker (a piece of lead or iron) and again weighed; 
then both are suspended by a thread under the surface of dis- 
tilled water and their combined weight in water noted. The 
light body is detached and the weight of the sinker alone in 
water is ascertained. The loss of weight of the sinker alone in 
water is now deducted from the loss of both; this gives the loss 
of weight of the light body; then apply the rule.— 
Example:— 
A piece of brass weighs 5 grammes ; in water it weighs 4.4 grammes. 
A piece of wax weighs in air 13.37 grammes ; when attached to sinker, both weigh 
3.88 grammes in water :— 
Weight of brass in air, . 5.00 grammes. Wax weighs in air, . . 13 37 grammes. 
“ “ “ “ water, 4.40 “ Brass “ “ “ . . 5.00 “ 
Loss of weight of brass in Sum of both, 18.37 “ 
water, 0.60 “ Both weigh in water, . 3.88 “ 
Both lose in water, . . 14.49 “ 
Loss of weight of both in water, 14.49 grammes. 
“ “ “ “ brass “ “ 0.60 “ 
“ “ “ “ wax alone, 13.89 “ 
weight of wax in air, 13.37 , 
Then - == = 0.962 specific gravity. 
loss of weight in water, 13.89 
*The method of Symons (Phar. Jour. Trans., (3) xix, 206) may be employed. He fixes an in- 
verted funnel under one scale-pan, attaches a ten-gramme weight to it, and restores equilibrium. 
The previously weighed light solid is now held under water until air-bubbles are removed, and then 
placed under the funnel; the weight lost will represent the volume of the solid, or, in other words, 
will be the weight of a volume of water equal to the volume of the solid. 38 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Specific Gravity of Solids Soluble in Water.—We pro- 
ceed exactly in the same manner as in the case of solids heavier 
but insoluble in water; but instead of water, we employ some 
liquid in which the body is not soluble. The liquids usually 
selected for this purpose are the oils of turpentine, olive, or 
almond. The specific gravity of the body having been obtained 
just as if water had been used, the result is multiplied by the 
known specific gravity of the oil employed. 
Example:— 
A crystal of citric acid weighs 10.0 grammes ; when immersed in Oil of Turpen- 
tine it weighed 4.8 grammes. Then :— 
The weight of the citric acid in air was, 10.0 grammes. 
“ “ “ “ “ oil of turpentine, . . . 4.8 “ 
Loss of weight in turpentine, 5.2 “ 
then dividing 10 hy 5.2 we get 1.92, the specific gravity of citric acid referred to oil 
of turpentine as standard, and multiplying this by 0.870, the specific gravity of oil 
of turpentine, we obtain 1.67 the specific gravity of the sample of citric acid, as 
referred to the usual standard, viz.: water. 
SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF LIQUIDS.-METHODS OF DETERMINING. 
(a) By means of the Pycnometer. 
(&) “ “ “ Hydrometer. 
(c) “ “ “ Specific Gravity Balance. 
(d) “ “ “ Sprengel’s Specific Gravity Tube. 
(e) “ “ “ Weight of given Volumes. 
(/) “ “ “ Lovi’s Specific Gravity Beads. 
(a) Determination of the Specific Gravity of Liquids by 
means of the Pycnometer.—For ascertaining the specific gravity 
of a fluid we employ the Pycnometer or specific gravity bottle, 
which, in its simplest form, is a small, light glass flask with a long 
and narrow neck.* The flask, after being counter- 
balanced, is filled with any convenient amount 
of distilled water at the proper temperature, the 
height of the fluid marked, and its weight noted. 
These flasks are usually constructed to hold 25, 
50, or 100 grammes, or 1000 grains of distilled 
water at 15.5° C. (60° F.). The bottle when 
emptied and dried, is filled to the mark with the 
liquid to be tested and weighed. The weight 
found bears a simple ratio to the specific gravity. 
Thus if the flask holds 100 grammes of distilled 
water at 15.5° C., when filled with ether, it will hold 72.5 
grammes, and with glycerin, 125 grammes. The specific gravi- 
ties of these two liquids are, then, 0.725 and 1.250, respectively, 
Fig. 48. 
Pycnometer. 
* Some of the older forms are quite short, as shown in figure 48. SPECIFIC GE A CITY. DENSITY. 
39 
obtained by dividing 72.5 and 125 by 100. Any ordinary vial 
may be converted into a specific gravity bottle, by selecting one 
as light as possible, which will hold either 50 or 100 grammes of 
water. The distilled water is accurately weighed into the vial, 
and the exact height of the water is indicated by a mark (scratch) 
on the neck. An exact counterpoise is prepared for the empty 
flask. When used, the flask is filled to the mark with the liquid at 
the proper temperature, and its weight is divided by 50 or 100 as 
the case may be. Supposing, for example, that, when filled to the 
50 cubic centimeter mark with sulphuric 
acid, it weighed 92.15 grammes, then 
= 1.843, the specific gravity of the 
acid.* 
Pycnometers are either sold with a 
brass counterpoise or their exact weight 
is etched upon the bottle. Before the 
pycnometer is used, it should be first well 
rinsed with water, then with alcohol, and 
dried. After bringing the liquid to the 
proper temperature, by placing the vessel 
containing it in a bath of known tem- 
perature, the flask is filled nearly to the 
top of the neck, and the stopper is in- 
serted, care being taken to avoid the 
retention of air bubbles. The super- 
fluous fluid displaced by the stopper is 
then removed, and the flask then wiped 
perfectly dry and clean, and weighed. 
This form of specific gravity bottle 
has the objection that the temperature 
cannot be carefully observed, which 
renders it unsuitable for very accurate 
work. 
A better form of specific gravity bottle 
(Fig. 49) is that in which the stopper 
consists of a thermometer. The liquid 
is introduced in the side tubulure until it reaches the mark at m. 
Care should be taken that no air bubbles be allowed to collect 
around the neck at h. 
Fig. 49. 
Pycnometer with Thermometer. 
* It should be borne in mind that the temperature of observation should always be stated, and also 
that at which the standard was determined. To illustrate the importance of this Dr. Wright (Jour. 
Soc. Chem. Ind., XI, -298) cites the following“ A sample of oil at 20° C. is stated by one observer to 
have the specific gravity of 0.92475 referred to water at 4° C., another the specific gravity of 0.92560 
referred to water at 15.5° C., and the third the specific gravity of 0.92635 referred to water at 20° C. 
from appearance, these figures do not seem concordant, but if we remember that when reduced to 
“ weight per cubic centimeter,” it will be seen that they are identical. Taking the specific gravity 
of water at 4° C. as 1.000, then at 15.5° C. it is 0.99908, and at 20° C. it is 0.99827, hence 
“0.92475 X 1.0000 = 0.92475. 
0.92560 X 0.99908 = 0.92475. 
0.92635 X 0.99827 = 0.92475.” 
For the various corrections to secure accuracy in taking specific gravities, see the above-cited reference. 40 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Another form is that devised by Dr. Squibb (Fig. 50), in which 
the neck of the bottle is lengthened, so that it will permit the 
bottle to hold the volume of water at any temperature between 
4° C. and 25° C., thus adapting it to all standards in use. The 
capacity and tare is indicated on each bottle. A leaden collar 
is placed over the neck to keep it in position in the bath in 
which it is placed. 
Fig. 50. 
Squibb’s Pycnometer. 
(6) Determination of the Specific Gravity of Liquids by 
means of the Hydrometer or Areometer.—This instrument 
depends for its use on the fact that, when a solid is immersed in 
a liquid specifically heavier, it will sink until it reaches a point 
where the weight of the liquid displaced is equal to the weight of SPECIFIC GRA VITY. DENSITY. 
41 
the floating body. Hydrometers are long glass tubes with two 
bulbs blown at one end. The lower (smaller) bulb is weighted 
with sufficient mercury or shot to cause the tube to float upright, 
the upper (larger) bulb is to impart buoyancy. 
Hydrometers are divided into two classes, the “ Weighing Hy- 
drometers ” and “ Scale Hydrometers.” 
The weighing areometer or hydro- 
meter OF CONSTANT IMMERSION BUT VARIA- 
BLE weight is so called because it is always 
immersed to the same mark, but requires 
different weights to effect this. The first 
of these was constructed by Fahrenheit; 
the same principle, however, is followed in 
Figs. 51, 52. 
Fig. 53. 
Nicholson’s Hydrometer. 
that of Nicholson’s hydrometer (Fig. 53), 
which consists of a hollow metal cylinder 
b with a cone c, weighted so that the 
cylinder may float vertical. At the top 
is a stem terminated by a pan, in which 
the substance whose specific gravity is to 
be determined is placed. When floated, 
the apparatus stands partly out of the 
liquid, hence, the first step would be to ascertain what weight is 
necessary to cause it to sink to the standard point o; let this 
weight be 100 grammes. Let us assume that we desire to as- 
certain the specific gravity of a piece of metal; the weights are 
removed from the pan, and replaced by the sample; weights are 
now added, until the instrument again sinks to o; in order to 
accomplish this, we have added 44 grammes; then the actual 
Hydrometers. 
a. Weighing Hydrometer. 
b. Scale Hydrometer. 42 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
weight of the piece of metal would be the difference between 100 
grammes and 44 grammes, which is 56 grammes. Thus far, we 
have ascertained the actual weight of the metal; it is next neces- 
sary for us to ascertain its loss in water, or the weight of an equal 
volume of water. With this object in view, we place it in the 
lower cone c, at m; the instrument does not sink to o, for the 
metal, by immersion, has lost a part of its weight equal to that 
of the water displaced. Weights are added to the upper pan 
until the hydrometer sinks again to o; this being 27.5 grammes, 
is the weight of water displaced; then on dividing its actual 
weight (in air), by its loss in water V6y we obtain 2.03 as its specific 
gravity. Bodies lighter than water are placed in the covered cup, 
thus securing immersion. 
Rousseau's Densimeter.—This instrument (Fig. 54) is of use in 
ascertaining the specific gravity of liquids where only a small 
amount is available. The cup above is gradu- 
ated to hold 1 cubic centimeter. When empty, 
the instrument sinks in distilled water to the 
point b; when the cup is filled with distilled 
water (1 Cc.), the point to which it sinks is 
marked as 20; then, the interval between 0 and 
20, on the stem, is divided into 20 equal parts, 
the graduation being continued to the top, each 
division representing 0.05 gramme. Example: 
Supposing that the cup is filled with oil of 
neroli, the densimeter will sink to the mark 
17.5; hence the specific gravity of the oil of 
neroli would be 0.05 X 17.5 = 0.875. Neither 
of these instruments gives such accurate results 
as the specific gravity bottle. 
Scale Areometers or Hydrometers of 
Variable Immersion, but Constant Weight.— 
These are divided into different classes, according to their uses, 
being designated as Alcoholometers, Salimeters, Lactometers, Acido- 
meters, Saccharometers, Urinometers, etc. There are two systems of 
these; in the one, the specific gravity is indicated directly on the 
scale; in the other (that of BaumS, Cartier, Twaddell, Tralles, 
etc.) an empirical scale is employed which may be reduced to 
specific gravity by referring to tables constructed for this pur- 
pose. The most important of these instruments is that of Baum6, 
under which name two distinct instruments are used. One of 
these is used for determining the densities of liquids heavier 
than water, such as acids, alkaline solutions, syrups, glycerin, 
milk, etc.; the other for liquids lighter than water, as alcohols, 
ethers, most volatile oils, etc. In the former (Fig. 55), for liquids 
heavier than water, the zero mark is obtained by placing it in 
distilled water; another mark is made at the place to which it 
sinks by floating it in a 15 per cent, solution of common salt. 
Fig. 54. 
Rousseau’s Densimeter. SPECIFIC GRA CITY. DENSITY. 
43 
The space between these two marks is then divided into 15 equal 
parts, the graduation being continued to 60° below. For liquids 
lighter than water (Fig. 56), zero is the point 
designated to which it sinks when placed in 
a 10 per cent, salt solution, and 10° the point 
to which it sinks in distilled water; the 
distance between these is divided into 10 
equal parts, the scale being extended up 
to 60°.* 
TwaddelVs areometer, for liquids heavier 
than water, is common in England. It is so 
graduated that the reading multiplied by 5 
and added to 1000 gives the specific gravity : 
thus, 15° Twaddell is equal to specific gravity 
1.075. Alcoholometers are hydrometers for 
ascertaining the percentage strength of alco- 
holic liquids. They are often so constructed 
as to combine a thermometer, the mercury in 
the lower bulb answering for the bulb of the 
thermometer. 
The Tralles hydrometer is an alcoholometer 
having a centesimal scale, each division cor- 
responding to a certain per cent, of absolute 
alcohol, by volume. Tables giving the 
equivalents may be found in the Dispensatories and other works 
of reference. 
Sikes’ hydrometer is used in England by the Excise Revenue 
officers for ascertaining the percentage strength of spirituous 
liquors. The instrument is of brass, the stem being gradu- 
ated from 0 to 10, and a set of nine weights to place beneath the 
bulb. On noting the temperature, the weight employed, and 
Fig. 55. 
Fig. 56. 
Baumd’s Hydrometers. 
* TABLES OF DEGREE BAUME. 15° C. 
For Liquids Heavier than Water. 
Baumi. 
Specific Gravity. 
0°, . . 
... 1.000 
5°, . 
. . 1.036 
10°, . . 
. . . 1.075 
15°, . 
. . . 1.116 
20°, 
. . 1.161 
25°, . . 
. . . 1.210 
30°, . . 
. 1.261 
35°, . . 
. . . 1.321 
40°, . . 
. 1.384 
45°, . . 
. . . 1.454 
50°, . 
. . . . 1.532 
60°, . . 
. . . . 1.715 
65°, . . 
. . . . 1.823 
70°, . . 
. . . . 1.946 
144.3 
Sp-Gr'- 144.3- 
n. 
For Liquids Lighter than Water. 
Baumi. 
Specific Gravity. 
10°, . . 
. . . . 1.000 
15°, . . 
. . . .0.966 
20°, . . 
. . . . 0.935 
25°, . . 
. . . . 0.905 
30°, . 
. . . . 0.878 
35°, . . 
. . . . 0.852 
40°, . . 
. . . . 0.827 
45°, . . 
. . . . 0.804 
50°, . . 
. . . . 0.783 
55°, . . 
. . . . 0.762 
60°, . . 
144.3 
. . . . 0.742 
sp- 134 3 + n 
n = degree of BaumA 
Such scales are unsatisfactory, as their equivalents vary in different instruments and different 
countries. 44 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the point to which it sinks on the stem, and referring to a 
series of tables belonging to the 
instrument, the specific gravity is ob- 
tained. 
Saccharometers are intended to show 
the specific gravity of sugar solu- 
tions; the scale is so arranged as to 
indicate directly the percentage of 
sugar. 
The Elaeometer is an instrument for 
ascertaining the specific gravity of 
fixed oils. 
The Lactometer is employed to as- 
certain the specific gravity of milk, 
the scale indicating the percentage 
of added water. 
The Urinometer is a small areometer 
with its scale limited to the specific 
gravity of urine, usually from 1.000 
to 1.060. Most of these instruments 
are usually very faulty and inaccurate 
and should never be relied upon un- 
less obtained from a reliable source, 
or verified. A form offered by Dr. 
Squibb (Fig. 57), is furnished with a 
special cylinder having its sides in- 
dented so as prevent the instrument 
from remaining in contact with the 
sides of the cylinder. Should this 
happen, the friction and cohesion with 
the sharp edge of one of these indenta- 
tions will be reduced to a minimum. 
In using an areometer it must be ob- 
served that the instrument should 
float freely, and should not adhere to 
the sides of the jar, otherwise the co- 
hesion between the instrument and 
sides of the jar would prevent a free 
movement up and down in the 
liquid, and thus give rise to false 
readings. The bulb of an areometer 
is best shaped after that of a double 
cone, as in Fig. 57, so that there 
is but a single point which may come 
in contact with the side of the jar, 
thus reducing the friction and cohe- 
sion to a minimum. 
Fig. 57. 
Urinometer with Cylinder. (Squibb.) SPECIFIC GE A VITY. DENSITY. 
45 
(c) Determination of Specific Gravity by Means of the 
Specific Gravity Balance.— Westphal Specific Gravity Balance.— 
The application of this depends upon the principle that any selected 
body, when immersed in different liquids, loses exactly the weight 
of its own volume of that liquid. If the same body be immersed 
in different liquids, it will be seen that its loss in weight will be in 
proportion to their specific gravities. The small thermometer 
Fig. 58. 
Westphal Specific Gravity Balance. 
suspended from the arm at K is held in equilibrium by a counter- 
balancing weight at J. When placed in a liquid, the arm HK 
rises; riders are then placed upon the beam, in the notches indi- 
cated, until equilibrium is restored. The riders L or Li are 
equal in weight to the loss sustained by the thermometer in dis- 
tilled water (4° C.), the rider M = tV, the rider N = and 
O — nW °f the weight of LorLp When L or Li is placed on 
the hook at K it indicates the specific gravity of 1.000; when the 46 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
other L is placed at 3 it denotes 0.3. Hence, when one of these 
riders (L or Lx) is placed at K, and the other at 3, and equili- 
brium is thus restored, the liquid has the specific gravity 1.300. 
The rider M the second, and N the third, and O furnishes the 
fourth decimal place. Fig. 59 illustrates the use of the apparatus 
sufficiently. 
Fig. 59. 
Beam of Westphal Balance, showing Position of Weights. 
Fig. 60 illustrates a simpler form, known as Mohr’s Specific 
Gravity Balance ; it will be seen from this, that any balance can 
be used for this purpose by detaching a pan and suspending a 
short thermometer in its stead by means of a fine platinum wire, 
then counterpoising both arms by adding weights to the side 
requiring it. The further operation is the same as that with 
the Westphal balance. 
Jolly’s Spiral Balance.—This consists of a spiral vertical 
spring suspended from an upright beam ;■ on the side of this 47 
SPECIFIC GRA CITY. DENSITY. 
beam facing the spiral, is a long mirror which is graduated 
Fig. 60. 
Mohr’s Specific Gravity Balance. 
Fig. 61. 
into millimeters. The spiral supports two 
scale pans, one some distance above the 
other. Just above the upper pan (at b) is 
a glass bead which serves as an indicator. 
To take the specific gravity of a solid, the 
lower pan (d) is immersed in water, the solid 
placed in the upper pan (c), and the division 
on the index on the mirror opposite the 
bead is noted. The solid is removed and 
weights added until the bead is opposite 
the same scale division as before. This 
constitutes the weight of the solid. The 
solid is then placed in the lower pan and 
the weights adjusted until the bead again 
comes to the same number; this constitutes 
the weight of the volume of water displaced 
by the solid; then apply rule 1 (page 35). 
(d) Sprengel Specific Gravity Tube.— 
This instrument is well adapted for small 
quantities of fluids and is extremely accurate. 
It consists of a U-shaped tube terminating in 
two capillary tubes bent in opposite direc- 
tions. The liquid to be examined is aspi- 
rated into the tube until the latter is filled; 
the tube is then placed in a beaker of water 
having the desired temperature, the two arms 
resting on the edge of the beaker. When the 
Jolly’s Spiral Balance. 48 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
temperature of the contained liquid is constant (shown by the 
cessation of movement of the liquid in the capillary tube), the 
excess of fluid is removed by means of filter 
paper from the tip a until the liquid in the 
other capillary reaches the mark m; the tube 
and contents are then weighed, and the ca- 
pacity of the tube in distilled water being 
known, the specific gravity is obtained as 
usual. 
(e) Determination of Specific Gravity 
by Weighing given Volumes of Solu- 
tions.—A cylinder or graduate is counter- 
balanced, and the liquid to be examined 
is poured in to any definite measure and 
weighed. This weight is then divided by 
the weight of a like volume of water at the 
same temperature. Thus, if we were to weigh 
a fluidounce of a liquid, we would then 
divide that weight by 455.7 (the weight of 
one fluidounce of distilled water at 15.5° C.). 
Should we have measured off 10 cubic centi- 
meters of the fluid, we then divide its weight 
in grammes by 10 (the weight of 10 Cc. of distilled water). 
(/) Lovi’s Specific Gravity Beads.—These are small hollow 
globes of glass, having specific gravity figures etched on their 
Fig. 62. 
Sprengel Specific Gravity 
Tube. 
Fig. 64. 
Fig. 63. 
Specific Gravity of Solid Fats, by means of the 
Westphal Balance. 
Specific Gravity of Solid Fats, by means of 
Areometer. SPECIFIC GPA VITY. DENSITY. 
49 
surfaces. When thrown into a fluid they will rise and float to 
the surface if lighter than the fluid, or sink to the bottom if 
heavier; but when any of them remain indifferently suspended 
at any level, then the liquid has the specific gravity engraved on 
the beads, if these are correct. These are of special use in the 
evaporation of liquids to attain certain densities. They will show 
a difference in specific gravity of 0.001. They are sometimes 
used in the distillation of ether, the operation being carried on 
until one of them of specific gravity 0.735 begins to float. 
Determination of the Specific Gravity of Fats and 
Oils (solid at normal temperature).—Fig. 63 illustrates the appa- 
ratus of Benedikt, in which the fat is placed in the tube D, the 
temperature of which is regulated by the paraffin bath C, which 
in turn is heated by the water bath B. The specific gravity is 
ascertained as usual with the Westphal’s balance, the temperature 
being taken into consideration. Fig. 64 illustrates another form, 
in which an areometer is floated in the melted fat. 
SPECIFIC VOLUME * 
As applied in pharmacy, specific volume is the volume of a 
certain liquid compared with the volume of an equal weight of 
another, which is selected as standard. The standard for com- 
parison is distilled water, usually at 15.5° C. (60° F.). As specific 
gravity is obtained by the comparison of the weight of a given 
volume of a liquid or solid with an equal volume of water (as 
unity), so is specific volume obtained by the comparison of the 
volume of a given weight of a liquid body with an equal volume of 
water. Specific volume, therefore, is simply the reverse of specific 
gravity. 
Specific volume is the quotient obtained by dividing unity by the 
specific gravity; that is, sFecific°GtfaVity = Specific Volume. We find 
that a pound of glycerin measures less, while a pound of ether 
measures more, than a pound of water; a kilogramme of mercury 
will occupy less bulk, while the same weight of benzin will 
occupy more than a kilogramme (1000 Cc.) of water. The 
knowledge of the specific volume of a fluid will then enable us 
to ascertain the bulk occupied by a given weight of it. Since 
the capacity of all graduated or gauged vessels is based on the 
volume of water they will hold, the specific volume factor will 
express at a glance the weight capacity of the container. Water 
at 15.5° C. being unity (1.000), we thus find the specific volume of 
glycerin to be = 0.8; that of ether, = 1.38; that 
of chloroform, <,r = 0.674. Therefore, one fluid pint of 
water, about f of a pint of glycerin, about of a pint of ether, 
♦This term should not be confounded with the term “specific volume” as applied to chemical 
physics, which is also defined as “ atomic volume,” or “ molecular volume.” 50 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
and about f of a pint of chloroform will all be of the same 
weight. The actual volume occupied by a given weight of a 
liquid is found by the following rule:— 
Multiply the volume of an equal weight of water by the specific 
volume of the liquid. 
Example.—How many cubic centimeters will one kilogramme of chloroform 
measure? A kilogramme of water weighs 1000 grammes ; then, 1000 X 0.674 = 
674 cubic centimeters of chloroform. 
Example.—How many lluidounces will 100 av. ounces of glycerin measure? 
100 av. ounces of water measure 96.01 fluidouuees ; then, 96.01 X 0.80 (sp. vol. of 
glycerin) = 76.8 + fluidounces of glycerin. 
PRACTICAL EXERCISES IN SPECIFIC GRAVITY AND SPECIFIC 
VOLUME. 
Example.—If 10 cubic centimeters of a liquid weigh 15 grammes, what is its 
15 
specific gravity? 10 Cc. of distilled water weigh 10 Gm., hence = 1.50 is the 
specific gravity. 
Example.—If one fluidounce of a liquid weighs 569.63 grains, what is its specific 
569.63 
gravity ? One fluidounce of distilled water weighs 455.7 grains, hence 455'7" = 1-25 
is the specific gravity. 
Example.—What is the weight of a pint of glycerin? We know that a pint of 
distilled water weighs 7291.11 grains, and the specific gravity of glycerin is 1.25 ; 
hence we multiply 7291.11 by 1.25, which gives us 9113.8 + grains. 
Example.—Liquor Ferri Chloridi (sp. gr. 1.387) contains 37.8 per cent, of anhy- 
drous salt; how much of this salt is in each 100 cubic centimeters of the solution ? 
The weight of 100 Cc. of water is 100 Gm., this multiplied by 1.387 gives the 
weight of 100 Cc. of the solution, which is 138.7 Gm. ; now, 37.8 per cent, of this 
weight would be 52.42 -]- Gm. 
Example.—What will be the capacity of a flask which will hold 7 av. pounds of 
glycerin U. S. P. ? Seven avoirdupois pounds of distilled water weigh 49,000 
grains ; this, divided by 455.7 gives 107.52 + fluidounces, the bulk occupied by 7 
avoirdupois pounds of water ; since the specific volume of glycerin is 0.80, we have 
107.36 X 0.80 — 86.01 + fluidounces (5.37 + pints), which will be the capacity 
necessary to hold this weight of glycerin. 
Example.—An apothecary returned to his dealer 5 pints of oleic acid (sp. gr. 
0.900), valued at 40 cents per pound (av.), and received in return 117 cubic centi- 
meters of mercury (sp. gr. 13.5), valued at 54 cents a pound (av.) : did the dealer 
gain or lose by the transaction ? 
5 pints of water weigh 5.205 av. pounds ; then, if the specific gravity of the oleic 
acid be 0 900, the weight of 5 pints of it would be 5.205 X 0.900 = 4.684 av. 
pounds. Its value would then be $0.40 X 4.684 = $1.87 + . 
117 Cc. of water weighs 117 Gm., and if the specific gravity of mercury is 13.5, 
it would weigh 117 X 13.5 = 1579.5 Gm or 3.48 + av. pounds. The value will 
be $0.54 X 3.48 — $1.87 -j-. Hence, there will be neither loss nor gain. 
Example.—A piece of metal weighs 100 grammes ; its specific gravity is 7.6. 
When immersed in syrup it loses 16.9 grammes weight. What is the specific 
gravity of the syrup? We use the following proportion : as the weight of the body 
in air is to its specific gravity, so is its loss of weight immersed in the liquid, to the 
specific gravity of that liquid. 
That is, as 100 : 7.6 :: 16.9 : x. 
x = 1.28, sp. gr. of the syrup. SPECIFIC VOLUME. 
51 
Example.—A piece of mineral weighs 1 av. ounce ; when placed in a graduate 
containing 1 fluidounce of water, the volume of water was increased to 9 flui- 
drachms. What is the specific gravity of the mineral ? 
The volume of water displaced is 1 fluidrachm, which weighs 56.96 grains, 
then apply rule (page 35), = 7.68 the specific gravity of the mineral. 
TABLE OF SPECIFIC GRAVITIES, U. S. P. 
Temperature, 15° C., 59° F., unless otherwise specified. 
Acidum Acetieum,1.048 
Acidum Acetieum Dilutum,1.008 
Acidum Acetieum Glaciate,1.058 
Acidum Hydrobromicum Dilutum, .... 1.077 
Acidum Hydrochloricum1.163 
Acidum Hydrochloricum Dilutum, .... 1.050 
Acidum Hypophosphorosum Dilutum, . . 1.046 
Acidum Lacticum, about,1.213 
Acidum Nitricum, about,1.414 
Acidum Nitricum Dilutum, about, .... 1.057 
Acidum Oleicum, about,0.900 
Acidum Phosphoricum, not below, . . . 1.710 
Acidum Phosphoricum Dilutum, about, . . 1.057 
Acidum Sulphuricum, not below, .... 1.835 
Acidum Sulphuricum Aromaticum, about, 0.939 
Acidum Sulphuricum Dilutum, about, . . .1.070 
Acidum Sulphurosum, not less than, . . . 1.035 
Adeps,0.932 
.Ether, 0.725 to .728 
.Ether Aceticus, 0.893 to 0.895 
Alcohol, about,0.820 
Alcohol Absolutum, not higher than, . . .0.797 
Alcohol Deodoratum, about,0.816 
Alcohol Dilutum, at 15° C., about0.936 
Alcohol Dilutum, at 15.6° C., about, .... 0.937 
Alcohol Dilutum, at 25° C., about, .... 0.930 
Amyl Nitris, 0.870 to 0.880 
Aqua Ammoni®,0.960 
Aqua Ammoni® Fortior, . . 0.901 
Aqua Hydrogenii Dioxidi, about, . 1.006 to 1.012 
Balsamum Peruvianum,1.135 to 1.150 
Benzinum, 0.670 to 0.675 
Bromum,2.990 
Camphora,0.995 
Carbonei Disulphidum, 1.268 to 1.269 
Cera Alba, 0.965 to 0.075 
Cera Flava, 0.955 to 0.967 
Cetaceum, about,0.945 
Chloroformum, not below, at 15° C., . . . 1.490 
Chloroformum, not below, at 25° C., . . . .1.473 
Copaiba, 0.940 to 0.990 
Creosotum, not below,1.070 
Eucalyptol,0.930 
Fel Bovis,1.018 to 1.028 
Glycerinum, not less than,1.250 
Hydrargyrum, 13.5584 
lodoformum,2.000 
lodum, at 17° C.,4.948 
Liquor Ferri Acetatis, about,1.160 
Liquor Ferri Chloridi, about,1.387 
Liquor Ferri Citratis, about,1.250 
Liquor Ferri Nitratis, about,1.050 
Liquor Ferri Subsulphatis, about,1.550 
Liquor Ferri Tersulphatis, about,1.320 
Liquor Hydrargyri Nitratis, about, .... 2.100 
Liquor Plumbi Subacetatis, about, .... 1.195 
Liquor Potass®, about,1.036 
Liquor Sod®, about1.059 
Liquor Sod® Chlorat®, about,1.052 
Liquor Sodii Silicatis, 1.300 to 1.400 
Liquor Zinci Chloridi, about,1.535 
Mel1.375 
Methyl Salicylas,1.183 to 1.185 
Oleum Adipis0.910 to 0.920 
Oleum AEthereum,0.910 
Oleum Amygdal® Amar® 1.060 to 1.070 
Oleum Amygdal® Expressum, . . 0.915 to 0.920 
Oleum Anisi, about (17° C.), . . . 0.980 to 0.990 
Oleum Aurantii Corticis, about,0.850 
Oleum Aurantii Florum, 0.875 to 0.890 
Oleum Bergamott®, 0.880 to 0.885 
Oleum Cadinum, about,0.990 
Oleum Cajuputi, 0.922 to 0.929 
Oleum Cari0.910 to 0.920 
Oleum Caryophylli,1.060 to 1.067 
Oleum Chenopodii, about0.970 
Oleum Cinnamomi, 1.055 to 1.065 
Oleum Copaib®, 0.890 to 0.910 
Oleum Coriandri, 0.870 to 0.885 
Oleum Cubeb®, about,0.920 
Oleum Erigerontis, about,0.850 
Oleum Eucalypti,0.915 to 0.925 
Oleum Foeniculi, not less than,0.960 
Oleum Gaultheri®,1.175 to 1.185 
Oleum Gossypii Seminis, 0.920 to 0.930 
Oleum Hedeom®, 0.930 to 0.940 
Oleum Juniperi, 0.850 to 0.890 
Oleum Lavandulae Florum, .... 0.885 to 0.897 
Oleum Limonis, 0.858 to 0.859 
Oleum Lini, . 0.930 to 0.940 
Oleum Menth® Piperit®, 0.900 to 0.920 
Oleum Menthae Viridis, 0.930 to 0.940 
Oleum Morrhuae, 0.920 to 0.925 
Oleum Myrciae, 0.975 to 0.990 
Oleum Myristieae, 0.870 to 0.900 
Oleum Oliv®, 0.915 to 0.918 
Oleum Picis Liquid®, about,0.970 
Oleum Pimentae, 1.045 to 1.055 
Oleum Ricini, 0.950 to 0.970 
Oleum Rosae, 0.886 to 0.880 
Oleum Rosmarini, . 0.895 to 0.915 
Oleum Sabinae,0.910 to 0.940 
Oleum Santali, 0.970 to 0.978 
Oleum Sassafras, 1.070 to 1.090 
Oleum Sesami0.919 to 0.923 
Oleum Sinapis Volatile,1.018 to 1.029 
Oleum Terebinthin®, 0.855 to 0.870 
Oleum Terebinthin® Rectificatum, 0.855 to 0.865 
Oleum Theobromatis, 0.970 to 0.980 
Oleum Thymi, 0.900 to 0.930 
Oleum Tiglii, 0.940 to 0.960 
Petrolatum Liquiduni, .... 0.875 to 0.945 
PetrolatumMolleat 60° C., (140°F.), 0.820 to 0.840 
Petrolatum Spissum, at 60° C. (140° F.), 
0.820 to 8.50 
Phosphorus, at 10° C. (50° F.), 1.830 
Resina, 1.070 to 1.080 
Spiritus AEtheris Nitrosi, about,820 
Spiritus Ammoni®, about,0.810 
Spiritus Ammoni® Aromaticus, 0.905 
Spiritus Frumenti,0.917 to 0.930 
Spiritus Glonoini, 0.826 to 0.832 
Spiritus Vini Gallici, 0.925 to 0.941 
Syrupus, about,1.317 
Syrupus Acidi Hydriodici, about1.313 
Terebenum, about,0.862 
Thymol (as solid)1.069 
Tinctura Ferri Chloridi, about,0.960 
Vinum Album, at 15 6° C., not less than, . 0.990 
Vinum Album, not more than,1.010 
Vinum Rubrum, at 15.6° C., not less than, . 0.989 
Vinum Rubrum, not more than,1.010 
Zincum, cast 6.900, rolled,7.200 CHAPTER III. 
HEAT. 
ITS VARIOUS APPLICATIONS IN PHARMACY. 
Combustion is chemical combination attended with evolution 
of light and heat. A flame is a stream of gas or vapor raised to 
the temperature of ignition. Its illuminating and heating power 
varies with the nature of the products formed; the presence of a 
solid body in the flame increases the illuminating power. The 
flame of hydrogen or alcohol is pale, or almost colorless, because 
Fig. 66. 
Fig. 65. 
Alcohol Lamp. 
Berzelius’ Alcohol Lamp for High Temperatures. 
it only contains gaseous products of combustion. The flames of 
candles, lamps, and coal gas possess high illuminating power, 
because the high temperature produced decomposes certain of the 
gases with the production of carbon, which not being entirely 
consumed, becomes incandescent in the flame. Coal gas, when 
burnt so that it may become mixed with an adequate supply of 
air, as in the Bunsen burner, gives a flame which is almost devoid 
of luminosity. For technical purposes the valuation of different 
fuels is important. The comparative value of fuel is ascertained 
by estimating the number of heat units (calorics) disengaged 
during combustion. By caloric is meant the number of heat 
units necessary to raise one gramme of water from 0° to 1° C. 
52 HEAT. 
53 
It may also be expressed by the quantity of water warmed one 
degree by one kilogramme of the material; for example:— 
1 kilo of hard wood heats 3600 kilos of water from 0° to 1° C. 
1 “ “ bituminous coal “ 6000 “ “ “ “ “ “ “ 
Then the value of wood as a heat-producer, compared with coal, 
is as 3600 is to 6000, or 3 to 5; that is, 3 parts of coal will give as 
much heat as 5 parts of wood. Compared as to their heating or 
evaporating power we have :— 
1 kilo of Hydrogen evaporates 53 kilos of water. 
1 “ “ Illuminating Gas “ 18 “ “ “ 
1 “ “ Coal Oil “ 11.8 “ “ “ 
1 “ “ Alcohol “ 11.2 “ “ “ 
1 “ “ Coal “ 9.0 “ “ “ 
1 “ “ Wood “ 5.5 “ “ “ 
For detailed explanations of the value and uses of different 
fuels, with the arrangement of furnaces, ranges, etc., the reader 
must he referred to the text-books on Technical Chemistry. The 
modern apothecary employs, as a source of heat, either alcohol, 
benzin, coal oil, illuminating gas, or steam. Owing to the high 
price of alcohol, this liquid is at present used for heating purposes, 
only where coal-gas is not accessible, or for some reason objection- 
able. For purposes where a lower degree of heat is needed, the 
simple form of the al- 
cohol lamp (Fig. 65) is 
employed; should it be 
desirable to have a more 
luminous flame, a small 
amount of oil of tur- 
pentine may be added. 
For a higher degree of 
heat we have heretofore 
employed the Berzelius 
lamp(Fig.66). This has, 
however, been greatly 
improved upon in the 
newer Bunsen lamp of 
Barthel (Fig. 67). This 
is a very practical and 
safe lamp, capable of 
producing a very high 
degree of heat, equal to 
that of the Bunsen gas burner. The burner consists of a thick 
metal tube supported on a foot and separated in the center into 
two parts (c, d). In the upper portion the flame is generated, 
and the heat therefrom vaporizes the alcohol in the lower portion. 
A uniform vapor is obtained by the interposition of a wire gauze 
(m), and the size of the flame is regulated by the screw (s, r) 
which governs the flow of vapor. The tube h conveys the alco- 
Fig. 67. 
Barthel Spirit Lamp. 54 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
hol to the flame and contains a sieve to filter the alcohol. The 
container is connected with the burner by a metallic tube. 
To heat one liter of water from a temperature of 15° C. to 100° 
C. (59° F. to 212° F.), Barthel’s alcohol Bunsen burner, after 
model B, requires seven and three-fourths minutes, with a con- 
sumption of 25 Gm. alcohol. This lamp may be used for 
benzin as well as alcohol. The market affords all forms of coal- 
oil stoves which are cheap and convenient, but they must be 
kept scrupulously clean, and the wicks well trimmed to avoid a 
smoky flame. The cheapness of illuminating gas has led to its 
Fig. 68. 
Fig. 69. 
Bunsen Burner in Sections. 
Bunsen Burner. 
general adoption for heating purposes. All the various forms of 
gas stoves depend on the principle of the Bunsen burner, the in- 
vention of which revolutionized our methods of heating, and 
made coal gas the most important of fuels. It was found by 
Bunsen in 1855, that the admixture of a certain portion of air 
with coal gas before combustion, caused it to burn with a non- 
luminous flame of high temperature. Figs. 68 and 69 illustrate 
the construction of a Bunsen burner. The gas enters at b, having 
its exit at a, where it becomes mixed with air which enters at the 
openings at the base of the burner. The volume of air can be 
regulated by the movable collar d; when this is closed, a lumi- HEAT. 
55 
nous, smoky flame is obtained. The cone g placed on /,/ is in- 
tended to prevent the flame from flickering, which is liable to be 
caused by slight draughts. On viewing a well regulated Bunsen 
Fig. 70. 
Bunsen Flames, x. Proper Flame, y. Flame Struck Back. 
flame (Fig. 70 x), it will be seen to consist of an inner colorless or 
pale-blue cone, which is a mixture of cold air and gas, and an 
Fig. 72. 
Fig. 71. 
Bunsen Burner (Seven-tubed). 
Erlenmeyer’s Burner. 
outer mantle, which is the burning mixture of gas and air. If 
the admission of air below is limited, the outer mantle and tip 
of the flame become smoky, with a loss in temperature. Should 
too much air and too little gas be admitted, the flame either be- 56 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
comes extinguished or strikes back and burns at the bottom of the 
lamp where the gas enters; the flame at the orifice then becomes 
Fig. 73. 
Fig. 74. 
Solid Flame Heating Burner. 
Fletcher Gas Stove. 
Fig. 75. 
Gas Stove. 
small (Fig. 70 y), is colored, and devoid of the blue cone; a peculiar, 
pungent odor (due to acetylene) is 
at once detected; the lamp be- 
comes very hot, causing the rub- 
ber tube to melt, and the escaping 
gas igniting gives rise to danger 
of fire. In such cases the gas 
should be at once turned off, 
and then readmitted in greater 
or lesser volume, as may be re- 
quired. For various operations 
where a higher degree of heat is 
required, we have such burners 
as are illustrated in Figs. 71, 
72. For purposes of evapora- 
tion, the forms of stoves illus- 
trated in Figs. 73, 74 and 75 are 
employed. In many chemical 
operations we employ the “ blast 
lamp ” (Figs. 77, 78) which gives 
an intensely hot flame. The 
Instantaneous Water Heater. HEAT. 
57 
gas enters at a and the air is forced by means of a pair of 
bellows (foot blower) through b. The current of either may be 
regulated to produce any sized flame at will. 
Figs. 77, 78. 
Blast Lamp with Cross Section. 
A thermometer is an instrument which is employed to measure 
temperature. All bodies expand by the action of heat; gases 
being the most expansible, followed then by liquids and lastly 
by solids. Liquids are best suited for the construction of ther- 
mometers, for the expansion of solids is too small and that of 
gases too great. Mercury and alcohol are the liquids most 
generally employed, the former boiling at a very high tempera- 
ture (350° C.) and solidifying at - 29.4° C.; the latter does not 
solidify until it reaches -130.5° C. The mercury thermometer 
is employed most commonly. It consists of a capillary glass 
tube, at one extremity of which is blown a small bulb, either 
cylindrical, spherical or coiled. When it is to be filled, a rubber 
tube and small funnel is attached at the upper, open end, then a 
very pure mercury is poured into the funnel; on warming, the 
air is partially driven out, and on cooling, a portion of the mer- 
cury is forced down the capillary into the bulb, by the pressure of 
the atmosphere. This is repeated until the bulb is filled. Then 
the bulb of the thermometer is heated until the mercury rises 
and fills the entire tube; at this moment it is quickly sealed at 
the extremity. On cooling, the mercury contracts, leaving a 
vacuum above. The space above the mercury is often filled 
with nitrogen gas. This is done to avoid any oxidation of the 
MEASURING OF HEAT. 58 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
surface of the mercury, which would follow, should any air be 
present. After filling, the tubes are allowed to stand for some 
time (six months to two years), to allow for the complete con- 
traction of the glass, after which they are ready for graduation. 
For this purpose two fixed points are selected which can always 
be readily reproduced. Experiment has proven to us that ice 
always melts at the same temperature, no matter how great the 
amount of heat may be. Again, distilled water under the same 
Fig. 79. 
Fig. 80. 
Fig. 81. 
Thermometer (Opaque 
Milk-glass scale). 
Thermometer (Gradu- 
ated on Tube). 
Fahrenheit, Centigrade, 
Reaumur Thermometers. 
pressure and in a vessel of the same kind, always boils at the 
same temperature. Hence the first unit selected is the tempera- 
ture of melting ice, also designated as “ freezing point ” (viz. of 
water); and the second unit is the temperature of distilled water 
boiling in a metal vessel under normal atmospheric pressure 
(760 Mm). The space between the freezing and boiling points 
may be divided into any even number of parts. In the case of 
the Centigrade or Celsius thermometer, it is divided into 100 HEAT. 
59 
equal parts, the same scale of graduation being continued above 
the boiling point (100°) and below the freezing point, which is 
here marked (0°). The degrees below the zero point are indi- 
cated by a minus sign, and those above, by a plus sign before the 
figure. The latter, however, is omitted in practice. The three 
most popular thermometric scales are those of Fahrenheit, Reau- 
mur, and Celsius (Centigrade). The Fahrenheit thermometer, 
which is the household thermometer of England and America, 
was invented by Fahrenheit, a merchant of Dantzic, in 1709. 
The temperature of melting ice was marked as 32° and that of 
boiling distilled water as 212°. There are 180° between these 
two points, this being done in view of some old observations on 
the expansion of mercury. The Reaumur scale, the domestic 
thermometer of Germany, Austria, and some other European 
countries, selects the temperature of melting ice as the 0° point, 
and 80° as the boiling point of water, or more accurately stated 
as the temperature of the steam arising from boiling distilled 
water, under the standard pressure of 760 Mm. Between these 
points it is divided into 80 parts, from the observation, that 
there are 80 thermal units absorbed, in bringing one kilogramme 
of ice of the temperature 0°, to water of the temperature 0°. For 
scientific purposes, the Celsius (Centigrade) scale is the only one 
employed. The two fixed temperatures are that of melting ice, 
viz., 0°, and the temperature of steam which issues from distilled 
water boiling under the standard pressure of 760 millimeters, viz., 
100°. 
Rules for converting Degrees of the Centigrade Thermometer into 
those of Fahrenheit, and vice versa*—(Rules for Reaumur are 
omitted):— 
1. Given Celsius (C.) degrees, sought Fahrenheit (F.). 
+ 32 = F. 
5 
2. Given Fahrenheit (F.) degrees, sought Celsius (C.). 
5 (F. - 32) c 
9 
Examples.—Convert 100° C. into ° F. 
9X1°? + 32 = F. ;900- 4- 32 = F. ; 180 + 32 = F212 = F. 
5 5 
or, 
F. = 9 x 100 + 32 = (9 X 20) + 32 = 180 + 32 = 212. 
5 
Convert 212° F. into ° C. 
5 (212 - 32) c 5 X180 = c 5 y 20 — C . 100 C 
9 ’9 ’ 
or, 
C 5 (212 — 32) 5 X 180 — 5 y 20 = 100 
9 9 
* Thermometric Tables, see Appendix. 60 
HANDBOOK OF PH AB MACY. 
Of late years a number of improvements have been made in 
the manufacture of thermometers, particularly in those which 
are to be employed for estimating extremely high or low tem- 
peratures. A Jena laboratory for glass industry has produced a 
new glass of great resistance, so that a glass thermometer has 
been made to read to 550° C. (1,022° F.). In this instrument, 
the capillary above the mercury column is filled with carbonic 
acid gas. At low temperatures, mercury thermometers have 
the drawback that, when the temperature sinks to - 39° C., the 
mercury freezes. For low temperatures alcohol thermometers 
are usually employed; but since it is difficult, if not impossible, 
to obtain the alcohol entirely free from water, their registration 
cannot be entirely trusted. Anhydrous toluol (colored black) 
has been proposed as a substitute, its limit being ff- 170° C. and 
- 70° C.* Because of its black color, the column is easily dis- 
tinguished ; it expands with great regularity, and being of much 
less density than mercury, the bulb of the thermometer can be 
made larger, thus securing greater exactitude in the registration. 
It, however, does not receive impressions of heat and cold very 
readily, hence it is very slowly sensitive.f 
Conditions of Delicacy.—A delicate thermometer should indicate 
very small changes of temperature, and should quickly assume 
the temperature of the surrounding medium. To fulfil this con- 
dition, the capillary tube should be very narrow, so that each 
degree occupies as great a length on the stem as possible, and 
may easily be subdivided into small fractions. The bulb should 
be as small as possible, so that it may rapidly assume the tem- 
perature of the surrounding medium. Thermometers, even when 
constructed with the greatest of care, are subject to various sources 
of error. These are 1st: The bore or calibre of the thermometer 
may not be uniform. 2d: A gradual contraction of the bulb may 
cause the zero point to rise. 3d: A gradual expansion of the 
bulb may cause a lowering of the zero point. 
A thermometer bulb after being blown and allowed to cool, con- 
tinues to contract long after the glass has attained its normal tem- 
perature, even for a period of two years or more. Thermometers 
which have been exposed to prolonged high temperatures suffer a 
marked expansion of the bulb. For this reason, thermometers 
which are employed for scientific purposes should be examined 
from time to time. The most convenient for purposes of compari- 
son and correction, are the so-called “ Normal Thermometers.” 
These are very accurate instruments, having been compared with 
the air thermometer, and are usually accompanied with a table 
of corrections furnished by some authority engaged in the verifi- 
* Must be under pressure, as its boiling point is 111°. 
t Messrs. Baly and Chorley have constructed a thermometer of a very resistant glass, which will 
stand a red heat; employing in place of mercury an alloy of sodium and potassium. The boiling 
point of this is near 700° C., and congealing point at -8° C. It is graduated from 200° C. on. The 
capillary above is filled with Nitrogen under a pressure equal to that of the atmosphere outside. 61 
HEAT. 
cation of standards. The thermometer to be tested is suspended 
alongside of a normal instrument, and the bulbs of both immersed 
in a bath of sulphuric acid, which is slowly heated, under the same 
conditions as in the determination of melting points (Fig. 88), the 
temperatures being compared and noted. When such an instru- 
ment is not at hand, the best plan is to ascertain the accuracy of 
the zero and boiling points. To determine the accuracy of the 
zero point, we fill a funnel with crushed (well washed) ice, so that 
the "water may have free escape; in this the thermometer is im- 
mersed so that the top of the mercury column (0° C. or 32° F), is 
below the surface of the ice. Here it is allowed to remain from 
15 to 30 minutes, then the height of the column is noted without 
removing the instrument, when it should 
stand at 0° C. or 32° F. For making the 
readings, a lens should be employed. To 
ascertain the accuracy of the boiling point, 
suspend the entire thermometer at least a 
few degrees above its boiling point mark, 
in the steam which issues from boiling dis- 
tilled water, as illustrated in Fig. 82. 
With the barometer standing at 760 milli- 
meters, the mercury should be stationary 
at 100° C., or 80° R., or 212° F. If the 
barometer varies from the standard of 760 
Mm., then an increase of pressure of 1 Mm. 
of mercury produces an elevation of the 
boiling point by 0.0375° C.; or, an eleva- 
tion of the boiling point by 1° C. cor- 
responds to a difference of pressure of 
26.8 Mm. of mercury. This correction 
is applied thus: supposing that the boil- 
ing point reading was 99.5° and the height 
of the barometer 752 Mm.; then the required correction would be 
—= 261 — 0.3°, therefore, the corrected boiling point would 
be 99.5° + 0.3° = 99.8°. 
The results of examination would be entered thus:— 
Fig. 82. 
Boiling-point Determination. 
Freezing point, -0.1°. 
Boiling “ 99.8°. 
To calibre the tube, that is to ascertain whether the calibre is 
uniform throughout, a short portion of the mercury column is 
detached from the remainder by a slight jerk, and, on inclining 
the tube it may be made to pass from one portion of the bore to 
another. If the scale is properly graduated, the column will fill 
an equal number of divisions throughout.* 
* For the accurate calibration of a thermometer see Kohlrausch’s “ Leitfaden der Praktischen 
Physik.” 62 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
BOILING POINT. 
Boiling is the conversion of a body from the liquid into the 
gaseous condition, which takes place from the surface as well as 
the interior, elastic bubbles of vapor being rapidly produced, 
which give rise to a bubbling movement throughout the entire 
liquid. The boiling of a liquid takes place at a constant tempera- 
ture which depends on the nature of the liquid and the atmos- 
pheric pressure. The Boiling Point is “the temperature at which the 
evolved vapors overcome the atmospheric pressure” or at which the 
tension of its vapor equals the atmospheric pressure. The tem- 
perature of ebullition or the boiling point, rises with increasing, 
and falls with decreasing pressure. For instance, water boils on 
the Montblanc under a pressure of about one-half an atmosphere 
at 86.5° C. Under a pressure of of an atmosphere, it would 
boil at 0° C. The temperature of the evolved vapors is known as 
the boiling point, and this is entirely independent of the various 
conditions which influence the boiling of liquids, since the tem- 
perature of the boiling liquid depends on the amount of air bub- 
bles, the nature of the containing vessel, its surface, the nature 
and cohesion of the fluid, the atmospheric pressure, etc. Since 
the boiling point is an un- 
changeable physical con- 
stant, the determination of 
this affords, like that of the 
“melting point,” a means 
of identification, and gives 
us a very important 
criterion concerning the 
purity, of many substances. 
For determining the boil- 
ing point of liquids, an ap- 
paratus arranged as shown 
in Fig. 82 may be em- 
ployed ; but should the 
liquid be inflammable, the 
apparatus must be so ar- 
ranged that the vapors may 
be removed and condensed, 
asshowninFig. 84. Forthis 
purpose a “ fractionating 
flask ” (Fig. 83) is selected. 
The thermometer should 
extend far enough down 
the neck to have its bulb 
slightly below the side exit, 
and it should never come 
in contact with the boiling liquid itself. The flask, which 
should never be filled more than about f full, as shown in the 
Fig. 83. 
Fractionating Flask (Measurements in Centimeters) HEAT. 
63 
illustration, is then connected with a condenser and distillation 
commenced, by heating the flask very slowly over a low flame. 
As soon as the liquid begins to boil, the thermometer ceases 
rising and remains stationery. Care must be taken not to heat 
too rapidly, beginning with a small flame and slowly increasing 
if necessary. 
Fig. 84. 
Apparatus for Fractional Distillation. 
By determining the melting point we are able to judge, not 
only as to the identity, but also as to the purity of many organic 
solids. The presence of but minute amounts of admixtures 
mostly influences the melting point by either raising or lowering 
it. The constancy of the melting point of a substance after re- 
crystallization, is a proof of its purity. To determine the melting 
point, we first prepare one or more suitable tubes. This is done 
by heating uniformly a tube of light fusible glass in a strong gas 
flame, drawing it out when sufficiently soft, as illustrated in 
Figure 85, then cutting it in the middle of the capillary and at 
both of the enlarged extremities, and closing the tips of the 
pointed extremities in the flame. The substance to be examined 
is then reduced to a fine powder, placed on a watch glass and 
either dried in an oven at 100° C., or allowed to stand over sul- 
phuric acid in a desiccator, until it ceases to lose weight. The 
fine powder is introduced into the tube and by careful tapping is 
brought to the bottom. The capillary is filled to a height equal 
MELTING POINT. 64 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
to that of the mercury in the bulb of the thermometer. Care 
should be taken that the powder is not packed too firmly in 
the tube. Then the one or two tubes are fastened to the ther- 
mometer by means of a rubber band (Fig. 87), care being taken 
that it is at least 4 Cm. (1| inches) above the surface of the 
liquid into which the tubes are inserted. The thermometer 
with attached tube, is secured in a clamp and lowered into a 
beaker glass (100-120 Cc.), which is filled about two-thirds full 
Fig. 85. 
Drawing Out Tubing. 
with any clear liquid which is a good conductor of heat. The 
extremity of the thermometer should extend to within about 
1.2 Cm. (or | inch) of the bottom. The beaker is then placed on 
a wire gauze and heated slowly by a low flame, the liquid being 
carefully stirred so as to insure a uniform equalization of the 
temperature throughout. Most substances shrink just before 
melting, which usually takes place suddenly. The moment 
when this occurs, note the temperature of the thermometer. It 
Fig. 86. 
Capillary Tubes for Melting Point Determination, a. Properly drawn, b, c. Poorly drawn. 
should be observed whether the body melts suddenly and en- 
tirely, or whether a portion melts and the balance requires a 
higher temperature and greater length of time until a clear fluid 
results, this extending over several degrees of temperature. When 
such is the case, the substance is not uniform, that is, there may 
be an admixture of some foreign or allied body of a higher or 
lower melting point, or it is sometimes due to imperfect drying 
of the substance. Some bodies melt with decomposition, gener- HEAT. 
65 
ally giving off gases or charring. As fluids for heating, we 
usually employ 
Distilled water for substances which do not melt above, . . . 80° C. 
Pure concentrated sulphuric acid for substances which 
do not melt above, 180° C. 
Paraffin for substances which do not melt above, 300° C. 
Sulphuric acid is most generally employed for this purpose. 
Fig. 87. 
Fig. 88. 
Melting Point Tubes 
in Position. 
Taking Melting Point in Bath of 
Sulphuric Acid. 
Another form of apparatus (Fig. 90) is often employed, which 
is essentially a double-mantled tube. The outer tube (b, b) is 
filled with sulphuric acid, introduced at d, the inner one (c) 
serves as an air-bath, in which the entire thermometer is sus- 
pended, being thus subjected to a uniform temperature. 
MELTING AND CONGEALING POINT OF FATS AND WAXES. 
There are various methods in use for determining the melting 
point of fats, which yield more or less discordant results. Some 
methods rely upon the temperature at which the fat begins to 
melt, others upon the temperature at which the mass is entirely 66 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
melted and clear; still others, upon the temperature when the 
fat begins to soften. The simplest method is to draw, by suction, 
a little of the melted fat into a capillary tube, to fuse the end of 
this in a flame; when cool, to fasten it to a thermometer and to 
proceed as already directed. Bensemann suggests that a few 
drops of melted fat be brought to the position a (Fig. 91), by 
holding the tube horizontally and tipping, then cooling by drop- 
Fig. 90. 
Fig. 89. 
Fig. 91 
Long-neck Flask for Melting 
Point Determinations. 
Air-Bath for Melting Point 
Determinations. 
Tubes for Fusing Point 
Determinations. 
ping water or ether on the outside; placing in a beaker of cold 
water, attaching to a thermometer, and then warming very 
slowly. The moment when the solid particle of fat becomes 
loosened and begins to flow down the side, the temperature is 
taken as the “ Beginning Point; ” the moment it unites at b to 
form a clear globule of melted fat, the temperature is taken as 
“ Complete Melting Point.” CHAPTER IV. 
APPLICATIONS OF HEAT IN VARIOUS OPERATIONS. 
Under this head, those operations which require a high degree 
of temperature will be considered first. 
Use of the Blowpipe.—A knowledge of the uses of the blow- 
pipe is important, because of its various applications in analytical 
chemistry. For a thorough treatise upon this subject, the student 
is referred to Plattner’s “ Blowpipe Analysis.” In using the blow- 
pipe (Fig. 93), a constant and uniform blast of air must be kept 
Fig. 92. 
Fig. 93. 
Sectional View of Bunsen Flame. 
Blowpipe. 
up through the tube by the operator, who must use the muscles 
of his cheeks as bellows, keeping them constantly distended, sup- 
plying air as needed. This blast of air passing through the dark 
cone of any illuminated flame, produces the same effect as that 
of the Bunsen flame, only that the flame becomes long and 
pointed and of a very high temperature, being concentrated on a 
very small amount of space. The flame (Fig. 92) is divided into 
67 68 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
two parts, the inner or deoxidizing zone at a a (or a, Fig. 94), for here, 
where some of the gas is yet unoxidized or unconsumed, oxygen 
is removed from metallic oxides. The outer zone at e (or b, Fig. 94) 
is called the oxidizing flame, for by 
the high temperature and free ac- 
cess of oxygen, metals are easily oxi- 
dized. When a flame of very high 
temperature is desired, the Blast- 
lamp (Figs. 77-78) is best employed. 
Operations with the Cruci- 
ble.— Crucibles are cup-shaped 
vessels of round or triangular 
shape, made of such material that 
they will stand extremely high temperatures. They are em- 
ployed in carrying on the process of ignition or smelting. For 
large operations the Hessian or graphite crucible is employed. 
The former is somewhat porous, hence only adapted for crude 
work ; the latter withstands a very high degree of heat and rapid 
changes of temperature without fracture. For general operations 
of the chemist or apothecary, the porcelain, platinum, silver, or 
Fig. 94. 
Blowpipe Flame. 
Fig. 95. 
Crucibles, a, b. Hessian, c. Graphite, d. Platinum, e, f. Porcelain, g. Clay. A. Copper. 
nickel crucible is employed. Porcelain crucibles are best adapted 
for general use, because of their cheapness, and also because less 
care is necessary to keep them in order. Moist substances should 
never be heated in such a crucible over the naked flame; the APPLICATIONS OF HEAT IN VARIOUS OPERATIONS. 
69 
substance should be first dried by placing the crucible and moist 
contents on a water bath or in a drying oven, and when thor- 
oughly dry, placing the substance in the crucible and the latter 
on a pipe-stem triangle and carefully heating, increasing gradu- 
ally to redness. These crucibles should not be employed for 
fusing caustic alkalies. Platinum crucibles are best adapted for 
all kinds of work ; wet precipitates may be thrown in and ignited 
at once. They will stand an intense degree of heat, and may be 
also rapidly heated and cooled. • Mixtures that give off free chlo- 
rine or contain lead compounds should not be heated in them.* 
They should be cleansed from time to time by scouring with 
moist rotten stone; sand should not be used. Silver or nickel 
crucibles are best adapted for fusing caustic alkalies. Care 
should be observed not to heat too strongly, for there is danger 
of melting the silver. 
The following operations require a high degree of heat. 
Ignition.—Ignition is employed in analysis to remove the last 
portions of moisture, or of organic or 
volatile constituents, from inorganic 
substances, in order to convert the 
latter into stable weighable com- 
pounds. The filter containing the pre- 
cipitate is folded, laid in the crucible, 
which is then placed on the triangle 
and heated slowly, until the filter is 
reduced to ash; then the heat is 
increased to dull redness, in which 
case the blast lamp is necessary; 
when sufficiently cool it is placed in 
the desiccator, being handled with a 
pair of crucible tongs. In the early 
stage of the operation the crucible 
lid is removed, until all carbonace- 
ous matter is burned off; then the 
cover is replaced and strong heat applied. 
Examples:—A solution of ferric salt is precipitated by an alkali, 
and the precipitate washed and dried; ignition then converts the 
ferric hydrate into ferric oxide, in which condition it is weighed. 
Fe2(OH)6 = Fe2O3 + 3H2O. Phosphoric acid is precipitated as 
magnesium ammonium phosphate (2MgNH4PO4 + 6H2O), this 
on ignition yields 2NH3, 7H2O and magnesium pyrophosphate, 
Mg2P2O7. The latter, a stable compound, is weighed. 
Fusion.—This is liquefaction of solids by heat. We fuse those 
solids which liquefy and do not suffer chemical change by heat. 
In analytical operations, we fuse silver chloride, to preclude the 
presence of any moisture. Caustic potash and soda are fused to 
Fig. 96. 
Ignition with Blast Lamp. 
* Also caustic alkalies, cyanides, or metallic salts mixed with organic matters. 70 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
remove all traces of moisture, then moulded into sticks for the 
sake of convenience. 
Calcination.—Some inorganic substances are strongly heated 
(until of constant weight), to remove some volatile constituent, as 
water of hydration or carbonic acid gas. 
Example.—Limestone or marble, on being strongly heated, 
yields calcium oxide (burnt lime). CaCO3 = CaO + CO2. Mag- 
nesium carbonate (MgCO3)4 Mg(OH)2, when calcined, yields mag- 
nesia (MgO), water, and carbonic acid gas. 
Deflagration.—The subjecting of inorganic salts to strong 
heat, whereby decrepitation takes place, with the giving off of 
oxygen. 
Example:— 
NaNO3 = NaNO2 + O. 2KC1O3 = 2KC1 + 3O2 
Sodium Nitrate. Sodium Nitrite. Oxygen. Potassium Chlorate. Potassium Chloride. Oxygen. 
Torrefaction.—The subjection of drugs to roasting, whereby 
an alteration in their properties and constituents takes place. 
Example.—Roasting of coffee. Rhubarb possesses cathartic 
properties, but on roasting, the cathartic principles are destroyed 
and an astringency is developed. 
Carbonization.—The subjection of organic substances to 
strong heat, out of contact with air. 
Example.—Wood charcoal and animal charcoal. When these 
are burnt in open air, ashes result. CHAPTER V. 
VAPORIZATION. 
OPERATIONS REQUIRING A LOWER DEGREE OF HEAT. 
The slow conversion of a liquid into the gaseous condition is 
designated by the general term—Vaporization. As applied in 
pharmacy, when it is intended to separate a volatile liquid or 
solvent from a solid, or a more volatile from a less volatile liquid, 
or for the purpose of concentrating a liquid, the process is called— 
Evaporation. When the volatile portion or portions are sought 
for, it is called— 
When a volatile is to be separated from a non-volatile solid, it 
is called—Sublimation. 
When solids are deprived of moisture at a low temperature, it is 
called—Desiccation. 
When crystalline salts are deprived of their water of crystalli- 
zation by means of heat, it is called—Exsiccation. 
EVAPORATION. 
In pharmaceutical operations, we resort to evaporation for the 
concentration of liquids, the collection of a dissolved body 
(extracts), or for the purposes of crystallization. For pharmaceu- 
tical or technico-chemical purposes, the principal object to be 
considered, is the saving of time and fuel. In quantitative analy- 
sis this is not considered, care and attention being directed to 
guard against loss or contamination of the substance operated 
upon. 
According to the nature of the solvent and dissolved body, the 
method of evaporation may vary, as to the vessel in which it is 
carried on, or the nature of the source of heat. The rapidity of 
evaporation depends upon: 
1st. The amount of surface of the liquid exposed. 
2d. The temperature of the liquid. 
3d. The nature of the liquid and dissolved body. 
4th. The atmospheric pressure, also the atmospheric humidity. 
5th. The nature of the vessel. 
1st. The larger the amount of surface exposed to the atmos- 
phere, the more rapid is the rate of evaporation, for it is evident, 
that a liquid, contained in a shallow evaporating dish, will evap- 
orate more rapidly if exposed to the same temperature, than the 
same quantity contained in a deep narrow vessel. Shallow 
vessels favor ebullition, since there is a lesser weight of liquid 
above the source of heat, thereby affording less resistance to the 
71 72 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
escape of bubbles. When we evaporate below the boiling point, 
we endeavor to present as much surface as possible to the air; 
Fig. 97. 
Mechanical Stirring Apparatus for Evaporating Fluids. 
hence, by stirring, a fresh surface is constantly brought into con- 
tact with the air. This operation may be carried on mechanic- 
Fig. 98. 
Mechanical Stirring Apparatus (Kaehler and Martini). 
ally by means of rotating paddles or stirrers as shown in Figs. 
97, 98. This method of evaporation is largely employed in phar- 
maceutical laboratories, when we desire to rapidly concentrate a VAPORIZATION. 
73 
fluid at as low a temperature as possible, to avoid injury to the 
drug. In various industries, where surface evaporation is re- 
sorted to, large surfaces are exposed in shallow tanks, over which 
the flame or hot gases from the furnace are allowed to pass. Fig. 
99 illustrates the same principle, but in another form. This 
patented apparatus of Siebert (Hanau a/M) is employed, particu- 
larly in the concentration of sulphuric acid. The acid to be con- 
centrated flows into the pocket at d, the blade f controls the flow 
so that only a thin stream trickles down the steps of the heated 
cascade, the vapors being removed through b. 
2d. The increase of temperature in a liquid accelerates evap- 
Fig. 99. 
Cascade Evaporator (Siebert). 
oration by increasing the elastic force of the vapors, thereby 
facilitating their rapid liberation. 
3d. The nature of the liquid or solvent, that is, the density and 
cohesion of liquids, influence the elastic force of the vapors. 
Relatively light and mobile liquids, as ether or alcohol, evaporate 
far more rapidly than water, since they allow a rapid escape of 
the bubbles, while on the contrary, the cohesiveness of a solution, 
like that of syrup or mucilage, offers considerable resistance. 
The presence of a dissolved body raises the boiling point of a 
liquid materially,* hence, not only is a higher degree of heat re- 
quired, but the rapidity of evaporation may also be greatly im- 
* See Saline Solutions. 74 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY 
peded, by the formation of a crust of saline or other solid matter 
on the surface of the liquid, which would prevent the escape of 
steam bubbles. 
4th. Influence of atmospheric pressure. As already stated, the 
boiling point of water at normal atmospheric pressure of 760 
Mm. is 100° C. If the pressure be decreased, the boiling point 
likewise decreases, with an increase of rapidity of evaporation.* 
If pressure be exerted upon the surface of the liquid, it causes a 
material rise in the boiling point, diminishing the rapidity of 
evaporation.f Again no evaporation can take place in a space 
Fig. 100. 
Fig. 101. 
Evaporation. 
already saturated with the vapor of the same liquid; hence the 
rapidity of evaporation is influenced according as the surround- 
ing atmosphere is more or less charged with the same vapor. If 
we direct a current of air over the surface of the fluid, we remove 
these vapors, thereby facilitating the rapidity of evaporation. 
* See Vacuum Apparatus. 
t At barometric pressure of 760.00 Mm. 1 atmosphere, the boiling point of distilled water is 100° C. 
“ “ 88.74 “ “ “ 50° C. 
“ “ 23.10 “ “ “ 25° C. 
“ “ 5.06 “ “ “ 0° C. 
With tension of 1 atmosphere the boiling point of distilled water is 100° C. 
“ “ 15 atmospheres “ “ 200.5° C. 
« « 100 « “ « 311.4° C. VAPORIZATION. 
75 
With this end in view, various forms of apparatus have been 
devised. Figs. 100,101, illustrate a very simple and old mode of 
creating a current of air during evaporation. By means of a 
clamp, the funnel is held inverted over the evaporating dish, the 
vapors rising upward through the funnel, and, like a smoke-stack, 
cause (by suction) a current of air to flow in over the surface. In 
Fig. 100 the edge of the funnel is curved inward, forming a 
trough to collect any vapors that may be condensed, thereby pre- 
venting them from running back into the fluid. Fig. 101 consists 
of a plain funnel with a glass tube fitted into the neck by means 
of a cork, the lower end extending close to the surface of the 
liquid. 
5th. Nature of the vessel and surface. Evaporation proceeds 
more rapidly with less heat, in vessels of copper, platinum, iron, 
tin, etc., than in those of porcelain or stoneware, because of the 
greater heat-conductivity of the former. If the inner surface of 
the vessel be rough, corrugated, or uneven, more surface is 
Fig. 102. 
Evaporating and Crystallizing Dishes, 
thereby exposed to the source of heat, imparting therefore a 
greater amount of heat to the fluid, thereby facilitating evapora- 
tion. In a glass vessel of smooth surface, the temperature of 
water may rise to 105° C. before boiling, because the water be- 
comes superheated ; if, however, a piece of broken glass be placed 
in the vessel, ebullition will proceed rapidly and quietly at the 
usual temperature of 100° C., the sharp edges of the glass acting 
mechanically, in assisting the disengagement of heat bubbles. 
Evaporating Vessels.—Porcelain dishes are best suited for 
the general uses of the apothecary. They should be as shallow as 
possible, as illustrated in Fig. 102. The last four, flat-bottomed, 
are intended as crystallizing dishes. Because of their fragile 
nature, to avoid injury to either the vessels or the substance, 
they are best heated on a steam, water, oil or sand bath. Where 
it is necessary to heat directly, the precaution should be taken 
carefully to dry the outside of the vessel, then to place on a wire 76 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
gauze (Fig. 103), and to begin heating gradually. When heated 
over a naked flame, porcelain cracks readily if the residue is 
allowed to set or cake in the bottom ; 
hence, in evaporating any saline so- 
lution, we should always carry on 
the operation on a bath, thereby not 
only avoiding the danger of break- 
ing the dish, but also the sputtering 
of the boiling liquid and decrepita- 
tion of the drying salt. Enameled 
sheet iron dishes (agate ware), are 
very useful and lasting; they should 
be discarded should the enamel chip 
off inside. Copper and earthen ves- 
sels are employed only by the manu- 
facturer for larger operations. In 
many chemical and pharmaceutical 
operations, it should not be forgotten 
that the material of the evaporating 
vessel exercises considerable influ- 
ence on the liquids to be heated. 
Distilled water, when boiled some time in glass vessels, dissolves 
appreciable quantities of this material, owing to the formation of 
soluble silicates. The particles dissolved, consist chiefly of potassa, 
or soda or lime, in combination with silicic acid. A much larger 
Fig. 103. 
Evaporating over Direct Flame. 
Fig. 104. 
Fig. 105. 
Evaporating with Properly Regulated Flame. 
Evaporating Flame Unnecessarily High. 
proportion of glass is dissolved by water containing caustic or 
carbonated alkali. Traces of copper are generally found in 
extracts which have been evaporated in copper vessels. 
Vacuum Apparatus—Distillation under Diminished Pres- 
sure.—The boiling point of a liquid is materially lowered by the VAPORIZATION. 
77 
removal of atmospheric pressure (page 74). We find a practical 
application of this fact in the “Vacuum Apparatus.” It is of 
the greatest value in pharmacy, for the rapid concentration 
of certain solutions, chiefly of organic substances, such as the 
preparation of solid extracts. By means of this, we not only 
increase the rapidity of evaporation, but avoid injury to the 
sensitive plant principles by the lower degree of heat employed 
Fig. 106. 
Pharmaceutical Vacuum Apparatus. 
and absence of the oxidizing influence of the atmospheric air. 
Fig. 106 illustrates a smaller vacuum apparatus for the use of 
apothecaries. Its construction and use is exceedingly simple. 
The copper vessel A, serves as a water or steam bath; in this is 
suspended a porcelain or copper evaporating dish, which is 
covered with a glass dome B made air-tight by means of a 
rubber joint; the thermometer is inserted at C, the air is 
exhausted from the apparatus by means of the water-pump 78 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
E, the glass vessel D serves as receiver, and this is closed by 
a metallic lid to which is attached the indicator F, enabling the 
operator to control the vacuum. Fig. 107 illustrates a sectional 
view of a vacuum pan of modern construction, such as is employed 
in the industries in the evaporation of sugar solutions, or the pre- 
paration of extract of beef or of condensed milk. 
Rapid Evaporation.—Besides the usual methods of facilitating 
evaporation as already mentioned, another deserves mention, and 
that is the method of evaporation by the application of heat over 
the surface of the liquid. This method is applicable to all non- 
Fig. 107. 
Vacuum Apparatus (Sectional View). 
inflammable liquids such as are not injured by heat. Fig. 108 
illustrates Hempel’s method, in which a flame burns directly above 
the surface of the liquid, the entire apparatus being enclosed in 
a cylindrical glass vessel, which is connected with a pump, for the 
rapid removal of the vapors and gases. Another method, is that 
of the Government laboratory of the Netherlands. The apparatus 
consists of an iron plate standing on four legs; near each corner 
is an opening, through which the tubes of four Bunsen burners 
are adjusted to such a height that their tops will be a little higher 
than the edge of the capsule, which is placed on the iron plate. 
A second plate is then adjusted over the burners. When the four 
flames are lit, the upper iron plate causes the flame to spread out 
along the plate, the direct flame and radiation of heat causing a 
rapid evaporation to take place. In evaporating inflammable 
liquids on the water bath, it is best to surround the flame by a VAPORIZATION. 
79 
wire gauze (Fig. 109), to prevent any danger of the liquid or vapor 
igniting. 
For evaporating or concentrating small amounts of very vol- 
atile solvents, such as ether, carbon disulphide, or petroleum-ether, 
it is best to place the vessel in a drying closet or desiccator, or under 
a bell jar which contains an absorbent, such as sulphuric acid, 
burnt lime, etc. For wThen we allow these fluids to evaporate in 
the open air, owing to the lowering of temperature, and the rapidity 
of evaporation, water is condensed on the sides of the vessel and 
contaminates the residue. Evaporating vessels of perpendicular 
sides should be employed for volatile fluids containing solids in 
solution, as such liq- 
uids tend to crawl up 
over the edge of the 
dish and deposit solid 
matter on the out- 
side. 
In evaporating liq- 
uids which give off 
irritating or corrosive 
vapors or gases, the 
operation should be 
carried on in a 
“ Draught Chamber ” 
(Fig. 110). This may 
be built into a chim- 
ney-flue or imme- 
diately in front of it, 
the flue leading off 
from the top of the 
chamber as shown in 
Fig. 111. A gas flame 
above, serves to 
create a strong, 
steady draught. The 
chamber may be ar- 
ranged as shown in Fig. 110, where the draught chimney extends 
up one side of the chamber, there being an opening below, where 
the gas may be lit. Above, near the top, is a similar opening 
which serves to remove all gases. In absence of such arrange- 
ments, we can remove noxious vapors by inverting a large glass 
funnel over the evaporating liquid, it being held in position by 
means of a clamp over the neck, a rubber tube being attached to 
the end of the stem, and the other end of the tube being led to 
a water pump. The suction produced will carry off all traces of 
noxious vapors. 
In evaporating such liquids as contain salts in solution, it is 
necessary to stir constantly, for, as they become concentrated, a 
saline scum forms upon the surface, which prevents further evap- 
Fig. 108. 
Fig. 109. 
Bath for Evaporating Inflammable 
Liquids. 
Hempel’s Evaporator. 80 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
oration. Those liquids which form a scum or skin on the surface 
(for instance, milk), or frothy solutions, should be mixed with 
washed sand or pulverized glass and then constantly stirred while 
evaporating. 
Spontaneous Evaporation.—Water, and many other liquids, 
will evaporate without the application of heat, simple exposure 
to the air, with as large an area of surface as possible, being all 
that is necessary. We apply this method of concentration to those 
liquids which contain bodies that are injured by any degree of 
Fig. 110. 
Fig. 111. 
Draught Chambers. 
heat, also for the slow vaporization of solutions of crystallizable 
bodies, so as to obtain well formed crystals. Instead of placing 
these vessels in the open air, wre sometimes place them in a dry- 
ing closet (Fig. 172), always taking the precaution to cover the 
vessel loosely with muslin or filter paper, to prevent particles of 
dust from dropping into the fluid. We sometimes carry on slow 
evaporation, by placing the dish on a tripod and setting this upon 
the flat top of a stove or over a hot-air radiator. VAPORIZATION. 
81 
Baths.—For general purposes of evaporation we employ various 
baths, in order that we may control the temperature of evapora- 
tion. Sometimes it is necessary to subject a liquid to a prolonged 
Fig. 114. 
Fig. 112. 
Fig. 113. 
Iron Water-Bath with Constant Level. 
Copper Water-Bath. 
Iron Water-Bath. 
high degree of heat; again in others it is necessary that the tem- 
perature should not rise above a certain limit. For the purpose 
of regulating the degree of heat, we use various liquids of different 
Fig. 116. 
Fig. 115. 
Water-Bath with Constant Level (Kekulti). 
Water-Bath with Constant Level. 
boiling points. The most common of these is water (used in the 
water-bath), by means of which we reach a temperature of about 
97° C. A water-bath is generally constructed of copper or iron 82 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
(Figs. 112,113). In order to avoid the inconvenience of constant 
watching, to prevent them becoming dry, the water-bath with 
Fig. 117. 
Fig. 118. 
Water-Bath (Landolt). 
Steam Evaporating Kettle. 
“ constant level ” (Figs. 114,115, 116) is preferably employed. In 
this, the water enters through B, flows through the horizontal tube 
Fig. 119. 
Iron Sand-Baths. 
C into the bath; this when filled to a certain height, causes an 
overflow in B which is drawn off by A. By connecting this with 
Fig. 120. 
Filling Sand-Bath. 
a hydrant, the supply of water can be automatically regulated. 
Fig. 116 illustrates another design in which the water is supplied 
from a self-regulating flask. Fig. 118 illustrates a large copper VAPORIZATION. 
83 
bath heated by a steam jacket; this is adapted for evaporating 
large quantities of liquids, as in the preparation of extracts. 
J. Sand-bath (Fig. 119) consists of an iron vessel with either 
round or flat bottom, which is filled with clean, dry sand. 
The vessel to be heated is partly embedded in the sand and the 
entire apparatus placed on a tripod (Fig. 120) and heated. We 
employ the sand-bath where we desire to heat a body to a high 
temperature; it also prevents a too rapid rise or fall of tempera- 
ture which might fracture the vessel. Sea-sand answers best for 
this purpose, but it should be well washed and dried before use. 
Not more than a | inch layer of sand should be between the 
bottom of the vessel and the flame. 
The Oil-bath is intended for temperatures not rising above 
250° C. (482° F.). For this purpose paraffin is best adapted, 
since most fixed oils evolve very unpleasant odors when heated. 
Glycerin may be employed for temperatures up to 165° C.,(329° F.). 
Fig. 121. 
Tripods. 
Baths of Saline Solutions are occasionally employed in oper- 
ations where we desire a certain regulated temperature, without 
the precaution of a thermometer. The boiling point of distilled 
water is 100° C. (212° F.), but if we add any inorganic salt, the 
boiling point will be raised in proportion to the quantity and 
nature of the salt added. If we form saturated solutions we find 
their boiling points constant. The following table gives the tem- 
perature obtained by boiling saturated solutions of 
C. 
F. 
Sodium Sulphate, 
100.5° 
213.5° 
Copper Sulphate, 
102.° 
215.6° 
Sodium Borate, 
.... 105.° 
221.0° 
Sodium Chloride, 
106.° 
222.8° 
Ammonium Chloride, 
112.° 
233.6° 
Sodium Nitrate, 
117.° 
242.6° 
Sodium Acetate, 
122.° 
251.6° 
Calcium Chloride, 
141.° 
285.8° 
Zinc Chloride, 
160.° 
320.0° 
Zinc Chloride, Fused, 
700.° 
1292.0° 84 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Air-bath*—“ Dr. H. Fleck recommends the 
simple air-bath, illustrated by Fig. 122, which 
has been in successful use for several years, 
doing all the duty of a water-, oil-, or paraffin- 
bath. By a circular cut, or other means, glass 
rings are prepared from cylinders of various 
sizes. These rings, from 2 to 10 Cm. in height, 
are set upon an iron plate, and covered with a 
similar one, having suitable openings for receiv- 
ing a thermometer and the vessels intended to 
be set upon it. If high temperatures are re- 
quired, low cylinders (of about 2 Cm. in height) 
are selected; low temperatures require higher 
cylinders (5 to 10 Cm.). The cylinders are 
scratched with a diamond, in a vertical direc- 
tion, so that, if they should crack, the fracture 
would always be up and down. This simple 
apparatus permits the maintenance of constant 
temperatures of 50 to 300° C. (122 to 572° F.) and 
over. Its transparency is an additional advan- 
tage, when it is of importance to watch the pro- 
gress of reactions, as often happens, in synthetical experiments.” 
Fig. 122. 
Fleck’s Air-Bath. 
* As described in the “ Proceed. Amer. Phar. Ass’n,” 1882, p. 53. CHAPTER VI. 
DISTILLATION. 
Distillation is a process whereby a liquid, by means of heat, is 
converted into a vapor, and this in turn condensed to a liquid by 
Fig. 123. 
Simplest Form of Distillation. 
means of a properly arranged cooling apparatus. This process 
is resorted to as a means of purification, or for the separation of 
Fig. 124. 
Distillation (Improvised Condenser). 
85 86 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the more volatile from less volatile liquids. The apparatus (Fig. 
125) consists of a distilling flask (or retort) A, in which the fluid 
is heated; the cooling apparatus B, in which the vapors are 
Fig. 125. 
condensed, is called the condenser, and the receiver C, which 
serves to collect the condensed liquid. The distilling flask may 
Distillation. 
Fig. 126. 
Fig. 127. 
Fractionating Flask with Thermometer. 
Flask with T-Tube for Fractionating. 
be either a retort as illustrated in Fig. 123, or an ordinary flask 
fitted with a bent tube serving as a beak (Fig. 125), or we may 
employ the “fractionating flask” (Fig. 126), which admits the use DISTILLATION. 
87 
of a thermometer, the projecting side tube being connected with 
the condenser. 
Retorts are either closed as illustrated in Fig. 128, a, b, or pro- 
Fig. 128. 
Glass Retorts, a, 6. Plain, c, d. Tubulated. 
vided with tubulures as in c, d, through which liquids may be 
introduced, and a thermometer or safety tube inserted. This 
tubulure must be so placed, that the ther- 
mometer or safety tube may stand erect 
and not come in contact with the sides 
of the retort. The retort must be bent 
in sharp at the throat, without, however, 
Fig. 130. 
narrowing the tube (see Fig. 128, 
a). The form b should not be 
used, because, in boiling, the fluid 
is liable to be carried over mechanic- 
ally. Fig. 128, d illustrates a poorly 
placed tubulure. Besides glass re- 
torts, we find them made of porce- 
lain, earthenware, iron, lead, copper 
and platinum. 
Condensers.—Fig. 132 illustrates 
the most simple form of the so-called 
“Liebig’s Condenser,” which consists 
of a long glass tube surrounded by 
another of larger diameter, but somewhat shorter. At either 
end of the larger outside tube, is inserted a perforated cork, 
Filling Retort. 
Earthenware Retorts. 
Fig. 131. 
Lead Retort. 88 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
which serves to hold the inner tube and admits a short bent tube 
at both ends, serving for the admission and discharge of water 
which circulates in the space between the smaller and larger 
tubes. Figs. 133, 134, 135, illustrate other forms, in which the 
openings for water are made in the upper and lower ends of the 
outer tube. 
Another form is that in which the inside condensing tube con- 
sists of a spiral; this offers a very large condensing surface, which 
is necessary in distilling volatile liquids, such as 
ether or carbon disulphide. Fig. 136 illustrates the 
“worm condenserthese are made of glass or metal. 
When of metal, the condensing pipe should be of 
block tin; it is cooled by means of water or a mixture 
of salt and ice. 
Fig 132. 
Fig. 133. 
Fig. 134. 
Fig. 135. 
Liebig Con- 
denser. 
Liebig Condenser (Various Forms). 
When the boiling point of the liquid is above 150° C., it is 
only necessary to employ an air cooler, which consists of a 
straight tube of large enough diameter to slip over the tip 
of the fractionating flask, as in Fig. 137. 
The Receiver is that vessel into which the distillate is discharged. 
For this purpose we employ flasks or beaker glasses. The tip of 
the condenser should reach inside of the receiver, and these con- 
nections should, if the liquid is volatile, be as tight as possible, 
making allowance however, for the escape of air. 
Adapters are conical or tapering tubes of glass, which are 89 
DISTILLATION. 
intended to be attached to the extremity of the condenser for 
conveying the distillate into the receiver, or for attaching the 
retort or flask to the condenser (Fig. 142). 
Pinch-cocks.—For the purpose of 
regulating the flow of a liquid or 
gas through a rubber tube, we em- 
ploy the pinch-cock (Fig. 138); b illus- 
trates the usual form, which is in- 
tended for closing a tube entirely; c 
and d can be regulated by means of a 
thumb-screw, hence they are better 
adapted for general use. The form 
illustrated in Fig. 139 recommends 
itself, in that it can be quickly ap- 
plied or removed from a rubber 
tube, without breaking a joint; and 
by means of the thumb-screw, the 
flow of gas or water can easily be 
regulated. 
in the fitting up of apparatus, 
some attention must be given to 
the cutting and bending of glass 
tubing. Heavy tubing should not 
be used, except in special instances 
where strength is specially desired. 
Cutting.—Glass tubing is cut by means of a triangular file or a 
hardened knife edge. Make a single well defined scratch or cut 
Fig. 136. 
Distilling Apparatus with Worm Condenser. 
Fig. 137. 
Distillating with Air Condenser, a. Distillating Flask, b. Air Condenser, c. Receiver. 
across the surface, then grasp the tube on each side of the cut, 
(Fig. 144) with thumbs opposite, and carefully tap on the edge of 90 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
a table. With tubes of larger diameter or of very thick walls, 
the file cut should extend at least half around the tube. When 
the file or knife fails to cut properly, moisten with water or oil of 
turpentine. When it is necessary to break off a short piece, near 
the end of a tube, hold the shorter portion in a towel to protect 
the hand from accidental cutting. The rough ends of tubing 
should always be rounded off by holding (rotating) them in the 
Bunsen flame. 
Fig. 138. 
Pinch-cocks. 
Bending Tubing.—Tubing is best bent in the wide gas-flame, 
holding it horizontally, and rotating slowly and continually so as 
to heat the tube uniformly on all sides. As soon as the glass 
begins to soften, hold it steady, and allow it to slowly bend to the 
desired angle, as shown in Fig. 145. In bending a tube, force 
must not be used, the tube must be carefully and equally heated 
on all sides, otherwise the angle will be unevenly bent or collapse 
(Fig. 146, b, c). A poorly bent 
angle may be restored by 
softening it in the flame and 
then blowing into the tube 
gently, having closed one end 
with a cork. 
Drawing out of Tubing.—It is 
often necessary to draw a tube 
out to a fine point for use in 
the wash bottle (also called 
“ spritz bottle ”), or for making a capillary tube for melting 
point determinations. The same precautions should be observed 
here in regard to heating, as above stated; then, when the glass 
is sufficiently soft, the tube should be drawn out slowly to the 
desired length, constantly rotating. 
Fitting Joints.—For fitting the joints of apparatus, the best velvet 
corks should be employed. Rubber stoppers are still better, as 
Fig. 139. 
Adjustable Pinch-cocks. DISTILLATION. 
91 
Fig. 140. 
Fig. 141. 
Retort Stand. 
Receivers, a. Plain, b. Tubulated, c. Quilled. 
Fig. 142. 
Adapters (Various Forms). 92 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
they give a very secure joint, impervious to acids and gases. But 
rubber should not be employed where it might come in contact 
Fig. 143. 
with such solvents as chloroform or carbon disulphide. Corks, 
before being used, should be gently pressed and softened, then 
Retorts with Adapters. 
Fig. 144. 
Position for Breaking a Tube. 
perforated by means of the cork borer (Fig. 147). Cork borers 
are brass cylinders, the lower edges of which are sharpened, the 
Fig. 146. 
Fig. 145. 
Bending Tubing. 
Properly and Poorly Bent Tubing. DISTILLATION. 
93 
milled heads affording a firm hold. When dull, the edges are 
readily sharpened on a whetstone or by a file. In 
boring a cork, place it on a block of wood, then with a 
tube of the desired size, moistened with water, push 
through with a twisting motion, taking care to keep the 
instrument perpendicular. In boring through a thick 
cork, the bored portion is apt to break off, before the 
borer is through. If this happens, the borer should be 
withdrawn, cleared of the broken piece, then wetted and 
reinserted, when it will readily cut its way further. 
Never try to bore a hole by starting it from both sides; 
it will rarely come true. In piercing rubber stoppers, 
the end of the tube should be moistened with alcohol 
or oil of turpentine. When we desire to connect two 
tubes of equal diameter or where one just fits over the 
Fig. 148. 
Ftg. 147. 
other, it is best to slip a short piece of firmly-fitting rubber tube 
over the joint; this will render it air-tight and secure. 
Mohr’s Cork-borer. 
Cork-File. 94 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Inverted or Upright (or Reflux) Condenser.—When it is desired to 
subject a substance to the action of a boiling liquid solvent, we 
Fig. 149. 
Fig. 151. 
Lever Cork Press. 
Fig. 150. 
Rotary Cork Press. 
employ a flask with inverted condenser, ar- 
ranged as shown in Fig. 151. The flask is 
heated on a water,- sand- or oil-bath, or 
over the free flame, according to the nature 
and boiling point of the solvent. Fig. 152 
illustrates a Soxhlet’s spherical condenser, 
which possesses the great advantage of 
occupying a very little space. The cold 
water enters at a into 
the condensing space c, 
flowing out through b. 
The vapor enters in 
from below, circulates 
around and condenses 
in the space d. 
Distillation in a Current of Steam.—This is 
applicable to such substances as are injured 
when heated or distilled alone, as the vola- 
tile oils or organic bases; we also employ it 
in the separation of volatile from non-vola- 
tile bodies. The substance is placed in the 
distilling flask d (Fig. 153) with a little water, 
then steam (generated in the can a) is blown 
through. This carries the volatile matter 
over, to be condensed in the cooler e. Distillation is usually 
continued until oily globules cease to be driven over. 
Fig. 152. 
Flask with Upright or 
Reflux Condenser. 
Soxhlet’s Spherical Con- 
denser. DISTILLATION. 
95 
Fractional Distillation is the separation of a mixture of liquids 
of different degrees of volatility, by means of distillation. Mixed 
volatile liquids have no constant boiling point. The complete 
separation of two liquids, which boil at different temperatures, can 
only be carried out easily, when the 
interval between their boiling points 
is a large one. If they only differ by 
10 to 30 degrees, then on distilling, 
one will observe a continuous rise of 
the thermometer without its remain- 
ing stationary at any given boiling 
point, and the change in the compo- 
sition of the distillate will be gradual 
instead of abrupt. In such cases, the 
distillate must be collected in separate 
“fractions,” according to the 
rise in boiling point, i. e., 
every 5 or 10 degrees. This 
must be repeated until the 
Fig. 153.—Apparatus for Distillation in Current of Steam. 
a. Can in which steam is generated, b. Safety valve, c. Exit tube for steam, d. Distilling flask, e. Condenser. 
middle fractions have been separated into the higher and lower 
boiling constituents. Thus, for instance, on distilling a mixture 
of two liquids, their boiling points being respectively 100° C. and 
150° C., the liquid of lower boiling point does not come over alone 
at 100° C., nor the higher alone at 150° C., but the thermometer 
gradually rises from 100° C. up, and we obtain a mixture of both 
liquids, in different proportions. In this case, we collect that 96 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
portion which comes over between 100° and 110°, which consists 
almost entirely of the lower boiling fraction, then another fraction 
boiling between 110° and 140°, which consists of a mixture of both 
constituents in about equal proportions; finally, the fraction from 
140° to 150°, which contains mainly the higher boiling liquid. 
The middle fraction (110° to 140°) is then again fractioned, the 
respective distillates between 100° and 110° and 140° and 150° 
being set aside; this is again repeated if necessary, and finally the 
Fig. 154. 
French Column Apparatus. 
high and low boiling fractions (i. e., those from 100° to 110°, and 
those from 140° to 150°), are in turn distilled, the receiver being 
changed at every 5 degrees. These products on repeated distilla- 
tion in the above manner, finally yield the two pure products. 
For carrying on fractional distillation, the apparatus as illustrated 
in Fig. 84, should be employed. 
Rectification is repeated distillation, whereby a distillate of DISTILLATION. 
97 
greater purity is obtained. It is employed more particularly in 
the recovery of alcohol from weak alcoholic liquids. Fig. 154 
shows the construction of a Column Apparatus such as is employed 
in rectifying alcohol. It consists of a boiler (a) heated by a 
steam-pipe, containing the weak alcoholic liquids; the vapors 
pass upward through the rectifier (b), then over to the condenser 
(c) The highly concentrated spirit condenses in the refrigerator 
(d) while the aqueous portion flows by the tube (e) back into the 
rectifier. 
Bumping.—Certain liquids, when heated to boiling in glass re- 
torts, give rise to bumping. Ebullition may begin regularly and 
the distillation proceed steadily, when suddenly the liquid will 
become quiet for a few seconds. It then becomes superheated, 
and this is followed by a slight explosion of accumulated vapor, 
called 11 bumping.” By the force of the explosion, quantities of 
the liquid are carried over mechanically, into the condenser. 
This bumping may be avoided or lessened, by placing pieces of 
Fig. 155. 
Retorts for Destructive Distillation. 
broken glass in the retort, or where admissible, by suspending a 
string in the flask, reaching just below the surface of the liquid. 
These act mechanically in assisting the evolution of vapor 
bubbles. 
Destructive Distillation is a process by which dry organic sub- 
stances are subjected to heat in closed iron vessels, whereby gases, 
liquids, and thick tarry products are obtained. The temperature 
of decomposition of different substancesis very different; some 
decompose at a temperature below 100° C., while others require 
a red heat. Many bodies yield entirely volatile products with no 
residue, while others leave a large amount of solid residue in the 
retort. 
Amber yields Succinic Acid and Oil of Amber. 
Cane Sugar, C12H22On, yields Caramel, C12H18O9, and water, 2H2O. 
Salicylic Acid, C7H6O3, yields Phenol, C6H5OH, and Carbon Dioxide, CO2. 
By the dry distillation of complex organic substances, such as 
bones, wood, or coal, we obtain a large number of products, gas- 
eous, liquid, and tarry. 98 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
PHARMACEUTICAL STILLS. 
Stills are employed by the pharmacist for the purpose of recov- 
ering alcohol or ether, or for the preparation of distilled water. 
They are constructed of plain or tinned copper and are not 
adapted for distilling acid or corrosive liquids. They are all con- 
Fig. 156. 
Laboratory Copper Still. 
structed after the same general principle, differing, however, as 
to their form. The simplest form of a copper still is that illus- 
trated in Fig. 156, consisting of a boiler surmounted by a detach- 
able hood ; a block tin worm serves as the condenser. 
The Curtman Still (Fig. 157) is of simple construction, being 
specially adapted for recovering alcohol from weak percolates. 
(a) Serves as the body 
of the still, (d) is a 
perforated diaphragm 
which can be placed 
in the still when neces- 
sary. The alcoholic 
vapors pass upward 
through the condenser 
(k, n). Cold water 
enters at (f). After 
circulating around the 
tube (n), the heated 
water is discharged 
through the tube (l) 
into the still head (b), 
from which it may be 
siphoned off. The 
heated water at (b) 
serves to condense 
most of the aqueous vapors, while the alcohol, being more vola- 
Fig. 157. 
Curtman Still (Sectional View). DISTILLATION. 
99 
tile, passes over and is condensed by the colder water of the con- 
denser. When it is desired to prepare essences, spirits or medi- 
cated waters, the necessary plant parts are placed in the diaphragm 
d and the steam arising from a passes through, taking up the 
volatile products. 
Fig. 159 illustrates Edel’s modified Hood Still. The condenser 
consists of a number (22) of cylindrical tubes, closed at the upper 
Fig. 158. 
end, and fitted into the diaphragm c, c. The cold water circulates 
around these, thereby affording a very large condensing surface. 
The Prentiss Still (Fig. 160), or alcohol reclaimer, is based on 
very much the same principle as the “ Column Apparatus ” (Fig. 
154). The boiler of the still (a) has an upright column (b) screwed 
to it, and inside of this are a series of perforated diaphragms 
Beck’s Pharmaceutical Still.* 
* The construction of this still is so simple that an explanation was not considered necessary. 100 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
soldered to a central rod (see B, 154). The mixed alcoholic and 
aqueous vapors pass upward through the diaphragms, which 
interefere with the passage, and cause the condensation of the 
aqueous, while the alcoholic vapors pass on through c into the 
Fig. 159. 
Fig. 160. 
Edel’s Hood Still. 
Prentiss Still. 
condensing worm, being discharged at g. Cold water enters at e 
and is discharged at spout f. 
Fig. 161 illustrates the Remington Still. The body of the still 
is made of tinned copper, the 
bottom being flat. The top 
is surmounted by a flat brass 
ring, upon which fits a like 
ring which is soldered to the 
still top or dome, which is 
held in position by the 
clamps l. The opening in 
the still dome, which is 
drawn over to one side, is 
terminated by a brass collar, 
over which the end of the 
condenser fits. The condenser, which is but a foot in length, is 
the special feature; this consists of seven parallel block-tin tubes, 
enclosed in a copper cylinder. At each end of this cylinder is a 
short tube, which serves for the inlet and outlet of cold water. 
Fig. 161. 
Remington Still (Sectional View.) DISTILLATION. 
101 
The cold water enters at b, and after circulating between the con- 
densing tubes, passes out at a. Thus arranged, wre have seven 
feet of condensing space in a very compact form. C, is a bath 
for evaporating small quantities of volatile liquids at a low tem- 
perature; this is clamped between the still body and still head ; 
the body being filled with water, the waste steam escapes through 
three apertures in the rim of the water bath. 
In the preparation of distilled and aromatic waters from plant 
parts, it is necessary that these substances do not come in contact 
with the heated sides and bottom of the still, hence the use of a 
wire cage (n) for this purpose. 
Fig. 162 illustrates a very useful Automatic 11 rater Still, the lower 
Fig. 163. 
Fig. 162. 
Automatic Water Still. 
Curran Water Still. 
vessel being the boiler, the middle one the condenser, the upper 
one the supply tank. Of the four pipes shown, a is the steam 
and condensed water tube, coiled, as shown in the condenser 
tank full of water, and delivering distilled water at a'; b is a 
pipe leading from the water level in the boiler to the top of the 
supply tank; c, a pipe, with cork, leading from the bottom of the 
supply tank to the condenser tank ; and d, a pipe leading from 
the top of the condenser tank to the bottom of the boiler, e is 
an opening, with air-tight stopper, for filling the supply tank; 
and f, a cock to draw off hot water from the boiler. After once 
starting the distillation proceeds automatically. The still can be 
operated by placing it on a gas stove or on top of a range or stove. 102 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
For the rapid and economical preparation of distilled water, the 
Curran Still (Fig. 163) is well adapted. Its principle and con- 
struction are very simple. It consists of a copper boiler a, resting 
in a galvanized case c, detachable at d b, which is perforated, in 
order to act as a flue to utilize all the heat from the gas burner, 
on the sides of the boiler. The vapors pass through the connect- 
ing pipe f into the worm p p, where they are condensed, being 
discharged through s w. h is a screw cover removable for filling 
or cleaning. These stills are constructed so that they may be 
heated by gas, gasoline or 
coal. 
The Mitscherlich Condenser 
(Fig. 164) is of very simple 
construction, and can be at- 
tached to any form of still. 
When the inner vessel a is 
twenty inches long and four 
inches wide, we have a total 
condensing surface, on the 
sides of b and d, of five hun- 
dred square inches. The con- 
denser consists of an inner 
vessel a,suspended in an outer 
vessel b, a space of three- 
fourths of an inch being 
allowed between these vessels. 
These, in turn, rest in another 
vessel d, d. The vapors pass 
from the still through e into 
the space b, b, between a and 
d, and the condensed liquid is 
discharged at c. Cold water 
enters through the tubes r 
and r, passing into the bottom 
of the vessel; as it becomes 
heated, it rises and is dis- 
charged at y and z. 
Rice's Pharmaceutical Still* 
(Fig. 165). An improvement offered here consists of a block-tin 
worm condenser, enclosed in the cylindrical copper casing 
immediately above the still-head. This may be used as a 
reflux-condenser as well as for ordinary distilling operations; 
it affords also a great saving in space. “ The apparatus consists 
mainly of two parts, the still and the head with condenser. The 
still is heated by steam, which enters at m, n being the exhaust- 
pipe. The condenser is a cylindrical copper vessel, with rounded 
bottom and closed top, having short tubes projecting from the 
Fig. 164. 
Mitscherlich Condenser. 
•Description taken from “New Remedies,” 1877, page 245. DISTILLATION. 
103 
bottom and from the top at b and c. The cold water enters 
through the hose a; at c the water is discharged through the 
waste pipe d. The head of the still carries three tubulures, one 
for the insertion of the safety-tube L, another for filling the still, 
and the third, for the insertion of a thermometer. The condens- 
Fig. 165. 
Rice’s Pharmaceutical Still. 
ing pipe e, e carries the vapors upward to the upper end of the 
block-tin worm, contained in the condenser, and emerging from 
it at f. Halfway between f and the end proper of worm, the 
pipe is tapped and a branch, carrying the faucet h, leads into the 
still at c, where it terminates under the center of the head in the 104 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
form of an Czo, forming a trap to prevent the escape of vapors 
by this passage. The object of this arrangement is to cause the 
condensed liquid to flow back into the still as long as the faucet 
h is open, or to collect it outside by turning off the faucet h. 
Prolonged digestions with alcohol may be made by means of this 
apparatus, without any loss of liquid. The head is attached to 
the still by means of a rubber or pasteboard washer and iron 
clamps, and when it is desired to remove it, the water is allowed 
to drain from the condenser, the clamps are removed, and the 
whole is hoisted up by the tackle k and set to one side.” CHAPTER VII. 
SUBLIMATION. 
Sublimation is distillation applied to volatile solids. Certain 
solids, when heated, are converted into vapor, and this, when 
condensed on a cool surface, yields the substance in its solid 
(crystalline) but purified form, called a “ sublimate.” This process 
can be applied only to such solids as do not undergo decomposi- 
tion on heating. Sublimation, like distillation, has for its object 
the separation of the volatile from the non-volatile or less volatile 
substances. In the first mentioned operation, the product (subli- 
mate) is solid, while in the second, the product (distillate) is liquid. 
Fig. 166. 
Fig. 167. 
Experimental Sublimation of Sulphur. 
Oddo’s Sublimation Apparatus. 
The object of sublimation is therefore solely the purification of the 
substance. As examples we have iodine, salicylic acid, camphor, 
sulphur, benzoic acid, etc. We have other examples where the 
process serves for the formation, as well as separation of the vola- 
tile solid, as calomel, corrosive sublimate, ammonium chloride. 
An apparatus for conducting the operation on a small scale (Fig. 
167), consists of two circular discs of asbestos a and b. The upper 
disc has a hole pierced through the middle, in which the beaker c 
105 106 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
sits, containing the body to be sublimed. Two large beakers are in- 
verted over this; the inside one serves for the collection of the sub- 
limate, while the outer beaker condenses any vapors that may 
escape from the inside. It is well to lay two circular discs of glazed 
paper (with corresponding holes) under the beakers on a. The 
Fig. 168. 
Fig. 169. 
disc b serves for distributing the heat. With such bodies as am- 
monium chloride, corrosive sublimate, and ammonium carbonate, 
condensation takes place at a comparatively high temperature 
within a small space; the substance is then deposited in compact 
Bruehl’s Sublimation Apparatus. 
Sublimation of Benzoic Acid (small scale). 
Fig. 170. 
Sublimation of Benzoic Acid (Hager’s Apparatus). 
masses. When the vapors of the body are conducted into large 
cool chambers (Fig. 170), the sublimate is deposited in small par- 
ticles (minute crystals), like that of sulphur. 
Fig. 168 illustrates a very simple form of apparatus for sublim- 
ing small amounts. The substance is placed in a small crucible 107 
SUBLIMATION. 
and slowly heated, the vapors condense on the surface of the 
glass globe, which on cooling, can be removed for the collection of 
the sublimate. Should the globe become heated, it can be kept cool 
by laying a cone-shaped spiral of lead pipe (cooled with wrater) on 
the surface. 
Fig. 169 illustrates the old method of preparing small amounts 
of benzoic acid from benzoin. Benzoin in coarse powder, is mixed 
with dry sand and placed in a shallow tin pan, a; over the top, d, 
a sheet of filter paper is tied, and this is punctured full of pin 
holes. A hood, c, is made of glazed paper, fitted, and tied over 
the top of the pan at d. The apparatus is subjected to a low and 
uniform heat; the vapors of the benzoic acid pass up through 
the perforated porous cover and are condensed on the cool sides 
of the paper hood. 
Fig. 171. 
Apparatus for the Preparation of Calomel. 
Fig. 170 represents the preparation of benzoic acid by sublima- 
tion. In the chamber a, the mixture of benzoin and sand is 
heated, the vapors of the acid, by means of a regulated draft, c, e, 
are caused to pass into, and condense in, the large chamber. The 
current of air follows the direction indicated by the arrows passing 
through d,f. 
The method of the sublimation of calomel is showm in Fig. 171. 
In the earthenware retort, C, the crude calomel is heated, the 
vapors pass over into the stoneware condenser, D, where they meet 
a current of steam from the tube tt, which causes the calomel to 
condense and to drop into the water below. This treatment aids 
in dissolving out any mercuric chloride which might accidentally 
have been formed. CHAPTER VIII. 
DESICCATION. 
OPERATIONS REQUIRING A LOWER DEGREE OF HEAT. 
Desiccation consists in depriving solids (drugs, chemicals) of 
moisture at a low temperature. 
Pharmaceutically, its objects are the following :— 
1st. It Reduces Bulk.—Vegetable drugs contain a variable 
amount of moisture,* and, in consequence thereof, are more or 
less bulky. If we can remove this moisture without injury to the 
constituents, we will gain a great advantage by concentrating 
their strength and reducing their bulk. 
2d. It Facilitates Comminution.—As long as a drug or chemical 
contains moisture, it resists pulverization, because of the tenacity 
and sponginess of the drug, or the dampness of the powder, which 
causes it to cake. As soon as the moisture is removed, the drug 
becomes brittle and readily disintegrates. 
3d. It Assists Preservation.—As long as vegetable drugs contain 
moisture, they are liable to become mouldy or to ferment, result- 
ing in injury to their constituents and rendering them unfit for 
use. Many chemical salts have the property of rapidly absorb- 
ing moisture from the air (see Deliquescence), while others lose 
crystal water and fall to a dry powder on standing in the air (see 
Efflorescence). In either of these cases, a decided increase or 
decrease of weight of the salt takes place, with a corresponding 
increase or decrease of strength ; hence, for the sake of accuracy, 
as well as convenience, we often resort to desiccation and pulveri- 
zation of these substances. 
As time is always a consideration, drugs are rarely subjected to 
the old process of spreading out the leaves, roots, or bark, and 
then exposing them to the sun, or in a dry loft. 
Drugs are dried by placing them, in a coarsely comminuted 
condition, on wooden trays with a perforated or wire netting 
bottom. Chemicals are placed on trays with a muslin bottom, 
* 100 parts of freshly gathered, 
yield in dry drug about 
Belladonnae Folia, 18 parts. 
Arnie® Flores, 20 “ 
Digitalis, 20 “ 
Mentha Piperita, 20 “ 
Taraxacum, 22 “ 
Scilla, 25 “ 
Valeriana, 25 “ 
yield in dry drug about 
Calamus, 25 parts. 
Althaea, 25 “ 
Glycyrrhiza, 33 “ 
Colchici Radix, 34 “ 
Belladonnse Radix, 38 “ 
Stramonii Folia, 45 “ 
Mezereum, 50 “ 
(Tschirch.) 
108 DESICCATION. 
109 
these being then placed on a framework, in chambers which are 
heated to the necessary temperature, which varies according to the 
nature of the substance. The arrangement of such chambers is 
very much the same as in the drying closet, the principle of which 
is shown in Fig. 172. Each shelf 
or partition is so placed, that the 
draught of dry or heated air 
passes over and around it, escap- 
ing above, loaded with moisture. 
In some cases, the air is first passed 
over burnt lime to remove all 
moisture, before passing into the 
drying chamber. Drying closets 
may be so arranged, as to utilize 
the waste heat from a stove-pipe, 
or by passing a steam-pipe through 
it. The vessels containing the 
burnt lime, should be placed in 
the bottom and on the different 
shelves. Thus arranged, the dry- 
ing closet may also be utilized for 
storing hygroscopic drugs and 
chemicals. 
Loss in Drying Drugs.*—The drying of drugs requires the 
greatest care and consideration, since many of them contain 
volatile and active principles, which are easily injured by the 
slightest degree of overheating, for example, conium leaf and fruit, 
aconite, etc. Aromatic drugs like cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, car- 
damon, etc., are apt to suffer a loss of their volatile aromatic 
constituents to a greater or less degree; hence when several of 
these enter into a pharmaceutical preparation, it is best to grind 
the crude aromatics together to a powder, and not mix the several 
dried powders. Again, such drugs as asafoetida, myrrh, ammo- 
niac, suffer loss of volatile oil in the process of drying and reduc- 
tion to powder; hence, when powdered, they are unfit for 
dispensing or for the preparation of the “Mixtures.” In pre- 
paring Emulsum Asafoetidse, or Ammoniaci, or Mistura Ferri 
Composita, only selected tears of the several gum-resins should 
be employed. 
Fig. 172. 
Drying Closet (Sectional View). 
*The following drugs lose, on an average, by drying and powdering:— 
Acacia, 0.8 per cent. Ergota, 3.62 per cent. 
Aloe Socotrina, 11.2 " Gentiana, 10.23 “ 
Acidum Tartaricum, 1.06 “ Ipecacuanha, 1.91 “ 
Buchu, 2.00 “ Myrrha, 5.80 “ 
Cantharis, 2.05 “ Opium, 19.61 “ 
Cardamomum, 6.02 “ Podophyllum, 0.75 “ 
Cassia, 2.61 “ Rheum, 1.74 “ 
Cinchona Flava, 2.57 “ Scilla 13.60 “ 
“ Rubra, 1.58 “ Tragacantha, 6.93 “ 
Cubeba 2.40 “ Zingiber (alb.) 9.70 “ 
(Squibb.) 110 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Every apothecary should employ the greatest care in the selec- 
tion of his powdered drugs, for the market is well provided with 
inert and adulterated material. 
Storage and, Preservation.—Considerable care must be observed 
in the storage of powdered vegetable drugs. They should be 
kept in a place not subject to marked changes of temperature, 
and should not be stored in hermetically sealed vessels and 
deprived of free access of air, but should be placed in tin canisters, 
the tops of which are slightly perforated, so as to admit the access 
of air, and yet to keep out dust and insects. Wooden boxes or 
drawers are not suitable, for they allow the accession of mites and 
dust, the drug rapidly losing what odor or aroma it may possess. 
For storing crude drugs or roots, barks and leaves, drawers may 
be constructed which are lined with tin, the lids being so placed 
that they can only be opened when the drawer is open; these 
drawers answer well for storing such powders as Gentian or 
Columbo. 
When exposed to the air, powdered drugs absorb moisture (1 to 
20 per cent.), the amount depending on the hygroscopicity of the 
particular powder; those containing fixed or volatile oils being 
the least hygroscopic, while the largest amount of moisture is 
absorbed by mucilaginous drugs. 
In the course of Pharmaceutical Assaying, it is frequently neces- 
sary to dry small quantities of substances, 
in which case we employ the “ Drying 
Oven” (Fig. 173), which is usually made of 
copper and placed on a stand. A Bunsen 
lamp is placed below and, by regulating the 
flame, the temperature in the oven may be 
regulated; an opening above is for the 
insertion of a thermometer. These ovens 
are also constructed with double walls to 
admit filling with water, when the desired 
temperature should not rise above 100° C. 
For very high temperatures, iron ovens 
are employed. After the operation of dry- 
ing or ignition, it is necessary to allow the 
substance to cool in the “ Desiccator” to 
prevent absorption of moisture, before 
weighing. If the substance has been dried 
on a watch-glass, then another well-fitting 
watch-glass is inverted over it, and the 
two are held firmly together by means of a spring (Fig. 176), 
which prevents any possible loss of powder by spilling, and also 
prevents absorption of moisture during the weighing. Hot cruci- 
bles are placed on pipe-stem wire triangles in the desiccator. 
Fig. 173. 
Copper Drying Oven. DESICCATION. 
111 
Many bodies, owing to their low melting point, cannot be 
dried by heat, hence we place them in the desiccator over 
Fig. 174. 
Copper Drying Oven (Double Wall). 
Fig. 175. 
Fig. 176. 
Watch-glasses for Weighing Powders. 
Iron Drying Oven. 
Fig. 177. 
sulphuric acid, or calcium chlo- 
ride, etc., where they give up their 
moisture readily. 
Desiccators are of various forms. 
Fig. 177 illustrates one consist- 
ing of a bell-glass (b), with a 
ground rim fitting closely to 
the ground glass base. The 
vessel (c) contains the moisture- 
absorbing material; above this 
is a porcelain table (d), upon 
which the substance to be dried 
is placed. Fig. 178 illustrates 
a form of desiccator, designed 
by Hempel, the principle of which consists in placing the absorb- 
ing material (H2SO4) in the rim of the cover (a-y), above the 
Bell-glass Desiccator. 112 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
substance which is placed in the lower vessel A. The cover is 
provided with a tube and stopcock, which fits into the neck at B, 
Fig. 178. 
Hempel’s Desiccator. 
for connecting with a suction-pump if necessary to dry “in 
vacuo.” Fig. 179 illustrates another form, 
provided with a stopcock a, which may 
be placed in connection with a vacuum- 
pump and the air exhausted. The ground 
edges of the fittings should be greased 
with a little fat or petrolatum. 
As material for the absorption of mois- 
ture (water), for use in desiccators, we 
employ usually either sulphuric acid 
or granulated calcium chloride; besides 
these we may also employ either calcium 
oxide (burnt lime), fused caustic potash 
or soda, or phosphoric oxide (anhy- 
drous phosphoric acid). 
Drying Liquids.—For removing small 
amounts of water from such liquids as 
alcohol, ether, ethyl nitrite, chloroform, 
volatile oils, we employ fused calcium 
chloride, sharply-dried potassium carbon- 
ate, or anhydrous copper sulphate. Care should be taken not to 
employ any substance which may react chemically on the liquid 
to be dried, for instance, calcium chloride cannot be employed in 
drying wood alcohol, benzyl alcohol or many esters, because it 
unites with them, forming crystalline compounds. Absolute 
alcohol is prepared from ordinary alcohol, by percolating it 
Fig. 179. 
Vacuum Desiccator. DESICCATION. 
113 
through burnt lime, which effectually removes all but traces of 
water. 
Fig. 180. 
Gas Wash Bottles. 
Drying Gases.—For drying (washing) gases, we employ the 
various forms of “wash bottles” (Fig. 180), in which the gas 
Fig. 181. 
Fig. 182. 
Drying Tube (Chloride of Calcium). 
Drying Jar (Chloride of Cal- 
cium). 
passes through a layer of sulphuric acid; the tube through 
which the gas enters the flask, should dip from one-half to 114 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
three-quarters of an inch below the surface of the acid. For 
“washing gases,” water or other fluids are employed. Figs. 181, 
182 illustrate another form, in which the gas is dried by passing 
through either a U tube, or upwards through a tower, filled with 
granulated calcium chloride. A wad of absorbent cotton or spun 
glass wool is placed in the neck (Fig. 182), upon which the granu- 
lated calcium chloride rests, and another layer is placed on top 
just beneath the cork. CHAPTER IX. 
COMMINUTION. 
The collection, drying, comminution and subsequent pulveri- 
zation of drugs is at present seldom, if ever, performed by the 
retail apothecary. This branch has fallen entirely into the 
hands of the drug-miller. Crude vegetable drugs are first 
Fig. 183. 
reduced to coarse particles by slicing or chopping, in order to 
facilitate their drying and subsequent pulverization. This is 
called “ Comminution.” The slicing is done by means of chop- 
Poulain’s Pulverizing Works. 
115 116 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
ping knives or rolling circular blades operated by machinery. 
In this condition, the drug is dried and then subjected to the 
operation of bruising, called “ Contusion,” which in other words, 
is pulverization by simple impact. Fig. 183 shows the opera- 
tion of contusion in the row to the right; in the row on the left 
trituration is carried on. 
In these two processes the piece that raises the pestles is a cam whose axis is 
fixed upon the main shaft, which is actuated by a steam engine. In order to pre- 
vent lateral action in the contusion battery, the cams revolve in a rectilinear open- 
ing in the rod of the pestle, which is seen to the right of the engraving. The 
cam, which is a spiral, having the driving shaft as a starting point, is cut off short 
at 180°. On reaching this point, the wiper escapes and leaves the pestle to the 
action of gravity. 
In the trituration battery, figured on the left of the engraving, the pestles must 
in falling turn upon themselves. To this effect the cam rubs against a wiper in the 
form of a horizontal circular plate that communicates, by reason of the friction, a 
gyrating motion to the pestle. The different positions occupied by the cam during 
its revolution are shown in the illustration. 
In order to prevent particles from being ejected from the impact, as well as the 
diffusion of the dust, each mortar is covered with a leather jacket. 
As soon as the drug has been thoroughly bruised it is ready for 
grinding. 
GRINDING is the reduction to coarse particles in properly 
constructed mills. 
The drug-miller employs a variety of mills, for the purpose of 
grinding. Among these are the Chaser, Buhr-Stone, and Roller 
Mills, Disintegrators and other patent mills, each of which is 
adapted to special purposes. 
A Hand Drug-Mill that answers the purposes of the pharmacist, 
must be so constructed, that it may be adjusted for all kinds of 
general work. 
According to the arrangement of the grinding surfaces hand- 
mills may be divided into two classes. 
1. Those in which the grinding plates are arranged vertically. 
2. Those in which the grinding plates are arranged horizontally. 
In all of them, the grinding plates consist of teeth arranged in 
concentric rows, one plate fitting into the other; the distance be- 
tween the grinding surfaces being regulated by means of a thumb- 
screw, thereby regulating the degrees of fineness of the powder. 
1. Hand Drug-Mills with Vertical Grinding Plates.—Among these 
are the Swift, Troemner, and Enterprise mills. The latter (Fig. 
184), because of the simplicity of its construction, and the case 
with which it is handled and cleansed, has become very popular. 
In this mill, the grinding plates are supported on a horizontal 
shaft, which is turned by two heavy fly wheels. The shaft rests 
between two hemispheres, enabling the operator, after opening the 
mill, to remove all the working parts. The various parts can be 
readily removed and replaced in case of fracture. The left-hand 
grinding plate, being geared to the shaft, revolves, while the right- 
hand one is stationary. The fineness of the powder may be easily COMMINUTION. 
117 
regulated by means of a thumb-screw, which regulates the distance 
Fig. 184. 
between the plates. Various sizes are made, clown to the small 
dispensing counter-mill. 
2. Hand Drug-Mills with Horizontal 
Grinding Plates.—An older form is 
the Thomas mill; later improvements 
are found in Swift’s B mill, in which 
the grinding plates are arranged 
horizontally, the upper one being 
stationary, wThile the lower one re- 
volves. It can be easily opened and 
cleaned, the main objection being its 
open receptacle for the powder. 
An embodiment of this same idea, 
but vastly improved, is the Hance 
conical-plate mill, in which the hori- 
zontal grinding surfaces are given a 
conical shape. The main feature of 
this mill is that the powder yielded 
is always uniformly fine and free from 
coarse particles, while the vertical- 
plate mills often allow these to drop 
through. The conical shape of the 
grinding plates, allows a ready dis- 
charge of the powder, thereby avoiding clogging up of the mill, 
Enterprise Drug-Mill. 
Fig. 185. 
Hance Drug-Mill (Cross Section). 118 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
which is very often the case in those having horizontal plates. 
This mill is adapted for all kinds of heavy and light work and 
can be readily taken apart for cleaning. The lower plate is of 
conical shape, capped with a beaker, and fits upon the upper end 
of the upright shaft, and revolves with it, engaging with the teeth 
in the upper grinding-plate and hopper. Power is transmitted 
by means of two shafts at right angles, geared with bevel cog- 
wheels. The fineness of the powder is regulated by a thumb- 
screw at the base, which elevates the revolving plate. 
The Following Precautions Must be Observed in Hand- 
ling Drug-Mills.—The mill, if not sufficiently heavy, should be 
securely bolted to a firm foundation ; otherwise much of the power 
exerted at the wheel will be lost. 
The bearings should be kept clean and lubricated. 
Fig. 186. 
Hance Drug-Mill (Showing Parts). 
The drug should be as dry as possible, otherwise the moist par- 
ticles will stick to the plates and cause clogging. 
In grinding coarse, bulky or fibrous drugs, they should first be 
reduced to coarse particles by bruising, then run through the mill 
several times, first with a very coarse adjustment, then after sifting 
off the fine particles, returned to the mill, after the plates have 
been readjusted. The procedure is continued until the whole is 
ground to the proper degree of fineness. 
The drug should not be fed into the hopper faster than it can 
be ground, otherwise clogging will ensue. Dry, brittle drugs, may 
be fed more rapidly than moist, oily ones. Very oily drugs are 
best ground coarse at first, the fine powder sifted off, and the tail- 
ings reground, etc. 
After each operation, the mill should be thoroughly cleansed, 
all particles adhering to the plates being removed. Should these COMMINUTION. 
119 
have become clogged with hard lumps, the latter should be 
removed with boiling water, and the plates well dried. In most 
cases the running through of sawdust will be sufficient. 
Is the reduction of substances into particles of greater or less 
tenuity. We perform this by the operations of contusion and 
grinding in the case of vegetable drugs; in others, such as resinous 
drugs, gums, chemicals, etc., by the process of pulverization. All 
bodies cannot be pulverized by one and the same process; this 
must be altered to suit the physical and chemical nature of the 
body to be pulverized. Certain precautions must be observed by 
PULVERIZATION 
Fig. 187. 
Pulverization of Corrosive or Poisonous Substances. 
the workmen in carrying on some of these operations, to prevent 
injury or painful affections. For instance, the dust arising from 
the powdering of belladonna is apt to injure the eyesight; that 
from cantharides acts as a vesicant; certain salts of mercury and 
all salts of arsenic are very poisonous, etc. Fig. 187 illustrates 
some of the precautionary measures adopted in such cases. 
Some bodies cannot be pulverized alone, that is, they require 
the addition of a foreign body which facilitates disintegration; 
this method of powdering is called “pulverization by mediation.” 
We employ intermediates in powdering camphor, for, owing to its 
elastic nature, we cannot powder it alone; hence we moisten it 
with alcohol or ether, whereby it disintegrates immediately. Rice 
is softened in water before being ground. Vanilla requires the 120 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
intervention of sugar or milk sugar crystals. Centrifugal force is 
used for the reduction of zinc to fine powder, the molten metal 
being poured on a horizontal revolving plate of iron, which turns 
at the rate of 2000 revolutions a minute. By this means, the 
zinc is projected against the sides of the box in which the disc is 
enclosed. For the fine subdivision of phosphorus, it is melted 
under water, and the latter then agitated until cool. Gold-, 
silver-, and bronze-leaf are powdered in the presence of honey or 
sulphate of potassium, which is afterward removed by washing. 
Nux vomica or ignatia, owing to their tough and horny structure, 
are first steamed, which causes them to swell and soften, after 
which they are rapidly dried, and then easily reduced to powder. 
For powdering resins and gums, some manufacturers employ 
casks or iron cylinders which revolve upon an axis, and in the 
interior of which iron balls roll about, crushing the substance. 
SIFTING 
Is the process of separating powders of different degrees of fine- 
ness by passing them through some perforated medium. For 
this purpose sieves are employed. These consist of a frame, 
usually circular, over which is stretched wire- (or iron- or brass-) 
gauze, or better hair-cloth or silk, 
held firmly in place by an outer 
rim. Drum sieves are cylindri- 
cal and covered at both ends. 
After sifting, a powder should 
always be thoroughly mixed, in 
order to insure uniform composi- 
tion of the product. When we 
operate upon larger quantities of 
powder, we have special appar- 
atus designed for this purpose. 
Among the various sifters, Hun- 
ter’s (Fig. 188) is one of the most 
effective. The powdered drug or 
mixed powders are thrown into 
the hopper above, then by means 
of brushes, which revolve against 
the curved brass sieve, the lumps are thoroughly disintegrated, 
and the powder is brushed through into the receptacle below, 
where it is further mixed by revolving spiral mixers. For pre- 
paring impalpable powders, bolting cloth is employed. Com- 
mercially, powders are known by numbers. The U. S. Phar- 
macopoeia directs the employment of various degrees of fineness, 
designating the degree by a number, which corresponds to the 
number of meshes to the linear inch ; the powders being num- 
bered from 20 to 80 inclusive. 
Fig. 188. 
Hunter’s Sifter and Mixer. COMMINUTION. 
121 
The British Pharmacopoeia directs the numbers from 20 to 80 
inclusive, designating them by the number of meshes to the linear 
inch, as in the U. S. P., omitting, however, the metric equivalents. 
The German and Austrian Pharmacopoeias designate by the num- 
ber of meshes to the square centimeter. 
Tables of Degrees of Fineness of Powders, U. S. P. and B. P. 
Meshes to . 
Meshes to the 
No. 
Linear Inch. 
Centimeter. 
80 Very fine powder 
80 
30 
60 Fine 
60 
24 
50 Moderately fine 
50 
20 
40 Moderately coarse 
40 
16 
20 Coarse 
20 
8 
2Vb. 
Meshes to the 
Centimeter. 
Corresponding 
to U. S. P. 
50 Impalpable powder 
50 
40 Exceedingly tine 
40 
30 Very fine 
30 
80 
25 Fine 
25 
about 60 
20 Moderately fine 
20 
50 
15 Moderately coarse 
15 
about 40 
8 Coarse 
8 
20 
Degrees of Fineness of Ph. Ger. and Ph. Aus 
TRITURATION 
Is the reduction of substances to a minute state of subdivision by 
means of the mortar and pestle. The pestle should be grasped 
firmly, and, with a slight downward pressure, worked around the 
Fig. 189. 
Fig. 190. 
Trituration. 
Motion described by Pestle. 
bottom and sides of the mortar with a circular motion, gradually 
extending from the center outwards, as shown in Fig. 190. Then 
the motion should be reversed toward the center, in the same 
manner, and this procedure should be continued until the sub- 
stance is reduced to the desired degree of fineness. 
Mortars and Pestles.—For the pulverization of hard or tough 122 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
drugs, where considerable force is necessary, the iron or bronze 
mortar is employed (Fig. 191). The interior should be bell-shaped 
and not conical, otherwise the drug will become packed in the 
bottom, hindering proper disintegration. After use, they are best 
cleaned by triturating in them some clean sand. When they have 
been used for powdering chemicals, such as iron or sodium sulphate, 
they should be well washed and dried. 
Wedgwood-ware answers admirably for general use, because of 
its strength, though, owing to its somewhat porous nature, it is 
often difficult to cleanse. Again, the handle of the pestle being of 
wood, it is usually set into the base by means of a resin cement; 
it, therefore, readily loosens and drops some of the cement off, 
contaminating the substance that may be triturated. The handles 
should be reset before using, by heating until the cement softens, 
then filling the pestle hole with a fused mixture of 3 parts of 
Fig. 191. 
Iron Mortars. 
shellac, 1 of yellow wax and 1 of turpentine, pressing in firmly, 
holding until the wax has hardened. Handles are now made of 
hard rubber which screw firmly into the pestle. 
Porcelain mortars and pestles are preferred for general use in 
the preparation of solutions, emulsions, light triturating etc. They 
are much more easily cleansed than the Wedgwood ware, since 
their inner surface is not porous like that of the latter. Porcelain 
mortars will not stand hard blows nor rapid heating, because 
of their liability to fracture. Glass mortars (Fig. 195) should 
likewise be carefully handled, and should not be employed for 
triturating hard substances. They are best adapted for pulver- 
izing corrosive substances, chemicals, alkaloids, and for preparing 
solutions of the same. Their surface is smooth, and no loss of 
substance is liable to occur, as would be the case when using a 
Wedgwood mortar, whose surface is porous or uneven. COMMINUTION. 
123 
Agate mortars (Fig. 196) are only employed in pulverizing very 
hard substances, such as minerals or ores. 
In selecting mortars and pestles, the apothecary should use con- 
siderable discretion: For general purposes of trituration a shallow 
mortar (Fig. 193) should be selected. For the preparation of 
emulsions and solutions, a comparatively deep mortar (Fig. 194) 
should be used. The pestle should fit the mortar accurately; a 
Fig. 192. 
Fig. 193. 
Wedgwood Mortar. 
Porcelain Mortar (Shallow). 
round-surfaced pestle should be used for the deep, and a flat-sur- 
faced one for the shallow mortar. 
Every apothecary should have a full set of mortars and pestles, 
of various sizes and shapes, adapted for all sorts of operations. It 
should be made a rigid rule to clean these immediately after use. 
When the powdered substance has been of a resinous nature, its 
Fig. 195. 
Fig. 194. 
Fig. 196. 
Porcelain Mortar (Deep). 
Glass Mortar. 
Agate Mortar. 
traces are best removed by means of a little alcohol or benzin, and 
if it has been of an oily nature, the remaining particles may be 
removed with sawdust, and the mortar then washed out with soap 
and water. If the substance possessed a powerful odor, like that 
of iodoform, or the mixture has badly stained the mortar, triturate 
a little bichromate of potassium with sulphuric acid about the 
sides, rinsing out well with water. 124 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
A Spatula consists of a long, flexible blade of polished steel, 
somewhat heavier at the base, where it is usually covered on both 
sides with hard wood, serving as a handle. Spatulas are also made 
Fig. 197. 
Ointment Spatula. 
Fig. 200. 
Fig. 198. 
Pill Spatula. 
Fig. 199. 
Horn Spatulas. 
entirely of metal (nickel plated). The so-called Lawrence 
spatula is the best among these; the handle not being 
polished affords a good grip. The only objection to these, 
is that after being some time in use the plating is liable 
to wear off from the tip, exposing the surface of the steel 
beneath. 
Spatulas are employed in the process of trituration, for 
the removal of the particles of powder adhering to the 
sides of the mortar and pestle, also in all the various 
phases of dispensing pharmacy, such as the division of 
powders, preparation of ointments, etc. Steel spatulas 
are adapted for general use except for such purposes 
where the substance is affected by contact with iron, as 
in the preparation of ointments containing iodine, sali- 
cylic and tannic acids, mercuric chloride, and corrosive 
substances. In such cases we employ the horn or hard 
rubber spatula, the latter being of flexible steel covered 
with hard rubber. Horn and rubber spatulas should 
not be used for stirring hot liquids. 
Too much care cannot be paid to the cleansing and care of 
spatulas; they should always be bright and free from traces of 
Powder 
Spatula. COMMINUTION. 
125 
rust, as its presence may render many a preparation unsightly 
and unfit for use. 
Trituration may also be 
effected, by means of the 
slab and muller with the in- 
tervention of a liquid, the 
operation being called 
“ Levigation.” The s u b- 
stance, in coarse powder, is 
placed on a slab of glass, 
marble, or porphyry, having 
a ground surface, and moist- 
ened with water or alcohol 
to form a thick paste; it is 
then triturated by means of 
the muller, using slight pres- 
sure, and moving the mul- 
ler in curves such as shown 
in Fig. 201, a, b. A shallow 
porcelain mortar (Fig. 202) 
is often substituted for the 
slab, and a flat-surfaced pes- 
tle for the muller. In Euro- 
pean pharmacy this latter 
operation is designated as 
Levigation, and the former as Porphyrization. These processes 
have for their object the reduction of such substances as zinc 
Fig. 201. 
Porphyry Slab and Muller. 
Fig. 202. 
Levigating Mortar. 
oxide, or mercuric oxide, to a very fine state of subdivision, 
which is not attainable by the simple process of dry trituration. 126 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Is the process of separating the finer particles of an insoluble 
powder from the coarser, by means of suspension in water. The 
pasty mass resulting from the process of levigation, is washed off 
into a beaker or other suitable vessel, and stirred with water; the 
mixture is then allowed to stand a minute or so, after which the 
supernatant turbid fluid is poured off into another beaker. The 
sediment which contains the coarser particles, is then again sub- 
jected to the process of levigation, and the same operation is re- 
peated until the whole quantity is elutriated. The turbid fluid, 
which has been decanted, is allowed to stand at rest until the 
minute particles of the substance held in suspension have sub- 
ELUTRIATION 
Fig. 203. 
Elutriation. 
sided ; this deposit is then collected and dried. Instead of pour- 
ing off (decanting) the turbid fluid as described above, we may 
employ a more expeditious method, illustrated in Fig. 203, in 
which, by means of a long funnel tube, water is forced in at the 
bottom of the cylinder, which, forcing its way upward through 
the powder, carries the particles of powder along with it, the finer 
particles being carried to the top, while the coarser remain near 
the bottom, from their own gravity. By opening different outlets 
on the sides powders of various degrees of fineness may be ob- 
tained. The process of elutriation is employed in separating the 
impurities from chalk and in the sorting of emery into different 
grades of fineness. COMMINUTION. 
127 
Consists in forming conical masses of levigated substances. 
Insoluble powders, such as chalk, 
bismuth salts, or bole, while still in a 
pasty condition, are placed into a tin 
cone (d, Fig. 204). This is then 
grasped by the handle (c), and the leg 
of the frame is tapped gently upon a 
slab of chalk-stone, or other absorbing 
surface, each tap causing a conical 
drop to fall out. The porous block 
absorbs the moisture quickly, after 
which the cones may be dried by heat, 
if necessary. 
TROCHISCATION 
Fig. 204. 
Mould for Levigated Chalk, Etc. CHAPTER X. 
SOLUTION. 
Solution is a “ molecular ” subdivision of a body (solid, liquid or 
gas), in a liquid {solvent), the result being a clear homogeneous fluid. 
If, on bringing a solid in contact with a liquid, the whole or a 
portion of the solid disappears, and a clear liquid results or can 
be separated from the mixture, then we say that the solid is wholly 
or partially soluble in the liquid. 
Formerly, the solution of a solid in a liquid, such as that of salt 
in water, was designated as “ simple ” or “ direct ” solution, and 
where a change in the chemical nature took place, as when bases 
were dissolved in acids, as “ indirect ” or “ chemical ” solution. 
Such a distinction is not necessary, and moreover incorrect, for 
we must consider, that “ solution ” in such a case is only apparent, 
there being new bodies of a different chemical constitution pro- 
duced, which, as such, are dissolved in the excess of the solvent. 
The chemical action which takes place first, has nothing to do with 
the phenomena of solution. 
The rate or ratio, according to which a substance is dissolved by 
any particular liquid, is called its “ solubility.” The solvent 
powers of a liquid for different bodies are very different. If none 
of the substance is taken up by the solvent, it is said to be “ in- 
solubleif comparatively little is dissolved, it is designated as 
“ difficulty ” or “ slightly soluble ” (example, calcium hydrate); when 
large amounts are taken up readily, as “ very soluble ” (example, 
potassium iodide). 
When a solvent has taken up as much of the substance as it is 
capable of at a certain temperature, it is said to be “saturated” 
If there be an insufficient amount of the body present, it will be 
entirely dissolved and an “ unsaturated ” solution will result. 
The solubility of a solid depends upon several conditions: 
1st. The Nature of the Substance (form, density); hence we pul- 
verize bodies to facilitate contact with the solvent. 
2d. The Nature of the Solvent. 
3d. Temperature. 
4th. Presence of other dissolved Solids. 
The Nature of the Substance must be considered. The solubility 
of a solid depends primarily upon its nature, for we find, for 
instance, that barium sulphate requires 250,000 parts of water for 
solution,* while on the other hand, sodium thiosulphate is soluble 
in all proportions in water (at 45° C.). 
* Silver bromide at 20° C., is soluble 1 in 1,971,650 parts of water. 
128 SOLUTION. 
129 
The Nature of the Solvent plays a very important part in solution. 
We find the solvent powers of water entirely different from those 
of alcohol, ether or glycerin. 
The chief solvents employed in pharmacy are water, alcohol, 
glycerin, ether, chloroform, acids and oils. 
Water is a general solvent of wide application. It is employed 
in the preparation of the medicated waters, syrups, solutions 
(liquores), etc. When it is used in the preparation of silver solu- 
tions, eye-washes, hypodermic solutions, etc., it should be distilled 
and fulfill all the requirements of the Pharmacopoeia. Water dis- 
solves most inorganic salts; from vegetable drugs it dissolves 
gums, starch, sugar, neutral principles, certain alkaloids, tannins, 
extractive and many coloring matters. 
Alcohol is of the greatest importance pharmaceutically, because 
of its excellent solvent properties and the stability of the prepara- 
tions made with it. It is a solvent for resins, volatile oils, alka- 
loids, and neutral principles, while it does not take up such inert 
principles as starch and gummy matter. 
Glycerin.—The solvent properties of this lie between that of 
alcohol and water, and when added to either of these, it insures 
greater stability of the finished preparation. It dissolves tannin, 
starch, many inorganic salts, pepsin, organic acids, etc. (See 
Glycerites.) 
Ether dissolves principally fixed and volatile oils, fats, resins, 
and most alkaloids (not their salts). 
Chloroform, possesses about the same solvent properties as ether, 
but it has the advantage that it is not inflammable. 
Acids.—Acetic acid in a diluted form, is employed as a solvent 
in the preparation of the official vinegars. Glacial acetic acid and 
hydrochloric acid are solvents of many organic compounds. 
Oils are employed as solvents of gums and resins in the pre- 
paration of liniments. 
Effect of Temperature on Solubility.—Rise of temperature usually 
increases the solubility of a solid. In some cases, we find that the- 
solubility increases in a definite ratio with the temperature of the- 
solvent, for example, potassium chloride, barium chloride, or 
magnesium sulphate. In another class (the majority), we find the 
ratio of solubility to the temperature irregular. In a small num- 
ber of cases we find that the solubility steadily diminishes as the 
temperature rises, that is, the substance is more soluble in cold, 
than in hot water. As examples of this we have calcium hydrate, 
sodium chloride, strontium sulphate, calcium citrate, and paral- 
dehyde. 
The relationship of temperature to solubility is most clearly 
shown by the table of curves,* Fig. 205, where the lower line of 
figures express the degree of temperature, and the side figures, the 
quantity dissolved by 100 parts of the solvent. 
* Ostwald, “Outlines of Inorganic Chemistry,” p. 150. 130 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
In cooling a hot saturated solution, a portion of the dissolved body separates out 
in a solid (usually crystalline) form, while the remainder, according to its coefficient* 
of solubility for the given temperature, remains in solution. When bodies of differ- 
ent degrees of solubility are dissolved, the less soluble separate out first, while the 
more soluble remain in solution. 
The Presence of Dissolved Bodies in a solution often affects the 
solubility of other substances in this menstruum. Here we may 
distinguish several different cases:— 
1st. The presence of one salt may increase the solubility of 
another. For instance, the presence of an alkaline chloride, such 
as sodium or ammonium chloride, increases the solubility of mer- 
curic chloride in water. Iodine is practically insoluble in water, 
but by the use of an alkaline iodide, we can cause water to take 
up large amounts of it (ex- 
ample, Lugol’s Solution). This 
is an example where it is pos- 
sible for us to form a saturated 
solution (KI), which is capable 
of taking up a further quantity 
of a second substance (I). 
2d. The presence of one 
salt may diminish the solubil- 
ity of another. For example, 
we cannot dissolve potassium 
sulphate in a solution of am- 
monium sulphate, or potassium 
nitrate in a solution of ammo- 
nium nitrate. Potassium car- 
bonate is a very soluble salt, 
but it is insoluble in concen- 
trated water of ammonia. 
3d. An alteration in the 
nature of the solvent may 
alter the solubility of the salt. The addition of alcohol to many 
saline solutions will cause the salt to be precipitated. For ex- 
ample, on adding alcohol to a saturated solution of ferrous sul- 
phate, the iron salt will be precipitated as a granular powder 
Condition of Contact of the Body with the Solvent.— 
We may facilitate the solution of solids by triturating or agitat 
ing them in powder form with the solvent; this facilitates the 
contact of the two, by continually exposing the surfaces of the 
particles of the powder to the contact of fresh portions of the 
solvent. This same principle is involved, when air or carbonic 
acid gas is passed rapidly through a mixture of the solid and 
fluid, for the purpose of producing brisk agitation. 
Circulatory Solution.—When the quantity of matter to be 
dissolved is large, and the time permits, we may suspend the 
Fig. 205. 
Table of Curves of Solubility for Nitrates. 
* Coefficient is a number, expressing a certain arithmetical ratio. “ Coefficient of solubility ” is 
the number expressing either how many parts of a salt, etc , are soluble in 100 parts of a solvent, or 
how many parts of a solvent are required to dissolve 1 part of a salt. SOLUTION. 
131 
substance, placed in a porous diaphragm (perforated funnel, sieve 
or muslin bag), just below the surface of the liquid solvent. A 
more or less saturated solution (resulting from the immediate 
contact of the solvent with particles of the solid), owing to its 
density, sinks to the bottom of the vessel, and its place is taken 
by fresh portions of the solvent displaced. This circulation con- 
tinues until the liquid becomes saturated. This same procedure 
applied to the extraction of soluble matter from vegetable drugs 
Fig. 206. 
Apparatus for Generation, Washing, and Solution of Gases. 
is known as “Circulatory Displacement,” and is employed in the 
preparation of infusions, tinctures (by maceration), etc. 
Supersaturated Solutions.—A hot saturated solution of 
Glauber’s salt (Na2SO4 + 10II2O), when proper care is taken to 
protect it from jarring and dust, may be cooled, and still remain 
liquid, notwithstanding the solution contains a larger amount of 
the salt than the coefficient of solubility for the lower tempera- 
ture allows. The slightest jar, or bringing it in contact with a 
solid body, causes its solidification at once. Such a solution is 
called “ supersaturated ” 
Solution of Gases.—Gases are usually more soluble in alcohol 132 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
than in water. The most easily condensible gases are the most 
soluble. The method of solution is the reverse of that usually 
employed in dissolving solids, that.is, the solvent is kept as cool 
as possible. Under like conditions of pressure and temperature, 
one and the same liquid does not absorb equal quantities of 
different gases. At a temperature of 0° C., and a pressure of 760 
Mm., one volume of water dissolves the following volumes of 
gas 
Carbonic acid (carbon dioxide, CO2), 1.8 
Sulphuretted hydrogen (H2S), 4.3 
Sulphurous acid (sulphurous anhydride, SO2), 79.8 
Hydrochloric acid (HC1), 503.0 
Ammonia (NHS), 1050.0 
Solutions of such gases as chlorine, sulphuretted hydrogen, 
sulphurous acid or ammonia, are often prepared by the apothe- 
cary. For the preparation of such solutions, the apparatus as 
shown in Fig. 206 may be employed. The gas is generated in 
the flask a, which is provided with a safety tuber; the gas passes 
out through d into the wash-bottle /, which contains a little 
water, for the purpose of retaining impurities; then it passes on 
through the tube i into the water contained in flask g. The tube 
dips just a little below the surface of 
the water which half fills the bottle, 
which is placed in a bath, A, of cold 
water. The neck of the bottle is 
loosely plugged with cotton to pre- 
vent the escape of gas. At short 
intervals the bottle is removed, its 
mouth closed with the ball of the 
thumb, or palm of the hand, and 
agitated until the unabsorbed gas 
is d issol ved. Th is proced ure is con- 
tinued until, after shaking, pressure 
on the hand is observed from escap- 
ing gas. A better method for the 
preparation of chlorine water is that 
of Liebig (Fig. 207), in which the current of gas (as soon as the 
air is removed from the apparatus), is passed into an inverted 
retort filled with water. As soon as some gas has collected over 
the surface of the water, it is shaken until dissolved; this is con- 
tinued until the water is saturated. This avoids the escape of 
odors into the room. The operation of shaking the excess of gas 
with the water or solvent, is not necessary in the case of such 
soluble gases as ammonia and sulphurous acid. In preparing 
solutions of these in water, care should be taken to keep up a 
steady current of gas, and when the operation is over, the receiver 
should be at once disconnected at the rubber joint e, before the 
lamp is removed from under the sand-bath />, because the vacuum 
created by the cessation of hot vapors would cause the contents 
Fig. 207. 
Preparation of Chlorine Water. SOLUTION. 
133 
of the wash bottle (/) and receiver (<?), to be separated back into 
the flask. 
Density of Solutions.—On bringing a salt or gas into solu- 
tion in a solvent, the specific gravity (density) of the liquid is 
generally increased. In most instances, this increase is in 
definite ratio to the amount of the body dissolved. The 
specific gravity of water being 1.000, if we dissolve five parts 
by weight of caustic soda in it, we will find the specific gravity 
to have risen to 1.059; if ten parts, to 1.115, etc. If we dissolve 
31.9 parts of hydrochloric acid in water, the specific gravity will 
be 1.163. On the other hand, if we make a solution of ten per 
cent, of ammonia gas in water, we will find the specific gravity 
to be 0.960; and if one of 28 per cent., 0.901. The specific 
gravity of a solution, is a ready and fairly accurate means of 
determining the amount of dissolved salt or gas, when only one 
substance is present. 
Change in Volume by Solution.—Most salts, when dissolving 
in water cause contraction; where water of crystallization is taken 
up by the salt, the contraction is greater than in the case of salts 
having combined water. On diluting a concentrated solution, 
contraction takes place. Expansion of volume takes place when 
the dissolved solid contains a large amount of water of crystal- 
lization, or a decided rise of temperature takes place. For 
example, when we dissolve ferri sulphas exsiccatus or alumen 
exsiccatum in a measured volume of water, we find that a con- 
traction of volume results, since these salts have withdrawn 
respectively 7 or 24 molecules of water; on the other hand, if 
we dissolve the crystalline salts, we find an increase in volume, 
due to the throwing off of 7 or 24 molecules of water. On mix- 
ing absolute alcohol and water, a contraction of from three to four 
per cent, takes place, according to the proportions of the two ; it 
being greatest when 49.836 volumes of water are mixed with 
53.939 volumes of absolute alcohol; at 15° C. the mixture meas- 
ures exactly 100 volumes, instead of 103.775. 
Freezing Mixtures.—The passage of bodies from the solid to 
the liquid state (or, of the solid or liquid to the gaseous), produces 
a consumption of energy, which is accompanied by a lowering of 
the temperature; hence in dissolving salts, particularly those 
which dissolve rapidly, a cold mixture results.* 
* FREEZING MIXTURES. 
If the liquids employed be first cooled, a greater diminution of temperature will take place. 
The Temperature is Lowered. 
On Mixing:— From To 
8 pts. powd. Glauber’s Salt and 5 pts. Hydrochloric Acid, + 10° — 17° C. 
1 pt. each of Ammonium Chloride, Potassium Nitrate and Water, . + 10° — 25° C. 
1 pt. each of Ammonium Nitrate and Water, + 10° — 12° C. 
2 pts. Snow and 1 pt. Salt, ..... 0° — 21° C. 
9 pts. Sodium Phosphate and 4 pts. Dil. Nitric Acid, + 10° — 29° C. 
1 pt. Snow and 1 pt. Dil. Sulphuric Acid, — 7° — 50° C. 
7 pts. Snow and 10 pts. cryst. Calcium Chloride, 0° — 55° C. 
A mixture of Ether and solidified Carbon Dioxide, — 110° C. 
Pictet’s Fluid (liquefied mixture of SO2 and CO2), — 200° C. 134 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Elevation of Temperature Due to Chemical Action.— 
In the process of solution, we find many instances where a con- 
siderable amount of heat is generated, as when dissolving anhy- 
drous caustic soda or potash or calcium chloride in water. From 
these solutions we can obtain the crystalline salts NaOH + 7H2O; 
KOH -|- 2H2O; CaCl2 + 6H2O. The enormous rise of temperature 
produced by the addition of sulphuric acid to water is also attribu- 
table to the fact, that chemical action has taken place, with the 
absorption of water of hydration. The mixing of 30 parts by 
weight of absolute alcohol with 70 parts of water causes a rise 
of temperature of 9.14 degrees, producing probably the hydrate 
C2H5OH.3H2O. 
In order to ascertain the solubility of a body, we have recourse 
to either one of two methods: 
1st. Method of Digestion.—When we expose an excess of the 
powdered substance to the action of the solvent, during a period 
of from several hours to a day, at the desired temperature. We 
place the mixture of the two in a small flask or test-tube, which 
is placed in a bath kept at the desired temperature, and shaken at 
frequent intervals. After digestion has been continued sufficiently 
long, the entire mass (liquid and undissolved powder), is quickly 
drained on a small dry filter. The filtrate is collected in a tared 
beaker and weighed, then evaporated to dryness, cooled in a desic- 
cator, and again weighed. 
2d. The Method of Cooling.—We heat the mixture of the 
solvent and substance, until a concentrated solution has been 
obtained at a temperature higher than that at which the determina- 
tion is to be made. This solution is then cooled to the desired 
temperature, and maintained at this point for some time, under 
addition of some crystals of the salt, and agitation. It is then 
filtered and treated as directed above. 
In applying either of the above methods to the determination 
of the solubility of a solid, in a volatile menstruum, it is best to 
employ a small flask with an inverted condenser (Fig. 151) to 
avoid loss of solvent. Then a sufficient quantity is 
filtered quickly into a stoppered weighing flask (Fig. 
208), this is closed, allowed to cool and weighed. 
The volatile liquid is then evaporated off, and the 
weight of the dry residue determined. Care must 
be taken, that the proper temperature (at which the 
solubility is to be determined) is maintained for at 
least an hour before filtration. 
In carrying out the above, for crystalline salts, the 
evaporated solution must be dried at a temperature 
sufficiently high to drive off all water of crystalliza- 
tion, and the residue then weighed as anhydrous 
salt, but calculated back to crystalline when the 
results are estimated. 
DETERMINATION OF THE SOLUBILITY OF SUBSTANCES. 
Fig. 208. 
Weighing Bottle. SOLUTION. 
135 
Example: A saturated solution of potassium chlorate at 
12° C., weighed 10.98 Gm.; when evaporated to dryness it gave 
0.7025 Gm. residue. What was the amount dissolved? Let 
the weight of the saturated solution be taken as W, and the 
weight of the substance found therein dissolved, be w; then 
W — w will equal the weight of the water; we make the propor- 
tion (W — w) : w : : 100 : x or x = Substituting figures 
(W = 10.98; w = 0.7025) we have: W —w = 10.2775 the weight 
of water in the solution. 
Weight of water, Dry residue, 
rppen 10.2775 : 0.7025 : : 100 : X 
X = 6.83 
That is 100 parts of water had dissolved 6.83 parts of potassium 
chlorate at 12° C. 
For convenience, solubilities are sometimes expressed by stating 
the amount of solvent required to dissolve one part of the solid. 
Then in this case it would be— 
Dry Weight of 
residue, solvent, 
as 6.83 : 100 : : 1 : X 
X = 14.64. 
That is, 14.64 parts of water held 1 part of potassium chlorate in 
solution at 12° C. 
AN APPARATUS (“LYSIMETER”) FOR DETERMINING SOLUBILITIES. 
In determining the solubility of a substance in some liquid at 
a given temperature, there is usually but little difficulty encoun- 
tered, when the solvent is not very volatile and the temperature 
at which the determination is to be made is not high. With a 
highly volatile solvent, and a high temperature, however, certain 
difficulties present themselves which are liable to lead to error. 
The main difficulty is encountered in the endeavor to separate 
from the original solution, which usually contains an excess of 
the substance in suspension, a filtered portion at the same tem- 
perature as that of the solution. The higher this temperature is, 
the more difficult becomes the removal of a portion without the 
introduction of errors by the ordinary methods of filtration. It 
appears, therefore, that it is only necessary to modify the method 
of filtration in such a way as to maintain the temperature of the 
original solution unchanged in order to eliminate these errors. 
This may be easily accomplished by upward filtration into a 
tube placed in the original solution, and so constructed that it 
will enable the operator to control the act of filtration, as well as 
accurately to determine the amount of solvent and dissolved 
material. For this purpose the little apparatus here described 
has been found very serviceable. 136 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The apparatus consists of a glass tube, a, 15 centimeters long, 
and one centimeter in external diameter, provided at one end 
with a well-ground stopper, c, while the other end is cup-shaped, 
there being a contracted neck between the cup and the main 
tube. Into this cup is made to fit a carefully 
ground glass bell, e, having a small perfora- 
tion in its bottom (as shown in /). There is 
also a stopper, b, which is carefully ground to 
fit into the cup, and which is inserted after 
the glass bell, e, has been removed. The 
several stoppers, etc., are all numbered, to 
show where they belong. 
To show how the apparatus is used, it will 
be best to quote a practical example. 
Let us assume that the solubility of mor- 
phine in boiling alcohol is to be determined. 
It will be necessary to provide for such an 
amount of liquid that at least one-half of the 
glass tube, a, may be immersed in the liquid. 
In the case of comparatively cheap solvents 
and substances to be dissolved, beaker glasses 
may be used; for more expensive materials 
test-tubes of such a size that there will be no 
great waste of material are preferable. 
The glass tube is made ready by inserting 
the stopper, c, and introducing into the cup- 
shaped end the glass bell, e, containing a 
pellet of purified cotton and prevented from 
dropping out by a thin platinum wire fast- 
ened around the contracted neck and crossed 
over the mouth of the bell. A sufficient 
amount of alcohol having been introduced 
into a beaker or test-tube, heat is applied and 
morphine added, until, after the boiling has 
been kept up some time, a portion of the 
alkaloid remains undissolved. The prepared 
glass tube is now inserted in the liquid. As 
long as the stopper, c, closes the mouth of the 
tube, no liquid will be able to filter upwards. 
When the tube has acquired the temperature 
of the boiling liquid the stopper, c, is removed, 
whereupon the liquid will begin to filter 
through the pellet of cotton and rise in the 
tube as far as the quantity of liquid will permit. In order to 
insure perfect uniformity of the liquid within and without the 
tube, it is best to allow the filtered portion to flow back through 
Fig. 209, 
The Lysimeter.* 
*This apparatus was devised by Dr. Charles Rice of New York City. The description as given 
was published in the Journal of Amer. Chem. Society, Oct., 1894. SOLUTION. 
137 
the pellet of cotton once or several times. The stopper, c, having 
then been inserted, the tube is withdrawn, turned upside down, 
the glass ball removed, and the stopper, d, inserted. The tube is 
now carefully cleaned with alcohol, and laid aside until cold. Its 
tare having previously been determined, the increase in weight 
represents the weight of the solution contained therein. On 
transferring or washing the contents into a fared beaker or 
capsule, and evaporating, the weight of the dissolved morphine 
will be found. 
PERCENTAGE SOLUTIONS. 
It must be distinctly understood, that percentage by weight 
means that all ingredients must be weighed, and percentage by 
volume, that all ingredients must be measured. A 1 per cent, 
solution of cocaine hydrochlorate contains 1 part by weight of the 
salt, and 99 parts by weight of water; a 2 per cent, solution con- 
tains 2 parts by weight of salt, and 98 parts by weight of water. 
The word part may stand for a grain, or gramme, or ounce, or any 
unit. To make a fluidounce of a 1 per cent, solution we first need 
to know the weight of a fluidounce of w’ater, at the temperature 
at which we desire to make our solution. We find that a fluidounce 
(of 480 minims) of water at 15.5° C. weighs 455.7 grains, hence 
1 per cent, of this would be 4.55 + grains. Subtracting this from 
455.7, we obtain 451.2 + grains. Consequently, we dissolve 4.5 
grains of cocaine hydrochlorate, in 451.2 grains of water at this 
temperature.. If we desire to make one fluidounce of an alcoholic 
solution of cocaine hydrochlorate, we must first find the weight 
of 1 fluidounce of alcohol. If we use U. S. P. alcohol of specific 
gravity 0.820, then 455.7 times 0.820 gives us 373.6 -j-,the weight 
of 1 fluidounce of this alcohol, in grains; then we proceed as above. 
To prepare a pint of a 1 in 1000 solution of cocaine hydrochlorate, 
divide 7,291 (grains in 1 pint of water) by 1000; this gives the 
number of grains (7.29) of the salt per pint, and sufficient water 
must be added to make the product weigh 7,291 grains. In 
these calculations, 1 grain of the salt was assumed to occupy the 
same space as 1 minim of water, which is not exactly the case,* 
hence a solution prepared as above, will measure two or three 
minims less than a fiuidounce. For all practical purposes how- 
ever, this is near enough, but when an exact volume (say exactly 
1 fluidounce) is desired, it is best to make a quantity, a little in 
excess, and then to throw away what is not needed or to dispose 
of it otherwise. Many physicians in prescribing solutions under- 
stand percentage by measure, i. e., grains of a solid to the flui- 
drachm or fluidounce, or milligrammes to the cubic centimeter; 
this is weight for measure and not percentage. For convenience 
* Jour. Chem. Soc., 1892, page 766. 138 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
in dispensing, the table of Puckner or that of Loudenbeck are 
useful.* 
RULES AND EXAMPLES FOR DILUTION AND FORTIFICATION. 
In applying these rules, percentage by volume or weight may 
be used; the two must not be confounded or mixed in carrying 
out the calculations. Alcohol is selected as illustration; but in 
place of this, such liquids as ammonia water, hydrochloric or 
acetic acid, or any others may be selected. For further study of 
this subject the reader is referred to Oldberg’s “ Pharmaceutical 
Problems and Exercises,” from which these examples are selected. 
Rule I.—To find the quantity of water required to be added to 
alcohol of any given percentage strength, to dilute it to any other 
percentage strength desired :—Divide the per cent, strength of the al- 
cohol to be diluted (a) by the percentage desired (b\ and subtract 1 
from the quotient; the remainder is the number of parts of water (z) to 
be added to each part of the alcohol used to produce the result desired. 
a i 
— 1 — x. 
b 
Example.—We have a 90 per cent, alcohol to be diluted to 60 
per cent.:— 
90 
— = 1.50; and 1.50—1 = 0.50. 
60 ’ 
Therefore: f pound of water is to be added to 1 pound of the 
90 per cent, alcohol to reduce it to 60 per cent. 
Rule II.—To make a definite quantity, by weight, of alcohol 
of any given percentage strength from any stronger alcohol:— 
Multiply the required quantity (a) by the desired per cent. (6) and di- 
vide by the per cent, strength of the stronger alcohol used (c); the 
quotient is the weight of stronger alcohol required (d) to be diluted 
with water; and the difference between that weight (d) and the weight 
of the diluted alcohol desired (a), is the weight of water (e) necessary 
for the dilution. 
a = d; and a — d = e. 
c 
For each fluidounce of water 
take of the salt— 
For each fluidounce of water 
take of the salt— 
To make: 
Grains: 
To make: 
Grains: 
1 per cent., 
4.597 
1 in 1000, . . 
0.456 
2 per cent., 
9.289 
1 in 500, . . 
0.912 
3 per cent., 
14.078 
1 in 400, . . 
1.141 
4 per cent., 
18.906 
1 in 300, . . 
1.522 
5 per cent., 
23.957 
1 in 200, . . 
2.290 
10 per cent., 
50.576 
1 in 100, . . 
4.597 
15 per cent., 
80.327 
1 in 50, . . 
9 289 
20 per cent., 
113.797 
1 in 25, . . 
18.966 
25 per cent., 
151.730 
1 in 20, . 
50.576 
40 per cent., 
303.460 
1 in 5, . . 
—The 
113.797 
Apothecary, Feb. 1892,10-13. 
*Using pure water at 22° C. (71.6° F.), 1 fluidounce weighing 455.19 grains. SOLUTION. 
139 
Example.—6 pounds of 60 per cent, alcohol is to be made from 
an alcohol of 90 per cent, strength :— 
6X60 . , o o 
—— = 4 ; and 6 — 4 =2. 
90 
ALLIGATION. 
Rule I.—To find the value of any mixture of known quanti- 
ties of ingredients, each of known value:—Multiply the quantity of 
each ingredient by its value and add the several products; divide the 
sum by the sum of the quantities of the several ingredients ; the quo- 
tient is the value of the whole mixture. 
Example.—We mix 3 pounds of 80 per cent, alcohol, 8 pounds 
of 91 per cent, alcohol, 5 pounds of 45.5 per cent, alcohol, 6 
pounds of 40 per cent, alcohol, and 8 pounds of water; what will 
be the alcoholic percentage strength of the mixture ? 
3 x 80 = 240. 
8 X 91 = 728. 
5 X 45.5 = 227.5 
6 X 40 = 240. 
8X 0 
30 1435.5 
and 1-4j%5- = 47.85 per cent. 
Rule II.—To find the proportional quantities of ingredients of 
known value required to produce a given mean value :—JJrite 
the numbers expressing the units of value of the respective ingredients 
in a column to the right, and the mean sought, to the left; link together 
the numbers expressing the respective values of any two ingredients, 
one of which is above and the other below the mean value sought; take 
the difference between the mean and the value of each ingredient, and 
placethat difference opposite the value of the other ingredient to which 
it is linked; the differences are the proportions required of the ingre- 
dients opposite whose values they are placed. Thus:— 
Example.—Five substances of different value are to be mixed so 
as to yield a product of the mean value of 14. The value of the 
several substances are: 9, 12, 13, 16, and 18. How much of each 
substance will have to be taken ? 
r 9 2 =18 
12. 4 =48 
14 131 2 =26 
l16J 14-5 =96 
18 J 2 =36 
11 4- 5 = 16) 224 ( 14 
16 
64 
64 
The first ingredient, having a value of 9 (which is a value below 
14), is linked to the fourth ingredient, having the value of 16 (which 140 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
is above 14). The second ingredient, with the value of 12, is linked 
to the fifth, with the value of 18; and the third ingredient, having 
a value of 13, is linked to the fourth in the same manner. As the 
difference between 13 and 14 is 1, we place the number 1 opposite 
16, to which the 13 is linked ; and as the difference between 14 
and 16 is 2, we place the number 2 opposite the 13 to which the 
16 is linked. Then taking another pair, we put the number 4 
opposite 12, because 12 is linked to 18, and the difference between 
14 and 18 is 4; and opposite 18, which is linked to the 12, we put 
the number 2, which is the difference between 14 and 12. One 
more pair now remains, viz.: that of 9 and 16. Opposite 9 we 
put the number 2, because 2 is the difference between 14 and 16, 
to which 9 is linked; and opposite 16 we put the number 5 (in 
addition to the number 1 already placed opposite 16), because 5 is 
the difference between 14 and 9. Now we add together the 
numbers set opposite the ingredients, which are 11 + 5, making 
the total 16 parts. In other words, we must use 2 parts of the 
ingredient represented by 9; 4 parts of the ingredient having the 
value of 12 ; 2 parts of the third ingredient; 1 + 5, or 6 parts of 
the fourth ingredient, and 2 parts of the fifth, making 16 parts in 
all, and we will find that this mixture will have a mean value of 
14. CHAPTER XI. 
DIFFUSION-DIALYSIS. 
Diffusion is the mutual permeating of two or more liquids or 
gases, or an intermixture of the molecules of liquids of different 
density ; it is of the same nature as solution. As to their diffusive 
powers through water, liquids differ widely; fixed oils do not, 
volatile oils slightly, while syrups, glycerin, alcohol, crystalline 
salts, etc., readily diffuse in every proportion. If water is poured 
carefully upon a layer of sulphuric acid, the two form distinct 
layers, but, on standing they gradually intermix, that is, they 
diffuse into one another. The same may be said of saline solu- 
tions and various other liquids. They all differ from one another, 
however, in the rapidity with which they diffuse; solutions of 
such substances as starch, dextrin, gum, albumen, glue, etc., dif- 
fuse exceedingly slowly, if at all. Graham, considering gelatin 
as a type of this latter class, has proposed to call them colloids 
(xoUtj, glue), to distinguish them from the far more easily diffu- 
sible crystalloid substances. 
Graham proposed a method of separating bodies based on their 
unequal diffusibility, which he called dialysis. 
Dialysis is the diffusion between liquids modified by the inter- 
position of an animal or vegetable membrane. It is the process 
of separation of crystalline from non-crystalline or colloidal sub- 
stances by the interposition of a membrane. This membrane, 
whether of bladder or parchment-paper, possesses an infinite 
number of minute pores (capillary tubes), by means of which the 
liquids are brought in contact with each other and “ diffuse.” This 
is called osmosis. A dialyser consists of a ring of hard rubber or 
other suitable material, over one end of which was stretched, while 
wet, a sheet of parchment paper or a piece of bladder, thus forming 
a vessel about two inches deep and about ten inches in diameter. 
Into this vessel is poured the mixed solution to be dialysed, and 
the whole floated in another vessel containing water (Fig. 210). 
Glass vessels may be used in making the dialyser, as shown in 
Fig. 211, but because of its weight, the dialyser should be supported 
to the proper depth in the water. The mixture in the dialyser 
should not be over one-half of an inch deep on the diaphragm. A 
bladder filled to about two-thirds with the mixture and suspended 
in a jar of distilled water, answers just as well. If the mixture 
placed in the dialyser (floating vessel), consists of crystalloid and 
colloid matter, it will be found, after a period of from several hours 
to a day or so, that only the colloids remain in the dialyser, while 
the crystalloids have diffused through the membrane into the dis- 
tilled wrater of the outer vessel. This solution is called the diffusate. 
141 142 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The process of dialysis is employed by the chemist as well as 
the pharmacist. The toxicologist separates such poisons as arsenic, 
antimony, lead, alkaloids, etc., from the contents of a stomach, by 
placing the material in the dialyser, which is suspended in acid- 
ulated distilled water; these poisons, being crystalloids, readily 
Fig. 210. 
Dialyser. 
diffuse through the membrane and are identified in the diffusate. 
The pharmacist may purify salicylic acid by a process of dialysis, 
or may separate many crystalline organic bodies from their impu- 
rities. We can remove in this 
manner the crystalline active 
constituents from the prepara- 
tions of such drugs as opium, 
aconite, belladonna, etc. B. F. 
McIntyre of New York intro- 
duced a class of preparations 
called Dialysates, based on this 
idea, whereby the active con- 
stituents were removed from 
the inert matter in the various 
drugs. 
Thus far we have learned 
that the diffusate contains the 
material we seek, while that left 
on the dialyser is discarded. In 
the case of Dialysed Iron, how- 
ever, it is just the reverse, the 
colloid matter left on the dia- 
lyser being the material aimed 
at, while the crystalloids (am- 
monium chloride and ferric chloride) with any free acid pass into 
the diffusate, and are thrown away. 
Fig. 211. 
Dialyser. CHAPTER XII. 
CRYSTALLIZATION. 
Generally speaking, bodies,' in passing from the liquid or 
vaporous condition to the solid state, assume regular geometric 
forms. Such regular forms, bounded by plane faces and definite 
angles, are called crystals. The phenomenon of formation is 
called crystallizing. We define bodies which are capable of 
assuming this form, as crystallizable (as quartz, alum, etc.), and 
those which have assumed it, as crystalline. Such bodies as do 
not conform to the above, that is, do not crystallize, are called amor- 
phous (as chalk, glue, etc.). When a body is freshly broken, we 
often observe the fractured surfaces to exhibit a crystalline struc- 
ture. This is sometimes called “ crystalline fracture ” (as marble, 
alabaster, etc.). The plane surfaces which bound a crystal are 
called faces or planes. 
The intersection of two adjacent faces (planes) forms an edge. 
When two or more lines or planes intersect, their edges form an 
angle. In order to classify and compare the various forms of 
crystals, we must have some simple method of expressing the 
relative position and inclination of their planes. This is done 
by referring them to certain systems of axes. These axes (Figs. 
212, 218, 222, etc.), are called crystallographic axes; they are 
imaginary lines, which, if drawn through, would intersect at the 
centre of the crystal. The position of the different faces (planes) 
of the crystal are fixed by, and expressed in, the relative lengths 
of their intercepts on these axes. For the purpose of comparing 
the different crystal planes, systems of symbols have been devised, 
which aim to locate the position of each plane, with reference to 
its relation to the crystallographic axes.* 
Since every crystalline body has its own peculiar crystal form, 
it will be readily seen that we have an immense number of these 
in all possible varieties. However, in the face of this, according 
to their greater or less degree of symmetry, they are divided into 
six different classes or systems. 
Each one of these systems has its imaginary crystallographic 
axis to which the different planes (faces) bear a fixed symmetrical 
position. According to the relative position, number and size of 
these different planes, we distinguish the following six different 
systems. 
1. Regular system. 
2. Tetragonal system. 
3. Hexagonal system. 
*For different systems see Williams’ “ Elements of Crystallography.” 
143 144 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
4. Rhombic system. 
5. Monoclinic system. 
6. Triclinic system. 
1st. The Regular (monometric, isometric, tesseral) System. All forms have three. 
axes of equal length, which intersect at angles of 90° (Fig. 212). 
The fundamental form of this system, from which all others are most easily de- 
rived, is the regular octahedron (or octohedron) (Fig. 213), with eight equilateral 
faces (crystal form of the alums). If the six octahedral angles be truncated, we 
have the crystal form of potassium chloride (Fig. 214). Imagine square truncations 
on the octahedral angles ; then we have the six-sided hexahedron (cube), the crystal 
form of potassium iodide and sodium chloride (Fig. 215). By the truncation of the 
twelve octahedral angles, we obtain, according to the size of the new faces, the form 
(Fig. 216), and the rhombic dodecahedron (Fig. 217), the crystal form of phosphorus, 
boracite, etc. In a similar manner, the various other forms of this system are ob- 
tained. 
2d. The Tetragonal (dimetric, quadratic, pyramidal) System has <Aree axes, which 
Fig. 212. 
Fig. 213. 
Fig. 214. 
Fig. 215. 
Fig. 216. 
Fig. 217. 
Regular or Isometric System. 
intersect at angles of 90°, two of these (lateral) being of equal length, the other (prin- 
cipal axis), being either longer or shorter. The fundamental form of this system is 
the tetragonal pyramid (Figs. 219, 221). By truncating the horizontal angles, we 
obtain the square pyramid (Figs. 223, 224), the crystal form of tin stone. By the 
truncation of the upper and lower angles of the tetragonal pyramid, we obtain the 
crystal form of potassium ferrocyanide (Fig. 220). 
3d. The Hexagonal (rhombohedric) System has four axes. The number of equal 
axes (lateral) are three, intersecting the principal axis at angles of 90°, and each 
other, at angles of 60°. The fourth or principal axis is of greater or lesser length 
(Fig. 222). The fundamental form, is the double hexagonal pyramid (Fig. 225), 
bounded by twelve similar scalene triangles, from which, the forms of the hexagonal 
prism, closed by the basal pinacoid (Fig. 227), or by a pyramid (Fig. 226), are 
derived. In this system we find quartz, iceland-spar, arsenic, bismuth, antimony, 
sodium nitrate, etc. 
4th. The Rhombic (orthorhombic, prismatic, trimetric) System has three axes of 
unequal length, all intersecting at right angles (Fig. 228). The fundamental form 
is the rhombic octahedron (Fig. 229), bounded by eight congruent scalene triangles. CJR YSTA LLIZA TION. 
145 
To this series belong sulphur, saltpeter, magnesia, zinc sulphate, tartar-emetic, 
citric acid, etc. 
Fig. 218. 
Fig. 221. 
Fig. 223. 
Fig. 224. 
Fig. 219. 
Fig. 222. 
Fig. 225. 
Fig. 220. 
Tetragonal and Hexagonal Systems. 
5th. The Monoclinic (oblique, monosymmetric, prismatic) System has three axes of 
unequal length, two of which intersect at an oblique angle, being perpendicular to 
Fig. 226. 
Fig. 227. 
Fig. 228. 
Fig. 229. 
Rhombic or Ortho-rhombic System. 
the third (Fig. 230). The fundamental form of this is the monoclinic octahedron 
(Fig. 231), bounded by eight scalene triangles of two different forms ; one set of 146 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
which has a degree of inclination toward the axes different from that of the other. 
The most frequent and characteristic form of this system is the monoclinic prism 
Fig. 230. 
Fig. 231. 
Fig. 232. 
Monoclinic System. 
(Fig. 232). To this system belongs sulphur (fused), sodium sulphate, ferrous 
sulphate, cane sugar, oxalic acid, tartaric acid, etc. 
6th. The Triclinic (asymmetric) System has 
three axes of unequal length, all oblique to one 
another (Fig. 233). The most common form is the 
triclinic octahedron, all of the upper or lower 
faces of which have a different degree of inclina- 
tion toward the three axes. To this system belong 
copper sulphate, potassium bichromate, etc. 
When a body crystallizes in two or 
more forms, belonging to different sys- 
tems, it is said to be polymorphous. 
When of two forms it is called dimor- 
for example ; sulphur crystal- 
lizes in the rhombic and monoclinic 
systems. When the body crystallizes in three forms, belonging to 
different systems, it is said to be trimorphous, for example, titanic 
acid is found in three forms, as rutile, brookite and anatas. 
Different bodies having the same crystal form are designated as 
isomorphous. Chemically analogous compounds, which have the 
same crystal form, have the power of crystallizing in variable 
proportion with one another, also to exchange their constituents. 
In the case of ordinary alum 
(A12(SO4)3 + K2SO4 + 24H2O) 
the bases may be replaced by 
Fe, - Cr, - Mn, - or K, - NH4, - Rb, - Cs, 
respectively, without a change in their crystal form. A crystal 
of ordinary alum, when suspended in a solution of chrome- 
alum, grows as though it were in its own solution. This is 
explained by the similar atomic and molecular structure of the 
isomorphous bodies. 
The terms prismatic and acicular are often applied to long 
pointed crystals, and tabular to those crystallizing in flat plates. 
Although not used in crystallography, these three terms are very 
common and convenient, since they describe the general outward 
appearance of the crystal, without complicating matters with 
Fig. 233. 
Fig. 234. 
Triclinic System. CR YSTA L LIZA TION. 
147 
technical terms. The determination of the crystalline form, that 
is of the system and stereometric form, to which a crystal may 
belong, is often a very difficult matter, involving a knowledge of 
cleavage, the use of the polarizer, refractometer, goniometer, etc.; 
hence the reader is referred to the various text-books on Miner- 
alogy and Crystallography.* 
The different conditions under which crystallization takes place 
are the following:— 
1st. Crystallization through the cooling of vapors; that is subli- 
mation, which happens only in the case of volatile solids, such as 
calomel, benzoic acid, iodine, corrosive sublimate,etc. 
2d. Crystallization through the cooling of fused masses. Exam- 
ples are sulphur, antimony or bismuth ; the beautiful crystalline 
sulphides of nature, as those of iron, antimony, etc. 
3d. Crystallization through deposition from solutions. 
This may take place under either of the two following condi- 
tions : a, By the spontaneous evaporation of concentrated solu- 
tions at a uniform temperature, b, By the slow cooling of a hot 
supersaturated solution. 
4th. By precipitation, as the result of chemical interaction or 
alteration of menstruum. 
1st. Crystallization through Sublimation (see Sublimation). 
2d. Crystallization through Fusion and Partial Cooling.—To obtain 
these substances in a crystalline form, they should be fused in a 
deep vessel (Hessian crucible), and when sufficiently cooled, the 
crust which forms over the surface is pierced and the melted 
material drained off; on examining the interior, the sides will be 
found covered with crystals. 
3d. Crystallization through Deposition from Solutions.—The object 
of crystallization is that of purification, for when we obtain a 
body in well-defined crystals, this is a proof that it is practically 
pure. This method of purification is now sometimes applied 
to the purification of such liquids as chloroform, acetic ether, 
glycerin, phenol, etc.; these, on being exposed to an extremely 
low temperature, crystallize, thus enabling us to separate the non- 
crystallizable impurities (Pictet’s patent). 
(a) In order to carry on crystallization successfully, we must 
observe certain precautions: First, that the solution be perfectly 
clear and free from mechanical impurities. Second, that it be 
brought to the proper degree of concentration,for upon this depends 
the size and character of the crystals. In order to obtain large and 
well-defined crystals, i t is best to subject the solution to slow “ spon- 
taneous evaporation.” This is employed particularly in cases 
where the salt is very soluble, as in potassium bromide and iodide; 
here the solution, after being brought to the proper degree of con- 
centration, is set aside in a dry place of uniform temperature. 
♦Williams’ “Elements of Crystallography,” Tsehermack's, also Dana’s “ Mineralogy,” etc. 148 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Should variations of temperature take place, a portion of the salt, 
having crystallized out at a lower, would be again dissolved at a 
higher temperature. 
The proper degree of concentration, requires a consideration of 
the nature and solubility of the substance. If it is very soluble,a 
boiling saturated solution should not be made, otherwise we would 
obtain a granular mass. The proper degree of concentration is 
always determined beforehand by experiment on smaller quanti- 
ties. When the body is not very soluble, the solution is evapor- 
ated until a pellicle or crust forms over the surface, and then set 
aside. Manufacturers are guided by the density and quantity of 
the solution, in conjunction with the temperature of the air. It 
must not be forgotten that the quantity of the solution determines 
largely the size of the crystals. 
(6) The method of crystallizing by slowly cooling hot supersaturated 
solutions, is employed largely in the crystallization of organic 
bodies. In dissolving these, we employ besides water, such 
solvents as alcohol, ether, chloroform, benzol, benzin, petroleum, 
hydrochloric and acetic acids. Each solvent has its own peculiari- 
ties and applications. When we employ this method, we dissolve 
the body in the hot solvent, so as to produce as concentrated a 
solution as possible. This is best accomplished by adding the 
solvent by degrees to the dry substance, until just enough has 
been added to dissolve it at a boiling temperature. The solution 
is then set aside and allowed to cool slowly so that crystals may 
deposit. The slower the rate of cooling, the larger and better 
defined are the crystals. For this reason, we often allow the 
vessel to cool in a bath of hot water. 
The evaporation of saline solutions is carried on in shallow 
vessels. Volatile solutions are placed in deep vessels; these are 
then set aside in a warm place and left undisturbed. The slight- 
est jarring hinders the formation of large crystals. For this 
reason, the hot saturated solution of Epsom salt is stirred while 
cooling. This prevents the formation of large rhombic prisms, 
and produces in their stead, small needles. 
Sometimes these saturated solutions refuse to crystallize. This 
is overcome by the introduction of rough or angular bodies, or 
by rubbing the sides of the vessel with the stirring rod, or by 
introducing a few crystals of the substance which is in solution. 
Strings or thin sticks of wood are often placed in the crystallizing 
vats, which, by their rough surfaces, offer points of adhesion, 
attracting the nuclei and facilitating the deposition of crystals 
around them; this accounts for the long cylindrical masses, in 
which we receive milk sugar, rock candy, tartar emetic, prussiate 
of potash, copper sulphate, etc. 
The liquid remaining after crystallization is called the “ mother 
liquor.” This, on further concentration, yields another crop of 
crystals called the “ second crystallization,” which are, however, CR YSTA LLIZA TION. 
149 
not as pure as the first. Thus, cane-sugar crystallizes from its 
first solution in pure white crystals ; the mother liquor on further 
concentration yields a second crop of a yellowish cast; still further, 
we obtain crystals of a brown color. That this brown color is 
simply due to mechanical impurities, is shown by the fact that, 
by repeated crystallizations {recrystallization), the body can be 
obtained of a pure white color. 
If more than one body be present in a solution, ami their solu- 
bilities differ, they may be readily separated; for the least soluble 
crystallizes out first, and so on in the order of their solubility, the 
most soluble last. This method of separation is called “fractional 
crystallization.” 
Some substances are insoluble in the usual solvents; hence 
saline solutions must be employed. Thus, mercuric iodide may 
be obtained in beautiful prisms by crystallizing it from a solution 
of common salt; this is called “intermediate crystallization.” 
Fig. 235. 
Fig. 236. 
Growing Crystals. 
Every crystal has a hypothetical center point; around this, the 
formation takes place with development of the different faces and 
planes. It is rare to find all the faces of a crystal fully developed. 
Crystals with deficient faces may be developed by “growing” 
that is, by suspending them by a thread in a concentrated solu- 
tion of the salt, or laying them on the bottom of the vessel, with 
the deficient face up (Figs. 235, 236). 
Certain substances do not crystallize, but when concentrated 
and spread out on glass in thin layers they dry, forming thin 
transparent scales. These are often mistaken for crystals. As 
examples of these scale compounds we have pepsin, citrate or 
tartrate of iron, etc. 
4th. Formation of Crystals by Precipitation or Chemical Inter- 
action.—This can scarcely be considered, from the standpoint of 
inorganic chemistry, as a method of crystallization, inasmuch as 
the product obtained is thrown out of solution by mechanical or 
chemical means, usually yielding precipitates of a granular nature 
(see Precipitation, Granulation). In crystallizing many organic 150 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
compounds, it is necessary to alter the menstruum after solution 
has been effected. For instance, let us assume that we have an 
organic body which is extremely soluble in alcohol, and only 
partly soluble or insoluble in ether. Now in order to facilitate 
crystallization, we may add a little ether to the alcoholic solution, 
thus producing a sufficient alteration in the solvent power of the 
menstruum, to facilitate the formation and deposition of crystals. 
Crystallization, as the result of chemical interaction, is often 
brought about by bringing together solutions of different sub- 
stances. For example, on bringing together two inorganic bodies, 
we have the following:— 
2NH4C1 ,+ Ptci4 = (NH4)2PtCl4 
Ammonium Chloride. Platinic Chloride. Ammonium Platino- 
Chloride. 
On bringing together an organic and inorganic body we have the 
following:— 
CSHJ + KSCN = CS = N —C3H5 + KI 
Allyl Iodide. Potassium Allyl-Sulphocyanate Potassium 
Sulphocyanate. (Oil of Mustard). Iodide. 
When it is desired to crystallize small amounts of substances, 
from an aqueous solution, it is best to place the crystallizing 
Fig. 237. 
Fig. 238. 
Draining Crystals. 
Crystallizing Vessel, 
vessel in a desiccator, which facilitates the spontaneous evapora- 
tion of the solvent. 
After crystallization has taken place, the vessel is inclined, 
to facilitate the draining off of the mother liquor (Fig. 237). 
After this, the crystals are thrown into a funnel (stopped with 
cotton or glass wool) and the remaining mother liquor allowed to 
drain off. This draining may sometimes be facilitated by pouring 
over the mass some liquid in which the crystals are not soluble. 
We occasionally use alcohol for this purpose, in the case of certain 
inorganic salts. The crystals are finally dried by laying them 
between the folds of filter paper or on porous tiling. 
When the crystals are small, forming a granular mass, they are 
best freed from mother liquor by throwing the entire mass on a 
perforated porcelain plate, in a funnel, and draining off by suction 
(see page 182). Large quantities of crystals are drained by placing CJi YSTA LLIZA TION. 
151 
them in the centrifugal machine (see page 214). Since no pres- 
sure is here employed, the structure of the finest crystalline mass 
is not injured. 
EFFECT OF THE SOLVENT ON CRYSTALLIZATION. 
Here we must distinguish between several cases: 
1st. The solvent takes no part, either physically or chemically, 
in the crystallization. Thus ammonium chloride, potassium 
iodide, and potassium sulphate crystallize from their aqueous 
solutions free from water of crystallization. 
2d. The solvent takes part in the formation of the crystals, in 
furnishing crystal water. Thus in the formation of ferrous or 
cupric sulphate, or of sodium carbonate, water of crystallization 
is withdrawn from the water present. We have examples of such 
salts which crystallize with different proportions of water. Sodium 
carbonate is capable of crystallizing with one, five, eight or ten 
molecules of water. Glauber’s salt crystallizes with ten molecules 
of water of crystallization from a cold solution, and from hot 
water with seven molecules, or in an anhydrous condition, accord- 
ing to the temperature. Again such organic substances as alka- 
loids and glucosides, may crystallize out from different solvents, 
in crystals of different form, each form being characteristic of the 
solvent. 
Such salts give up their water of crystallization readily; and 
many, such as sodium carbonate, ferrous sulphate, etc., give up a 
portion of their wrater on exposure to the air (see Efflorescence). 
3d. The solvent plays a chemical and physical part in the 
crystallization. When water enters into the chemical consti- 
tution of the crystal, it is called “ water of constitution,” while, 
when it merely serves for the formation of the crystal it is called 
“water of crystallization.” The water of constitution is not lost 
by mere efflorescence, but only after subjecting the salt to pro- 
longed high temperature. 
In many crystals, particularly those of the tesseral system, 
water is mechanically enclosed during the formation of the crystal, 
and is called “ interstitial water.” Such crystals, on heating, decre- 
pitate, from the explosive force of the minute water sacs, as they 
rupture the crystal. As examples of these we have potassium 
chlorate and nitrate. CHAPTER XIII. 
GRANULATION. 
Granulation is disturbed crystallization. We resort to this pro- 
cess to obtain many salts in a convenient form for dispensing. 
It also often adds to their general elegant appearance. For many 
salts this is a process of purification. The solutions of very 
soluble salts, such as potassium carbonate or citrate, or sodium 
salicylate, are rapidly concentrated, and then slowly evaporated 
to dryness on a water bath with constant stirring, which causes 
the salt to separate in a granular form. Ammonium chloride is 
thus granulated, having first undergone purification by the addi- 
tion of water of ammonia to its boiling solution, and subsequent 
filtration. When evaporating a solution to dryness for the pur- 
pose of obtaining a granular salt, care must be taken, that the 
powder does not cake on the bottom of the dish. Potassium chlo- 
rate and ferrous sulphate are granulated by constantly stirring 
their supersaturated solutions, while rapidly cooling. The former 
is soluble in 1.7 parts, and the latter in 0.3 parts of boiling water, 
while in cold water, the former is soluble in 16.7 parts while the 
latter is soluble in 1.8 parts. Ferrous sulphate, because of its 
greater solubility in cold water, is more conveniently granulated 
by filtering its concentrated solution into alcohol, in which it is 
insoluble. These granulated or granular salts should be 
thoroughly dried before being introduced in bottles. 
GRANULAR EFFERVESCENT SALTS. 
These are prepared by thoroughly mixing dry medicated pow- 
ders with dry tartaric acid and sodium bicarbonate, then moist- 
ening the mixture with alcohol (or any menstruum which is not 
a solvent of the constituents), to form an adherent mass. This 
is then forced through a sieve and the granules dried quickly in a 
current of dry hot air, or placed in a hot drying closet. It may 
then be sorted into different sized granules by sifting. These 
products should be kept in hermetically sealed bottles. 
152 CHAPTER XIV. 
EXSICCATION. 
Exsiccation consists in depriving crystalline salts of their water 
of crystallization. Such salts as contain a large amount of crystal 
water, as potassium alum (45.5 per cent.), sodium carbonate (62.9 
per cent.) and ferrous sulphate (38.8 per cent.) are exsiccated for 
the purpose of reducing their bulk, thereby increasing their com- 
parative strength. This is particularly evident in preparing pills 
which may contain any of the above, for, by using the dried salts 
we reduce the difficulty of making, as well as the size of the pills. 
In preparing these exsiccated salts, we should first allow them to 
effloresce in a warm place, after which, they are subjected to a 
strong heat under constant stirring (they melt in their own crystal 
water), until free from water; when cold, the mass is powdered 
and placed in dry bottles. These anhydrous salts, when dissolved 
in water, may be made, by evaporating their solutions, to assume 
their original crystalline condition. 
153 CHAPTER XV. 
DELIQUESCENCE AND EFFLORESCENCE. 
Deliquescence is the property, possessed by many salts, of ab- 
sorbing moisture from the air. Such substances should be kept 
in well closed bottles in a dry place. Efflorescence is the property 
possessed by many salts when they are exposed to the air, of 
gradually giving up their water of crystallization and becoming 
dry and powdery on the surface. 
DELIQUESCENT SALTS OR SUBSTANCES. 
Acidum Chromicum. 
Ammonii lodidum. 
“ Nitras. 
“ Valerianas. 
Aurii et Sodii Chloridum. 
Caffeina Citrata. 
Calcii Bromidum. 
“ Chloridum. 
Chloral. 
Ferri Chloridum. 
“ et Quininae Citras. 
Hyoscyaminae Hydrobromas. 
‘ • Sulphas. 
Lithii Bromidum. 
“ Citras. 
“ Sal icy las. 
Magnesii Citras Granulatus. 
Pepsinum. 
Pilocarpiuae Hydrochloras. 
Physostigminae Sulphas. 
Potassa. 
‘ ‘ cum Calce. 
Potassii Acetas. 
“ Carbonas. 
“ Citras. 
“ Cyanidum. 
“ Hypophosphis. 
“ Sulphis. 
Soda. 
Sodii Hypophosphis. 
‘ ‘ lodidum. 
“ Nitris. 
Sparteinae Sulphas. 
Stroutii Bromidum. 
“ lodidum. 
Zinci Bromidum. 
“ Chloridum. 
“ lodidum. 
All granular effervescent salts. 
EFFLORESCENT SALTS. 
Aciduni Citricum. 
Cadmii Sulphas. 
Codeina. 
Cupri Acetas. 
“ Sulphas. 
Ferri et Ammonii Sulphas. 
Ferri Sulphas. 
Magnesii Sulphas. 
Plumbi Acetas. 
Potassii Ferrocyanidum. 
Quinine Salts. 
Sodii Arsenas. 
‘ ‘ Acetas. 
“ Benzoas. 
“ Boras 
“ Hyposulphis. 
‘ ‘ Carbonas. 
“ Phosphas 
“ Sulphas. 
Strychnine Salts. 
Zinci Acetas. 
“ Sulphas. 
Acidum Hydrocyanicum undergoes decomposition, depositing a 
black precipitate which may be prevented by the addition of a 
little hydrochloric acid. 
EFFECTS OF THE EXPOSURE OF CHEMICALS TO LIGHT AND AIR. 
154 DELIQUESCENCE AND EFFLORESCENCE. 
155 
Acidum Nitrohydrochloricum decomposes, losing chlornitrous 
acid ; it should be kept only in small quantity, in partly filled 
bottles in a dark place. 
Acidum Sulphuricum rapidly absorbs moisture. 
Acidum Sulphurosum oxidizes to sulphuric acid. 
Ammonii Carbonas loses NH3 and C02, and becomes bicar- 
bonate. 
Apomorphinae Hydrochloras turns green, indicating partial de- 
composition. 
Aqua Chlori decomposes with formation of hydrochloric acid 
and oxygen. 
Calx Chlorata loses chlorine, absorbing CO2. 
Calx Sulphurata loses sulphuretted hydrogen, changing to 
sulphate. 
Chloral as well as Camphor are slowly volatilized. 
Iodides or bromides of arsenic, ammonium, iron, mercury (ous 
and ic), sodium, strontium, sulphur, and zinc, lose iodine or 
bromine, respectively. 
Magnesia (calcined) absorbs CO2 and becomes carbonate. 
Magnesii Sulphis oxidizes to sulphate. 
Morphinse Acetas loses acetic acid. 
Napthalinum slowly volatilizes. 
Oleatum Hydrargyri, u. s. p., deposits metallic mercury. 
Physostigmine salts turn red. 
Potassa Sulphurata forms carbonate, hyposulphite, and sulphate. 
Resorcin becomes colored. 
Silver salts are all decomposed by light in presence of organic 
matter. 
Sodii Bisulphis loses sulphurous acid. 
Santoninum turns yellow on exposure to light. 
Zinci Acetas loses water and acetic acid. 
Zinci Phosphidum oxidizes, losing phosphorus. CHAPTER XVI. 
PRECIPITATION. 
Precipitation is a process, by which one or more substances 
which have previously been in a state of solution, are caused to 
separate out in an insoluble form. The substance which sepa- 
rates out is called the “precipitate-” the clear liquid above, the 
“ supernatant ” liquid; the substance added, the “precipitant-” and 
the process, “ precipitation.” 
Most precipitates fall to the bottom of the vessel, because they 
have a higher specific gravity than the remaining liquid. Those 
which are light, rise (for instance, Pepsin), and some may remain 
suspended throughout the liquid for a long time. 
The various causes which bring about precipitation, are :— 
1st. Change of Temperature.—By boiling a solution of albumen 
or lime water, we cause precipitation (see pages 129, 184). If we 
cool a hot saturated solution of potassium chlorate, a precipitation 
or separation of a portion of the salt takes place. Changes of tem- 
perature often cause precipitation to take place in Fluid Extracts 
(see page 269). 
2d. Change in Menstruum.—Any substance in solution is pre- 
cipitated on the addition of a miscible fluid in which it may be 
insoluble. Such inorganic salts as ferric and cupric sulphate are 
precipitated from their aqueous solutions on the addition of 
alcohol. Alcoholic solutions of resinous substances, on addition 
of water, separate their resin. Ether precipitates sugar from alco- 
holic solution. Chlorides of sodium and barium are precipitated 
from their concentrated aqueous solutions, upon the addition of 
concentrated hydrochloric acid. 
3d. Chemical Interchange.—When the precipitant added pro- 
duces a chemical change among the substances in solution, the 
result depends on the insolubility of a new compound formed, as 
when sulphuric acid is added to a solution of barium chloride, 
which causes the production of insoluble barium sulphate. The 
addition of soluble potassium iodide to a solution of lead acetate, 
produces insoluble lead iodide. If the solutions are cold, the pre- 
cipitate is amorphous; if hot, crystalline. 
This form of precipitation is applied in analytical operations, 
as well as in the manufacture of many chemicals. 
4th. Light.—This causes precipitation in the solutions of many 
silver compounds in the presence of organic matter etc., also to 
some extent in some pharmaceutical preparations, as in some 
Fluid Extracts, etc. 
156 PRECIPITATION. 
157 
Precipitation may have for its object: 
1st. To obtain the substance in as fine a powder as possible. 
Examples: Precipitated chalk or magnesium carbonate. 
2d. To remove impurities. Iron is removed from calcium 
chloride by precipitation with calcium hydrate; from zinc chlo- 
ride solution by precipitation with zinc oxide. An impure 
sodium acetate is freed from sulphuric acid by the careful addi- 
tion of barium acetate, etc. 
3d. To obtain new chemical compounds; for instance lead 
iodide and mercuric iodide, ammoniated mercury, bismuth sub- 
carbonate and subnitrate, etc. 
4th. The qualitative and quantitative determination of sub- 
stances. In analytical chemistry, we identify and separate the 
various groups by means of different precipitating reagents. We 
also ascertain the quantitative composition of different bodies, by 
the precipitation and subsequent weighing of the various con- 
stituents. 
As to their appearance, precipitates are designated as: 
Crystalline — produced, for instance, by the cooling of hot satur- 
ated solutions of salts. 
Amorphous — produced, for instance, by precipitation of ferric 
chloride by alkalies. 
Granular — produced, for instance, by addition of alcohol 
to a concentrated aqueous solution of ferrous 
sulphate. 
Curdy — produced, for instance, by addition of hydro- 
chloric acid to a solution of silver nitrate. 
Flocculent — produced, for instance, by precipitation of albu- 
men with alcohol. 
Gelatinous — produced, for instance, by addition of collodion 
to carbolic acid. 
Magma —is a pasty mass resulting from the straining or fil- 
tering of an amorphous precipitate retaining 
water mechanically. Examples, ferric hy- 
drate, aluminum hydrate. 
Hot, dense solutions, yield dense precipitates. 
Cold, dilute solutions, yield light (diffusible) and often crystal- 
line precipitates. 
Dense precipitates are more easily washed, for they subside 
readily and admit of being washed by decantation. 
Crystalline Precipitates.—In many operations, we aim to obtain 
the precipitated body in a so-called crystalline condition, for the 
purpose of facilitating its separation and subsequent purification. 
For example, we cause calcium carbonate (precipitated chalk) 
and barium sulphate to be precipitated from hot solutions. This 
causes these compounds to form dense and crystalline precipitates, 
which are then easily removed and purified. 158 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
On mixing cold solutions, the precipitate formed will usually 
be crystalline and of greater purity; the solutions should be 
mixed slowly and with constant stirring. The precipitate will be 
denser, if it is allowed to stand at least twenty-four hours in the 
liquid. Example: On adding cold “ magnesia mixture ” to a cold, 
weak solution of a phosphate, a crystalline precipitate will gradu- 
ally form, consisting of the double salt ammonium-magnesium 
phosphate. Light magnesia (MgO) is made from the light car- 
bonate, which is made by reaction between cold solutions of sodium 
carbonate and magnesium sulphate. Heavy magnesia is made 
from the heavy parbonate, which is made by reaction between hot 
solutions of sodium carbonate and magnesium sulphate. 
Amorphous Precipitates.—Amorphous precipitates (for instance, 
hydroxides or sulphides of the metals), are denser and separate 
more rapidly from saline solutions; for instance, when ammonium 
sulphydrate produces in solutions of ferrous salts only a green 
color of ferrous sulphide, the addition of ammonium chloride 
causes its immediate separation. 
In order to obtain the hydroxides of aluminum (A12(OH)6) and 
iron (Fe2(OH)6), the precipitation must take place in the cold, and 
in very dilute solutions, in order to insure a finely subdivided pre- 
cipitate. Amorphous precipitates are much more easily washed 
in this finely subdivided condition. Moreover, in the case of the 
two examples quoted, precipitation must be effected in the cold, in 
order to obtain the precipitates in the hydrated condition and not 
as oxyhydrates (hot solutions). Upon these two conditions de- 
pends the solubility of ferric hydrate in solutions of the organic 
acids (preparation of scale salts). 
In quantitative analysis many precipitates (metallic sulphides, 
hydroxides, etc.) are thrown down from boiling solutions, in order 
to render them as dense as possible. This will also cause them to 
settle rapidly, so that they may be washed by decantation; also 
this facilitates the solution of the soluble salt (impurity) formed by 
the reaction, which must afterward be removed by washing. 
The order in which these solutions are added to one another, de- 
termines largely the purity of the product, and the ease with 
which it is afterwards washed. Hence, we should add the solution 
of ferric chloride to the diluted ammonia water, otherwise oxy- 
chlorides may be formed. 
In preparing yellow oxide of mercury, we pour the solution of 
mercuric chloride into the solution of potassa, for if the operation 
is reversed we obtain red oxychloride of mercury. 
In analytical operations we should add, for instance, the barium 
solution to the solution of the sulphate or sulphuric acid, other- 
wise some of the barium salt may be carried down with the pre- 
cipitated barium sulphate. 
The nature of the precipitate depends on the conditions under 
which the two solutions come in contact, that is, which of the two PRECIPITATION. 
159 
remains longest in excess. If we pour a solution of mercuric 
chloride into a solution of potassium iodide, so that the latter 
remains in excess, the solution remains clear, because as long as 
the latter remains in excess the mercuric iodide is dissolved as fast 
as formed. If wre reverse the order, having the mercuric chloride 
in excess, the mercuric iodide is likewise dissolved. It is only by 
a careful regulation of the proportions that success is obtained. 
Fractional Precipitation has for its object the purification of sub- 
stances by partial precipitation. For this purpose the precipitant 
is added only in small portions at a time, each precipitate being 
removed, before a further portion of the precipitant is added. In 
these different fractions, the substance may be found in different 
degrees of purity. Thus carbolic acid is separated from the 
empyreumatic resins which accompany it, by adding to its alka- 
line solution an acid, in small portions at a time, the first precipi- 
Fig. 239. 
Fig. 240. 
Precipitating Jar. 
Beaker Glasses (nest). 
tations consisting of these resinous impurities, while the later ones 
contain the acid in pure form. We may thus separate salicylic 
acid from its inert isomers by fractional precipitation with silver 
nitrate. 
In carrying on precipitation, it is necessary that the liquid 
be constantly stirred during the addition of the precipitant; this is 
for the purpose of facilitating the contact of the substances dis- 
solved in the liquids, also to prevent the precipitate from forming 
lumps, which might enclose particles of the substance yet unacted 
upon. With the exception of some operations in analytical 
chemistry, it is always advisable that both solutions be well diluted 
before mixing. 
In direct precipitation, the precipitant is added until no further 
precipitation takes place. This may be ascertained by allowing 160 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the precipitate to settle away from near the surface and then add- 
ing to the clear supernatant liquid a drop or two of the precipi- 
tant, which should not produce any further turbidity. 
Precipitation is carried on, in small operations, in deep beaker 
glasses (Fig. 239), or in the so-called “ precipitating jar” (Fig. 240), 
the latter being a deep, heavy glass vessel, broad at the bottom and 
narrow at the top. This enables the precipitate to settle over a 
larger area of surface, thus assisting the operations of washing 
and decantation. On the large scale earthenware jars are usually 
employed, in which the supernatant liquid may be drawn off by 
means of spigots placed at different heights; wooden tanks are 
also constructed upon the same principle. CHAPTER XVII. 
DECANTATION. 
Decantation is the act of removing the supernatant liquid from 
a precipitate or sediment.* We usually resort to decantation in 
removing the clear supernatant liquid from a precipitate which 
may be deposited by tinctures or fluid extracts on standing. 
It is an expeditious and accurate method of separating soluble 
from insoluble matter, when conducted with due care. Decanta- 
tion is employed in the process of Elutriation, where the lighter 
are separated from the heavier particles of matter, the former 
being suspended in the upper layers of the mixture. 
By “ decantation with washing,” is understood the removal of 
soluble from insoluble matter in precipitates, by the repeated 
affusion and withdrawal of water. It is employed in those cases 
where a large quantity of a heavy, insoluble precipitate is to be 
washed, requiring, necessarily, a large amount of water. The 
precipitate is first allowed 
to settle; the supernatant 
liquid, after it lias become 
clear, is drawn off; then 
hot or cold water is poured 
upon the precipitate, with 
thorough stirring. It is 
again allowed to settle and 
treated as before; this oper- 
ation is continued, until all 
foreign soluble matter is 
removed. 
In decanting off the 
supernatant fluid, it is 
necessary to use the guid- 
ing rod (Fig. 241), other- 
wise, owing to adhesion, 
the liquid will run down 
the side of the vessel (Fig. 
242). If due care is taken, 
not a drop of the liquid 
need be lost. When the 
form of the vessel, or the quantity of the liquid, admits pouring 
Fig. 241. 
Decantation with Guiding-rod. 
* A Sediment consists of solid matter, which is deposited by force of gravity, from solutions (in 
which it was suspended) on standing. 
A Precipitate consists of solid matter (amorphous or crystalline), which separates from a solution, as 
the immediate result of a reaction, be it heat, light or chemical influence. 
161 162 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
off without a guiding rod, the outside of the lip or edge of the 
vessel should be slightly greased; this prevents the adhesion of 
the liquid, and its running down outside. Decantation may be 
more expeditiously and thor- 
oughly effected by means of 
the siphon (Figs. 244, 245). 
This is a glass tube, bent at an 
angle of about 60°, or bent at 
two right angles, having one 
of the limbs longer than the 
other. It is first started by 
filling it with fluid, while in- 
verted like a A; then the 
longer extremity being tightly 
closed with the finger, the 
shorter end is immersed in 
the liquid, with the longer 
arm extending outside, below 
the level of the liquid. On 
removing the finger, the flow 
of liquid commences. By 
lowering the inner, shorter 
arm, the liquid may be almost entirely drained off. Fig. 246 
illustrates a form well adapted to siphoning off volatile or 
Fig. 242. 
Careless Decantation. 
Fig. 243. 
Decanting over Greased Rim. 
caustic liquids; the siphon a, b, is fitted tightly through the 
cork k, through which also a mouth-piece, c, extends to just below DECANTATION. 
163 
the cork. By blowing air in at c, the liquid is forced out through 
the siphon, which may be raised or lowered, according to the 
height of the precipitate. The same principle is applied in 
Fig. 244. 
Fig. 245. 
Decanting with Siphon. 
drawing off acids, in which the air may be forced in, by means 
of a rubber bulb. 
Fig. 247 illustrates another form of siphon which can be 
started by suction without danger or accident. The finger is 
Fig. 246. 
Fig. 247. 
Siphon Apparatus. 
Siphons with Suction Tubes, 
placed over the end of the long limb, or the stop-cock tem- 
porarily turned off, and suction applied at the mouth-piece 
of the curved lateral tube, until the current is started. 164 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
In analytical operations, we usually wash precipitates first by 
decantation, pouring the decanted liquid through the plain filter, 
to avoid any possible loss of substance, then by means of the tip 
of a feather (Fig. 248), or a small glass rod tipped with a small 
piece of rubber-tubing, any particles of the precipitate that may 
be adhering to the sides of the 
beaker, are brushed down, and 
the entire mass carefully trans- 
Fig. 248. 
Fig. 249. 
Rinsing Out Precipitates. 
ferred to the filter, the beaker being 
several times rinsed with boiling (or 
cold) water, the feather or tipped rod 
being used to remove any adhering 
particles. The precipitate is further 
washed, dried or ignited, and then 
weighed. 
Pipettes.—For removing small quanti- 
ties of a supernatant liquid from pre- 
cipitates, where the amount is not suffi- 
cient for siphoning, decantation is very 
difficult without entailing loss; hence 
we employ the pipette (Fig. 249). This 
consists of a long glass tube of small 
diameter, near the middle of which is 
usually blown a globular or elongated 
bulb, the lower tip being tapered out to 
a small opening. The tip of this is in- 
serted into the liquid to be drawn off, 
and by suction, it is drawn up into the 
bulb; when filled, the upper end is 
quickly closed with the finger, or if a 
rubber tube be used (Fig. 297), closed 
by pinching. 
Fig. 250, illustrates a suction ar- 
rangement which can be applied to any pipette; this consists of a 
glass tube (closed at one end), which fits closely, yet slides easily 
over the stem of the pipette; an air-tight joint is formed by a 
short piece of rubber tubing, which fits over the extremities of 
the outer tube and the stem of the pipette, then by raising or 
Pipettes, DECANTATION. 
165 
lowering this outer tube, the liquid may be drawn up into, or 
discharged from the pipette. 
Pipettes are also graduated for the purpose of draining off 
measured quantities of fluids. 
Wash Bottle or Spritz Bottle.—In the various operations of rins- 
ing and washing of precipitates, the “ wash or spritz flask ” 
is employed. This consists of a flat-bottomed flask (Fig. 
251) fitted with a rubber stopper, having two holes, through 
which pass two glass tubes. The tube a, extending slightly 
below the cork, is the mouth-piece for forcing in the air, and 
this is tipped with a piece of rubber tubing. The tube b, d, is 
for the ejection of water. The tip b is drawn 
out to a point, to allow the passage of a fine 
stream of water; this tip is connected with the 
Fig. 250. 
Fig. 251. 
Suction Arrangement 
for Pipettes. 
Wash or Spritz Flask. 
main tube c, by means of a short piece of rubber tubing at /, 
which arrangement enables the operator to direct the stream of 
water in any direction, without altering the position of the flask. 
Around the neck at e is wound heavy cord, to enable the operator 
to handle the flask when hot. If a continuous stream of water is 
desired, the flow is started by blowing through the mouth-piece; 
then the latter is quickly closed by forcing the thumb against the 
end of the tube a. 
Automatic or Continuous Washing of Precipitates.—For this pur- 
pose there are a number of contrivances, answering also for the 166 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
continuous filtration of large quantities of liquids. Fig. 252 
illustrates a convenient form, in which the flask containing the 
wash-water is inverted over the funnel. Through the perforated 
cork of the flask extend two bent tubes (Fig. 253). The end b 
must reach higher than cord; and d must extend farther than c. 
When placed over a funnel, the tip a should reach below the sur- 
face of liquid. As soon as the level falls below a, air enters at b, 
which admits a fresh supply of water until the end of the tube a is 
again immersed. 
Another form is that devised by Gay-Lussac (Fig. 254). Instead 
Fig. 252. 
Fig. 254. 
Fig. 253. 
Automatic Filtering and Washing Apparatus. 
of a bottle having two necks as illustrated, a single-necked bottle 
may be used as well. Through a tightly fitting cork two tubes 
are inserted, one of which is short and straight and serves as air 
tube, while the other (siphon) is bent so that one arm extends 
below the level of the bottom of the bottle, the tip (at a) being 
curved upward. Through c air is blown until the liquid rises in 
the funnel, above the mouth of the tube a. When the tube 6, a, 
is once filled, the siphon supplies the filter mechanically, for as DECANTATION. 
167 
soon as the level falls below a, air is admitted through the tube c 
and causes the funnel to fill again. 
An arrangement as shown in Fig. 255 answers well for the 
filtration of, or washing with, volatile liquids. In this, the bottle, 
Fig. 255. 
Automatic Filtration of Volatile Liquids. 
A, must be of such size as to fit well over the top of the funnel, 
the neck extending down some distance. The funnel, T, (with 
filter) is placed over the bottle, and then without separating 
the two, the funnel is placed into the neck of the receiving flask, 
B. The cord, /, serves to allow space for the escape of air. CHAPTER XVIII. 
COLATION. 
Colation or straining is the process of rapidly separating pre- 
cipitates and all kinds of suspended matter from fluids, by means 
of pouring them upon a cloth or other porous fabric. We employ 
this method, for the separation of mechanical impurities of all 
kinds, particularly in those cases where rapid filtration is required, 
and where the solid particles to be removed are not very finely 
divided, or the amount of precipitate is very large. 
For this purpose we employ as filtering media, felt, flannel, 
cotton flannel, muslin, gauze, etc. The felt strainer being made 
of wool, is in the form of seamless 
conical bags; it forms an excellent 
strainer for oils, melted fats, honey, 
etc. Inasmuch as they are difficult 
to cleanse they should always be em- 
ployed for straining the same mate- 
rial. In place of this, the woolen 
flannel strainer answers just as well; 
when over-seamed, they last a long 
time, and have the advantage that 
they are more easily cleansed; they 
are suspended from frames as shown 
in Fig. 256. While straining syrup 
or honey, the strainer should be hung 
in a warm place free from draughts. 
Canton or cotton flannel and muslin 
form the cheapest materials, and are 
most generally employed. Before 
Fig. 256. 
Fig. 257. 
Straining Bag. 
Strainer Frame. 
using them, they should be well washed in boiling water, to re- 
move any soluble matter that may have been used in calendering 
168 COLATION. 
169 
These strainers are then suspended from the corners of the strainer 
frame (Fig. 257) which may be supported by a clamp, or placed 
directly over a vessel. After most of the liquid has drained 
through, and if the amount of precipitate is large, the strainer 
should be removed from the frame by gathering it in along the 
sides, as shown in Fig. 258, and then the retained liquid should 
be forced out by a twisting motion. When the amount of sus- 
Fig. 258. 
Fig. 259. 
Forcible Straining. 
pended matter is small, filtration through absorbent cotton an- 
swers all purposes. Each strainer or straining material should 
always be moistened before it is used. Should the fluid which 
first passes through not be perfectly clear, it should be returned to 
the strainer until the precipitate has filled the meshes of the cloth, 
when the liquid will flow through clear. If a clear liquid cannot 
be obtained in this manner, the strained liquid must subsequently 
be filtered through paper or other suitable medium. CHAPTER XIX. 
FILTRATION. 
Filtration is the process of depriving liquids of solid or sus- 
pended matter, by passing them through some porous medium, 
which allows only the passage of the fluid ; the clear, transparent 
liquid which flows through is called the “ filtrate.” For filtering 
purposes, we employ filter-paper, absorbent cotton, asbestos, spun 
and ground glass, charcoal, etc. When filtration is applied to 
viscous liquids, such as syrups, mucilage, honey, etc., for the pur- 
pose of removing mechanical impurities, it is called straining. 
When we separate a heavy precipitate from a fluid, with which 
it is mixed, by draining through muslin, we call the process 
eolation. 
Filter Paper.—This consists of unsized paper of loose texture, 
which is to be had either in square or circular sheets. It is an 
essential requisite, from a pharamaceutical point of view, that the 
filter paper used should be prepared from clean materials.* For 
this reason as well as another presently to be mentioned, the gray 
filter paper, which is the cheapest in the market, should not be 
used for filtering pharmaceutical preparations. This sort of 
paper almost always contains iron, lead, lime, starch and coloring 
matter, the presence of which at once precludes its use for filter- 
ing solutions of sensitive chemicals, such as iodide of iron, hydrio- 
dic acid, iodine, etc. Aside from the color imparted by gray 
paper to preparations which are filtered when hot (for instance, 
magnesium citrate solution), they also acquire a disagreeable 
taste, due to the presence of organic impurities contained in the 
paper. For all purposes, the white paper of the various standard 
brands f (German, Swedish, French) should be used. A thick 
paper of compact texture will be found to give the best satisfac- 
tion in most cases. The different makers prepare a great variety 
of filter-papers adapted to all kinds of work. There is filter- 
paper of a dense close texture for removing fine suspended matter; 
* According to Dr. Lardier, the gray filter paper usually employed, is made from cast-off rags of the 
filthiest sort, without any previous disinfection. It therefore contains enormous quantities of bac- 
teria, which are apt to pass into the filtrate, and are capable of converting medicinal preparations 
into “ culture fluids ” for myriads of these organisms. 
+ The most suitable paper for general pharmaceutical purposes is Schleicher and Schiill’s Nos. 
595, 597 and 598. The 595 is a light, while the 597 and 598 are heavy papers; the first of these is best 
adapted for filtering tinctures, spirits, etc., while the latter two are more suitable for the rapid and 
clear filtration of denser fluids. For filtering syrups, fruit-juices, oils of all kinds, etc., a paper of 
thick, loose texture is necessary ; this will be found in Nos. 584, 586 or 591 ; the larger sizes of these 
are sold with parchment ized points, so as not to break under the pressure of a heavy column of liquid. 
For quantitative purposes (£. e. quantitative analysis), Schleicher and Schiill’s 589, and 590, or Munk- 
tell’s No. 1 Swedish, or the Prat-Dumas French filter paper are the best. Messrs. Schleicher and Schull 
prepare a hardened filter paper (No. 575) which possesses even in a damp state, a hardness and 
durability which almost equals parchment. This is specially adapted for pressure filtration, also for 
the collection or removal of moist precipitates. 
170 FILTRATION. 
171 
paper of loose texture for the rapid filtration and removal of 
coarser particles; then paper of such a texture as to admit the easy 
filtration of syrups and oils. A very useful toughened filter paper 
is to be had in the market, which is made by drawing ordinary 
white filter paper through nitric acid (sp. gr. 1.42), and then 
immediately washing with water. The paper shrinks somewhat 
and can be washed and rubbed, just like linen, without losing its 
filtering properties. 
Another form of filter paper is that in which linen threads are 
interwoven throughout, thus strengthening the tissue and pre- 
venting its rupture, which often occurs with the ordinary filter 
paper, when the operator pours a quantity of liquid too suddenly 
into the filter. 
For analytical purposes, it is necessary to select a paper that 
will not only retain the finest suspended matter, but which will 
also, when burned, yield the smallest possible amount of ash. In 
view of this, it is necessary that the paper be of a very close 
texture and yet not impede filtration; further, it is necessary 
that not more than traces of inorganic matter be present. These 
inorganic constituents (silica, alumina, oxides of iron and calcium) 
are always present in ordinary white filtering paper, but may 
be removed therefrom by washing with a diluted mixture of 
hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids. 
Plain and Folded Filters.—In pharmaceutical and chemical 
operations we employ both the “plain ” and the “folded ” filter. 
Each form has its specific uses. 
The Plain Filter is employed in all operations where a precipi- 
tate is to be collected or subjected to washing. The filter is made 
by folding the square piece S (Fig. 260) along a-Z>, forming the 
triangle T (Fig. 261), which is again folded along the dotted line 
forming the triangle U (Fig. 262), this is rounded by cutting along 
cj-h (in round filter paper not necessary), it is then laid open in 
conical form as shown in Fig. 263. A still better method is to 
fold the sheet along a-b, as shown in Fig. 265, then along e-f 
(Fig. 266), forming thereby a square, as shown in Fig. 267, this 
is then rounded by cutting, as shown in Fig. 262. Then by 
holding it in position with the finger, it is well moistened with 
water or alcohol, according to the nature of the liquid to be 
filtered, and by gently patting with the finger, the filter is made 
to fit the sides of the funnel closely. This precaution must be 
observed, particularly in analytical operations, to avoid the risk 
of washing particles of the precipitate down between the sides of 
the filter and funnel. In some operations, a double filter is 
employed, in which case two plain filters are taken, one being 
placed inside of the other, so that there will be four folds to 
each side. 
For the economical use of expensive paper for analytical pur- 
poses, Edo Classen recommends cutting the filter in half and fold- 
ing as illustrated in the diagram (Fig. 264). It is obvious that 172 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
this will answer for pharmaceutical work in all cases which allow 
or require the use of a plain filter. 
When it is necessary to remove a precipitate from the filter after 
Fig. 260. 
Fig. 261. 
Fig. 263. 
Fig. 262. 
Folding Filters. 
drying, as in opium assay, a special paper with a hardened smooth 
surface, which can be had in the market, may be used for this 
purpose. 
Fig. 264. 
Folding Filter. 
The Plaited Filter.—For general pharmaceutical purposes, when 
the precipitate is not the desired object, for instance, in filtering 
tinctures, solutions, etc., the plaited filter is employed, because, FILTRATION. 
173 
owing to its numerous folds, it increases the rapidity of filtration. 
The filter paper (round or square) is folded along the line a-b 
(Fig. 265), and then along e-f (Fig. 266), resulting in the square 
(Fig. 267); this is then folded along c'-f, forming a triangle 
(Fig. 268); this triangle is folded along the lines g-f", forming an 
elongated short-based triangle (Fig. 269). This is opened to a 
Fig. 265. 
Fig. 266. 
Fig. 267. 
Fig. 268. 
Fig. 269. 
Fig. 271. 
Fig. 270 
Folding Filters. 
rectangle (double) as shown in Fig. 270; or proceed thus: after 
folding to the form shown in Fig. 267, open out as showm in Fig. 
266, then taking the lower corners of the edges d and e, fold them 
over so as to meet at e, thus forming a triangle, this is then laid open 
and each of the four triangles formed by the creasing, is again 
creased along the middle by bringing the sides together (inward) in 
the same manner; this wdien laid out presents the appearance of 
Fig. 270, the folds or creases all being bent the same direction, that 
is inward; then beginning at the triangle d-f-x, make a fold along 
the middle of each of the triangles (fi-fk-fl-fm, etc.), bending the 
paper back on itself in triangular form. When completed, it pre- 174 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
sents the appearance as in Fig. 271 (cut off at M); and when 
opened out, it appears as shown in Fig. 272. 
If, by means of a magnifying glass, we examine the structure 
of a piece of filter paper or filtering cloth, we will see that 
it is made up of fine hairs or fibres, loosely interlaced, with 
spaces of considerable size between. These holes are quite large, 
as compared with the size of the particles of the precipitates we 
attempt to remove from fluids. Hence in many operations it is 
necessary to return the first portions of the filtrate, until sufficient 
of the moist precipitate has collected on the skeleton of the paper 
or cloth to reduce the diameter of the pores or interstices, after 
which only the fluid portion will pass through. The paper or 
cloth simply forms a framework, on which the precipitate builds 
its own filter bed. 
Liquids containing mucilaginous or starchy matter which refuse 
to pass the filter, owing to the deposit thereon of mucilage, are 
Fig. 272. 
Plaited Filter. 
best managed by first straining through some coarse material, 
such as haircloth, which removes most of this matter, after which 
they may be filtered in the usual manner. 
MAXIMS TO BE OBSERVED IN FILTERING. 
In plaiting, care should be taken not to extend the folds 
entirely to the apex, but to leave about half an inch uncreased ; 
otherwise, through the creasing, the apex may become weakened. 
Before pouring the liquid upon the filter, the latter should be 
well moistened with water, alcohol, or diluted alcohol, as the case 
may be. 
The filter paper should never extend above, but should always 
end slightly below, the upper edge of the funnel. 
In filling a filter, the liquid should be poured in, in a slow 
stream, near the upper edge, where the force will be exhausted on FILTRA TION. 
175 
the side of the filter, and not be brought to bear on the apex 
(Figs. 273, 274). 
If the liquid contains a very fine precipitate, or is dense or hot, 
a double filter should be employed. 
Fig. 273. 
Fig. 274. 
Decanting Fluids on Filter. 
The tip of the stem of the funnel should touch the side of the 
beaker or dish in which the filtrate is to be received. This 
hastens the flow of the filtrate and avoids any splashing. 
Fig. 275 
Fig. 276. 
Filtering Stands. 
When filtering into a bottle or flask, the funnel should be 
placed in the ring of a filter stand (Figs. 275, 276); or, when 
placed directly into the flask, sufficient space should be provided 
for the escape of air, which would otherwise be imprisoned, and 176 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
cause filtration to cease for a time. This may be provided for by 
hanging a short piece of a string or a folded strip of paper in the 
neck (Fig. 277), or by introducing a glass tube between the filter 
and funnel, reaching down into its neck. 
FIG 277. 
Fig. 278. 
Filtering into Bottle. 
Chemists’ Cover. 
In filtering volatile liquids, the funnel should always be covered, 
either with a well-fitting plate of glass, or, better, with a rubber 
cover (chemists’ cover), provided the liquid does not act on 
rubber. 
Funnels.—A funnel is a conical- 
shaped utensil, the apex of which is 
terminated by a long stem or tube. 
They are used to assist in pouring 
fluids into narrow-mouthed receptacles 
and for the purposes of filtration. In 
a properly shaped funnel, the sides 
should be so inclined, that, when meet- 
ing at the neck, they form an angle of 
60° (Fig. 279). The outer lines at the 
junction of the sides and neck form an 
angle of 150°. The funnels d and e 
(Fig. 280) are poorly shaped ; in d, the 
angle of the sides is too sharp ; in e, the 
neck fails to form a sharp angle with 
the sides.* The end of the stem of the funnel should be cut off 
diagonally, which facilitates the discharge of the filtrate. 
Funnels are constructed of glass, porcelain, earthenware, so- 
called agate or granite ware, iron, tinned iron (“ tin ”), copper, 
Fig. 279. 
Rim. 
FBody. 
Neck. 
Stem. 
End or Tip 
of Stem. 
Properly Shaped Funnel. 
* For the general purposes of filtration, especially when the plaited filter is used, these require- 
ments are not necessary. The latter refer more particularly to plain filters used in analytical opera- 
tions, and that of rapid filtration, where it is absolutely necessary that the sides of the funnel should 
have the proper degree of inclination. FILTRATION. 
177 
hard rubber, etc.; each has its own particular application. Copper 
is employed for liquors and neutral liquids, tinned iron for oils, 
enameled ware or earthenware for hot caustic liquids. With 
Fig. 280. 
Proper and Faulty Shaped Funnels. 
usage, the enameling is apt to chip off and expose the iron 
surface, which rusts readily. The earthenware or porcelain 
funnels are objectionally clumsy and heavy. Tin wears off too 
readily and exposes the iron underneath 
to rust. Hard rubber funnels are very 
light and durable, but are objectionable 
because, by long use, the inner surface be- 
comes rough, and particles of matter find 
an easy lodging place and are very diffi- 
cult to remove, hence are liable to con- 
taminate subsequent filtrations. For gen- 
eral use, glass answers best, because of its 
transparency and cleanliness. Funnels 
grooved inside (so called “ fluted funnels ”) 
are also in the market for the purpose of 
facilitating filtration ; many of these are 
objectionable, because of the difficulty in 
thoroughly cleansing them; moreover, 
they do not filter more rapidly than a 
properly made plaited filter. The ribs, to 
be of any value, should be deeper and spirally arranged. Circu- 
lar, wire or wooden frames are also to be had for placing in a 
plain funnel, on which the filter is to be laid; but the wire will 
rust, thereby staining all preparations containing tannin; and 
wood will retain the odor and flavor of the different liquids 
filtered, thereby contaminating subsequent filtrations. 
For general purposes, such as the removal of coarse mechanic- 
ally suspended matter or impurities (eolation), a small pledget of 
Fig. 281. 
Ribbed or Fluted Funnel, 178 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
absorbent cotton placed in the neck of the funnel answers very 
well. It will not, however, remove finely divided suspended 
matter. For the filtration of acids, alkaline solutions, or corrosive 
liquids, spun glass or fibrous asbestos answers best. 
Granulated charcoal or ground glass are sometimes used for 
filtering large quantities of liquids. 
Upward Filtration.—For the filtration of oils and dense 
liquids, the filtering bag of felt has been in use for a very long time 
(Fig- 256). Besides this, animal charcoal, sand; sawdust, ground 
coke, etc., used to be employed, through 
which the oil or liquid was filtered. This 
method had the serious objection that 
the fluid either finds channels between 
the particles of the filtering medium, 
whereby it passes through without being 
filtered, or the filtration proceeds very 
slowly, or ceases entirely after a time, 
owing to the clogging of the filter from 
the sediment deposited. This slow and 
tedious method has been superseded by 
the method of “ upward filtrationbut 
this is only adapted to the filtration of 
larger quantities of material. For the 
filtration of oils, we find an early appli- 
cation of this principle in the oil filter* 
as shown in Fig. 282. This consists of 
two separate cylindrical vessels: a has a 
flange rim of lesser diameter, soldered 
on the bottom, so as to fit firmly into 
the open top of the vessel b. To one 
side of the bottom of a, is attached a 
tube and stopcock, c, which fits into 
another tube, d, at e. Near the bottom 
of the lower vessel is placed a felt filter, 
curved upward and fastened by thumb- 
screws passing through two rings and 
the felt. The stopcock c is closed, and 
the vessel a is filled with the oil or fluid; 
then c is opened, the fluid passes down into the space below, 
filtering upward through the felt into b, where it is drawn off 
at f. The felt is easily removed and the bottom cleansed. 
Fig. 283 illustrates an improved form of filtering apparatus upon 
the principle of which all others are constructed. The oil stored in 
the reservoir A flows down through the pipes, F, F, into the bottom, 
a, a, of the two filters, B, B. It is then forced upward, through a 
layer of felt, b, b, into the layer of sawdust (charcoal, coke), etc., 
c, c, which is covered with another layer of felt, on which a finely 
Fig. 282. 
Filter for “ Upward Filtration.” 
*This is sometimes called Warner’s Filter. FILTRATION. 
179 
perforated plate, e, rests, which can be raised or lowered by means 
of the screws, D, D, decreasing or increasing the pressure on the 
layer of sawdust. The filtered liquid is drawn out at E, E. 
Fig. 283. 
Apparatus for “ Upward ” Filtration of Oils. 
Fig. 284 illustrates a method of filtering in which the fluid 
passes through a perforated porcelain cone fitted into 
the neck of a funnel. Around this cone is wrapped 
a layer or two of filter paper (or muslin). Then, after 
inserting the covered cone in the neck of the funnel, 
the liquid is poured in. This passes through the 
layers of paper into the perforations, and is discharged 
below. The particles of precipitate, owing to their own 
gravity, collect around the bottom, thus avoiding the 
clogging up of the filter; there is also no danger of 
rupturing the paper by careless pouring. 
Upon this same principle Dr. Squibb has constructed 
a rapid filter for the filtration of large quantities of 
liquids, A rectangular wooden box is taken (dimen- 
sions about 30 X 18 X 6 inches), all the sides are 
pierced full of holes, leaving the bottom intact; one 
hole is bored in the top for admitting a siphon. Around the 
box are wrapped, alternately, layers of muslin and filter paper, 
the outside layer being muslin, secured by stitching. This box is 
then immersed in the vat of liquid to be filtered; the fluid filters 
rapidly through into the box, whence it is drawn off continuously 
by means of a glass siphon. The muslin sides of the filter may 
be brushed, should they show a tendency to clog from the collec- 
tion of the precipitate. 
Hot Filtration.—Dense liquids, such as syrups, oils, fats, gel- 
Fig. 284. 
Perforated Fil- 
tering Cone. 180 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
atin solutions, or such solutions as are prone to crystallize while 
Fig. 285. 
Fig. 286. 
Jacketed Funnel. 
Dieterich’s Jacketed Funnel (for 
Steam). 
cooling, are filtered while hot; this is conveniently accomplished by 
employing the jacketed funnel (Fig. 
285), which is double-walled, made 
of tin or copper. It is filled through 
an opening in the top and heated 
at the projecting flange. Fig. 286 
illustrates a form proposed by Diete- 
rich, which is heated by passing 
steam in at c, which circulates about 
the sides, b b, escaping through d. 
Another form * (Fig. 287) consists of 
a worm of lead or brass pipe, coiled 
in the form of a cone having an 
angle of 60°, so as to adapt itself 
closely to the sides of the funnel. 
The coil is intended to be charged 
with steam, to avoid the close proxi- 
mity of a flame, when inflam- 
mable liquids are to be filtered. 
The steam may be generated as shown in Fig. 153, the apparatus 
being placed some distance from the funnel if necessary. 
Rapid Filtration (Pressure Filtration).—To promote the 
rapidity of filtration, particularly in cases of dense or mucilagin- 
ous liquids, a partial vacuum may be produced and maintained 
beneath the filter paper. For this purpose various forms of filter 
pumps are used in the laboratory; in these pumps, water is 
ejected from a small tube having a pointed orifice, placed with- 
in another tube communicating with the vessel into which the 
funnel is fitted air-tight. The continuous, strong jet of water 
aspirates the air contained in the vessel, and thereby causes the 
Fig. 287. 
Liebreich’s Steam Coil Jacket for Hot Filtra- 
tion. g. Funnel, b. Pipe Coil. 
* Liebreich’s, made by Kaehler and Martini of Berlin. FILTRATION. 
181 
liquid to pass rapidly through the filter. The construction of 
these pumps is very simple, as may 
be seen in that made of glass, shown 
in Fig. 288. The water entering at 
b c, under pressure, is forced out at 
rapid rate through d, causing suction 
in e f; the rubber valve, g, regu- 
lates the pressure and prevents the 
back-flow of water through / into 
the apparatus. Fig. 289 illustrates 
such an apparatus in operation; it 
consists of a flask, D, into which is 
tightly fitted, by means of a rubber 
stopper, a funnel and an exit tube for 
the withdrawal of air, which is ac- 
complished by means of the vacuum 
pump; the water enters the pump at 
A, and is discharged through B with 
considerable force, withdrawing the 
air from the flask by suction through 
C. Then the pressure exerted by the 
atmosphere upon the surface of a 
liquid in the funnel, forces it rapidly 
through. The more expensive form 
of a pump with the indicator (indi- 
cating the pressure), may be replaced 
by the cheaper forms made of glass. 
Fig. 288. 
Water Pump. 
Fig. 289. 
Rapid Filtration. 182 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The stopper should be of rubber and firmly fitted in the neck 
of the flask; to prevent the filter paper from being ruptured at 
the point, a perforated cone of thin metal (platinum) is first placed 
in the bottom of the funnel, and into this is placed the plain filter 
(preferably double) and moistened, care being taken that it fits 
the sides closely, so as not to admit air through furrows. It is 
next filled with the fluid, and the suction pump then started, 
slowly at first and gradually increasing. The cone of platinum 
may be replaced by a piece of muslin folded like a plain filter, 
or a so-called “toughened” or “hardened” filter may be used. 
During filtration, usually by the sudden removal of pressure, 
Fig. 292. 
Fig. 290. 
Fig. 291. 
Suction Flask for Rapid 
Filtration. 
c. Perforated cone. 
b. Side tube connected 
with pump. 
Funnel with Per- 
forated Disc. 
Improved Porous Filtering Plate. 
water may sometimes be drawn over into the filtrate (in the 
flask). This can be avoided by interposing an empty bottle by 
means of tightly fitting connections between the pump and filter- 
ing flask. Where a powerful suction is obtainable, rapid filtration 
may be effected by placing a Witt’s perforated porcelain disc (with 
ground slanting edge) in the funnel (Fig. 291); this is then covered 
with a piece of filtering paper cut slightly larger than the disc, 
the edges extending about one-fourth of an inch up the sides of 
the funnel. This is then moistened, the suction gently started, 
and the filtering paper closely pressed to the sides of the funnel, 
so that when the liquid is poured in, the sediment may not be 
drawn down behind the paper. This form of filtration is best FILTRATION. 
183 
adapted to the collection and washing of precipitates. Fig. 292 
illustrates an improvement devised by Kaehler & Martini,* in 
which a rubber ring is stretched around the edge of the plate to 
obtain a more secure joint at c; the rod a is intended to assist 
in keeping the plate in position. 
Fig. 293 illustrates a convenient method where special appliances 
Fig. 293. 
Rapid Filtration (Improvised Apparatus). 
are wanting; the two aspirators, a, b, are connected by a rub- 
ber tube; a is filled with water and connected with the flask c, 
to which is fitted the funnel for filtering. The water is then 
allowed to flow down from a to b ; this causes the withdrawal of 
air from c; the higher a is above b, the greater the suction. When 
the bottle b is full, it is simply interchanged for a, and the flask 
containing the filter connected with b. 
* Berlin, Prussia. CHAPTER XX. 
CLARIFICATION. 
Many liquids contain finely divided suspended matter which 
interferes with their transparency, and which cannot be removed 
by filtration. In such cases we must resort to treatment with 
some insoluble substance which will attract or envelop these par- 
ticles. This operation is called Clarification. 
There is a kind of clarification which may be called “ spontane- 
ous clarification,” or “ clarification by subsidence,” which may be 
employed in many cases. It consists in allowing the liquid to 
stand in a quiet place for a sufficiently long time, until the 
suspended matter has settled to the bottom. 
When time is a consideration we resort to artificial clarification. 
This may be accomplished in several ways :— 
1st. By the application of heat, which coagulates albuminous 
substances which may be present. If liquids containing albumen 
or albuminous matter are boiled, the albumen coagulates, enclos- 
ing thereby the particles of suspended matter mechanically, caus- 
ing them to rise to the surface as a scum. This is then removed 
by skimming or straining. In this manner we clarify fruit juices, 
also honey. 
2d. By mechanical appliances, (a) Use of Albumen. When 
albumen is not already present in the liquid, it may be added. 
The white of an egg (one for each gallon), is first well diluted 
with a portion of the liquid, the mixture strained, and then added 
to the balance, which after being well shaken or mixed, is heated 
gradually to the boiling point, when the coagulated matter is 
skimmed off. Albumen should not be used for alcoholic liquids, 
or for solutions which contain substances that unite with albumen 
forming insoluble compounds, such as salts of mercury, lead, 
copper, or tannic acid, etc. 
(6) Use of Gelatin.—This is employed in removing suspended 
matter, due to the presence of tannin-like substances. It readily 
unites with these, forming an insoluble leather-like compound. 
To the cold liquid is added a solution of isinglass; the whole is 
well mixed, heated to boiling, and on cooling it is strained or 
filtered. Gelatin is not adapted to alcoholic liquids or solutions 
whose activity depends on tannic acid. 
(c) Use of Insoluble Bodies, as Calcium Phosphate or Magne- 
sium Carbonate or Talcum.—These answer admirably for clarify- 
ing neutral liquids ; in this case a small quantity is triturated to 
a paste with the fluid, the balance being added gradually, and the 
whole is then filtered through a plain or plaited filter. 
184 CLARIFICATION. 
185 
Paper Pulp.—This acts mechanically like the preceding, but is 
not so satisfactory. The pulp is added to the liquid, the mixture 
well shaken and poured on the filter, the first portions of the fil- 
trate being returned to the filter, until the liquid runs through 
clear. The pulp may be prepared by pouring a hot solution of 
caustic soda over cut filter paper, reducing it to a pulp by means 
of a pestle, then washing thoroughly with hot water, until all 
traces of alkali have been removed; that is, until the wash water 
fails to turn red litmus blue, or phenolphtalein red. 
(cZ) Use of Alcohol.—This coagulates slimy and mucilaginous 
substances. Hence, when added to liquids containing these mat- 
ters, it causes a coagulum to separate which carries the suspended 
matter along with it. After filtration, the alcohol is driven off by 
heat. Alcohol plays the part of a clarifying agent, in the clarifi- 
cation of fruit juices, and, owing to the manner in which it is 
generated, the operation is designated as clarification by fermenta- 
tion. This method is based on the transformation of the fruit- 
sugar contained in the expressed juice into alcohol by means of 
saccharine fermentation. For this purpose, the expressed juice is 
placed in a room where the temperature varies from 20 to 25° C., 
until alcoholic fermentation is over; this requires about forty- 
eight hours, after which the liquid is heated to boiling and 
strained. * 
* A powder for clarifying wines, liquors, essences, etc., may be made by mixing 40 parts each of 
finely powdered egg albumen and milk-sugar with 20 parts of starch in fine powder. To each liter of 
the fluid, 5 grammes of this powder are added, and after thorough agitation, the mixture is set aside 
for several days and then filtered. CHAPTER XXL 
DECOLORATION. 
The process of depriving liquids of color by filtration through 
some substance capable of absorbing organic coloring matter. 
The object of decoloration is to remove the coloring matter and 
impurities accompanying vegetable principles such as alkaloids, 
glucosides, or bitter principles. It is resorted to particularly for 
decolorizing syrups in sugar refining, and cotton-seed oil; for the 
removal of color from petroleum residues, in the manufacture of 
petrolatum, and petroleum jellies. Formerly precipitated iron or 
aluminium hydrate were used to some extent as decolorizing 
agents. Animal charcoal is made by heating bones, in closed 
retorts, out of contact with air; the product is then reduced to a 
granular condition by grinding. The best qualities are made 
from dried blood. Powdered animal charcoal is often called 
bone-black. When of good quality, it should, upon being boiled 
with solution of potassa, not impart any color to the liquid. It 
consists of carbon (about 10 per cent.), calcium phosphate and 
carbonate, aluminum and iron hydroxides, and silica (about 90 
per cent.). Its decolorizing powers were supposed to be due to the 
minute state of division of the carbon, or to its physical condition, 
as an aggregation of cellular spaces; however, recent investigations 
tend to show that the impurities in the animal charcoal play a large, 
if not the largest, part in the decolorizing power. In view of this, 
Stenhouse has prepared an aluminized charcoal,made by impregnat- 
ing finely powdered wood charcoal with 7| per cent, of alumina, 
drying, and igniting. He also prepared an artificial bone black by 
impregnating powdered charcoal with 7| per cent, of calcium 
phosphate. These prepared charcoals decolorize well, but can be 
used only for neutral solutions. After being once used, animal 
charcoal may be washed with dilute acids, re-burnt out of contact 
with air, and again used; in fact, it may be used many times over, 
although its decolorizing powers gradually become weaker. Solu- 
tions of plant principles which are to be decolorized are either 
digested with, or percolated through it. Since it has a tendency 
to retain such principles, the charcoal should afterward be boiled 
with some of the solvent, for instance, alcohol, which extracts the 
principle retained. 
186 CHAPTER XXII. 
SEPARATION OF IMMISCIBLE LIQUIDS. 
The pharmacist occasionally has to separate immiscible liquids ; 
for instance, in the washing or purification of oils (volatile and 
fixed), which have become resinified or partially rancid. He has 
also occasion to separate immiscible volatile solvents (ether, 
chloroform, benzin, etc.), from aqueous solutions. In the first in- 
stance, after the oil has been thoroughly washed, by agitation in 
a closed flask with water (slightly alkaline), the mixture is 
poured into an open separating funnel (Fig. 294), allowed to stand 
until it has separated into two clear layers, then the underlying 
water or oil may be slowly and carefully drawn off. Fig. 295 
illustrates a home-made separating funnel designed by C. 0. Cur- 
Fig. 295. 
Fig. 296. 
Fig. 291. 
Separating Funnel 
(stoppered). 
Separating Funnel 
(Currier). 
Separating Flask 
(pear-shape). 
rier. The liquid is drawn off by means of a glass tube, sliding 
through a cork. Near the closed end of this tube a hole is filed 
through, by means of a rat-tail file (moistened with oil of turpen- 
tine) ; then, by raising or lowering the tube, the respective liquids 
may be drawn off. 
For all kinds of operations, the so-called “ separator,” or sepa- 
rating flask provided with a glass stopper, is to be preferred 
(Fig. 296). This consists of a pear-shaped or cylindrical bulb 
provided with a well-ground, perforated stop-cock and a short 
exit-tube. This form is usually employed in the various opera- 
tions of shaking aqueous liquids with volatile solvents, which is 
necessary in the preparation of various pharmaceutical products 
and in the assay of alkaloidal drugs. When such separators are 
187 188 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
not available, the agitation may be performed in a glass-stoppered 
bottle, and the fluids separated by means of a pipette, the point 
of which is drawn out to a capillary (Fig. 
297). Over the top of these small pipettes 
an unperforated rubber nipple may be drawn, 
which may be used as a means of suction 
instead of the mouth.* In operating upon 
larger quantities of liquids, they may be 
separated readily and completely, by means 
of a siphon which is operated by forcing air 
into the flask. The arrangement in Fig. 298 
is adapted for the withdrawal of the lower 
fluid, and in order that none be lost, the 
tube is bent so that it can be shoved into 
the edge of the bottom when the flask is 
inclined. For drawing off the upper fluid 
(Fig. 299) the siphon, which has a hook at 
the shorter extremity, is raised to the lower 
level of the floating fluid. 
Fig. 297. 
Separation of Fluids by Capil- 
lary Pipette. 
Fig. 298. 
Fig. 299. 
Separation of Immiscible Fluids by Siphon. 
* See Pipettes, page 164. CHAPTER XXIII. 
EXTRACTION. 
This term is applied to any process whereby the soluble matter 
of complex drugs, usually vegetable, are separated from the in- 
soluble portion by means of a solvent: when practically ac- 
complished, the drug is said to be exhausted. This is carried out 
in the operations of maceration or digestion, percolation, or a 
combination of both. 
MACERATION. 
Maceration consists in subjecting a drug, reduced to a coarse 
powder, to the solvent action of a selected liquid, called the 
menstruum, the length of time and temperature being an im- 
portant consideration. The temperature employed in different 
pharmacopoeias varies from 10° to 100° C., being accordingly 
designated as maceration, digestion, infusion, or decoction. 
When a moderate heat (30-40° C.) accompanies maceration, it 
is called digestion. 
Maceration for a short time, either in cold, lukewarm, hot, or 
boiling water, and subsequent straining, is called infusion. 
When the mixture of drug and water is‘boiled together, it is 
called decoction. 
The temperature of maceration, in the preparation of tinctures, 
wines, vinegars, etc., as directed by most pharmacopoeias is from 
15° to 20° C. The length of time is from 1 to 36 hours, according 
to the nature of the drug and menstruum; where the process of 
percolation is not employed, the time of maceration is usually 
extended to the period of a week or more. 
In the manufacture of pharmaceutical preparations, when the 
drug is to be exhausted by a fluid menstruum, as in the prepa- 
ration of tinctures, extracts, wines, vinegars, etc., two methods of 
extraction are employed, either that of maceration, or that of 
percolation. The process of maceration is employed almost 
exclusively by the European apothecaries, wTho claim that it pos- 
sesses the following advantages over the method of percolation. 
By maceration, the drug is more evenly exhausted, and the 
products obtained are of like and uniform composition and are 
more stable. 
It affords excellent results every time a substance is to be ex- 
hausted and with the smallest possible quantity of menstruum. 
It is far less expensive, since the loss in alcohol is very slight, 
the chief opportunity for any loss being during the operation of 
expressing the residue. 
189 190 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Preparations made by percolation are less stable, being more 
liable to precipitate, and especially so if water is used for forcing 
out the last portions of alcoholic menstruum, for then a diffusion 
of the two cannot always be avoided. 
Maceration answers best for inexperienced hands, since the 
operation of percolation requires skill, with careful and constant 
supervision, in consequence of the wide variance in the nature 
and structure of different drugs. 
It does not necessitate the pulverization of the drug, thereby 
dispensing with previous desiccation and possible loss, by alter- 
ation or destruction, of volatile principles, as, for instance, in 
conium, lobelia, physostigma, etc. 
On the other hand, it is claimed that the process of maceration 
involves considerable loss. Yet, when the operation is carefully 
managed, the loss is not any greater than by the process of perco- 
lation.* For further references concerning the process of macera- 
tion, see Tincturse and Extracta Fluida. 
Percolation is not adapted to certain kinds of drugs, particularly 
those of a spongy nature, which tend to swell with aqueous or 
hydro-alcoholic menstrua, and render the passage of the fluid slow 
and difficult; as examples, arnica flowers and orange-peel may 
be cited. 
Percolation is well adapted to such drugs as aconite root, cin- 
chona bark, ergot, etc., but, wherever applied, the process demands 
care and skill. 
* Economic Percolation by Arny, “ Proceed. A. P. A., ’92,” p. 169. CHAPTER XXIV. 
PERCOLATION. 
Percolation, or displacement, is the process of extraction of a 
drug by the gradual descent of a solvent. It is called displace- 
ment because the solvent, after becoming charged with the solu- 
ble constituents of the drug, is displaced by fresh portions of the 
solvent liquid, and from its own gravity, and by the presence of 
the liquid above, minus capillary force, continues downward and 
is discharged below. 
Percolation, when properly 
carried out, is an effective and 
expeditious process of drug 
extraction. It yields at once, 
without further manipula- 
tion, a finished product. The 
product is called thepercolate, 
and the vessel in which the 
operation is carried on, the 
percolator, and the liquid sol- 
vent employed is called the 
menstruum. 
The earliest and simplest 
application of the process of 
percolation wasthat embraced 
in the old process of lixivia- 
tion, which consists in depriv- 
ing wood ashes of their solu- 
ble matter, by pouring water 
over them, when placed in a 
cylindrical or conical vessel. 
Count Rumford, in 1813, 
used percolation in making 
coffee decoction, but the first 
application of this process to 
the extraction of drugs was 
made by Count Real in 1815, 
who invented a so-called 
press (Fig. 300), which con- 
sisted of a metallic cylinder, 
tapered below to a narrow 
neck, which was provided 
with a stopcock. In the bot- 
tom of this cylinder was a perforated diaphragm, upon which the 
drug was to be packed, entirely filling the apparatus. The top 
Fig. 300. 
Real’s Press (Percolator). 
191 192 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
is covered with a tightly fitting cap, connected with an upright 
tube, from 2| to meters long, enlarged to a cup-shaped opening 
above. This was employed in making infusions, in which the main 
difficulty experienced was, owing to the great pressure produced by 
the height of such a column of liquid, that the menstruum flowed 
through without completely exhausting the drug. Later (1817) 
it was used by Johnson in the extraction of cinchona, but to 
Boullay freres (1833) belongs the credit of fully demonstrating its 
practical value in pharmacy. While the process was making 
rapid progress in France, Messrs. Duhamel, Proctor, and Grahame 
were carrying on experiments in America, which finally led to its 
first introduction into the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1840, where it 
was made official as an alternative process. Since that time, 
great progress has been made in bringing this process to a greater 
state of perfection through the labors of Proctor, Squibb, Lloyd, 
and others. The process, while being employed exclusively in our 
own Pharmacopoeia in the preparation of its tinctures, fluid 
extracts, etc., has received until within recent years, comparatively 
little attention from the European pharmacopoeias, where the pro- 
cess of maceration is still employed almost exclusively. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia gives the following definition and 
description of the process:— 
“ The process of percolation, or displacement, directed in this 
Pharmacopoeia, consists in subjecting a substance or a mixture of 
substances, in powder, contained in a vessel called a percolator, to 
the solvent action of successive portions of a certain menstruum 
in such a manner that the liquid, as it traverses the powder in its 
descent to the receiver, shall be charged with the soluble portion 
of it, and pass from the percolator free from insoluble matter. 
“ When the process is successfully conducted, the first portion of 
the liquid, or percolate, passing through the percolator, will be 
nearly saturated with the soluble constituents of the substance 
treated; and if the quantity of menstruum be sufficient for its 
exhaustion, the last portion of the percolate will be nearly free 
from color, odor, and taste, other than those of the menstruum 
itself.” 
In order to be able to apply the process of percolation intelli- 
gently, so as to secure the object aimed at, viz., the extraction of 
the useful soluble constituents of a drug, the operator must have 
some knowledge of the structure and composition of the drug. 
In its natural, unpowdered condition, the drug (assuming it to be 
of organic origin) is usually made up of cells and vessels of 
various shapes and of interstitial spaces. When the drug is 
powdered, many of these cells and vessels, which usually contain 
the matters to be extracted, are broken up, and the interstitial 
spaces are thus largely increased in number. If the powdered 
mass is now to be extracted by a menstruum, not in repose, but 
slowly passing through the mass, it is necessary to adjust the 
current so that the menstruum has time to penetrate the solid PERCOLATION. 
193 
particles, to become charged with the soluble matters contained 
therein, and to be slowly displaced by fresh portions of the 
menstruum. If the current of the menstruum is so rapid that the 
latter has not sufficient time to penetrate and pass through the 
solid particles, there will be a deficiency in the product. The 
best plan of avoiding this is to give ample time to the menstruum, 
particularly in the beginning, to penetrate the solid substance and 
to render the cell-walls ready for the process of osmosis. Hence 
the first step, in percolation, is to moisten the powder and to wait 
until the liquid has thoroughly penetrated the solid particles 
themselves. In some drugs this is accompanied by a considerable 
swelling, or increase of volume, due to their spongy or muci- 
laginous nature. In these cases it is particularly necessary to 
wait for complete expansion, since, otherwise, the drug would so 
clog the percolator that no liquid would be able to pass. 
Fig. 303. 
Fig. 302. 
Fig. 301. 
Cylindrical Glass Percolator. 
Conical Glass Percolator. 
Metal Percolator. 
“ The percolator most suitable for the quantities contemplated 
by the Pharmacopoeia should be nearly cylindrical, or slightly 
conical, with a funnel-shaped termination at the smaller end. 
The neck of this funnel-end should be rather short, and should 
gradually and regularly become narrower toward the orifice, so 
that a perforated cork, bearing a short glass tube, may be tightly 
wedged into it from within until the end of the cork is flush with 
the outer edge of the orifice. The glass tube, which must not 
project above the inner surface of the cork, should extend from 3 
to 4 Cm. beyond the outer surface of the cork, and should be pro- 
vided with a closely fitting rubber tube, at least one-fourth longer 
than the percolator itself, and ending in another short glass tube, 
whereby the rubber tube may be so suspended that its orifice shall 
be above the surface of the menstruum in the percolator, a rubber 
band holding it in position. 194 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
“ The shape of a percolator should be adapted to the nature of 
the drug to be operated upon. For drugs which are apt to swell, 
particularly when a feebly alcoholic or an aqueous menstruum is 
employed, a conical percolator is preferable. A cylindrical or only 
slightly tapering percolator may be used for drugs which are not 
liable to swell, and when the menstruum is strongly alcoholic, or 
when ether or some other volatile liquid is used for extraction. 
The size of the percolator selected should be in proportion to the 
quantity of drug extracted. When properly packed in the perco- 
lator, tiie drug should not occupy more than two-thirds of its 
height. The percolator is best constructed of glass or stone-ware, 
but, unless otherwise directed, may be made of any suitable 
material not affected by the drug or menstruum.” 
While not specifying dimensions, the Pharmacopoeia directs the 
employment of either one of two forms, the conical or cylindrical. 
In percolating such drugs as are liable to swell considerably, for 
instance, gentian, calumba, rhubarb, etc., or where the menstruum 
is more aqueous than alcoholic, the conical form is preferred; 
since, owing to the slanting of the sides, the drug has an oppor- 
tunity to expand upward. Also, since these drugs yield to 
aqueous menstruum a large amount of soluble and mucilaginous 
matter, it cannot as readily collect as a viscid liquid, and retard 
percolation, as is often the casein the cylindrical form. In all 
other cases the tall and narrow cylindrical percolator is preferred, 
which increases the height of the column of the drug and men- 
struum in proportion to their mass, thus insuring the thorough 
exhaustion of the drug with a moderate quantity of menstruum.* 
“ The percolator is prepared for percolation by gently pressing 
a small tuft of cotton into the neck above the cork, a thin layer 
of clean and dry sand being then poured upon the surface of the 
cotton to hold it in place.” 
* VARIOUS DIMENSIONS FOR THE DIFFERENT SIZES OF THE OLDBERG 
CYLINDRICAL PERCOLATOR. 
Numbers. 
Approximate 
Capacity. 
Length 
of Body. 
Internal 
Diameter 
at the 
Top. 
Internal 
Diameter 
of Body 
at the’ 
Shoulder. 
Depth 
of 
Shoul- 
der. 
Length 
of 
Stem (or 
Neck). 
Inter- 
nal Di- 
ameter 
of Stem 
at the 
Throat. 
Inter- 
nal Di- 
ameter 
of Stem 
at 
Mouth 
or Exit. 
Length of 
Rubber 
Tube. 
Numbers. 
r S 
J) 
oiS 
Millimeters. 
Inches. 
Millimeters. 
Inches. 
Millimeters. 
Inches. 
u 
SP 
Inches. 
Millimeters. 
Inches. 
Millimeters. 
Inches. 
Inches. 
-- 
Inches. 
2 
150 
5 fl. oz. 
180 
7.09 
36 
1.417 
30 
1.181 
6 
.236 
30 
1.181 
10 
.394 
12 
.472 
240 
9.45 
2 
3 
240 
8 “ 
210 
8.27 
42 
1.654 
35 
1.378 
8 
.315 
30 
1.181 
10 
.394 
12 
.472 
280 
11.02 
3 
4 
300 
12 “ 
240 
9.45 
48 
1.890 
40 
1.575 
10 
.394 
30 
1.181 
10 
.394 
12 
.472 
320 
12.60 
4 
5 
530 
18 “ 
270 
10.63 
54 
2.126 
45 
1.772 
12 
.472 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
360 
14.17 
5 
6 
740 
25 (i 
300 
11.81 
60 
2.362 
50 
1.968 
14 
.551 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
400 
15.75 
6 
7 
1,240 
42 “ 
360 
14.17 
72 
2.835 
60 
2.362 
16 
.630 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
480 
18.89 
7 
8 
1,960 
66 “ 
420 
16.53 
84 
3.307 
70 
2.756 
18 
.709 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
560 
22.05 
8 
9 
3,000 
100 “ 
480 
18.89 
96 
3.780 
80 
3.150 
20 
.787 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
640 
25.20 
9 
10 
3,780 
8 pts. 
540 
21.25 
108 
4.252 
90 
3.543 
22 
.866 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
720 
28.35 
10 
11 
5,700 
12 “ 
600 
23.62 
120 
4.724 
100 
3.937 
24 
.945 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
800 
31.50 
11 
12 
7,600 
16 “ 
660 
25.98 
132 
5.197 
110 
4.331 
26 1.024 
35 
1.378 
13 
.512 
15 
.591 
880 
34.65 
12 PERCOLATION. 
195 
In preparing the percolator, care should be taken not to press 
the wad of cotton too tightly. It should fit loosely into the upper 
portion of the neck, partly covering the bottom of the percolator; 
it is preferable to cover this with a disc of filter paper cut to 
fit the bottom of the percolator. This may be covered with a 
layer of clean sand, or pebbles. Some operators prefer to insert 
a cork, grooved all around, into the upper part of the neck, and to 
cover this directly with a disc of filter paper. Where obtainable, 
glass-wool will be found far better than cotton for this purpose, 
since it retains its spongy condition and does not fall together on 
becoming wet. In selecting the proper-sized percolator, we must 
be guided by the amount of drug; thus, if the percolator be large 
enough for 16 troy ounces, we should not use it for 8 or 10 ounces 
of drug, and, upon the other hand, the percolator must be amply 
large enough to accommodate a good supply of menstruum above 
the surface of the powder. 
“The powdered substance to be percolated (which must be 
uniformly of the fineness directed in the formula, and should be 
perfectly air-dry before it is weighed) is put into a basin, the 
specified quantity of menstruum is poured on, and it is thoroughly 
stirred with a spatula, or other suitable instrument, until it appears 
uniformly moistened. The moist powder is then passed through 
a coarse sieve—No. 40 powders, and those which are finer, requir- 
ing a No. 20 sieve, whilst No. 30 powders require a No. 15 sieve 
for this purpose. Powders of a less degree of fineness usually do 
not require this additional treatment after the moistening. The 
moist powder is now transferred to a sheet of thick paper and the 
whole quantity poured from this into the percolator. It is then 
shaken down lightly and allowed to remain in that condition for 
a period varying from fifteen minutes to several hours, unless 
otherwise directed ; after which the powder is pressed, by the aid 
of a plunger of suitable dimensions, more or less firmly in pro- 
portion to the character of the powdered substance and the alco- 
holic strength of the menstruum; strongly alcoholic menstrua, as 
a rule, permitting firmer packing of the powder than the weaker. 
The percolator is now placed in position for percolation, and, the 
rubber tube having been fastened at a suitable height, the surface 
of the powder is covered by an accurately fitting disc of filtering 
paper, or other suitable material, and a sufficient quantity of the 
menstruum poured on through a funnel reaching nearly to the 
surface of the paper. If these conditions be accurately observed, 
the menstruum will penetrate the powder equally until it has 
passed into the rubber tube and has reached, in this, a height 
corresponding to its level in the percolator, which is now closely 
covered to prevent evaporation. The apparatus is then allowed 
to stand at rest for the time specified in the formula. 
“To begin percolation, the rubber tube is lowered and its glass 
end introduced into the neck of a bottle previously marked for 
the quantity of liquid to be percolated, if the percolate is to be 196 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
measured, or of a fared bottle, if the percolate is to be weighed; 
and by raising or lowering this receiver the rapidity of percola- 
tion may be increased or decreased as may be desirable, care being 
taken, however, that the rate of percolation, unless the quantity of 
material be largely in 
excess of the pharma- 
copoeial quantity, shall 
not exceed the limit of 
ten to thirty drops in a 
minute.* A layer of 
menstruum must con- 
stantly be maintained 
above the powder, so as 
to prevent the access of 
air to its interstices, 
until all has been added, 
or the requisite quantity 
of percolate has been 
obtained. This is con- 
veniently accomplished, 
if the space above the 
Fig. 304. 
Fig. 305. 
Percolation.! 
Receiving Jar. 
powder will admit of it, by inverting a bottle containing the 
entire quantity of menstruum over the percolator in such a man- 
ner that its mouth may dip beneath the surface of the liquid, the 
bottle being of such shape that its shoulder will serve as a cover 
for the percolator.” 
Degree of Fineness of the Powdered Drug.—It is essential 
* The rate or speed of percolation may be increased in proportion to the amount of drug percolated. 
+ Fig. 304 illustrates the official operation of percolation. It also illustrates the solvent action of 
the menstruum in its descent; the portion, c-d, containing the largest amount of extractive, is 
followed by the layer d-e, containing less, and e-f, the least amount of extractive. In actual opera- 
tion the lines of demarcation are not so sharp, but gradually blended from below upward. PERCOLATION. 
197 
that the drug be of a proper and uniform degree of fineness; when 
it is too coarse, complete exhaustion does not take place; when 
it is too fine, percolation ceases from agglutination, and when it is 
not of uniform fineness, percolation is hindered. The fineness of 
the powder must be in accordance with the nature of the drug 
and solvent. Drugs like rhubarb and gentian, which have an 
open, loose cellular structure, and whose constituents are readily 
soluble, are easily exhausted when in coarse powder. Such drugs 
as mix vomica and ignatia have a hard, horny structure, which 
is not easily penetrated by a solvent, hence they must be reduced 
to a fine powder. The finer the powder, the more intimate will 
be the contact with the solvent; hence, in the preparation of fluid 
extracts, we employ as fine a powder as is consistent with the 
nature of the drug, while in the case of tinctures, where the 
amount of menstruum is large in comparison to the drug, we em- 
ploy a coarser powder. 
Moistening and Packing.—A drug should be thoroughly 
moistened and permitted to expand before being packed, so that 
the dry cellular tissue may, from the absorption of liquid, swell 
to its ultimate condition, and that, after the drug is packed, the 
liquid may pass in an even current. If a drug is packed without 
having been moistened, or before it has ceased to swell, and men- 
struum then poured upon it, the passage of the latter would soon 
be obstructed by the swelling of the particles. After being moist- 
ened, the powder should be rubbed through a coarse sieve so as to 
secure uniformity of texture and to prevent any balling. After this, 
it may be either poured into the percolator, which is to be carefully 
covered so as to prevent the powder from drying out, or placed 
in a well-closed, wide-mouthed macerating jar. It is then allowed 
to stand for a period varying from fifteen minutes to several 
hours, according to the nature of the drug. 
The powder is now “ packed ” in the percolator, which is done 
by introducing it in portions, distributing it uniformly and evenly, 
and applying a more or less strong pressure, according to the 
directions, in such a way, however, that the pressure always 
diminishes toward the surface. The directions given by the 
Pharmacopoeia, viz., “to pour the powder into the percolator, to 
shake it down carefully so as to avoid the formation of furrows or 
cavities, and then to apply pressure on the surface,” are liable to 
produce difficulties during the percolation. The firmness with 
which a powder should be packed, depends entirely on the structure 
of the drug and on the menstruum employed. If the drug be 
porous and spongy and the menstruum aqueous, it should be 
packed loosely; if the menstruum be alcoholic, it should be 
packed firmly. As a rule, the more alcoholic the menstruum, the 
firmer should be the packing. 
After the powder has been properly packed, a circular piece of 
filter paper (nicked around the edges), slightly larger than the 198 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
diameter of the upper layer of powder, is laid upon the surface, 
and weighted with pebbles, broken glass, a funnel, or a glass tripod 
weight* made for this purpose. As much menstruum should be 
added at once as the percolator will hold, great care being always 
taken not to allow the menstruum to disappear below the surface 
of the powder; for should this take place, air will be drawn into 
the interstices of the drug and fissures will form by contraction 
of its mass; hence, when more menstruum is added, it will flow 
through those parts where it meets the least resistance, seeking 
the fissures which allow the passage of the menstruum through 
these channels, instead of percolating through the powder. When 
constant attention cannot be given to the operation, a flask may be 
inverted over the top of the percolator, as shown in Fig. 304, or 
the device illustrated in Fig. 252 may be employed, or else the 
process may be interrupted by stopping the flow of the percolate. 
After the menstruum has been added (if the drug has been 
properly packed), it will permeate the powder and descend at a 
uniform rate throughout the mass. Should it descend more rapidly 
on one side than on the other, this would be due to irregular 
packing, indicating that too little pressure has been used on one 
side as compared with the other, and then a portion of the powder 
will not be as thoroughly exhausted as that more loosely packed, 
owing to the rapidity with which the menstruum passes through 
the more porous portion. 
Under proper conditions, after the menstruum has penetrated 
the entire powrder, and passed into the rubber tube, the mouth of 
the percolator is to be covered to prevent evaporation, and 
allowed to stand at rest for the time specified by the formula. 
The length of this period of maceration depends on the nature 
of the drug and the amount of menstruum. Should the amount 
of menstruum be small, as in the preparation of fluid extracts, a 
greater length of time is necessary than in the making of weaker 
preparations, such as tinctures, wines, etc., for with these the length 
of maceration may be short, since we have a large amount of fluid 
with which to exhaust a small amount of drug. 
Proper Menstruum.—A knowledge of the constituents of a 
drug, and of their properties, is absolutely necessary before the 
proper menstruum for percolation can be selected. The menstruum 
must be so chosen as to extract the active principles, and yet take 
up as little as possible of the inert matter. The menstruum must 
also be capable of holding the extractive matter permanently in 
solution. Such drugs as contain alkaloids, resins, etc., require a 
more strongly alcoholic menstruum. Such as licorice require a 
slightly alkaline hydro-alcoholic menstruum. Such as ergot, 
sanguinaria, conium, etc., are better exhausted with an alcoholic 
menstruum slightly acidified. In many cases glycerin is added, 
since it has intermediate solvent properties between that of alcohol 
* Made by Messrs. Whitall, Tatum & Co. PERCOLA TION. 
199 
and water, and dissolves all principles soluble in either alone. In 
the case of gentian, scoparius, and quassia, just enough alcohol is 
employed to prevent fermentation of the finished preparation. 
Exhaustion.—The Pharmacopoeia directs that displacement be 
continued until the drug is exhausted. The exhaustion of a drug 
cannot be insured with a given amount of menstruum, for that 
depends entirely upon the skill of the operator. In this case, we 
must be guided by the nature or peculiarities of the drug operated 
upon. When the active principles possess a bitter taste, as in 
nux-vomica, cinchona, or quassia, exhaustion is indicated by the 
disappearance of a prominent bitterness. In the case of resinous 
drugs, such as podophyllum or jalap, the percolation is to be con- 
tinued until the percolate ceases to produce cloudiness when 
dropped into water. With astringent drugs, such as catechu or 
krameria, we judge the drug to be exhausted by the disappearance 
of an astringent taste. The exhaustion of alkaloidal drugs is 
best observed by directly testing a fraction of the percolate for the 
presence of alkaloids by means of Mayer’s reagent. The color is 
but rarely a criterion of strength or exhaustion, for percolates may 
continue to pass through highly colored, and yet the drug may 
have long been devoid of activity; an exception to this is 
cochineal, whose virtues reside in its color only. Hence, to carry 
on the process of percolation intelligently, we must understand the 
nature and constituents of the drug operated upon. 
After the drug has been exhausted, varying amounts of the 
menstruum are retained in the drug residue (marc). The recovery 
of this is quite important where larger quantities are operated 
upon. It is best then to throw the entire mass directly into a 
still, into the bottom of which live steam is passed and the distil- 
late then condensed. 
VARIOUS FORMS OF PERCOLATING APPARATUS. 
For the use of the apothecary, in operating with smaller quan- 
tities of drugs, the glass percolator is the best, since by its use we 
are enabled to observe the various stages of the operation. It is 
also adapted to all kinds of drugs. Glass percolators of a larger 
size than five gallons are not safe, since, owing to their great size 
and weight, they are liable to crack. The larger sizes should be 
supported upon frames covered with some soft material like rub- 
ber or cork. Next to glass, stoneware jars (Squibb’s Siphon 
Percolator) are to be preferred. These may be used for quantities 
up to 200 pounds. Most manufacturers employ tinned copper 
percolators which permit the carrying on of operations involving 
300 to 500 pounds of drugs. 
Fig. 306 illustrates the Christ-Dieterich Percolator, which is 
made of tinned copper or earthenware, the sizes varying from one 
to 10 liter capacity. It is fed automatically from the flask, A, 200 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
through the tube, e, which may be made of any length desired so 
as to reach further down, should the percolator not be filled. 
The drug rests on the sieve bottoms, a and b, between which a 
layer of cotton may be laid. The flow of percolate is regulated by 
the stop-cock, c. 
Fig. 307 illustrates a handsome percolator, constructed of glass, 
intended for operating with smaller amounts ; these are also con- 
structed of copper or enameled iron for larger quantities. The 
Fig. 307. 
Fig. 306. 
Christ-Dieterich Percolator. 
Percolator (Warmbrunn, Quilitz). 
operation is essentially the same as that shown in the preceding 
illustration. The drug rests on a perforated porcelain disc, b. In 
actual practice, it is a very difficult matter to regulate the flow of 
the percolate, to any degree of uniformity, with a stopcock. More- 
over, a stopcock is also very easily clogged by small particles of 
solid matter. Dr. Squibb has overcome this difficulty by using 
the siphon, as is shown in the following:— PERCOLA TION. 
201 
Siphon Percolator*—This form of percolator was designed by 
Dr. Squibb, who claims for it the following merits: it combines 
maceration with percolation, enabling the operator to vary the 
amount of maceration easily during the process; it controls the rate 
of percolation perfectly, and renders the percolation uniform 
throughout the mass of substance, independent of the packing, 
hence it requires less skill and experience in packing to obtain a 
given success in result; it is economical on the material, and as 
nearly automatic and self-controlling as a piece of apparatus can 
well be, and therefore requires the 
least time and attention ; it suc- 
cessfully exhausts substances in 
coarse powder better than the 
usual forms, hence it is better 
adapted for the use of the 
apothecary than the usual form, 
which requires a great deal of 
care and skilful manipulation. 
Fig. 308 illustrates one form of 
this percolator best adapted for 
handling smaller quantities of 
the drug. The description given 
by Dr. Squibb in his paper before 
the American Pharmaceutical 
Association in 1872 is as follows:— 
“ The percolator, a, is of the form of the 
modern glass percolator, somewhat funnel 
shaped, to allow substances to swell with- 
out becoming impacted, having no outlet 
at the bottom ; the delivery tube being 
converted into a solid stem, and this ter- 
minating in an ordinary circular foot upon 
which the percolator is supported. The 
total height is 15j to 16 inches, or about 
40 centimeters, of which about 4 inches, 
or 10 centimeters, is foot and stem. The 
interior dimensions, to accommodate con- 
veniently an official portion of 16 troy 
ounces of any powder, however light, and 
a good portion of menstruum above it, is 111 inches, or 26 centimeters, deep, 51 
inches, or 14 centimeters, across the top, and 2 inches, or 5 centimeters, across the 
bottom, which should be flat, as shown in the drawing, and not cup-shaped, as the 
glass blowers are apt to leave it. A rim of glass is made upon the upper edge or 
lip to thicken it, and this lip is ground off so that the cover may fit accurately to 
prevent loss by evaporation. 
“ A disc of flannel or blanket, b, is cut so as to lie flat upon the bottom, which it 
entirely covers. 
“ Another disc of the same material, but a little larger, c, is made with a crucial 
incision in the center, so that it may be stretched over the end of the well tube. 
“The central or well tube, e, is a simple piece of glass tube about 12 inches, or 30 
centimeters, long by | to J of an inch, or 1J to 2 centimeters, internal diameter. Over 
one end of this w'ell-tube the upper disc of blanket is stretched, the end being 
pushed through the crucial cut so that the disc fits tightly on the tube, the four 
corners made by the crucial cut being reflected up against the sides of the tube. 
Fig. 308. 
Siphon Percolator. 
* Sometimes called “ Well-tube Percolator.” 202 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The disc is then slipped up to the other end of the well-tube, and is tied firmly on 
to the tube by small twine or thread wrapped around the corners of the disc where 
they are reflected up against the tube. 
“A disc of filtering-paper, d, larger than the blanket, with a crucial cut in the 
center, is cut in toward the center around the edge so as to lie flat against the sides 
of the percolator where reflected up against them. This disc of paper is pushed 
down upon the upper blanket. 
“ If now a piece of paper be twisted around the upper end of the well tube, or a 
cork be temporarily stuck into it, the percolator is ready to receive its charge, which 
is packed in around the well-tube and upon the discs of paper and blanket so as to 
occupy the lower part of the body of the percolator, h. 
“When the charge, having been properly moistened, rubbed, and sifted, is packed 
in around the well-tube, its surface is covered by a disc of muslin, i, of proper size, 
and this is held in place conveniently by some fragments of broken glass thrown in 
upon it. The percolator is then ready to receive the menstruum or weak percolate, 
and enough of this should be poured on at once to fully saturate the entire sub- 
stance. The liquid then passes down like a piston, forcing the interstitial air out 
through the blankets into the well tube, whence it escapes freely. 
“ A snugly fitting cover, j, is the next requisite, to prevent unnecessary loss by 
evaporation. This is very conveniently made from sheet rubber, | to f inch, or | to 
1 centimeter, in thickness. A disc 7 inches, or 18 centimeters, in diameter has a hole 
cut in its center, by means of a wet cork borer, of such a size as to slip easily over 
the upper end of the well-tube. As it is troublesome to raise this cover every time 
the percolator is to be supplied with liquid, it may be, by means of a sharp knife, 
kept wet and directed by a ruler, cut nearly through, so that the uncut part of the 
thickness serves at once as a hinge and a spring, and permits a part, say one-third, 
of the cover to be raised without raising the remainder, as shown in the drawing. 
“The percolator is now charged and in readiness to start the percolation. The 
menstruum will have passed down through the whole of the substance and will 
have arisen in the well-tube to nearly the same level as that of the liquid on top, 
and the entire mass will be saturated and in maceration ; and the whole arrange- 
ment will represent a well dug in the soil of the wet substance. Now, to pump out 
that well at a rate no faster, but just as fast, as the saturated liquid passes into it 
through the porous strata at the bottom, is the final step of the process. 
“This is most conveniently done by a siphon,/, which can be easily raised or 
lowered through the whole depth of the well. This siphon is made of glass tubing 
of about | inch, or 3 millimeters, bore, bent twice at right angles, the two legs about 
12j inches, or 31 centimeters, long, and 41 inches, or 11 centimeters, apart. The outer 
leg is a little longer than the inner one, and turned up upon itself for about f inch, or 
2 centimeters, as shown in the drawing. The legs should have only such a differ- 
ence in length that the inner one should reach the bottom of the well when required, 
and when measured upon the outer one should reach to about half the length of the 
short turned-up portion. This arrangement prevents the entrance of air into the 
siphon, and thus prevents it from emptying itself, for when the liquid is drawn 
over by the siphon until the surface falls to the level of the turned-up point at the 
outer end, the columns of liquid will be of equal length and will counterbalance each 
other, and the flow will cease. But as soon as the outer level is raised by the addi- 
tion of fresh liquid the flow will recommence at a rate proportionate to the difference 
of level. It is this automatic and constant self-regulating action of the siphon that 
enables the design of this percolator to be carried out in practice, and the facility 
with which the siphon is raised or lowered in the well gives the operator perfect 
control over the process. 
“ One or more short pieces of concentric india-rubber tubing, y, stretched tightly 
upon the inner end of the siphon, but fitting loosely in the well-tube, serve to guide 
the lower end of the siphon and keep it near the center of the well-tube. 
“Other short pieces of rubber tubing of different sizes, one over the other, so as 
to form a soft stopper for the upper end of the well-tube, as shown at k. completes 
the guide by which the siphon is kept in proper position. The inner piece of tub- 
ing composing this stopper should be large enough to move freely and easily upon 
the siphon, while the outer piece should fit the well-tube snugly. Then when the 
siphon is raised to the desired position and this stopper pressed into the well-tube 
lightly, it pinches the siphon lightly, but sufficiently to hold it in the desired posi- 
tion and to enable the operator to change the position at will without deranging the 
apparatus PERCOLATION. 
203 
“A receiving flask or bottle, I, marked in the neck or at some convenient place to 
the measure of a pint, and some wooden blocks to support this receiver at various 
heights, completes the apparatus. When the mouth of the receiver is left upon the 
same level as the liquid in the percolator, of course the receiver can never run over, 
and this is the position to which the receiver should be blocked up when left for the 
night or fora longer time. The liquid will then accumulate in the receiver more and 
more slowly, immersing the end of the siphon, until the level approaches or reaches 
that of the liquid in the percolator, and will then remain at rest, but in readiness to 
start at any moment when the levels may be disturbed either by a fresh supply of 
liquid to the percolator or by lowering the receiver. 
Fig. 309. 
Siphon Percolator. 
“In order to save space at the top of the drawing, the siphon is represented at 
nearly its lowest position, a position rarely required except at the end of a percola- 
tion when the very last portions of liquid are to be drained off. The position of the 
siphon is to be regulated by the rate of flow, and the position regulates the rate of 
flow. Therefore this rate must be arbitrarily adopted in view of the fact that the 
slower the rate the more effective is the percolation. The rate, upon this scale, 
should never exceed twenty to thirty drops per minute, or two to four fluidounces 
per hour. 
“ When the percolation is ready to be started, that is, after the substance is fully 204 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
saturated and a stratum of liquid lies above it unabsorbed, the liquid in the well 
will be found to have arisen nearly to the level of the liquid outside the well-tube. 
It never rises quite as high within, because this liquid is more dense than the outer 
liquid, and the column is therefore heavier. 
“The siphon is then introduced and fixed by the stopper in such a position that 
the inner end is immersed in the liquid of the well to the extent of two or three 
inches. The siphon is now ready to be started. The starting is perhaps best done 
by means of a short piece of small rubber tubing on the end of a longer piece of glass 
tubing. The rubber tubing should fit snugly over the turned-up end of the siphon, 
and then by suction with the mouth through the glass tube the siphon is carefully 
filled from the well. Before slipping off the rubber end of the suction tube 
from the end of the siphon, the receiver is to be put in place, so that the first drops 
from the siphon, as well as those which may have passed into the suction-tube, will 
fall into the receiver. The rate of flow may be very rapid for a few moments, but 
will soon diminish to uniformity as the levels become adjusted to the uniformity of 
the rate of flow. If this rate be more than twenty drops per minute the siphon is 
to be raised carefully, and a little at a time, so as not to expose the end above the 
liquid in the well, and thus allow the air to enter the siphon, until the required 
rate is attained. As the rate varies with the varying density of the percolate dur- 
ing the process the siphon is to be from time to time raised or lowered so as to 
restore it to the desired standard. When exhaustion is practically effected, the 
siphon is pushed down to the bottom of the well and all the liquid drained off. 
The exhausted substance may, by care, be then removed, and replaced by a fresh 
portion, without disturbing the well tube or discs of blanket and paper, which is a 
considerable advantage in repercolation, where the same drug is used in successive 
portions. 
“The difference in drugs and their menstrua, and difference in the fineness of the 
powders used, requires a difference in the position of the siphon for every percola- 
tion in order to attain a uniform rate. In a few drugs in fine powder, and packed 
pretty firmly, the siphon requires to be kept down at the bottom of the well, par- 
ticularly in repercolations when dense weak percolates are used on top, from the 
very first start, and even then the rate will often be far below the standard of 
twenty drops per minute. But such percolations are always very successful, and 
very economical except in the time required. When the powder is very coarse and 
the menstruum thin and light, the siphon is kept very high.” 
A larger form, is that illustrated in Fig. 309, which represents a 
stoneware pot of about 2 gallons (about 7.6 liters) capacity, 10 
inches (24 Cm.) high, 10 inches across the top, by about 6 inches 
(14.4 Cm.) across the bottom, inside, holding about 5 to 6 pounds 
(2 to 3 kilos). These pots should be well glazed inside; they are 
made of all sizes, adapted to quantities up to 200 or 300 pounds. 
The manner of filling and the subsequent operations are the same 
as those mentioned under the preceding. 
Pressure Percolation.—For the purpose of hastening the oper- 
ation of percolation, two methods have been proposed: one by creat- 
ing a vacuum below the drug in the percolator, thereby increasing 
the pressure above, and the other, by means of hydrostatic pressure 
caused by a column of menstruum supplied from a reservoir at a 
height of from 5 to 10 feet. This latter is the embodiment of 
the principle of the old Real’s pressure apparatus (page 191). 
There are a number of different forms of this pressure per- 
colator, among which are those of Stearns, Rosenwasser, 
Suits, Berry, Anderson, and Lentz. They all differ slightly 
in various points of construction, but the principle of all is 
the same, namely, the rapid percolation of drugs by forcing the 
menstruum at a greater rate of speed than ordinarily attained. PERCOLATION. 
205 
These instruments may be used with advantage in some cases, 
for instance, for squills or calumba, which swell considerably, 
and allow the percolate to pass only slowly. However, the opera- 
tion should not be hurried, otherwise the particles of the drug 
are liable to be simply washed with the menstruum. In order 
that percolation may be successful, time must be given to the 
menstruum to penetrate the cells of the drug, and to take up the 
soluble matter, otherwise a satisfactory exhaustion cannot be ex- 
Fig. 310. 
Fig. 311. 
Lentz’s Pressure Percolator. 
pected. The apparatus devised by Lentz (Figs. 310, 311) will illus- 
trate the application of the principle. The percolator, h, is made of 
tinned copper, provided below with a light cover, having a stop- 
cock, in, as outlet for the percolate; this cover is made air-tight by 
a rubber ring being laid between the flat edges, held in position 
by means of clamps. The powdered drug rests upon the per- 
forated bottom, g, being held in position by the adjustable porous 
diaphragm, i, which is pressed down on the surface of the powder. 
The menstruum is supplied from the reservoir, b, which can be 206 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
raised to any height desired. The Suits Pressure Percolator is 
made of glass, so that the entire operation can be seen; this is 
also provided with a rubber bulb air-pump for producing air 
pressure when hydrostatic pressure is no longer available. 
Vacuum Percolation.—This method of percolation was pro- 
posed by Duffield in 1869. This consists in introducing the 
powdered moistened drug into a tight cylinder and exhausting as 
much as possible of the air by means of a pump. Thus by the 
removal of the air enclosed in the interstices of the drug, the 
menstruum is enabled to penetrate the drug more rapidly and 
thoroughly, thereby facilitating maceration and subsequent ex- 
haustion. An apparatus (devised by W. M. Thomson), based on 
Fig. 312. 
Percolator with Air Pump. 
this principle, is shown in Fig. 312. The following description is 
that given by R. F. Fairthorne.* 
“ The shape of the percolator differs somewhat from the usual 
form, being to some extent egg-shaped, whereby free percolation is 
insured. The cover (B), which is hemispherical in shape,is fastened 
upon the body (A) by means of clamps, with india-rubber rings 
between to render the joint air-tight. The drug to be operated 
on, having been sufficiently moistened with the menstruum and 
packed, is next exhausted of as much air as possible by a vacuum 
being produced through the upper part of the vessel by means of 
* Amer. Jour. Phar., 1882, p. 237. PERCOLA TION. 
207 
an air-pump (G), which is connected with it by means of the tube 
(F). The stop-cock (H) is next closed and (M) opened, connecting 
with the tube (E), the end of which dips into the liquid to be 
employed as menstruum, and thereby a sufficient quantity of it 
is allowed to be drawn into the displacer to cover the drug. The 
stopcock (M) is then closed and the materials allowed to macerate 
for several days. To start the percolation the receiver (C) is 
exhausted of air and the tap (I) having been opened the saturated 
fluid will begin to drop, and continue to do so so long as the force 
of the vacuum in the receiver is equal or greater than that in the 
upper vessel. When it begins to stop, air is admitted above the 
drug, which is drawn through the material, carrying with it much 
of the remaining liquid. To finish the operation air is forced 
into the percolator by means of the pump.” 
Hot Extraction.—For the exhaustion of a drug by means of 
a hot menstruum various forms of ap- 
paratus have been offered; very few, 
however, are adapted for the use of the 
apothecary for extracting from one to 
five pounds of drug. One of the most 
convenient forms for pharmaceutical 
operations is Lewin’s Extraction Ap- 
paratus (Fig. 313). This is adapted 
for (1) continuous extraction with hot 
menstrua, (2) continuous extraction with 
cooled menstrua, (3) recovery of the 
menstrua from the finished extract by 
direct distillation. The apparatus is 
composed of three easily separable prin- 
cipal parts: C, the tinned copper still, 
B, the copper percolator, which is pro- 
vided with three movable sieve bottoms 
for the reception of the substance to be 
extracted. A is the condenser. 
For the Continuous Extraction with Hot Solvents, 
the vapors pass from the still, C, in the tube 1, and 
enter through the tri-faucet I, when in position a, 
through tube 4, into the percolator, B, penetrate the 
substance to be extracted, and condense. The per- 
colate passes into the receiver and from this flows 
through thetri-faucet III, in its position a, through 
the tube 7, again into the still, to repeat this course 
as long as may be necessary or desirable. To pre- 
vent pressure in the apparatus, the tube 2 is 
removed during this operation, and the tri-faucet II is placed in position a. This 
admits the vapor into the cooling worm, A, which thus forms a safety valve. 
For the Continuous Extraction with Cooled Solvents, the vapors pass from the still, C, 
into the tube 1, and enter through the tri-faucet I, in its position b, through tube 2, 
into the cooling worm, J, from this as liquid through the tri-faucet II, in its position 
Fig. 313. 
Lewin’s Extraction Apparatus. 208 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
a, into the percolator, and so through the substance to be extracted into the still as 
before. 
For the Recovery of the Solvent from the Extract by Direct Distillation, the vapors 
pass from the still, C, through tube 1, through the tri-faucet 7, in its position b, 
through tube 2, into the cooler, A, through the tri-faucet II, in its position b, into 
the exit tube 3, which latter may be lengthened at pleasure. 
Portions of the percolate may be removed from the receiver at pleasure through 
the tri-faucet III, in its position c, by the tubes 2 and 3. All of the tubes are 
connected or disconnected by good screw-joints. 
Fig. 314 illustrates the extraction apparatus of C. 0. Currier, 
which recommends itself for simplicity and cheapness. 
It consists of a glass flask, O ; glass percolator, K : and a 
condenser, R. The condenser is the only part that will have 
to be made ; the other parts of the apparatus are to be found 
in almost every laboratory. The condenser is a modification 
of the Liebig condenser, consisting of a number of tubes 
instead of one, thereby increasing the condensing surface 
and distributing the condensed liquid evenly over the sur- 
face of the drug. The condenser is made in the following 
manner : A tube of tinned copper is made one inch less in 
diameter than the top of the percolator to be used, and about 
two or three times as long as its diameter. A cap of tinned 
copper (tinned side out) is fitted to each end of the tube. 
The tube is traversed by tin tubes (made by cutting off block- 
tin pipe to the proper length) that project three-fourths of 
an inch below the lower cap, and are cut off obliquely to 
facilitate the dropping of the condensed liquid. One of the 
tubes, A, is in the center, and passes through the upper cap 
about six inches, to which a bent safety tube may be attached 
to prevent undue pressure to the apparatus. The other 
tubes, G, H, C, D, are closed at the top and pass into the 
condensing tube to within one-half inch of the top, and are 
arranged in a circle around the central one. Their number 
can be increased or diminished according to the size of the 
apparatus, four or five being sufficient for a pint percolator. 
Holes for these tubes should be made through the lower cap 
just the size of the tubes, and the tubes soldered to the cap 
2, on the inside before the cap is soldered to the condensing 
tube. A small brass tube, F, is inserted in the condenser near 
the bottom and one near the top, B, for the entrance of cold 
water and exit of warm water. A cork is chosen that will 
fit tightly into the top of the percolator, and a circular piece 
cut out of it, just the size of the condenser, R, and is put 
upon the lower part of it at E. The cork can be kept in 
place and prevented from slipping up the tube when press- 
ing into the percolator by soldering a collar of tin to the 
condenser at a distance from the bottom equal to the thick- 
ness of the cork. 
The apparatus is used in the following manner : A cork, 
N, with longitudinal channels cut in its surface, is inserted 
in the neck of the percolator, K ; through the center of the 
cork, a glass-tube, L, is passed to within two inches of the 
top of the percolator. The tube should be bent over at the 
top, to prevent its being clogged up by the drug while pack- 
ing it into the percolator. A little cotton is placed in the 
percolator and pressed down upon the cork, and the drug 
packed in the usual manner. The percolator is then fitted into the neck of the 
flask, O, by means of a perforated cork, M, the liquid to be used as a menstruum 
having been previously put in the flask. The condenser is then connected firmly 
with the top of the percolator. The joints are luted with ground flax-seed mixed 
Fig. 314. 
Currier’s 
Extraction Apparatus. PERCOLATION. 
209 
into a stiff paste with water. The tube F is connected with a supply of cold water 
by means of a rubber pipe, and the tube B with a sink, or waste-pipe. The 
apparatus thus put together is placed in a water-bath and the heat applied. The 
flask should be immersed in the water to the point marked S on the neck. After 
the drug is exhausted the percolator is removed from the flask and the flask is con- 
nected by means of a bent tube with a Liebig’s condenser, and the liquid 
recovered. 
For apparatus adapted to the extraction of smaller amounts of 
substances, see Oleoresins, page 290. CHAPTER XXV. 
EXPRESSION. 
Expression is forcible straining. The separation of fluid from 
solid matter is effected in small operations by hand, the straining 
cloth being used (Fig. 256). On the larger scale, as in the removal 
of the last portions of fluid from drug residues, it is accomplished 
by means of presses or the centrifugal machine. Expression is a 
necessary part of the process of Maceration ; it is also required in 
the operations of Percolation, for the removal of menstruum 
adhering to the dregs or “marc.” In some instances, the mass is 
thrown directly into the press or centrifugal machine; in others, 
it is first enveloped in a strainer of press cloth, before being sub- 
jected to pressure. 
For the purpose of enclosing the material which is to be subjected 
to pressure, we employ the press-cloth or bag; this must be made 
of a material sufficiently strong to withstand great pressure with- 
out rupture. For this purpose strong canvas may be used, or, 
better, the so-called press-cloth, which is specially made for this 
purpose. In conducting the process of expression, pressure should 
be applied very slowly, otherwise, should the substance contain 
much fluid, the cloth will be ruptured. After the greater part of 
the liquid has been pressed out and the pulp has become firm, the 
pressure may be gradually increased to the full power of the press. 
The compression should be carried on in stages, the press being 
allowed to rest a few moments after each increase of pressure, thus 
allowing a new portion of the fluid an opportunity to drain off, 
and at the same time affording the particles of the mass an oppor- 
tunity to assume their new positions in closer contact. Each sub- 
sequent increase of pressure will require a comparatively smaller 
effort. 
Screw Presses.—Fig. 315 illustrates the more common form, 
which consists of a vertical screw operated by a lever, the lower 
end of this screw fitting into a cavity in the top of tbe plunger, 
which is free to move about in the limited space of the cylinder. 
The body of the press consists of an outer metallic casing, which 
serves to receive the fluid when forced through the perforated 
sides of the inner cylinder. All the parts of the press, which come 
in contact with the drug or fluid, should be well tinned, to pre- 
vent rusting, also to avoid discoloration or injury to the product 
should it contain tannin-like principles or acids. The drug to be 
expressed should be first carefully enveloped in a moistened press- 
cloth (if straining has not been performed), care being taken to 
fold over the corners, so as to form a square, compact pack. For 
210 EXPRESSION. 
211 
this purpose, the cloth should be sufficiently large, so that there 
may be no danger of the drug being forced out. The pack, or 
Fig. 316. 
Fig. 315. 
Tincture Press. 
Differential-Arm Screw Press. 
the loose drug, if it should require no press-cloth, should be placed 
uniformly in the cylin- 
der, so that it may re- 
ceive equal pressure on 
all sides. 
Fig. 316 illustrates the 
Differential-arm Screw 
Press, in which the arm 
is moved back and for- 
ward in a half-circle, 
whereby the screw is 
forced downward. This 
is the most powerful 
hand screw press made. 
Fig. 317 illustrates 
an elegant screw press 
designed by Prof. Witt, 
which is specially 
adapted for expressing 
strongly acid or alkaline 
liquids from masses. It 
recommends itself for 
all purposes, since the 
press-block and all the 
parts with which the 
fluid comes in contact are made of the strongest porcelain. 
Fig. 317. 
Witt’s Pharmaceutical Press. 212 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
A very convenient form of press, which can be operated with- 
out the use of the press cloth, is the Enterprise Screw Press (Fig. 
318). This consists of a horizontal conical cylinder having a hop- 
per on the upper side of the larger end. A tapering screw fits 
closely to the inner surface of the case, on the under side of which 
Fig. 318. 
Enterprise Screw Press. 
is a narrow channel, into which slides a perforated brass strip, 
which permits the escape of the expressed fluid below. The sub- 
stance is fed into the hopper, where, by means of the revolving 
screw, it is carried forward and forced into a smaller and smaller 
space, undergoing thereby a gradually 
increased pressure, being finally dis- 
charged, in a dry condition, through a 
small opening in the end of the cylin- 
der. This opening may be regulated by 
means of a thumb-screw, which controls 
the amount of pressure to which the 
material is subjected. This screw press 
is employed largely for the recovery of 
juices from berries and fruits. 
The Wedge and Double Screw Presses 
are somewhat antiquated, and are not 
now employed in Pharmacy, since, owing 
to their construction, they are cumber- 
some and entail considerable loss of fluid. 
For pressing larger amounts, a very good 
form is the Knee-lever Press (Fig. 319), 
which consists of a horizontal screw, 
operated by means of either a spoked 
wheel or ratchet bar, causing the knee to be raised or lowered. 
Hydrostatic, or Hydraulic Press.—This is the most power- 
ful of all the various presses employed. Its action depends on 
Fig. 319. 
Knee-Lever Press. EXPRESSION. 
213 
the well-known law of equality of pressure, namely, that a “pres- 
sure exerted anywhere upon a mass of liquid, is transmitted un- 
diminished in all directions, and acts with the same force on all 
equal surfaces, and in a direction at right angles to those 
surfaces.” 
There are various forms of presses depending on this principle, 
a more familiar form being illustrated in Fig. 320. It consists 
of a heavy steel cylinder, B, in which a cast-iron ram, P, works, 
supporting the plate on which the material to be pressed is placed. 
Four strong columns support and fix Q. By means of the force- 
pump, A, which works by means of a lever, M, water is driven 
into the cylinder through the tube, K, forcing the ram, P, upward. 
If the area of P is ten times greater than that of p, then a pres- 
sure of one hundred pounds transmitted through the lever, M, 
will exert an upward pressure of one thousand pounds on P. 
Fig. 320. 
Hydraulic Press. 
The Centrifugal Machine (or Centrifuge).—As a means for 
the thorough and rapid separation of fluids from solids, the cen- 
trifugal machine forms an invaluable part of the outfit of many 
industries. It is used to separate the syrup (mother-liquor) from 
sugar crystals; also in the preparation of ammonia-soda in the 
Solvay process; in the removal of water from heavy precipitates; 
for removing the water retained by masses of cotton in the manu- 
facture of absorbent cotton, etc., etc. The centrifugal machine 
is employed by the chemist in separating crystalline masses from 
the mother liquor; in the separation of fats from milk; the rapid 
separation of precipitates in analytical operations, etc. The cen- 
trifugal machine is also useful to the pharmacist for the separa- 
tion of fruit-juices from their pulp, also, for the removal of fluid 214 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
matter from drug residues. While it does not remove the fluid 
as completely as a powerful press, yet it is exceedingly useful in 
Fig. 321. 
Fig. 322. 
“Under-Driven Type,” 
Centrifugal Machines, 
“Over-Driven Type.” 
many such operations. The machine consists essentially of a 
perforated cylindrical cage, fixed to 
a central shaft, and surrounded by a 
case. The inner cage revolving at a 
high rate of speed (up to several thou- 
sand revolutions per minute), anything 
contained in it is driven to the circum- 
ference, and if it be of a sufficiently 
fluid nature, it passes out through the 
perforations in the cage, and flies off 
tangentially. If we desire to free crys- 
tals from their mother-liquor, or to 
separate the adhering menstruum from 
a drug, we place them in the centrifugal 
machine, whereupon the mother-liquor, 
or fluid, escapes through the perfora- 
tions in the cage, while the crystals, or 
drug, are left behind. Figs. 321 and 
322 illustrate small machines, such as 
are intended for the laboratory. The 
one intended to be driven by hand 
belongs to the so-called “over-driven type,” the other, to be oper- 
ated by a water-motor, is of the “under-driven type.” Fig. 323 
Fig. 323. 
Laboratory Centrifugal Machine. EXPRESSION. 
215 
illustrates an apparatus adapted for minor operations in the micro- 
scopical and pharmaceutical laboratory. As shown in the cut, the 
tubes containing the liquids are placed on the conical bed attached 
to the pivoted stem, and are held securely in place by leather straps 
and by depressing the cover lid, which is fastened by means of a 
slot. The apparatus is set in motion by means of a cord, preferably 
gut, which is wound around the axis, the action being, of course, 
to and fro, as in the case of the school-boy’s buzzer. The appar- 
atus must always be evenly and symmetrically ballasted, so as to 
insure even action. 
Among the objects frequently subjected to centrifugal action, 
for the purpose of separating solids from the liquid, or for caus- 
ing the heavier suspended solids to settle at the bottom, and the 
lighter suspended solids to collect at the top of the liquid, may be 
mentioned milk, cream, urine, sputum, fermenting liquids, etc. PART II. 
CLASSIFICATION OF PHARMACEUTICAL PREPARATIONS. 
The various classes of preparations employed in pharmacy 
may be classed according to their physical and pharmaceutical 
characteristics:— 
LIQUIDS. 
I. SOLUTIONS. 
Aqueous. 
Aquae—(Injectiones Hypoderniicae). 
Liquores. 
Infusa. 
Decocta. 
Mucilagines. 
Acetous. 
Aceta. 
Alcoholic, or Hydroalcoholic. 
Spiritus. 
Vina Medicata. 
Tincturae. 
Tincturae Herbarum Recentium. 
Succi. 
Extracta Fluida. 
Saccharine. 
Syrupi. 
Mellita. 
Elixiria. 
Glycerin. 
Glycerita. 
Oleic Acid. 
Oleata. 
Ethereal. 
Oleoresinae. 
Collodia. 
II. MIXTURES. 
Linimenta. 
Misturae. 
Emulsa (or Emulsiones). 
SOLIDS. 
I. For Internal Use. 
Pulveres (P. Compositi). 
Triturationes. 
Oleosacchara (or Elaeosacchara). 
Massae. 
Confectiones. 
Trochisci. 
Pilulae. 
Tablettae. 
Extracta (also, Abstracta). 
Resinae. 
II. For External Use. 
Unguenta. 
Cerata. 
Emplastra. 
Chartae. 
Suppositoria. 
216 CHAPTER XXVI. 
AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
AQU2E MEDIC AT.E. 
Aquce Destillatce; Medicated or Distilled Waters. Eaux distillers, Hydrolats, 
Fr. ; Destillirte Wasser, Germ. 
Under the title of Aquae is understood an aqueous solution in 
which distilled water is quantitatively the main constituent; the 
solutions being clear, free from undissolved solid matter, and, with 
few exceptions (Aqua Chlori, Picis, etc.), colorless. 
As understood by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, Medicated Waters 
are simple solutions in which water has been impregnated with 
volatile substances. Foreign pharmacopoeias recognize under this 
title aqueous solutions of certain non-volatile,* as well as volatile 
substances. 
Many of the aromatic waters are employed as vehicles for the 
administration of remedies, others are employed internally as 
medicines, while a third class is used in chemical operations and 
the arts. 
According to their method of preparation, they may be divided 
into three classes; those made by 
1st. Direct Solution. 
2d. Intermediate Solution. 
3d. Distillation. 
Direct Solution.—In those instances, where the substance is 
readily soluble in the given excess of cold water, solution is brought 
about by simple agitation, as in the official examples of Aqua 
Amygdalae Am arse, Aqua Chloroformi, and Aqua Creosoti. We 
may prepare many of the medicated waters by simple solution 
through agitation of the volatile oil with hot water (at about 50° 
C.), in a flask, allowing to cool, and then siphoning off the dear 
solution, or removing the undissolved oil from the surface of the 
solution by means of a wad of absorbent cotton. This method is 
based on the fact that volatile oils are more soluble in hot than in 
cold water; hence, by preparing a supersaturated solution, and then 
cooling it, a saturated solution will result. To this class belong 
those medicated waters, or more properly chemical solutions, which 
are obtained by dissolving gases in cold water. For their method 
of preparation see page 131. The official examples are Aqua Am- 
monite, Aqua Ammonite Fortior, Aqua Chlori, and Aqua Hydro- 
* Aqua Calcis. 
217 218 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
genii Dioxidi.* These solutions should be kept in glass-stoppered 
bottles in a cool and dark place. 
Intermediate Solution.—This method of preparation is by 
far the most satisfactory and convenient. It consists in saturating 
the distilled water by bringing it in contact with the volatile sub- 
stance brought to a very finely subdivided condition by means of 
some intermediate agent. There are various ways of accomplish- 
ing this. Among the poorest was the method of the U. S. P. of 
1880, in which the volatile oil or alcoholic solution of the volatile 
substance was dropped on absorbent cotton; this was directed to 
be picked, so as to distribute the material as much as possible; 
then the cotton was inserted in the neck of a funnel, distilled water 
poured over it, and the filtrate returned to the funnel until it was 
saturated. The main objections to this process were that the cot- 
ton not only permitted oily particles to pass through into the 
finished preparation, but also that the water was not as thoroughly 
saturated as that obtained by other methods; since it is impossible 
to bring about as thorough a state of subdivision of the volatile 
body by means of cotton as by the method of trituration. This 
latter method consists in thoroughly triturating the volatile sub- 
stance, ora solution of it, with some insoluble, inert powder; then 
adding distilled water sufficient to form a smooth paste, after which 
the balance of the water is slowly added under trituration. This 
milky or turbid solution is poured upon a plain wetted filter, and 
the solution returned until it passes through clear. 
Various insoluble powders have been proposed, such as mag- 
nesium carbonate, kaolin, talcum, calcium phosphate, silica, 
powdered pumice-stone, precipitated chalk, etc. The most satis- 
factory of these is the precipitated calcium phosphate, which, 
owing to its insolubility and freedom from soluble impurities, is 
adapted to all classes of these preparations. 
Magnesium carbonate 4(MgCO3).Mg(OH')2.5H2O) should not 
be employed for this purpose, since there is sufficient amount of 
magnesium hydroxide (Mg(0H)2) present, which goes into solu- 
tion, to interfere with its use for many purposes. Waters prepared 
with this will cause the precipitation of many alkaloids; react with 
some oils; blacken calomel when shaken with them; also cause 
the decomposition of many sensitive chemicals, such as silver 
nitrate, gold chloride, mercuric chloride etc. The official waters 
directed to be prepared by intermediate solution are: Aqua 
Anisi, Camphorse, Cinnamomi, Foeniculi, Menthse Piperita?, and 
Menthse Viridis. The medicated waters belonging to this class 
should be prepared from the very best grades of the volatile oil 
obtainable. Old resinified oils are worthless. These waters may 
also be prepared by the following method of distillation: 
Distillation.—This method, though applicable only to those 
* Although HoOo is not a gas in the usual sense of the term, the solution is classed here for sake of 
convenience. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
219 
waters whose aromatic properties arc due to the presence of vola- 
tile oils, yields the finest quality of aromatic waters. In the pre- 
paration of these, a copper retort, tinned inside, is usually 
employed. The plant parts (leaves, seeds, crushed bark, etc.) are 
placed in a wire basket or cage,* which is suspended in the upper 
part of the body of the still, so that only the steam arising from 
the boiling wTater may pass upward through the material and over 
into the condenser. The drug should not come in contact with 
the boiling water nor touch the heated sides of the retort. It is 
much better to generate the steam in a separate vessel, and to blow 
it through the drug contained in the retort as shown in Fig. 153 
(or 324). When prepared in this way, aromatic waters keep much 
longer and better, and are far more fragrant, because by the old 
method of boiling the plant parts and water together, the boiling 
Fig. 324. 
Apparatus for the Distillation of Volatile Oils. e. Boiler, r. Steam Pipe. a. Perforated bottom 
upon which plant parts rest. k. Condenser. 
water took up all the extractive and mucilaginous matter of the 
drug, the presence of which not only injured the aroma of the 
distillate, but caused matters to be carried over which interfered 
with its keeping qualities. Before each operation, the still or 
retort should be thoroughly cleansed by blowing steam through 
it; if proper cleanliness is observed, the distilled water will be 
entirely free from foreign (retort) or empyreumatic odor, and will 
keep longer and better. This cleansing should take place im- 
mediately after each operation, otherwise, through resinification of 
particles of oil remaining in the retort, it will be found almost 
impossible to remove all odor. 
Most pharmacopoeias direct that the leaves, flowers, crushed or 
* See Pharmaceutical Stills. 220 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
cut root or bark, etc., be macerated in water from 10 to 12 hours 
before distillation. 
For each 100 parts of distillate required, it is best to employ 
from 10 to 20 parts of the dry seed or fruit, and 10 parts of the dry 
or from 30 to 50 parts of the fresh leaves or bark.* For strong 
aromatics, such as angelica, juniper berries, cascarilla, etc., 25 
parts of the drug are sufficient. 
Some prefer not to remove any volatile oil that may have 
separated in the distillate, but to transfer the entire liquid to a stock 
vessel and to set it aside after thorough agitation. The presence 
of the excess of oil tends to keep the water constantly saturated, 
and preserves it from fermenting. When the turbid water is to 
be dispensed, it should be passed through a wetted filter, which 
serves to retain the separated oil. 
The U. S. P. recognizes two waters (concentrated) made by dis- 
tillation, viz., Aqua Aurantii Florum Fortior, and Aqua Rosa? 
Fortior, which are known in commerce as “ triple,” and are used 
in preparing the weaker Aqua Aurantii Florum and Aqua Rosse, 
by dilution with one volume of distilled water. 
Only distilled water should be employed in preparing the offi- 
cial solutions, as well as in carrying out tests. Ordinary hydrant 
water often causes decomposition of such sensitive salts as silver 
nitrate, potassium permanganate, etc.; it is likewise irritating 
when used in preparing eye-washes. When we consider the low 
cost and the convenience with which pharmaceutical stills may 
be run, there is no excuse for any apothecary in substituting 
hydrant water for distilled. 
It is not within the province of the pharmacist to prepare these 
concentrated (triple) fragrant waters; hence they are usually 
imported from southern France and Italy, or other countries 
where the orange tree and rose are specially cultivated. Among 
the best known distillers of fragrant waters are Bertrand Bros., 
Lautier, Chiris, and Tombarell Bros. 
These concentrated waters retain their fragrance longer than the 
weaker, hence their use enables the pharmacist always to dispense 
a fragrant preparation. 
These stronger waters are best preserved in glass vessels, in 
which the stopper is covered with either parchment paper or a 
piece of bladder. Orange flower water should not be made from 
the oil (Neroli). Rose water can be made directly from the oil by 
the method of the German Pharmacopoeia, in which from 3 to 5 
drops of the oil are agitated with the liter of hot distilled water. 
Preservation.—Medicated waters rapidly deteriorate, hence 
they should not be made in larger quantities than are likely to be 
consumed before they spoil. Unless a layer of oil covers the 
surface of the water, they will soon deposit flocculent matter or 
* The proportion depends upon the richness of the plant-part in volatile oil, these figures being 
general. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
221 
become ropy and lose their odor entirely. This is caused by a 
microscopic vegetable growth, which renders the preparation 
unsightly and unfit to dispense. In order to avoid this, the freshly 
prepared water should be put into clean glass-stoppered vials, of 
appropriate size, the bottles being entirely filled and well sealed 
to exclude air. In this condition, they may be preserved for an 
indefinite length of time. 
Preservative agents, such as alcohol, glycerin, boric acid, etc., 
have been proposed, buttheir use is not advisable. The presence 
of small amounts of alcohol gives rise to acetic fermentation ; 
larger amounts, as well as the presence of any other agents, inter- 
fere seriously with the various uses of these waters. 
EXPLANATORY. 
Aqua Amygdalae Amar.e (Bitter Almond Water; Bitter- 
mandelwasser, Germ.).—This contains 0.1 per cent, of the oil of 
bitter almond. The preparation is of variable strength, varying 
according to the source and quality of the oil of almond. When 
the artificial oil (benzaldehyde) is used, the product is free from 
hydrocyanic acid (HCN). If the true oil of bitter almond (con- 
taining from one to six per cent. HCN) is employed we find vari- 
able amounts present; should the oil contain six per cent, of 
absolute HCN, the water would contain about one drop of the 
official acid in each half ounce. It is employed in this country 
as a vehicle or flavoring agent. 
Aqua Amygdalarum Amararum.—Under this title, we find a 
preparation official in various European pharmacopoeias, which 
is prepared by distilling bitter almonds with water; this is far 
stronger than ours, being standardized to a definite percentage of 
hydrocyanic acid. It should be administered with great caution. 
In dispensing this preparation, care should be observed that it be 
of the exact strength required by the pharmacopoeia which the 
physician employs. The strength in hydrocyanic acid as recog- 
nized in various pharmacopoeias is as follows:— 
PharmacopcBia. 
HCN in 1000 Parts. 
Austrian, 
1 
Belgian, 
1 
Danish, contains alcohol, . . . . 
1.4 
German, contains alcohol, . . . 
1 
Netherlands 
1 
Russian, contains alcohol, . . . 
1 
Spanish, 
0.86 
Swedish, contains alcohol, . . . 
1.3-1.4 
Swiss, 
1 
A substitute for this may be made by dissolving 6.46 grammes 
of chloral cyanhydrate in 1000 Cc. of distilled water. Each 6.46 
grammes of this salt contains 1 gramme of HCN. 
The above is used as a sedative in doses of from 10 to 15 drops. 222 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Under the title of Aqua Laurocerasi (Cherry Laurel Water), a 
preparation of similar nature is official in several pharmacopoeias. 
It is made by distilling a mixture of bruised fresh laurel leaves 
and water. This preparation is likewise standardized to a definite 
percentage of hydrocyanic acid. 
Pharmacopceia. 
HCN in 1000 Parts. 
Belgian, 
0.5 
Netherlands, 
0.839 
British, 
1 
French, 
0.5 
The Spanish, German, Greek, and Swiss pharmacopoeias sub- 
stitute the above-mentioned bitter almond water for cherry laurel 
water. 
The German Pharmacopoeia prepares a diluted bitter almond 
water (Aqua Cerasorum or Kirschwasser), by mixing 1 part of 
the stronger with 19 parts of water. This preparation, containing 
0.005 per cent, of hydrocyanic acid, should not be confounded 
with either of the above containing 0.1 per cent, of the acid. 
Aqua Chloroformi.—Chloroform is added in sufficient quan- 
tity to distilled water, so that, after agitation, it remains in slight 
excess; the supernatant saturated solution is decanted off as 
required. When exposed to sunlight, the chloroform readily 
undergoes decomposition, particularly so in the presence of water. 
Hence this preparation should be kept in a dark amber-colored 
bottle. It is employed as a solvent for many remedies, owing to 
its preservative properties; also, as an adjunct to anodyne 
mixtures. 
Aqua Creosoti.—This preparation contains 1 per cent, of 
wood creosote. It is employed principally as a gargle, or lotion. 
In ordering creosote, care should be taken to specify “true wood 
creosote,” or “ beech-wood tar creosote,” for under the term “ com- 
mercial creosote ” carbolic acid is usually understood. 
Under the class of Aquas, solutions of gases are included, viz.:— 
Aqua Ammonite.—(Specific gravity 0.960, containing 10 per 
cent, by weight of gaseous ammonia (NH3).) It is known 
among the continental pharmacopoeias under the title of “ Liquor 
Ammoniae,” being generally recognized to be of 10 per cent, 
strength (Fr. and Sp., 20 per cent.) This is commercially known 
as 16° BaumS; the so-called Aqua Ammoniae f.f.f., being 20° 
B., or about 17 per cent, by weight of NH3. 
Aqua Ammonee Fortior (sp. gr. 0.901, containing 28 per cent, 
by weight of gas), is only recognized by the U. S. and British 
Pharmacopoeias, that of the latter, however, being of 32.5 per 
cent, strength. 
For rules for dilution, see page 138. 
Ammonia Water is incompatible with acids and most metallic AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
223 
salts; it should be preserved in well stoppered bottles in a cool 
place. Its strength is ascertained by means of its specific gravity, 
or by titration with a standard acid solution.* 
2NH3 + H2SO4 = (NH4)2SO4. 
Ammonia. Sulphuric Acid. Ammonium Sulphate. 
2 X 17 Pts. = 97.82 pts. 
17 pts. = 48.91 pts. 
0.017 pt. = 0.0489 pt. 
Since 1 Cc. of decinormal sulphuric acid solution (containing 
0.0489 Gm. H2SO4) neutralizes 0.017 Gm. of ammonia gas 
(NH3), 20 Cc. of the acid solution will be equivalent to 20 X 0.017 
= 0.34 Gm. of NH3. If 3.4 Gm. of Aqua Ammonia were taken 
for the assay, it would then, according to the above, contain 10 
per cent, of ammonia gas. 
Aqua Chlori.—A clear, greenish-yellow liquid, containing at 
least 0.4 per cent, of chlorine gas, U. S. P. This preparation is 
official in all pharmacopoeias, and contains from 0.3 to 0.6 per cent, 
of chlorine gas. It should be freshly prepared when required for 
use, since it rapidly undergoes decomposition; thus, 2C1 + H2O 
= 2HC1 + O. As a ready means of ascertaining whether this 
decomposition has begun, or not, the pharmacopoeia directs agi- 
tation of the sample with mercury, which unites with the free 
chlorine, leaving any hydrochloric acid which may be present 
free to be detected by litmus paper. 
Chlorine water is employed in medicine as an antiseptic. It 
is incompatible with alkalies, silver and lead salts, tannin, infu- 
sions, emulsions, and tinctures, and liberates iodine and bromine 
from their salts. When prescribed in mixtures it should be 
added last. 
The chlorine strength of this preparation is ascertained in- 
directly by volumetric estimation.t This is based on the fact 
that chlorine displaces an equivalent amount of iodine from 
potassium iodide, according to the equation:— 
2KI + 2C1 = 2KC1 + 21. 
Potassium Iodide. Chlorine. Potassium Chloride. Iodine. 
2 X 35.3 2 X 126.5 
The liberated iodine is held in solution by the excess of po- 
tassium iodide. In order to ascertain the amount of liberated 
iodine, decinormal solution of sodium hyposulphite is run into 
this dark-colored solution until it is decolorized, according to the 
following equation:— 
21 + 2(Na2S2O3 + 5H2O) = Na2S4O6 + 2NaI + 10H2O. 
Iodine. Sodium Hyposulphite. Sodium Tetrathionate. Sodium Iodide. Water. 
2 X 126.5 pts. 2 X 247.6 pts. 
126.5 pts. 247.6 pts. 
0.01265 pt. 0.0247 pt. 
* See Volumetric Solutions. 
t Ibid. 224 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Since 1 Cc. of decinormal solution of sodium hyposulphite 
containing 0.0247 Gm. of the salt, is equivalent to 0.01265 Gm. 
of iodine, therefore 20 Cc. of the hyposulphite solution will be 
equivalent to 20 X 0.01265 = 0.253 Gm. of iodine. Hence if one 
molecule of iodine is equivalent to one molecule of chlorine, 
0.253 Gm. of iodine will be equivalent to x grammes of chlorine. 
That is, 
i ci i ci 
253 : 70.6 : : 0.253 : x. 
x = 0.070 -f- Gm. of Chlorine. 
If 17.7 Gm. of Aqua Chlori, after having been subjected to the 
above test, yield 0.070 Gm. of chlorine, it would then contain of 
the gas 17.7 : 0.07 : : 100 : x; x = 0.4 per cent, (approximately). 
Aqua Hydrogenii Dioxidi.—This solution should contain 3 
per cent, by weight of the pure Dioxide (H2O2), corresponding to 
about 10 volumes of available oxygen. The dioxide itself may be 
obtained in a very pure condition* by agitating barium peroxide 
with diluted hydrochloric acid and ether, the latter absorbing 
the H2O2; upon shaking the ethereal solution with distilled water, 
slightly acidulated, it gives up most of its hydrogen peroxide. 
The great facility with which this solution gives up its oxygen 
renders it a powerful oxidizer. It bleaches organic colors, like- 
wise hair; converts sulphides and sulphites into sulphates, ferrous 
into ferric compounds; liberates chlorine from hydrochloric acid, 
iodine from hydriodic acid, and iodide of iron; it reacts very 
slowly in a neutral solution of potassium iodide, thus differing 
from ozone and chlorine. It is stated that the addition of one 
part of H2O2 to 1000 parts of impure drinking water will, after 
a short time, effectually destroy any disease germs that may be 
present. It is employed in medicine as a powerful antiseptic, and 
deodorant. The presence of a little acid (even as little as one 
drop of HC1 to the pint), is essential to prevent its too rapid 
decomposition. 
The commercial solution scarcely ever contains over three per 
cent by weight of absolute peroxide, and the ten and fifteen volume 
solutions often fall short of the strength claimed for them; hence 
it behooves the apothecary to assay each lot which he may 
purchase. 
The strength of this solution is sometimes indicated by volume. 
Thus a 20 volume solution is one which, when decomposed into 
water and oxygen, will yield 20 times its volume of oxygen. It 
does not matter, in this case, whether the whole of the liberated 
oxygen comes from the H2O2, or whether a part of this comes from 
the reagent added. If the H2O2 is decomposed by potassium per- 
manganate, only one-half of the oxygen given off comes from 
the H2O2. 
The strength of the solution is estimated by means of decinormal 
* Cresiner, “ Proceed. A. P. A.,” 1892, p. 845. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
225 
solution of potassium permanganate * according to the following 
equation:— 
K2Mn2O8 + 5H2O2 + 3H2SO4 = 5O2 + 8H2O + K2SO4 + 2MnSO4 
Potassium Hydrogen Sulphuric Oxygen. Water. Potassium Manganese 
Permanganate. Peroxide. Acid. " Sulphate. Sulphate. 
315.3 169.6 
The permanganate solution is added slowly, until the pink 
color no longer disappears. The presence of the sulphuric acid 
serves the purpose of dissolving the manganic hydroxide f as fast 
as formed, otherwise the brown oxide diffused through the liquid 
w7ould render the end of the reaction difficult to distinguish. Now, 
according to the above equation, 1 mol. of K2Mn2O8 (315.3 p.) cor- 
responds to 5H2O2 (169.6 p.); or 0.003153 Gm. of potassium per- 
manganate (1 Cc. of the decinormal solution), corresponds to 
0.001696 Gm. of absolute hydrogen peroxide. Where it is desira- 
ble to express the strength in volumes of available oxygen, we 
multiply the number of cubic centimeters of the solution of per- 
manganate, decolorized by 1 Cc. of the solution, by 0.56. This 
latter factor is explained thus:— 
Since one-half of the liberated oxygen is supplied by the 
potassium permanganate (K2Mn2O8), one molecule of Kq£u;2°8 
liberates 5 of 8Q,vgen from the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2); hence, 
63 Gm. of K2Mn2O8 (one-fifth of 315.3) will liberate 16 Gm. of 
oxygen (one-fifth of 80), which at normal temperature measures 
11,188 Cc. If 63 Gm. of potassium permanganate liberate 11,188 
Cc. of oxygen, 0.00315 Gm. of permanganate (1 Cc.) will liberate 
0.56 Cc. of oxygen. 
AQIDE, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents.X 
Use. 
Direct Solution. 
Aqua Amygdalae Am- 
arae,. 
Aqua Creosoti, .... 
“ Chloroform!, . . 
0.1% Oil of Bitter Almond. 
1% of Creosote. 
Saturated aqueous solution of 
Chloroform. 
Vehicle. 
Antiseptic. 
Antiseptic, Anodyne. 
Gaseous Solutions. 
Aqua Ammoniae, . . . 
“ Ammoniae Fortior, 
“ Chlori, 
Aqua Hydrogenii Di- 
oxidi, 
10% of Gaseous Ammonia, wt. 
28% “ “ “ “ 
0.4%“ Chlorine, “ 
3% “ Hydrogen Dioxide, “ 
Stimulant, Caustic. 
14 44 
Antiseptic. 
Antiseptic, Deodorant. 
*See Decinormal Solution of Potassium Permanganate. 
f The substance precipitated (from alkaline solution) is manganous hydroxide, which rapidly turns 
to brown manganic hydroxide 
J In this and subsequent tables $ (per cent.) is employed merely as an expression of convenience. 
In the case of anise water and others of this class, it means 2 (7c. of the oil in 1000 Cc. of water. In 
the case of camphor water it means 8 Gm. of Camphor in 1000 Cc. See “ Percentage Solutions,” 
page 137. 226 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Solutions of Volatile C 
Title. 
>ILS. 
Constituents. 
Use. 
Aqua Anisi, 
“ Campho rae, . , . 
0.2% of Oil of Anise. 
Vehicle. 
0.8% of Camphor. 
Antispasmodic. 
Cinnamomi, . . 
0.2% of Oil of Cinnamon. 
Vehicle. 
“ Foeniculi, .... 
0.2% of Oil of Fennel. 
u 
‘ ‘ Menthae Piperitae, 
0.2% of Oil of Peppermint. 
u 
“ Menthae Virid is, . 
0.2% of Oil of Spearmint. 
k k 
Distillation 
Aqua Aurantii Florum 
Fortior, 
Triple Orange-flower Water. 
Aqua Aurantii Floruni, 
Equal parts of the above and 
distilled water. 
Vehicle. 
“ Rosae Fortior, . . 
Triple Rose Water. 
‘ ‘ Rosae, 
Equal parts of the above and 
distilled water. 
Vehicle. 
INJECTIONES HYPODERMICS—{Hypodermic Injections). 
When remedies are to be used hypodermically, it is absolutely 
necessary that these solutions be as neutral as possible and steril- 
ized. As antiseptic vehicles, for the administration of these 
remedies, various solutions have been proposed, such as solutions 
of camphor, thymol, or corrosive sublimate, and chloroform water; 
however, when these solutions have been exposed to the air, they 
are not fit to be dispensed. When it is necessary to prepare such 
a solution, the test-tube in which it is prepared and the receiving- 
vessel, should be first sterilized by rinsing them with boiling 
water, and then dried in an oven at a temperature of about 200° 
C. Only thoroughly boiled distilled water should be used as 
solvent. In Germany and Austria, these solutions are now often 
prepared and sealed in small, elongated glass pearls (sterilized at 
200° C.) of 1 Cc. capacity. Thus sealed, these solutions may be 
preserved indefinitely and can be readily carried about. The 
sterilized hypodermic tablets, in which exsiccated neutral sodium 
sulphate forms the inert diluent, have become very popular, 
because of their convenience in use, and the accuracy of their 
dosage. These tablets should always be dispensed in their tubes 
and never handled with the fingers. The hypodermic dose of a 
remedy is | or less than the dose by the mouth. 227 
AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
LIQUORES—(ZtQwors).—SOLUTIONES— 
Liquors are aqueous solutions of chemical substances. There 
are twenty-four of these official in the U. S. P., 1890. 
Liquor Acidi Arsenosi (Liquor Arsenici Chloridi, U. S. P., 
1880).—This is simply a solution of arsenous acid in hydrochloric 
acid and water, and not a definite compound. It is about twice 
as strong as Valangin’s solution, which contains about 0.4 per 
cent., while the official product contains 1 per cent, of arsenous 
acid. Its properties are much the same as Fowler’s solution, 
but its action is not reliable. Dose 0.12 to 0.6 Cc. (2 to 10 
minims). For assay, see Liquor Potassii Arsenitis. 
Liquor Ammonii Acetatis (Spirit of Mindererus).—If the 
pharmacopoeial directions are strictly followed, a preparation of 
an acid reaction will be obtained. This is essentially necessary, 
otherwise, when it is added to solutions containing alkaloids or 
metallic salts, these would be likely to be precipitated from their 
combinations. Should such be the case, the addition of a little 
acetic acid, sufficient to clear up the solution, is necessary. 
The reaction between the ammonium carbonate (a mixture of 
ammonium acid carbonate and carbamate) and acetic acid is as 
follows :— 
NH4HCO3.NH4NH2CO2 + 3CH3COOH = 3CH3COONH4 + H2O + 2CO2 
Ammonium Carbonate. Acetic Acid. Ammonium Water. Carbonic 
156.7 3X 59-86 Acetate. Acid Gas. 
When freshly prepared, it contains free carbonic acid. The 
German and Swiss Pharmacopoeias prepare this from ammonia 
water instead of from ammonium carbonate. 
Exercise.—How much official ammonium carbonate will be 
required to neutralize 100 Cc. of diluted acid, U. S. P. ?—100 Cc. 
of the diluted acid weigh (100 X 1.008) 100.8 Gm.; 6 per cent, of 
this is absolute acid = 6.048 Gm., then: 
Acetic Ammon. Acetic Ammon. 
Acid. Carb. Acid. Carb. 
179.5 : 156.7 : : 6.048 : x 
x = 5.27 + 
hence, 5.27 + Gm. of official ammonium carbonate are required 
to neutralize 100 Cc. of official diluted acetic acid. 
Liquor Arseni et Hydrargyri Iodidi (Donovan’s Solution). 
—This is best made from the precipitated Iodide of Arsenic (Bam- 
berger), as it is far more soluble than the commercial, made by 
EXPLANATORY. 228 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
fusion. The solution should be kept in a dark place, as the 
action of light causes a partial separation of iodine with change 
to yellow color. When in this condition it should not be 
dispensed. This solution contains one per cent, of each of the 
iodides. It is incompatible with alkaline solutions, since they 
cause the precipitation of the mercury; it is also incompatible 
with solutions of silver salts, owing to the precipitation of the 
silver as insoluble iodide; also with weak alcoholic or aqueous 
solutions containing alkaloids, since it forms with them insoluble 
double salts. 
Liquor Calcis (Lime Water).—When water is added to cal- 
cium oxide (burnt lime), considerable heat is generated, with 
formation of calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2; this is soluble in 780 
parts of cold water, but only in 1650 parts of boiling water. Each 
fluidounce of lime water would then contain about three-quarters 
of a grain of calcium hydroxide. Liquor Calcis should be pre- 
pared from a calcium oxide, which is made from marble, a very 
pure form of calcium carbonate. When the calcium oxide is 
made from ordinary limestone, it will be contaminated with alka- 
lies, which dissolve readily in water; hence the Pharmacopoeia 
directs, that the slaked lime should be first treated with a small 
portion of water, which removes these impurities. Lime water 
should not be added to salts of alkaloids or of metals, nor to acid 
solutions. When added to calomel (1 drachm to the pint) it forms 
the so-called Black Wash (Lotio Nigra). When added to corrosive 
sublimate (one-half drachm to the pint), it forms the Yellow Wash 
(Lotio Flava, or Aqua Phagedamica). In the latter case, care 
should be taken that no free corrosive sublimate remains in 
the solution, which may arise from deficiency of strength of the 
lime water. 
This solution should be kept in a well-stoppered bottle, away 
from access of the air, otherwise all of the calcium hydrate would 
soon be converted into and precipitated as carbonate. 
Liquor Ferri Acetatis.—This solution contains about 31 
per cent, of anhydrous ferric acetate It is 
prepared by dissolving ferric hydroxide in glacial acetic acid. 
The former is made by pouring a diluted solution of ferric sul- 
phate, under brisk stirring, into ammonia water, whereby ferric 
hydroxide is precipitated. This precipitate is collected and well 
washed to remove adhering ammonium chloride. 
Fe2(SO4)3 + 6NH3 + 6H2O = Fe2(OH)6 + 6NH4C1 
Ferric Ammonia Ferric Ammonium 
Sulphate. Water. Hvdrate. Chloride. 
2 X 55.8 Fe. 6 X 17 
FejfOH), + 6CH3CO2H = Fe2(C2H3O2)6 + 6H2O 
Ferric Hvdrate. Acetic Acid. Ferric Acetate. Water. 
2 X 55;8 Fe. 464.9 AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
229 
The preparation, if made from acetic acid of proper strength, 
will keep readily ; should a weaker acid be used, the prepara- 
tion is liable to precipitate a basic ferric acetate (probably 
Fe2(OH)4(CH3CO2)2). 
Assay.—The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs to add to 1.117 Gm. 
of the liquor, diluted with water, 2 Cc. of hydrochloric acid; this 
liberates the acetic acid with formation of ferric chloride; then 
on adding the potassium iodide, iodine is liberated, with reduc- 
tion of the ferric to ferrous chloride and the formation of potassium 
chloride; thus: — 
Fe2Cl6 + 2KI = 2FeCl2 + 2KC1 + 21. 
Ferric Chloride. Potassium Ferrous Potassium Iodine. 
2 X 55.8 Fe. Iodide. Chloride. Chloride. 2 X 126.5 
One atom of iron (55.8 pt.) is equivalent to one atom of iodine 
(126.5 pt.). The amount of iodine liberated is ascertained by 
means of decinormal solution of sodium hyposulphite,* which is 
added until the blue color (iodide of starch) disappears; thus, 
I2 + 2(Na2S2O3.5H2O) = 2NaI + Na2S4O6 + 10H2O. 
Iodine. Sodium Hyposulphite. Sodium Iodide. Sodium 
2 X 126.5 2 X 247.6 Tetrathionate. 
One molecule of sodium hyposulphite (247.6 pt.) is equivalent 
to one atom of iodine (126.5 pt.). 
1 molecule of ferric acetate = 1 molecule of ferric chloride; 
1 molecule of ferric chloride, containing 2 atoms of iron, liber- 
ates 2 atoms of iodine, which correspond to 2 molecules of sodium 
hyposulphite. 
1 molecule Sodium Hypo- 
1 atom Iron. 1 atom Iodine. sulphite. 
55.8 Gm. = 126.5 Gm. = 247.6 Gm. 
0.00558 Gm. = 0.01265 Gm. = 0.02476 Gm. 
Or 
1 Cc. V. S. or 0.02476 Gm. of Sodium Hyposulphite = 0.00558 Gm. of iron. 
15 Cc. of the Sodium Hyposulphite V. S. = 15 X 0.00558 = 0.0837 Gm. iron. 
Since we took 1.117 Gm. of the liquor and 7.5 per cent, of this 
should be metallic iron, we find it to be 0.0837 + Gm.,f thus 
proving our answer. 
Exercise.—What percentage of anhydrous ferric acetate is con- 
tained in the official Liquor Ferri Acetatis? 
According to the equation, page 228,111.7 parts of metallic iron 
(contained in Fe2(SO4)3) are necessary to the formation of one 
molecule of ferric acetate (Fe2(C2H3O2)6 = 464.9). 
* See Decinormal Solution of Sodium Hyposulphite. 
t A plus (+) sign after a decimal fraction means that the last decimal is slightly smaller than the 
true value. A minus (—) sign placed in the same manner means that the last decimal is slightly 
greater than the true value. 230 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
1000 grammes of the solution of ferric sulphate taken contain 
80 grammes of metallic iron (8 per cent, of 1000); then, as 
2 Iron.* Ferric Acetate. Iron. Ferric Acetate. 
111.7 : 464.9 : : 80 : x 
x = 333 + Gm. ferric acetate. 
Since the solution is made to weigh 1000 Gm., and contains 
333 Gm. of the salt, 333 -s- 10 = 33.3 per cent. The solution 
should therefore contain 33.3 per cent, of the salt. This figure 
is not attained in actual practice. 
Liquor Ferri Chloridi (Liquor Ferri Sesquichloridi Ph. 
Germ., Liquor Ferri Perchloridi Ph. Br.).—This solution should 
contain, according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 37.8 per cent, of 
anhydrous salt (Fe2Cl6). 
The reaction consists first in the formation of ferrous chloride: — 
(a) Fe + 2HC1 = FeCl2 + H2 
Iron. Hvdrochloric Acid. Ferrous Chloride. Hydrogen. 
55.8 ' 2 X 36.3 126.6 
To convert this ferrous into ferric chloride, more hydrochloric 
acid is added to the solution, and this is poured into the necessary 
amount of nitric acid, which oxidizes the hydrogen of the hydro- 
chloric acid to water, undergoing itself reduction to nitrogen 
dioxide (N2O2 or NO), which with the oxygen of the air forms 
nitrogen tetroxide (N2O4 or NO2), and is evolved as such, while 
the chlorine liberated from the hydrochloric acid unites with the 
ferrous to form ferric chloride, thus: — 
(&) 6FeCl2 + 6HC1 + 2HNO3 — 3Fe2Cl6 + 4H2O + 2NO 
Ferrous Chloride. Hydrochloric Acid. Nitric Acid. Ferric Chloride. Water. Nitrogen 
6 X 126.6 6 X 36.3 2 X 62.9 3 X 324 Dioxide. 
The solution is then further heated, to remove any excess of 
nitric acid or nitric oxide, then afterward tested for the presence 
of these by the addition of a crystal of ferrous sulphate to a few 
drops of the solution diluted with a little water, mixed with 
an equal volume of sulphuric acid, and allowed to cool. A dark- 
brownish zone (FeSO4.NO) forms around the crystal if any 
nitric acid be present. Should such be the case, it is necessary to 
heat the solution further. Care should be taken not to allow 
the liquid to become too concentrated, nor to employ too high a 
degree of heat (it should not boil), nor to heat too long, otherwise 
a portion of the iron will be converted into oxychloride, which 
separates on the addition of alcohol. The Pharmacopoeia directs 
that the solution be free from ferrous chloride. This is detected 
by adding a few drops of potassium ferricyanide T. S. to about 
the same quantity of the solution well diluted with water, when 
no blue coloration or precipitate should occur:— 
3FeCl2 + 2(K3(FeCy6)) = Fe3(FeCy6)2 + 6KC1 
Ferrous Potassium Ferrous Ferricyanide, Potassium Chloride. 
Chloride. Ferricyanide. Turnbull’s blue. 
*For sake of convenience and brevity, the various atomic and molecular weights are expressed 
only to the first decimal point; in some instances the nearest whole number is selected. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
231 
Assay.—The process is identical with that given under Liquor 
Ferri Acetatis. One Cc. of decinormal sodium hyposulphite 
V. S. (0.02476 Gm. of the salt) is equivalent to 0.00558 Gm. of 
iron, hence 26 Cc. = 26 X 0.00558 = 0.14508 Gm. of iron. Since, 
according to the Pharmacopoeia, the solution should contain 13 
per cent, of metallic iron, and 1.12 Gm. were taken for assay, 
then this should contain 0.145 + Gm. of iron (13 per cent, of 1.12). 
Hence, according to the above, the solution is of proper strength. 
Exercise.—How much anhydrous ferric chloride can be made 
from 150 Gm. of pure* iron wire? 
According to the equation a (page 230), 55.8 parts of iron will 
yield 126.6 parts of ferrous chloride; hence 150 Gm. of iron will 
yield 340 + Gm. of ferrous chloride:— 
Fe FeCl2 Fe FeCl2 
55.8 : 126.6 : : 150 : x 
x = 340 4- grammes of ferrous chloride. 
According to the equation b, 759.6 parts of anhydrous ferrous 
chloride, when oxidized, yield 972 parts of anhydrous ferric 
chloride; 340 + Gm. of ferrous will yield 435.4 Gm. of ferric 
chloride:— 
6FeCl2 3Fe2Cl6 FeCl2 Fe2Cl6 
759.6 : 972 : : 340 : x 
x = 435 +. 
Therefore, 435 + Gm. of ferric chloride can be obtained from 
150 Gm. of iron if it be absolutely pure. 
Exercise.—How much iron is capable of being taken up by 540 
Gm. of hydrochloric acid (U. S. P.) to form ferrous chloride. 
According to the equation a (page 230), 72.6 parts of absolute 
hydrochloric acid are able to combine with 55.8 parts of metallic 
iron. If the sample of acid be of U. S. Pharmacopoeia strength, 
it will contain 172.2 + Gm. of absolute acid (31.9 per cent, of 
540). 
HCl Fe HCl Fe 
72.6 : 55.8 : : 172.2 : : x 
x = 132.3 Gm. Fe. 
Therefore, 540 Gm. of hydrochloric acid (U. S. P.) will com- 
bine with 132.3 Gm. of pure iron to form FeCl2. 
AU Ferric Solutions are Incompatible with the Alkali Bromides or Iodides, since 
Free Bromine or Iodine is Liberated. 
Liquor Ferri Citratis.—The preparation of this solution 
depends on the fact that freshly precipitated ferric hydrate is 
soluble in the organic acids, in this instance citric acid. The 
ferric hydrate is prepared by pouring a diluted solution of ferric 
sulphate into wTell-diluted ammonia water, which must be in 
* The finest piano wire contains about 99 per cent, of pure iron, but in the above given calculations 
it is assumed to be absolutely pure (100 per cent.). 232 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
slight excess. The precipitated ferric hydrate is well washed, to 
free it from adhering ammonium sulphate:— 
Fe2(SO4)3 + 6NH3 + 6H2O = Fe2(OH)6 + 3(NH4)2SO4 
Ferric Ammonia Water. Ferric Hydrate. Ammonium 
Sulphate. Sulphate. 
To be certain that all traces of ammonium sulphate have been 
removed, the wash-water acidulated with hydrochloric acid is 
tested with barium chloride T. S., which should not give a white 
cloud or precipitate (BaSO4). In the above case we employ di- 
luted cold solutions, in order to obtain a light flocculent precipi- 
tate, which is more readily dissolved by the citric acid:— 
Fe2(OH)6 + 2(H3C6H5O7 + H2O) = 2(Fe2(C6H5O7)2) + 8H2O 
Ferric Hydrate. Citric Acid. Ferric Citrate. Water. 
Care should be taken that the solution be not heated above 
60° C., otherwise insoluble oxycitrates will form. When this solu- 
tion is employed in making scale salts, the operator should satisfy 
himself that the ferric sulphate solution is of full strength, other- 
wise the citric acid will not be sufficiently saturated and fail to 
“scale.” The solution is used in making the scale salts Ferri 
Citras and Ferri et Ammonii Citras. 
Assay.—On adding 1.117 Gm. of the solution to water and 
hydrochloric acid, the citric acid is liberated and ferric chloride 
is formed; thus :— 
Fe2(C6H5O7)2 + 6HC1 = Fe2Cl6 + 2H3C6H5O7 
Ferric Citrate. Hydrochloric Ferric Citric Acid. 
2 X 55.8 Fe. Acid. Chloride. 
2 X 55.8 Fe. 
Then, on addition of the potassium iodide, iodine is liberated 
and ferrous chloride with potassium chloride are formed:— 
Fe2Cl6 + 2KI = 2FeCl2 + 2KC1 + I2 
Ferric Chloride. Potassium Iodide. Ferrous Chloride. Potassium Chloride. Iodine. 
2 X 55.8 Fe. 2 X 126.5. 
The liberated iodine is then estimated by dropping in decinor- 
mal solution of sodium hyposulphite in presence of starch, until 
the blue color disappears:— 
2(Na2S2O3.5H,O) -f- I2 = 2NaI + Na2S4O6 + 10H2O 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. Sodium Iodide. Sodium Tetrathionate. Water. 
2 X 247.6 2 X 126.5 
One molecule of sodium hyposulphite (247.6 parts) unites with 
one atom of iodine (126.5 parts), this.being liberated by one atom 
of iron (55.8 parts). Therefore, one molecule of the hyposulphite 
(247.6 parts) corresponds to one atom of iron (56.8 parts). 
Then if 247.6 parts of hyposulphite = 55.8 parts of iron, 
(1000 Cc.) 24.76 “ “ = 5.58 “ 
(100 Cc.) 2.476 “ “ “ = 0.558 “ “ “ 
(10 Cc.) 0.2476 “ “ “ = 0.0558 “ “ “ 
(1 Cc.) 0.02476 “ “ “ = 0.00558 “ “ “ 
15 Cc. of the decinormal solution = 15 X 0.00558 = 0.0837 Gm. metallic iron. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
233 
Having taken 1.117+ Gm. of the solution, this would indicate 
that it contains about 7.5 per cent. [(0.0837 -4- 1.117) X 100] of 
metallic iron; or, 7.5 per cent, of 1.117 Gm. — 0.0837 + Gm., 
the amount of metallic iron it should contain. 
Exercise.—How much of 10 per cent. Ammonia Water is neces- 
sary to completely precipitate 100 Gm. of solution of ferric sul- 
phate, U. S. P. ? The 100 Gm. of ferric sulphate solution contain 
8 Gm. of iron (8 per cent.). 1 molecule of ferric sulphate con- 
tains 2 atoms of iron (2 X 55.8), which require 6 molecules (6 X 
17) of ammonia for precipitation. Hence, one atom (55.8 parts) 
of iron will require 3 molecules (3 X 17 parts) of ammonia:— 
Fe 3NH3 Fe NH3 
55.8 : 51 : : 8 : x 
x = 7.31 Gm. NH3 
7.31 Gm. of ammonia gas correspond to 73.10 Gm. of 10 per cent, 
ammonia water. Hence, 73.10 Gm. of 10 per cent, ammonia water 
are necessary to precipitate 100 Gm. ferric sulphate solution, U. 
S. P. 
Liquor Ferri et Ammonii Acetatis (Basham’s Mixture).—On 
mixing the ferric chloride and ammonium acetate solutions an 
interchange of radicals takes place, with the formation of ferric 
acetate and ammonium chloride, a beautiful red-colored, clear 
solution resulting. When made according to our present Phar- 
macopoeia, it is stable and can be kept almost indefinitely; for- 
merly, difficulties arose from the use of an alkaline solution of 
ammonium acetate and an insufficient amount of acetic acid; hence, 
on mixing the two, a precipitate of basic ferric acetate occurred 
either at once, or very soon afterward. 
The preparation should be dispensed fresh. 
Liquor Ferri Nitratis.—This solution is made by dissolving 
ferric hydroxide in nitric acid: Fe2(OH)6 + 6HNO3 = Fe2(NO3)6 
+ 6ILO,—a safe and agreeable method, and preferable to the 
shorter process of the British Pharmacopoeia, in which the iron 
wire is dissolved in nitric acid. The last-mentioned reaction, being 
violent, requires great caution ; moreover, the fumes evolved are 
also annoying. 
This preparation is more astringent than the salts of iron with 
the organic acids. 
Liquor Ferri Subsulphatis (Monsel’s Solution).—This is an 
aqueous solution of basic ferric sulphate. It is sometimes called 
persulphate of iron solution, which is inaccurate, and liable to be 
confounded with the solution of tersulphate of iron. On adding 
the pulverized ferrous sulphate to the heated mixed acids, the 
solution becomes of a black color, due to the uniting of the nitric 
oxide with the ferrous sulphate (FeSO4.NO), which quickly dis- 
appears with evolution of red nitrous vapors. Should the solution 
remain of a dark (black) color, after all the ferrous sulphate has 234 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
been added, the addition of a few drops of nitric acid will be suffi- 
cient to cause the evolution of the nitric oxide, and the solution 
will then appear of a clear reddish-brown color. The tests for nitric 
acid and ferrous salt are the same as those given under Solution of 
Ferric Chloride. This solution contains a lesser amount of sul- 
phuric acid and more of ferrous sulphate than the tersulphate of 
iron, hence, instead of the normal ferric sulphate, a basic or oxy- 
sulphate (probably Fe4O(SO4)5) is obtained. On standing, this 
solution sometimes deposits a sediment; this may be redissolved 
by placing the bottle in hot water. This solution may be distin- 
guished from the tersulphate by adding one volume of sulphuric 
acid to two of the solution, when in the case of the subsulphate 
a white, heavy precipitate of basic or oxysulphate will be pro- 
duced. 
The dry persulphate (Monsel’s Powder) is obtained by evaporat- 
ing the solution to dryness and powdering. 
Both the solution and powder are used as local styptics in cases 
of hsemorrhage. 
Liquor Ferri Tersulphatis.—A solution of normal ferric 
sulphate, or solution of persulphate of iron. This solution is 
weaker in iron and contains more sulphuric acid than Monsel’s 
solution. It should contain about 28.7 per cent, of Fe2(SO4)3. 
On adding the ferrous sulphate (powdered), in portions, to the 
heated mixture of sulphuric and nitric acids, effervescence takes 
place, with evolution of vapors of nitric oxide (NO or N2O2). 
When all of the iron has been added, the solution should be 
clear and of a dark reddish-brown color. Should it be of a black 
color (FeSO4.NO), this indicates that there is not a sufficient 
amount of nitric acid present to oxidize all of the ferrous to ferric 
sulphate, hence nitric acid should be added drop by drop until 
effervescence ceases and the solution clears up. The reaction 
takes place as follows: — 
6FeSO4+7H2O + 3H2SO4 + 2HNO3 = 3Fe2(SO4)3 + N2O2 + 11H2O 
Ferrous Sulphate. Sulphuric Nitric Acid. Ferric Sulphate. Nitric Oxide. Water. 
6 X 277.4 Acid. 3 X 399.2 
Assay.—The process of assay is identical with that given under 
solution of Ferric Acetate or Chloride. 
Exercise.—How many grammes of ferric sulphate (Fe2(SO4)3) 
can be prepared from 400 Gm. of ferrous sulphate, FeSO4-|-7H2O ? 
Since according to the equation given above, 1664.4 parts of 
ferrous sulphate yield 1197.6 parts of ferric sulphate, hence 
Ferrous Sulphate. Ferric Sulphate. 
1664.4 : 1197.6 :: 400 : x 
Therefore x — 287 + grammes of ferric sulphate can be made from 400 
grammes of ferrous sulphate. 
Now, if this solution is made up so as to weigh 1000 Gm. (U. 
S. P.) it would necessarily contain 28.7 per cent, of the salt. 
Liquor Hydrargyri Nitratis, or Solution of Mercuric Ni- A Q UJEOUS SOL ULLOA'S. 
235 
trate.—This solution is prepared by dissolving red mercuric oxide 
or metallic mercury in nitric acid:— 
HgO + 2HNO3 = Hg(NO3)2 4- H2O. 
Mercuric Oxide. Nitric Acid. Mercuric Nitrate. Water. 
215.7 323.6 
If 40 Gm. of mercuric oxide are taken, we would obtain about 
60 Gm. of mercuric nitrate:— 
HgO Hg(NO3)2 HgO Hg(NO3)2 
215.7 : 323 6 : : 40 : x 
x — 60 4~ Gm. 
If the solution be made up to the weight of 100 Gm. (U. S. P.), 
it would then contain about 60 per cent, of this mercuric nitrate. 
This solution is employed as a caustic. 
Liquor Iodi Compositus (Lugol’s Solution, or Compound Solu- 
tion of Iodine).—Free iodine is readily dissolved by an aqueous 
solution of potassium iodide. In the U. S. P. preparation we find 
5 per cent, of iodine, and 10 per cent, of potassium iodide present. 
This is the best preparation adapted to the internal administra- 
tion of iodine, as it does not precipitate when added to water. 
This solution is a valuable reagent in testing for the presence 
of alkaloids in solution, since the latter unite with the iodine, 
forming insoluble double salts of a brown color. This fact 
should be remembered when Lugol’s solution is directed to be 
added to any preparation containing an alkaloid. 
Assay.—The amount of free iodine contained in this solution is 
estimated by titrating with decinormal solution of sodium hypo- 
sulphite in presence of starch ; the end of the reaction being 
known by the disappearance of the blue color (iodide of starch). 
The reaction that takes place is as follows:— 
(Na2S2O., + 5H2O) 4- 21 = 2NaI + Na2S4O6 4- 10H2O 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. Sodium Sodium Tetrathionate. Water. 
2 X 247.6 2 X 126.6 Iodide. 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. 
2 X 247.6 parts 2 X 126.6 parts. 
247.6 “ 126.6 “ 
1000 Cc. V. S. 24.76 Gm 12.66 Gm. 
1. Cc. * V. S. 0.0248 Gm 0.01266 Gm. 
If 50 Cc. of the Hyposulphite solution were consumed in de- 
colorizing 12.66 Gm. of the Lugol’s Solution, then the amount of 
iodine present in the sample would be 50 X 0.01266 — 0.633 Gm., 
corresponding to 5 per cent [(0.633 -h 12.66) X 100]. 
Liquor Magnesii Citratis.—On bringing citric acid and 
magnesium carbonate in contact in presence of water, carbonic 
acid gas is given off, and magnesium citrate is formed; according 
to the proportions of the two, either the acid (MgHC6H5O7) or 
normal (Mg3C6H5O7) salt or a mixture of the two is formed. 
The first-mentioned is the more desirable, because of its solubility 
and the greater permanence of the solution. When the solution 236 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
contains less soluble normal salt, it will not keep well for any 
length of time. The pharmacopoeial preparation contains both 
the acid and normal salts, and is not calculated to keep long without 
precipitation. It would be well to increase the amount of citric 
acid by about 3 Gm. There should be sufficient citric acid pres- 
ent in this solution to combine with the magnesia, as well as to 
react with the potassium bicarbonate, so as to produce the neces- 
sary amount of carbonic acid, which is so desirable in this solu- 
tion. Boiled or distilled water only should be used in making 
this preparation.* 
Liquor Plumbi Subacetatis (Goulard’s Extract, Acetum 
plumbicum or saturninum). On boiling lead acetate and oxide 
with water, there are obtained, according to the relative propor- 
tions of the two, various basic lead acetates, that of the U.S. P. being 
Pb(C2H,O2)2 + 3H2O + PbO = Pb2O(C2H3O2)2 + 3H2O 
Lead Acetate. Litharge. Lead oxyacetate. Water. 
378 222.36 546.4 
If 170 Gm. of lead acetate are employed, 245.74 Gm. of sub- 
acetate (oxyacetate) are obtained :— 
Lead Acetate. Lead Oxyacetate. Lead Acetate. Lead Oxyacetate. 
378 : 546.4 : : 170 : x 
x — 246 Gm. Subacetate of Lead. 
If the solution be made up to 1000 Gm., it will contain about 
24.5 per cent, of the subacetate. 
This solution is not of constant strength, since it readily absorbs 
carbonic acid, which precipitates the lead as carbonate. It should 
be prepared in a flask, in order to avoid contact with air as much as 
possible; only boiled distilled water should be employed in order 
to avoid any decomposition of the lead acetate from carbonic acid 
that may be present. The litharge should be first tested for car- 
bonate by the addition of a little diluted nitric acid, and any 
sample which contains it should not be employed. 
Solution of lead subacetate is incompatible with hydrochloric 
or sulphuric acid or preparations containing these; also with 
the soluble iodides, bromides or chlorides, alkalies, mucilage of 
acacia, many organic acids, tannin, and vegetable solutions (in- 
fusions, fluid extracts, etc.), which contain much coloring matter. 
Exercise.—How much litharge should be taken to convert 170 
Gm. of lead acetate into subacetate? 
Since 378 Gm. of lead acetate require 222.36 Gm. of litharge to 
form the official subacetate, 170 Gm. of lead acetate will require 
100 Gm. of litharge:— 
Lead Acetate. Litharge. Lead Acetate. Litharge. 
378 : 222.3 : : 170 : x 
x — 100 (practically). 
*It is also to be noted that the quantity of Syrup of Citric Acid should be reduced one-half (to 
60 Gm.), the amount printed in the earlier issues of the U. S. P. (120 Gm.) being an error. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
237 
Assay.—The U. S. P. directs the assay of this solution by means 
of normal sulphuric acid, the reaction being as follows:— 
Pb2O(C2H3O2)2 + 2H2SO4 = 2PbSO4 + 2HC2H3O2 + H2O 
Lead Subacetate. Sulphuric Acid. Lead Sulphate. Acetic Acid. Water. 
546.4 2 X 97.8 
Two molecules of sulphuric acid (2 X 97.8) are equivalent to one 
molecule of lead subacetate (546.4), hence:— 
Sulphuric Acid—H.2SO4. Lead Subacetate—Pba0(C2H302)2. 
1 molecule, 97.8 p, 273.2 p. (J of 546.4). 
1000 Cc. V. S. = 48.9 Gm136.6 Gm. (J of 273.2). 
1 Cc. V. S. = 0.489 Gm 0.1366 Gm. 
25 Cc V. S. = 25 X 0.1366 = 3.415 Gm. of lead subacetate, and since 13.67 Gm. 
of solution of Lead Subacetate were taken, it would then contain about 25 
per cent, of the salt [(3.415 h- 13.67) X 100] ; or 25 per cent, of 13.67 = 3.41 
-f- Gm.). 
Liquor Plumbi Subacetatis Dilutus, (Lead Water; Aqua 
plumbica or saturnina).—This is prepared by simply diluting 
the preceding solution -with water, which should, however, be 
distilled and previously boiled; otherwise the solution will 
become turbid, and lose in strength, owing to a precipitation of 
a portion of the lead as carbonate. 
Liquor Potassje.— This is an aqueous solution containing 
about 5 per cent, of Potassium Hydrate (KOH). Besides the 
rapid method of dissolving the stick potassa in water, the Phar- 
macopoeia directs it to be prepared from potassium carbonate, 
which in turn is made from the bicarbonate by boiling the latter 
with water; through loss of carbonic acid it is converted into 
normal carbonate:— 
2KHCO3 = K2CO3 + CO2 + h2o. 
2 x 99.88 137.9 
This solution is then boiled with slaked lime, 
CaO + H2O = Ca(OH)2, 
giving rise to potassium hydrate and calcium carbonate, thus:— 
Ca(OH)2 + K2CO3 = CaCO3 + 2KOH 
Calcium Potassium Calcium Potassium 
Hydrate. Carbonate. Carbonate. Hydrate. 
137.9. 2 X 56. 
The solution is allowed to stand until clear, and decanted off 
from the precipitated calcium carbonate, or it may be directly 
filtered through spun glass or asbestos (fibrous). The commercial 
potassium carbonate (salt of tartar) contains silica and other 
impurities, hence the Pharmacopoeia prefers to employ the pure 
bicarbonate. When prepared from the ordinary stick potassa, 
the solution is liable to deposit a gelatinous precipitate of silica 
on standing. The purest form of potassa in the market is that 
which is purified by alcohol, made by treating the commercial 
product with alcohol, which leaves the silica, carbonates, chlor- 
ides, etc., undissolved. The solution should be preserved in 
rubber-stoppered vessels, or should glass stoppers be used, they 238 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
should be well greased with petrolatum. The solution readily 
absorbs carbonic acid from the air. 
It is incompatible with all solutions containing alkaloids, salts 
of metals, and also acids. 
Assay.—The strength of this solution is estimated by its neutraliz- 
ing power on normal sulphuric acid, according to the following 
equation:— 
H2SO4 + 2KOH = K2SO4 + 2H2O 
Sulphuric Potassium Potassium Water. 
Acid. Hvdrate. Sulphate. 
97.8. 2'x 56. 
As two molecules of potassium hydrate neutralize one molecule 
of sulphuric acid, hence, one molecule of potassa will neutralize 
half a molecule of sulphuric acid. 
Sulphuric Acid Potassium Hydrate—KOH. 
1000 Cc. containing 48.9 p., 56 p. 
1 Cc. V. S. containing 0.0489 Gm., 0.056 Gm. 
25 Cc. V. S. containing 25 X 0.56 — 1.40 Gm. potassium hydrate ; now if 28 Gm. 
of the solution were taken, it would then contain 5 per cent, of the anhy- 
drous salt [(1.4 -5- 28) X 100], or 5 per cent, of 28 = 1.40 Gm. 
Exercise.—How much potassium hydrate can be made from 90 
Gm. of potassium bicarbonate? 
Since, according to the equation, 199.7 parts (2 X 99.88) of 
KHCO3 yield 137.9 parts of K2CO3, hence, 90 Gm. of KHC03 will 
yield 62.1 + Gm. of K2CO3:— 
khco3 k2co3 khco3 k2co3 
199.7 : 137.9 : : 90 : x ; x = 62.1 + 
Again, since 137.9 parts of K2CO3 when boiled with excess of 
slaked lime (Ca(OH)2) will yield 122 parts of KOH (2 X 56), hence, 
62.1 -4- Gm. of K2CO3 will under like circumstances yield 50.4 + 
Gm. of KOH 
K2CO3 KOH K2CO3 KOH 
137.9 : 112 :: 621 : x ; x — 50.4 + 
If the solution be made up to 1000 Gm., it will contain in 
round numbers 5 per cent, of potassa. 
Liquor Potassii Arsenitis (Fowler’s Solution).—This solu- 
tion contains 1 per cent.* of arsenous acid (As2O3) in solution as 
potassium arsenite (K2As2O4). On boiling potassium bicarbonate 
and arsenous acid together, the following reactions probably take 
place:— 
(a) 2KHCO3 4- As2O3 + Aq — 2KAsO2 + 2CO2 + H2O + Aq. 
Potassium metarsenite. 
or (5) 4KHCO3 + As2O3 + 3H2O = 2K2HAsO3 + 4H2O + 4CO2. 
Potassium Arsenous Acid Potassium 
Bicarbonate. Acid. Orthoarsenite. 
The German and British pharmacopoeias employ normal po- 
tassium carbonate instead of the bicarbonate; a slight excess of 
alkaline carbonate remains in the solution. This solution should 
* Practically 1 per cent., there being 10 Gm. of As2O3 in 1000 Cc. of solution, which weighs 1009 Gm. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
239 
not be kept longer than a year at the most, since it becomes 
weaker in therapeutic effect, owing to the gradual oxidation of the 
arsenotis to arsenic acid; the arsenic salts being less potent than 
the arsenous. The solution should therefore be kept in well filled 
bottles. Only the pure arsenous acid in lumps should be used, and 
not the commercial, which is very often adulterated or impure. 
The object of adding compound tincture of lavender is to im- 
part sufficient taste and color to the solution to prevent its being 
mistaken for water. 
The solution is incompatible with salts of iron, magnesium and 
calcium. In cases of arsenical poisoning, emetics, calcined mag- 
nesia or the official arsenic antidote, viz., ferric hydrate with mag- 
nesia, should be administered as soon as possible. The two latter 
form insoluble, inert double compounds with soluble arsenic salts. 
Assay.—The pharmacopoeial method consists in adding deci- 
normal iodine V. S., to the solution of arsenous salt containing 
an excess of sodium bicarbonate and mixed with a little starch, 
until the blue color produced ceases to disappear. The addition 
of iodine to arsenous acid in alkaline solution causes its oxida- 
tion to arsenic acid, the iodine thereby being reduced to hydri- 
odic acid, with disappearance of color. As soon as all of the 
arsenous is oxidized to arsenic acid, then the next drop of iodine 
(which is free) will strike a blue color with the starch added to 
the solution. The reaction is as follows :— 
AsA + 41 + 4NaHCO3* = As2O5 + 4NaI + 4CO2 + 2H2O 
Arsenous Iodine. Sodium Arsenic Sodium Carbonic Water. 
Oxide. 4 X 126.5 Bicarbonate. Oxide. Iodide. Acid. 
197.68 
The addition of the extra 2 Gm. of sodium bicarbonate serves 
the purpose of combining with the liberated hydriodic acid, 
which, if present in free condition, would interfere with the reac- 
tion. From the equation we see that 4 atoms of iodine (4 X 126.5) 
are necessary to oxidize one molecule (197.68) of arsenous to 
arsenic oxide. Hence, one atom of iodine is equivalent to | of a 
molecule of arsenous oxide. 
Iodine. Arsenous Oxide. 
126.5 parts 49.42 parts. 
N 
1000 Cc. 10 V. S. 12.65 Gm 4.942 Gm. 
1 Cc. V. S. 0.01265 Gm 0.004912 Gm. 
50 Cc of V. S. Iodine = 50 X 0.004942 = 0.247 + Gm., AsA 
Hence, if 24.7 Cc. of the solution had been taken, and 0.247 
Gm. of arsenous oxide were found contained in it, then the solu- 
tion must be of 1 per cent, 
Exercise.—If 10 Gm. of a sample of Fowler’s solution required 
18 Cc. of iodine volumetric solution to produce a blue color, 
* The NaHCO3 merely plays the part of a solvent for the As203, hence the formula KAsO2 or 
(NaAs02) is not used here, f See Footnote, page 238. 240 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
under the conditions given in the U. S. P., what per cent, of ar- 
senous oxide would it contain? 
Since 1 Cc. of iodine volumetric solution = 0.004942 Gm. of 
As2O3, hence, 18 Cc. of iodine volumetric solution = 18 X 0.004942 
= 0.0889 + Gm. of As2O3. If 10 Gm. of the solution had been 
taken, then (0.0889 4- 10) X 100 = 0.8. 
The sample, therefore, contains T87 per cent, of As2O3. 
Liquor Potassii Citratis.—The reaction that takes place on 
mixing solutions of citric acid and potassium bicarbonate is as 
follows:— 
3KHCO3 + H3C6H5O7 + H2O = K3C6H5O7 + H2O 4- 3CO2 
Potassium Bicarbonate. Citric Acid. Neutral Potassium Citrate. 
3 X 99.8 209.5 305.6 
The solution contains neutral potassium citrate with free citric 
and carbonic acids, the latter imparting a pleasant acidulous taste 
to the solution. The solution should always be dispensed fresh. 
Exercise.—How much citric acid will be necessary to neutralize 
8 Gm. of potassium bicarbonate; also how much potassium 
citrate will be produced ? 
If 299.4 parts of KHC03 require 209.5 parts of H3C6H5O7, then 
8 Gm. of KHCO3 will require 5.6 — Gm. of H3C6H5O7:— 
3KHCO3 H3C6H5O7 KHCO3 H3CfiH5O7 
299.4 : 209.5 : : 8 : x 
x — 5.6 — 
If 299.4 parts of KHCO3, when neutralized with citric acid, will 
yield 305.6 parts of potassium citrate, then 8 Gm. of KHC03 will 
yield 8.1 + Gm. of K3C6H5O7:— 
3KHCO3 k3c6h5o7 khco3 k3c6h5o7 
299.4 : 305.6 : : 8 : x 
a: = 8.1 + 
Liquor Sodj^.—This solution, like that of potassa, can be made 
by dissolving the caustic alkali in the necessary amount of water, 
or by boiling the necessary quantity of the carbonated alkali and 
slaked lime together with water. Thus :— 
Na2CO3 + 10H2O + Ca(OH)2 = 2NaOH + CaCO3 + 10H2O 
Sodium Carbonate. Calcium Sodium Calcium Water. 
285.4 Hvdrate. Hydrate. Carbonate. 
2 X 40 
The method of preparation and preservation, and the incom- 
patibles, are the same as those given under Liquor Potassse. 
Assay.—The method of assay is also the same as that of Liquor 
Potassse:— 
H2SO4 + 2NaOH = Na.2SO4 + 2H2O 
Sulphuric Acid. Sodium Hvdrate. Sodium Sulphate. Water. 
98.8 2 X 40 
Sulphuric Acid. Sodium Hvdrate. 
97.8 p. 2 X 40 p. 
1000 Cc. V. 8.,48.9 Gm. = 40 Gm. 
1 Cc. V. S 0.489 Gm. — 0.040 Gm. 
25 Cc. V. 8. H2SO4 = 25 X 0.040 — 1.0 Gm. of sodium hydrate. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
241 
Hence, if 20 Gm. of the solution were taken, it would contain 5 
per cent, of sodium hydrate [(1.0 20) X 100]. 
Liquor (Solution of Chlorinated Soda.—La- 
barraque’s Solution).—The value of this solution depends upon 
the amount of sodium hypochlorite present, which should yield, 
according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 2.6 per cent, by weight of 
available chlorine. 
The reaction which takes place on mixing the solutions of 
chlorinated lime and sodium carbonate is most probably as 
follows:— 
Ca(OCl)2 + CaCl2 + 2Na2CO3 = 2NaOCl + 2NaCl + 2CaCO:) 
Chlorinated Lime. Sodium Sodium Sodium Calcium 
Carbonate. Hypochlorite. Chloride. Carbonate. 
Hot water is used for the purpose of rendering the precipitate 
of calcium carbonate as dense as possible, so that it may rapidly 
settle. 
Labarraque’s Solution is a superior disinfectant, but it is also 
employed as an antiseptic. When used as a wash it should be 
diluted with 5 to 10 parts of water. The addition of acids or 
acid salts to the solution causes it to give off chlorine gas. 
It is incompatible with the iodides and bromides, causing a 
liberation of iodine or bromine; likewise incompatible with many 
metallic salts and many organic substances. A preparation 
analogous to this in every respect is the Liquor Potassae Chloratae, 
or Javelle water. 
Assay.—The assay method is based on the fact that the chlorine 
liberates an equivalent amount of iodine from potassium iodide 
(the chlorine itself being set free by the addition of HC1); this 
liberated iodine is then estimated by means of decinormal sodium 
hyposulphite, V. S.* If, then, we know how much iodine has 
been liberated, the amount of chlorine present is readily calculated. 
On adding the hydrochloric acid to the solution, all of the 
available chlorine is liberated :— 
2NaOCl + 4HC1 = 2NaCl + 2H2O + Cl2. 
Then for every atom (35.3) of chlorine liberated, one atom 
(126.6) of iodine is set free from its combination in the potassium 
iodide; thus:— 
2C1 + 2KI = 2KC1 + I2 
Chlorine. Potassium Iodide. Potassium Chloride. Iodine. 
2 X 35.3 2 X 126.6 
Starch being added to the solution, the latter is colored blue 
by the free iodine. To this solution is added, drop by drop, 
the decinormal solution of sodium hyposulphite, until the blue 
color disappears; thus :— 
2(Na2S2O3.5H2O) + I2 = 2NaI + Na2S4O6 + 10H2O 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. Sodium Sodium Water. 
2 X 247.6 2 X 126.6 Iodide. Tetrathionate. 
* See Decinormal Sodium Hyposulphite Solution. 242 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Since 247.6 parts of hyposulphite are equivalent to 126.6 parts of 
iodine, and this is liberated by 35.3 parts of chlorine, one molecule 
of the hyposulphite is equivalent to one atom of chlorine. 
2Na2S2O35H2O 21 2C1 
2X247.6 “ 2X126.6 ~ 2X35.3 
or 247.6 p. = 126.6 p. = 35.3 p. 
hence 247.6 p35.3 p. 
1000 Cc. of the Sodium Hyposulphite, V.S. = 24.76 Gm. . . 3.53 Gm. 
1 Cc. of the Sodium Hyposulphite, V.S. — 0.2476 Gm. . 0.00353 Gm. 
50 Cc. = 50 X 0.00353 = 0.1765 Gm. of chlorine. 
If 6.74 Gm. of the solution were taken, and it were found to 
contain 0.1765 Gm. of chlorine gas, then the per cent, of available 
chlorine would be [(0.1765 -s- 0.74) X 100] = 2.6 + per cent. 
Exercise.—If, in making up Labarraque’s Solution according to 
the U. S. P., the chlorinated lime taken was found to contain 30 
per cent, of available chlorine, what should be the chlorine 
strength of the finished product? 
If 75 Gm. of the chlorinated lime are taken, and 30 per cent, 
of this is available chlorine, then the amount of chlorine in the 
finished 1000 Gm. of product would be 30 per cent, of 75, or 22.5 
Gm. or 2.25 per cent. Hence the solution would contain 2.25 per 
cent, of available chlorine. 
Liquor Sodii Arsenatis.*—This is a form of administering 
the official sodium arsenate (Na2HAsO4), containing 1 per cent, 
of the salt. The dose, antidotes, and uses are the same as that of 
Fowler’s Solution. 
Liquor Sodii Silicatis (“ Soluble Glass”).—This is made by fus- 
ing together 1 part of fine white sand and 2 parts of dried sodium 
carbonate, and dissolving the product in boiling water, filtering, and 
evaporating. It is used in bandaging in surgery. The commercial 
solution contains about 30 to 35 per cent, of sodium silicate. 
Liquor Zinci Chloridi (Burnett’s Disinfectant).—Since com- 
mercial zinc contains iron as an impurity, nitric acid is added to 
the solution, for the purpose of oxidizing the ferrous to ferric 
chloride (see page 230). 
Zn + 2HC1 = ZnCl2 + H2 
Zinc. Hydrochloric Acid. Zinc Chloride. Hydrogen. 
65 2 X 36.3 135.8 
The solution is evaporated to dryness and the residue fused to 
remove all nitric acid ; some zinc carbonate is then added, where- 
by the iron is precipitated as insoluble ferric oxide, and this is 
then filtered off by pouring the solution through a pledget of 
spun glass or fibrous asbestos. 
Fe2Cl6 4- 3Zn CO3 = Fe.2(COi3)3 + 3ZnCl2 
Ferric Chloride. Zinc Carbonate. Ferric Carbonate. Zinc Chloride. 
Fe2(CO3)3 = Fe2O3 + 3CO2 
Ferric Carbonate. Ferric Oxide. Carbonic Acid. 
* Pearson’s Solution is sometimes confounded with this, but is ten times weaker, containing about 
per cent, of anhydrous Sodium Arsenate. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
243 
The solution is a powerful disinfectant, also a valuable wash 
when properly diluted with water. 
Exercise.—How much anhydrous zinc chloride can be made 
from 250 Gm. of pure metallic zinc ? 
Since, according to the above equation, 65 parts of zinc will 
yield 135.8 parts of zinc chloride, 240 Gm. of zinc will yield 538.3 -f- 
Gm. of zinc chloride. 
Zn ZnCl2 Zn ZnCl2 
65 : 145.8 : : 240 : x 
x = 538.3 
LIQUORES, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Main Constituent.* 
Synonym. 
Liquor 
Acidi Arsenosi, .... 
Arsenous Acid, 1 %. 
Ammonii Acetatis, . . 
Arseni et Hydrargyri 
Ammonium Acetate, ab. 7 %. 
Spirit of Mindererus. 
lodidi, 
Arsenic Iodide, 1 % ; Mercuric 
Iodide, 1 %. 
Donovan’s Solution. 
Calcis, 
Ferri Acetatis, .... 
Ferri Chloridi, .... 
Ferri Citratis, .... 
Ferri et Ammonii Ace- 
Calcium Hydrate, 0.17 %. 
Anhydrous Ferric Acetate, 
31 %. 
Anhydrous Ferric Chloride, 
37.8%. 
Circa, 43 % Ferric Citrate. 
Lime Water. 
tatis, 
Ferri Nitratis, .... 
Ammonium Acetate. 
Anhydrous Ferric Nitrate, 
6.2%. 
Basham’s Mixture. 
Ferri Subsulphatis, . . 
Ferri Tersulphatis, . . 
Hydrargyri Nitratis, . 
Basic Ferric Sulphate. 
Ferric Sulphate, 28.7 %. 
Mercuric Nitrate, 60 %. 
Monsel’s Solution. 
lodi Compositus, . . . 
Magnesii Citratis, . . . 
Iodine, 5 % ; KI, 10 %. 
Magnesium Citrates. 
Lugol’s Solution. 
Plumbi Subacetatis, 
Plumbi Subacetatis 
Lead Subacetate, 25 %. 
Goulard’s Extract. 
Dilutus, 
Potassse, 
Lead Subacetate. 
Potassium Hydrate, 5 %. 
Lead Water. 
Potassii Arsenitis, . . . 
Arsenous Acid, 1 %. 
Fowler’s Solution. 
Potassii Citratis, . . . 
Sodte, 
Anhydrous Potassium Citrate, 
9 %. 
Sodium Hvdrate, 5 %. 
Neutral Mixture. 
Sodse Chloratae, .... 
Available Chlorine, 2.6 %. 
Labarraque’s Solution. 
Sodii Arsenatis, .... 
Sodii Silicatis, .... 
Sodium Arsenate, 1 %. 
Sodium Silicate. 
Hai le’s Solution. 
Zinci Chloridi, .... 
Zinc Chloride, 50 %. 
Burnett’s Disinfecting 
Solution. 
* The expression per cent., as employed in some instances, as Liquor Potassii Arsenitis, Acidi 
Arsenosi, etc., is strictly speaking inaccurate, because in these instances a definite weight of the 
active agent is contained in a definite volume of product : the volume (expressed in Cc.), does not 
always correspond to weight (Gm.). For example, the specific gravity of Fowler’s Solution is 1.009, 
that is, 1000 Cc. weighs 1009 Gm.; it would then coutain per cent, of Arsenous Acid, instead of 
1 per cent. See page 137. 244 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
INFUSA. 
Infusions (inf undo, I pour in) are aqueous solutions of the 
soluble principles of drugs, obtained by maceration in hot or cold 
water. They differ from decoctions in that a lower degree of heat 
is employed. Infusions are usually prepared from drugs which 
contain volatile principles, such as chamomile, valerian, cascarilla, 
etc., since the process of decoction, requiring a higher degree or a 
longer application of heat, would not only destroy these principles, 
but also extract much inert starchy and extractive matter. 
The drug should be in a coarsely comminuted condition for hot 
infusions; for cold infusions, where percolation is resorted to, the 
drug should be in coarse powder. 
Infusions are usually made by pouring pure water upon the 
drug contained in a suitable well-covered vessel, then allowing it 
to stand (macerate) until cold, or for a specified period (for 
instance, one-half hour), as directed in the U. S. P. Other Phar- 
macopoeias direct that after the addition of boiling water the 
vessel (well closed) be placed on a steam-bath and allowed to 
“ digest” for 5 or 10 minutes. The process of cold percolation is 
employed only in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia (Infusum Cinchonse, 
Infusum Pruni Virginianae). 
The general strength of infusions, unless otherwise specified (as 
should be done in the case of potent drugs), is 1 part of the drug, 
in coarsely comminuted condition, to 20 parts of the finished 
product. The twenty parts of boiling water are poured upon the 
drug, and the mixture allowed to macerate for half an hour. It 
is then strained, with little or no pressure, enough hot water being 
poured through the strainer to make the product up to the desired 
quantity. 
In preparing infusions of aromatic drugs or of such as contain 
volatile principles, the operator should exercise some judgment 
and care, for in these cases prolonged contact with hot water may 
injure or destroy these principles, and too high a temperature 
may extract starch and inert matter. 
Infusions are best prepared by suspending the drug contained 
in a porous container* in the upper part of the infusion vessel, 
thereby securing its exhaustion by means of circulatory displace- 
ment. The Water, on becoming saturated, sinks to the bottom, 
displacing a fresh portion, which rises so as to come into contact 
with the drug. This method renders it unnecessary to stir the 
mixture. Such a form of infusion pot is found in that devised 
by Squire (Fig. 325), which consists of a plain porcelain pot, in 
which is suspended a perforated diaphragm for holding the drug, 
the whole being covered by a well-fitting lid. The hot or cold 
water is poured into the pot until the drug is just covered; the 
pot is then covered and set aside for the specified time, when the 
* The drug must be coarse enough not to fall through the perforations. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
245 
infusion is poured off. If the volume is not sufficient, an addi- 
tional quantity of water is poured over the drug until the desired 
quantity is obtained. When such a mug is not at hand, an 
ordinary porcelain teapot may be used, in which the drug, con- 
tained in a bag of cheese-cloth, is suspended (by means of a 
string, through the hole in the lid) in the hot water. Both of 
these methods render straining unnecessary. Fig. 326 illus- 
trates another form of tinned copper infusion mug in which the 
inner vessel, a-d, is suspended in an outer bath, b-c, which contains 
boiling water, the entire vessel being placed upon a gas stove. 
The process of percolation is employed in making infusions of 
those drugs the active principles of which are readily taken up 
by cold water. Percolation can be successfully applied to infu- 
Fig. 325. 
Fig. 326. 
Infusion Mug with Bath. 
Squire’s Infusion Mug. 
sions, since the proportion of water to drug is relatively very 
large; hence exhaustion is insured. 
Infusions which contain volatile oils will keep much longer and 
better than those not containing them, or those in which albumin- 
ous and mucilaginous matters predominate. Preservative agents, 
such as alcohol, boric or salicylic salts, etc., should not be used 
unless specially ordered ; it is often advisable to heat the infusion 
to the boiling point, and to transfer it, while hot, to small bottles, 
which should be entirely filled, corked, and sealed. 
Infusions should not be made from fluid extracts. 
An aqueous infusion of a drug will often have an entirely differ- 
ent therapeutic effect from an alcoholic or hydro-alcoholic prepar- 
ation of the same, since the different menstrua will dissolve out 246 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
different principles or different proportions of the principles. 
Thus, an aqueous infusion of digitalis is a powerful diuretic, 
while a preparation made by adding the corresponding amount 
of fluid extract or tincture of digitalis to water will be but feebly 
diuretic, but act powerfully upon the heart. 
Moreover, the addition of concentrated alcoholic or fluid ex- 
tracts to water is nearly always accompanied by precipitation, 
which renders the preparation so unsightly as to necessitate filtra- 
tion, and this, if done, will often remove, practically, most of the 
activity, the result being a worthless preparation. Besides, the 
introduction of alcohol into the preparations which is caused 
thereby, is, in many cases, seriously objected to by the physician. 
It is a direct violation of the pharmacopoeia! instructions and of 
the intentions of the physician. 
Infusions are incompatible with salts of the heavy metals, such 
as iron, mercury, silver, etc. 
INFUSA, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Per Cent, of Active Constituent.* 
Properties—Dose. 
By Maceration. 
Infusum Digitalis, . . 
Infusum Senns Com- 
Digitalis, 1.5 %. 
Diuretic, etc., 4 to 15Cc. 
positum, 
Senna, 6 % ; MgSO4 and 
Manna, each 12%. 
Purgative, 30 to 80 Cc. 
By Percolation. 
Infusum Cinchonae, . . 
Infusum Pruni Virgini- 
Cinchona, 6 %. 
Tonic, 30 to 60 Cc. 
ans. 
Wild Cherry Bark, 4 %. 
Tonic, Sedative, 30 to 
90 Cc. 
* See Footnote on page 225. AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS. 
247 
DECOCTA. 
Decoctions (decogw, I boil thoroughly) are aqueous solutions 
of the soluble matter of drugs, obtained by boiling with water. 
Decoctions are prepared from those drugs the active principles 
of which are not materially injured or dissipated by heat and are 
not readily extracted by cold or warm water. The process should 
be performed with care, so as to avoid subjecting the drug to too 
high a degree or too long an application of heat, for it must not 
be forgotten that with increase of the amount of extractive present 
the boiling point rises. 
Earthenware vessels are generally preferred for making decoc- 
tions. However, tinned copper answers just as well. 
The general method for the preparation of decoctions when the 
strength is not specified (which should be done in the case of 
potent drugs) is as follows: The substance (1 part), in a coarsely 
comminuted condition, is placed in a suitable vessel provided 
with a well-fitting cover, together with 20 parts of cold pure 
water. The vessel is then covered and the contents boiled for 
fifteen minutes. When the temperature has fallen to about 40° 
C.,the mixture is expressed and strained, and sufficient cold water 
passed through the strainer to make the finished product measure 
20 parts by volume. 
On standing, decoctions usually deposit a sediment which 
should not be removed. What has been said about the preserva- 
tion and incompatibles of infusions, may also be applied to decoc- 
tions. Decoctions should, for like reasons, not be prepared from 
fluid extracts. 
Title. 
Per Cent, of Main Constituents* 
Properties. 
Decoctum Cetrarise, . . . 
“ Sarsaparill ae 
Iceland Moss, 5 %. 
Demulcent. 
Compositum, 
Spl’a., 10 % ; Sasf., 2 % ; 
Guaiac, 2 °/o ; Glycyr., 2% ; 
Mezereum, 1 %. 
Alterative. 
DECOCTA, U. S. P. 
* See Footnote on page 225. 248 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
MUCILAGINES. 
Mucilages are aqueous, viscid and adhesive solutions. Under 
this term, the U. S. Pharmacopoeia understands a solution of a 
plant gum, or substance of a mucilaginous nature. In other phar- 
macopoeias this term is made to embrace also solutions of starch 
and dextrin. Mucilages are very prone to ferment, becoming sour 
and offensive; they should therefore be made in small quantities, 
and preserved in well-closed jars in a cool place. 
These solutions may be prepared by suspending the substance, 
enclosed in a bag of cheese-cloth, in a vessel of hot or cold water. 
In some instances it is desirable to employ water impregnated 
with the soluble parts of tolu (tolu water) as solvent, the presence 
of the balsam tending to preserve the preparation from fermen- 
tation. Other preservative agents may sometimes be used, par- 
ticularly when the mucilage is not intended for internal use. 
Thus, mucilage of acacia may be preserved by the addition of 
about 10 grains of chloral to the ounce. 
Title. 
Per Cent, of Main Constituents.* 
Cold Process. 
Mucilago Acaciae 
“ Sassafras Medullae . . . 
Acacia, 34 %. 
Sassafras Pith, 2 %. 
Hot Process. 
Mucilago Tragacanthae f 
“ Ulmi 
Tragacanth, 6 % ; Glycerin, 18 % 
Elin, 6 %. 
MUCILAGINES, U. S. P. 
* See Footnote on page 225. 
fThis may be quickly prepared by placing the powdered tragacanth in a dry graduate, adding 
sufficient alcohol to form a thin, smooth paste, then pouring in the necessary amount of boiling water, 
agitating constantly with a spatula until a thin, smooth mucilage results. CHAPTER XXVII. 
ACETOUS SOLUTIONS. 
Medicated Vinegars are solutions of medicinal principles in 
diluted acetic acid (or vinegar). This class of preparations was 
formerly made by using vinegar as a solvent, but, owing to the 
presence in the latter of extractive matters, and its variable 
strength, they were prone to undergo decomposition upon stand- 
ing. Hence to secure the permanency of the preparation, diluted 
acetic acid of definite strength has been substituted for vinegar. 
This has peculiar solvent powers, in that it takes up many organic 
principles (alkaloids, glucosides, etc.) which are not soluble in 
water alone. These vinegars, even when prepared with diluted 
acetic acid, are prone to deposit a sediment and to undergo fer- 
mentation, for which reason some pharmacopoeias direct the addi- 
tion of a small amount of alcohol to the finished preparation. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia has adopted the uniform drug strength 
of 10 per cent., employing the official diluted acetic acid, contain- 
ing 6 per cent, by weight of absolute acid, as menstruum. 
There are two vinegars official, viz., Acetum Opii (so-called 
Black Drop) and Acetum Scillae; these are made by the process 
of maceration. 
ACETA—(Vinegars). 
Title. 
Active Constituent.* 
Properties—Dose. 
Acetum Opii (Black Drop), 
Opium, 10 %. 
Sedative, 0.3-1 Cc. 
Acetum Scillae, 
Squill, 10 %. 
Expectorant 1-3 Cc. 
♦ See Footnote on page 225. 
249 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
SPIRITUS—(Spirits'). 
Spirits are alcoholic solutions of volatile substances. Accord- 
ing to the nature of the substance dissolved and the method of 
procedure, we may divide the 25 official spirits into three classes, 
viz., those prepared by 
1. Solution in Alcohol. 2. Chemical Reaction and Solution. 
3. Distillation. 
The Spirits should be kept in well stoppered vials in a cool 
place. 
These are made by dissolving or macerating the substance or 
substances directly in alcohol. In preparing the so-called essences, 
only the best quality of volatile oils should be employed; in three 
instances maceration is called for (Sp. Limonis, Menthae piperitae, 
and Menthae viridis). 
1. SPIRITS PREPARED BY SOLUTION IN ALCOHOL. 
Title. 
Active Constituents. 
{Tie—Dose. 
Spiritus 
JEtheris, 
zEtheris Compositus, | 
Ammoniae,* 
f 
Ether, 32.5 % vol. 
Ether, 32.5 % vol. 
Ethereal Oil, 2.5 % vol. 
Gaseous Ammonia, 10 % wt. 
Ammonia Carb. 
Stimulant, 3-10 Cc. 
Anodyne, 2-6 Cc. 
Anodyne, 2-6 Cc. 
Stimulant, 0.5-2 Cc. 
Ammoniae Aromati- 1 
Ammonia Water. 
cus, 
Oils, Lemon, Lavender, Nut- 
Stimulant, 2-4 Cc. 
I 
meg. 
Amygdalae Amarae, . . 
Oil, 1 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Anisi, 
Oil, 10 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Aurantii, 
Oil, 5 % vol. 
Flavor. 
r 
Oil, Orange, 20 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Aurantii Compositus, - 
Oil, Lemon, 5 yc vol. 
Oil, Coriander, 2 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Flavor. 
' Oil, Anise, | % vol. 
Flavor. 
Camphorse, 
Camphor, 16 % wt. 
Stimulant ; Sedative 
0.3 4 Cc. 
Chloroformi, 
Cinnamomi, 
Gaultherise, 
Glonoini, 
Chloroform, 6 % vol. 
Oil, 10 % vol. 
Oil, 5 % vol. 
C3H5(NO3)3 1 % wt. 
Sedative, 0.6-4 Cc. 
Stimulant, 1 Cc. 
Flavor. 
Cardiac Stimulant, 
0.06-0.1 Cc. 
Juniperi, 
Oil, 5 % vol. 
Oil, Juniper, 0.4 % vol. 
Diuretic, 2-4 Cc. 
Juniperi Compositus, | 
Oil, Caraway, 0.05 % vol. 
1 Oil, Fennel, 0.05 % vol. 
Diuretic, 7-15 Cc. 
* Some pharmacopoeias recognize this under the title of Liquor Ammonii Caustici Spirituosus. 
250 ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
251 
Title. 
Active Constituents. 
Use—Dose. 
Lavandulae, 
Oil, 5 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Liinonis, 
Oil, 5 % vol.; Peel, 5 % wt. 
Flavor. 
Menthae Piperitae, . . 
Oil, 10 % vol.; Herb, 1 % wt. 
Carminative, 1-2 Cc. 
Menthae Viridis, . . . 
Oil, 10 °/o vol.; Herb, 1 % wt. 
Oil, Bay, 0.8 % vol. 
Carminative, 1-2 Cc. 
Myrciae, 
Oil, Orange, 0.05 % vol. 
Oil, Allspice, 0.05 % vol. 
Perfume. 
Myristicae, 
Oil, 5 % vol. 
Flavor. 
Phosphori, 
Phosphorus, 0.12 % wt. 
Elixir Phosphori. 
2. SPIRITS PREPARED BY CHEMICAL ACTION AND SOLUTION. 
There is but one spirit official which belongs to this class, viz., 
Spiritus 2Etheris Nitrosi. By the reaction between nitrous acid 
(derived from sodium nitrite) and alcohol, ethyl nitrite is pro- 
duced; and this is preserved by solution in alcohol. The solution 
should contain 4 per cent, of ethyl nitrite. 
3. SPIRITS PREPARED BY DISTILLATION. 
Aside from the two given under this class, some of those of 
Class 1 may be prepared by distillation, yielding a product of a 
more delicate flavor and odor than that produced by mere solu- 
tion. 
Title. 
Preparation. 
Per Cent, of Alcohol. 
Spiritus Frumenti, . . . 
Distillation of mash of fer- 
mented grain, and at least 
2 years old. 
44 % to 50 % wt., or 
50 % to 58 % vol. 
Spiritus Vini Gallici, . . 
Distillation of fermented juice 
of grapes, and at least 4 
years old. 
39 % to 47 % wt., or 
46 % to 55 % vol. 
EXPLANATORY. 
Spiritus JEtheris Nitrosi (Sweet Spirit of Nitre).—This is an 
alcoholic solution of ethyl nitrite (C2H5ONO or C2H5NO2) an or- 
ganic compound belonging to the class of esters. This was made, 
according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1880, by the action of 
nitric acid on alcohol:— 
(a) C2H5OH + HNO3 = CH3COH + HN02 4- H2O 
Alcohol. Nitric Acid. Acetic Aldehyde. Nitrous Acid. Water. 
(b) c2h5oh + hno2 = c2h5no2 + h2o 
Alcohol. Nitrous Acid. Ethyl Nitrite. Water. 
(c) CH3COH 4- HN03 = CH3COOH + hno2 
Acetic Aldehyde. Nitric Acid. Acetic Acid. Nitrous Acid. 
This process is objectionable for two reasons: first, because the 
operation is difficult to regulate, and dangerous to the inexperi- 
enced operator; and second, because the product is largely contami- 
nated with aldehyde (also acetic ether), which soon oxidize to 
acetic acid, causing a gradual decomposition of the ester. 
The present pharmacopoeia process possesses the advantage, 
that it is easily operated and controlled, and that it yields a pure 252 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
ethyl nitrite, free from aldehyde and acetic ether. The nitrous 
acid is produced by the reaction between sodium nitrite and 
sulphuric acid (NaNO2 + n2SO4 = NaHSO4 + HNO2) in the pres- 
ence of alcohol; * hence, the liberated acid reacts in statu nascendi 
upon the alcohol, with immediate production of ethyl nitrite, 
which distills over, contaminated with alcohol and free nitrous 
acid. These latter two are removed by pouring the entire distillate 
into a separating flask containing a solution of the sodium car- 
bonate in ice-cold water, then washing the ethyl nitrite (which 
floats on the surface as a yellowish-colored liquid) by rotating (not 
shaking); the alkaline solution absorbs the alcohol and nitrous 
acid. The aqueous solution is then drawn off, and any trace of 
water remaining in the ethyl nitrite is removed by shaking it 
with a little dry potassium carbonate. This operation should not 
be performed in the neighborhood of a stove or gas flame, because 
of the extreme volatility and inflammable nature of the ester. 
It is well to place the separating flask on ice at intervals while 
operating. 
The presence of water and the action of sunlight and air on 
pure spirit of nitre cause its rapid decomposition (shown by 
its acid reaction) by the splitting up of ethyl nitrite into nitrous 
acid and alcohol; hence the preparation should be preserved in 
well-stoppered vials in a cool and dark place. Spirit of nitrous 
ether should never be kept in large vessels (carboys), since, owing 
to its volatile nature, it rapidly loses strength. Acetic acid fre- 
quently occurs in samples of the commercial spirit; this is due to its 
having originally contained aldehyde, which, under ordinary 
conditions, rapidly oxidizes to acetic acid (CH3COH — 0 = CH3- 
COOH), imparting an acid reaction to the preparation, and caus- 
ing effervescence when a crystal of potassium bicarbonate is 
dropped into it. 
Only the deodorized alcohol of the U. S. P. should be used in 
this preparation; in the presence of a weaker alcohol, the ethyl 
nitrite rapidly undergoes decomposition; hence the fraudulent 
dilution of spirit of nitrous ether with water is a very reprehen- 
sible practice. Spirit of nitrous ether yields a green color with 
antipyrine; if it contains any free nitrous acid, it liberates iodine 
and bromine from their combinations. The presence of traces of 
nitrous acid may be detected by the blue coloration of guaiac 
paper. Alkalies, when allowed to remain in contact with the 
spirit, cause its gradual decomposition. 
The proportion of nitrous ether in spirit of nitre cannot be 
ascertained by means of its specific gravity, for the addition of 
ethyl nitrite (sp. gr. 0.900) to deodorized alcohol (sp. gr. 0.816), 
increases the specific gravity of the latter the same as does water. 
* It should be noted that the amount of Sodium Nitrite directed in the formula given by the U. S. 
Pharmacopoeia is too large. It would be correct if Potassium Nitrite bad been directed. The proper 
amount is 635 Gm. The specific gravity of Spirit of Nitrous Ether is nearly 0.820, not 0 836 — 0.842 
as given in the earlier issues of the U. S. P. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
253 
Assay*—The process of the Pharmacopoeia is that proposed by 
A. H. Allen, in 1885. It consists in measuring the volume of 
nitrogen dioxide given off by a known volume of the spirit, 
when decomposed by the addition of potassium iodide and sul- 
phuric acid according to the following equation:— 
c2h5no2 + ki + H2SO4 = C2H5OH + khso4 + i + no 
Ethyl Nitrite. Potassium Sulphuric Acid. Alcohol. Potassium Acid Iodine. Nitrogen 
78.87 Iodide. Sulphate. Dioxide. 
29.97 
From this it is seen that 78.87 Gm. of ethyl nitrite will yield 
29.97 Gm. of nitric oxide, which measures under normal pressure 
at 0° C. (32° F.) 22327 Cc. One gramme of ethyl nitrite will 
yield at 0° C. 298.249 Cc. of nitric oxide 
gas, or 1 Cc. of the gas will represent 
0.0033529 Gm. of ethyl nitrite. 
NO c2h5no2 no c2h5no2 
298.249 Cc. : 1.0 : : 1 Cc. : x. 
x — 0.0033529. 
It will be observed that the above 
figures express the volume of the gas at 
0° C. As we cannot carry on the opera- 
tion at this temperature, we must make 
an allowance for the difference in volume 
of gas at higher temperatures. Accord- 
ing to the law, gases increase in 
volume, or 0.003663 Cc. for each degree 
Centigrade. For example, let us assume 
that we have obtained 40 Cc. of gas, the 
temperature being 20° C., and the baro- 
metric pressure 740 Mm. It is first nec- 
essary to reduce this volume to cubic 
centimeters expressed at 0° C. This is 
done by dividing the number of cubic 
centimeters obtained by 1, plus as many 
times 0.003663 as there are degrees of 
temperature; thus we divide 40 by 
1.07326 [1 + (20 X 0.003663)], whereby 
we obtain 37.26 Cc., at 0° C., and at the 
normal barometric pressure of 760 Mm. 
(30 inches). If accuracy is desired, we 
must take the degree of barometric pres- 
sure into consideration, for according to 
Boyle’s law, “ the temperature remaining 
the same, the volume of a given quantity of gas is inversely as the 
pressure it bears.” Hence we may make the necessary correction 
by multiplying the volume of gas by the number of millimeters 
(or inches) of pressure and dividing by 760 (or 30). Thus, in this 
Fig. 327. 
Alien’s Nitrometer (Curtmann’s 
Modification). 
* A very exhaustive article on the assay of spirit of nitrous ether was published by Dr. C. O. Curt- 
man in the Western Druggist of 1892, p. 244. 254 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
example, if the pressure be 740 Mm., the corrected volume would 
be (37.26 X 740 760) = 36.27 + Cc. If it is desirable to 
convert this into weight of ethyl nitrite, then we multiply 36.27 
Cc. by 0.0033529 (1 Cc. NO = 0.0033529 + Gm. C2H5NO2) = 
0.12160 4- Gm. ethyl nitrite. Therefore 40 Cc. of nitric oxide gas 
at 20° C., and 740 Mm. measure 36.27 Cc. when reduced to 
0° C. and 760 Mm. The assay operation is performed with an 
instrument called a Nitrometer, of which there are several modi- 
fications, that of Curtman’s design being preferred by the Pharma- 
copoeia.* 
Exercise.—A sample of 5 Cc. of spirit of nitrous ether, when 
assayed by the U. S. P. process, yielded 50 Cc. of nitric oxide 
gas, the temperature of the room (and that of the liquid in the 
nitrometer) being 25° C., and the barometric pressure 750 Mm. 
How much nitric oxide (NO), by volume will it yield, and also 
what per cent, by weight will it contain of ethyl nitrite? 
50 Cc. -4- 1.091575 [1 + (25 X 0.003663)] = 45.85 Cc. (corrected for temperature'). 
(45.85 Cc. X 750 -4- 760) = 45.24 Cc. Nitric Oxide (corrected for temperature aud 
pressure. 
Hence 5 Cc. of the spirit of nitre yield 9.04 + times its volume 
(45.24 Cc.) of nitric oxide gas. 
45.24 Cc. x 0.0033529 = 0.151685 + Gm. Ethyl Nitrite. 
Spir. Nitre. Ethyl Nitrite. 
5 Cc. =4.1 Gm. : 0.151685 :: 100 : x 
a; = 3.7 % 
Therefore the sample contains 3.7 per cent, by weight of ethyl 
nitrite. 
Exercise.—Were it possible to obtain the theoretical yield with 
no loss, how much ethyl nitrite could be made from 550 cubic 
centimeters of deodorized alcohol U. S. P. ? 
We first ascertain how much 100 per cent, alcohol is contained 
in 550 Cc. of deodorized alcohol; 550 X 0.816 (sp. gr.) = 448.8 
Gm. by weight; 92.5 per cent, of this — 415.14 Gm. of pure 
alcohol. 
The reaction takes place according to the equation— 
c2h5oh + hno2 = c2h5no2 + h2o 
Alcohol. Nitrous Acid. Ethyl Nitrite. Water. 
46 p. 74.8 p. 
As 46 parts of absolute (100 per cent.) alcohol are capable of 
yielding 74.8 parts of ethyl nitrite, hence 415.14 Gm. of alcohol 
wrould yield 675.05 Gm. of ethyl nitrite. 
Alcohol. Ethyl Nitrite. Alcohol. Ethyl Nitrite. 
46 : 74.8 : : 415.14 : x 
x — 675.05 
Therefore, if the conditions above stated could be carried out, 
we would obtain a yield of 675.05 Gm. of ethyl nitrite. 
* The instructions for operating this are given in the U. S. P., part iv, page 509. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
255 
Spiritus Glonoini (Liquor Trinitrini B. P.—Spirit of Nitro- 
glycerin).—This contains 1 per cent, by weight of glonoin (gly- 
ceryl or propenyl trinitrate), or, as it is more properly known, 
nitroglycerin. The latter is obtained by the action of a cold 
mixture of nitric and sulphuric acids on glycerin; the reaction 
being 
C3H5(OH3) + 3HNO3 = C3H5(NO3)3 + 3H2O 
Glycerin. Nitric Acid. Nitroglycerin. Water. 
Owing to the explosive nature of nitroglycerin, special attention 
is directed to the precautions given by the Pharmacopoeia in 
regard to the storage and handling of the Spirit. As a remedy 
it should be dispensed with caution, being a powerful cardiac 
stimulant in doses of one to two minims. 256 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
VINA MEDICATA—{Medicated Wines). 
Medicated Wines are a class of preparations similar to tinc- 
tures, only differing as to menstruum, which is, according to the 
U. S. Pharmacopoeia, either a dry, white wine (Vinum Album) or 
a mixture of white wine with alcohol. 
Red Wine (Vinum Rubrum) does not enter into any of the 
official medicated wines. Since wines themselves readily undergo 
fermentation when exposed to the air, the medicated wines, which 
contain additional extractive matter, are still more prone to de- 
composition, undergoing acetic and mucous fermentation, becom- 
ing thereby ropy and sour. 
In all instances, in order to enhance the stability of the pre- 
paration, the Pharmacopoeia has directed the addition of alcohol, 
either direct, or in the flavoring constituent. Though not as 
stable as the tinctures, the medicated wines present an advantage 
in being of a lesser alcoholic strength, hence possessing a lower 
stimulating effect, which, in the case of the tinctures, often inter- 
feres with the action of certain medicinal agents, such as sedatives, 
expectorants, etc. 
The greatest care should be exercised in selecting only the 
purest wine obtainable, and it should be subjected to the proper 
tests as specified in the Pharmacopoeia. Medicated Wines, owing 
to their liability to change, should be made up in small quantities 
only, and kept in well-stoppered bottles, in a cool place. 
It is a very important point, in the preparation of medicated 
wines, to observe that the wine employed be of proper alcoholic 
strength. With this object in view, the U. S. Pharmacopoeia has 
given a ready method for the estimation of alcohol in wines, which 
is also applicable to some tinctures and fluid extracts. In addi- 
tion to this, there is another accurate method which is often 
employed by chemists; this consists in mixing a certain volume 
(say 50 Cc.) of a wine or fluid containing alcohol with an equal 
bulk of water (neutralizing any free acid that may be present, by 
the addition of a little chalk), then distilling carefully until a 
volume of distillate is obtained, equal to that of the sample of 
wine or fluid taken (50 Cc. as above). This distillate represents 
the alcoholic strength of the sample, which is readily ascertained 
by the determination of its specific gravity and then finding the 
corresponding percentage in the alcoholometric tables. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
257 
VINA MEDICATA, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Active Constituents.* 
Properties. 
Dose. 
VlNUM 
Antimonii, 
Tartar-Emetic, 0.4 %. 
Expectorant, 
30-60 nt- 
Colcbici Radicis, . . 
Colchicum Root, 40 %. 
Diuretic, 
10-60 nt- 
Col chici Seminis, . . . 
Colchicum Seed, 15 %. 
30-120 m. 
Ergotae, 
Ergot, 15 °/o. 
Emmenagogue, 
Parturient 
3-15 Cc. 
Ferri Amarum, .... 
Cit. Iron and Quinine, 5 %. 
Tonic, 
8-15 Cc. 
Ferri Citratis,.... 
Cit. Iron and Ammonium, 4%. 
u 
8-15 Cc. 
Ipecacuanhas, 
Fl’d. Ext. Ipecac, 10 %. 
Expectorant, 
10-30 PL. 
Opii, 
Powd. Opium, 10 %. 
Sedative, 
15-20 nt- 
Album, 
Alcohol, 10-14 %, by weight. 
Base. 
Rubrum, 
“ 10-14 %, “ 
* See Footnote, page 225. 258 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Tinkturen, Germ.; Teintures, Alcooles, French ; Alcoholados, Span. 
Tinctures are alcoholic or partially alcoholic solutions of the 
useful constituents of drugs, which are usually not wholly solu- 
ble in the menstruum. (Tincture of Iodine, Tinct. of Ferric 
Chloride, and perhaps a few others are included in this class from 
long custom). 
Menstruum.—The strength of the menstruum employed in 
different tinctures varies according to the nature of the drug. 
Before a suitable menstruum can be selected, the nature of the 
active constituents of the drug must be studied, and such a sol- 
vent selected as will take up those principles with as little inert 
matter as possible, and yet yield a permanent and elegant prep- 
aration. For this reason, various menstrua are directed by the 
Pharmacopoeia, and unless for a satisfactory reason, a weaker or 
stronger menstruum than that directed, should not be employed. 
The most common menstruum employed is alcohol diluted to 
different degrees of strength. The alcohol of the U. S. Pharma- 
copoeia is directed to be of the specific gravity 0.820; that of the 
British 0.838; of the German, 0.830 to 0.834 ; and of the French, 
0.819. In a few instances, the U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs the 
addition of glycerin to the menstruum; this adds to the perma- 
nency of tinctures containing tannin-like principles. Such men- 
strua as aromatic spirit of ammonia and ethereal spirit (ether 7 p., 
alcohol 3 p.), are also employed, these being known as ammoniated 
tinctures and ethereal tinctures.* 
Strength.—The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs a certain quantity 
of the air-dried drug, expressed in grammes, to be employed to 
make 1000 cubic centimeters of the finished tincture. 
The British Pharmacopoeia directs, on an average, one part (by 
weight) of the drug to be represented by 8 parts by measure of 
the finished tincture. In the French, German and Austrian 
Pharmacopoeias, one part of the drug (by weight) is represented 
by 5 or 10 parts (by weight) of the tincture. The strength of 
tinctures prepared from potent drugs varies considerably among 
different foreign Pharmacopoeias. It is therefore well to bear 
this important point in mind in dispensing U. S. Pharmacopoeia 
tinctures in foreign prescriptions. 
TINCTU R2E—(Tinctures). 
* Teintures ithiries of the French Pharmacopoeia. ALCOHOLIC OR 
HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
259 
Tinctura.—100 Parts. 
Parts of Drug (dry). 
By Weight. 
By Measure. 
U. S. P.» 
Ph. Ger. 
Ph. Fr. 
B.P. 
Aconiti (leaves) 
20 
“ (root), 
35 
10 
20 
12.5 
Aloes, 
10 
20 
2.5 
Belladonna Foliorinn, 
15 
20 
5 
Cannabis Indicae (herb), 
25 
20 
“ “ (extract), 
5 
Cantharftlis, 
5 
10 
10 
1.25 
Cinchonte, 
20 
20 
20 
20 
Colchici Seminis, 
15 
10 
20 
12.5 
Digitalis (Ph. Ger. fresh pulp), 
15 
83.3 
20 
12.5 
Gelsemii, 
15 
12.5 
Hyoscyami, 
15 
20 
12.5 
lo'di, 
7 
9.1 
7.7 
2.5 
Lobelias, 
20 
20 
20 
12.5 
Nucis Vomicae (Tr. Strychni), 
Ext. 2 Gms. 
10 
20 
Ext. 1% grs. 
Opii, . . 
10 
10 
13 
7.5 
Physostigmatis, 
15 
20 
Rhei, 
10 
10 Aq. 
20 
10 
Stramonii Seminis, 
15 
12.5 
“ Foliorum, 
20 
Veratri (albi), 
10 
20 
Veratri Viridis, '. 
40 
20 
Preparation.—For the preparation of tinctures only the best 
obtainable quality of a drug should be employed. The use of 
cheap and second-rate material is a culpable and reprehensible 
practice. The market affords an abundance of first-class drugs 
at a reasonable price for the quality. 
The various methods employed in the preparation of tinctures 
are:—first, Solution; second, Maceration; third, Digestion; fourth, 
Percolation. 
1st. Solution.— This is applicable in such instances as tinctures 
of iodine and tolu, where the material is wholly or practically 
soluble in alcohol. 
2d. Maceration.^—This process is preferred by the majority of 
foreign pharmacopoeias. For this purpose large, strong bottles 
with a wide mouth are selected, the drug (in coarse powder or 
particles) and menstruum are introduced, and they are then well 
corked and set aside for a period of from 7 to 14 days. The tem- 
perature of the room should be about 20° C.; the bottles should 
be conveniently placed, so that they may be shaken once or twice 
daily. At the end of the period of maceration the fluid portion 
is drained off, the residue then transferred to the strainer, deprived 
of as much of the fluid as possible by hand pressure, then enclosed 
securely in the straining-cloth, and subjected to pressure in a 
tincture press. The tincture is allowed to settle and is then 
* This is only approximate for the U. S. P., for the drug is expressed in parts by weight, and the 
finished product in parts by measure. 
t Concerning the comparative advantages and disadvantages of Maceration and Percolation, see 
page 189. 260 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
filtered. No attempt is made to bring the strained liquid to a 
definite volume by washing the dregs with menstruum. 
3d. Digestion.—This is maceration between the temperatures 
of 30° and 40° C. It is employed in such cases where the drug 
is difficult of extraction, or where rapid exhaustion is desired. 
In this operation the drug and menstruum should be placed in a 
large glass flask, which is placed on a water- or sand-bath. The 
flask is closed with a perforated stopper, into which may be fitted 
an inverted condenser (Fig. 151), or a long (4-5 ft.) plain glass tube 
(air cooler), for the purpose of condensing the volatilized solvent. 
The apparatus is allowed to become cold before the contents are 
drained off. 
4th. Percolation.—While the principle of percolation or dis- 
placement has been known and applied in chemical and indus- 
trial operations for a very long time, it was first applied, officially, 
to the preparation of tinctures, fluid extracts, etc., in this country, 
in the Pharmacopoeia of 1840. It is now also recognized to some 
extent by the pharmacopoeias of England, France, Germany, 
Switzerland, etc. 
Percolation as applied to the preparation of tinctures, although 
demanding care and close attention, is not fraught with the same 
difficulties as in the preparation of fluid extracts, since the 
volume of menstruum is largely in excess of that necessary to 
insure the exhaustion of the drug. This should not, however, 
lead to carelessness, for no matter how large the excess of men- 
struum may be, should the operator have packed the drug care- 
lessly, and not have devoted proper attention to the operation, 
exhaustion cannot be expected. The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs 
a short period of maceration, previous to beginning percolation. 
This precaution should always be observed, and the time should 
rather be lengthened than shortened. The British Pharmacopoeia 
demands a preliminary maceration of forty-eight hours, which is 
certainly a point in its favor. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs that the drug be percolated 
until a certain volume (1000 Cc.) is obtained. Hence, the men- 
struum which is retained by the drug is lost. To avoid this, it 
has been suggested to adopt the method of the British Pharma- 
copoeia. According to this, after the whole of the menstruum 
(equal in volume to the quantity of tincture to be obtained) has 
been added, and percolation ceases, the marc is to be transferred 
to a tincture press, the expressed and filtered liquid mixed with 
the percolate, and the whole then made up to the proper volume 
by adding more menstruum. 
Some operators attempt to recover the menstruum retained by 
the drug by forcing it out with water. This is not advisable, 
since the vegetable tissues, on coming in contact with water, swell 
and often choke the percolator. Besides, water takes up other 
principles than alcohol, and since the diffusion of the one into 
the other cannot be prevented, this diluted menstruum, generally ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
261 
contaminated with inert extractive, flows into the more or 
less alcoholic percolate, causing thereby cloudiness or precipita- 
tion. 
The practice of preparing tinctures by diluting Fluid Ex- 
tracts* should be condemned, particularly so in the case of potent 
drugs. 
Preservation.—Tinctures should be kept in well-stoppered 
bottles, away from the direct rays of the sun. As a guide to the 
estimation of the quality and strength of tinctures, the German 
Pharmacopoeia specifies the limits of specific gravity; the per- 
centage of dry residue left on evaporation on the water-bath ; the 
percentage of ash; or the percentage of acid expressed in milli- 
grammes of KOH, necessary to neutralize 10 Gm. of tincture 
diluted with 100 Gm. of water. These figures, however, do not 
give any decisive clue as to the quality of the tincture. When 
the activity of a drug resides in certain definite proximate prin- 
ciples, the only accurate method of judging the quality of its 
preparations is by assay. The U. S. Pharmacopoeia has thus 
standardized two of its tinctures, viz., those of Opium and Nux 
Vomica. 
TINCTURE HERBARUM RECENTIUM. 
This class of preparations was introduced many years ago by 
Hahnemann, and is extensively used at present in homoeopathic 
and eclectic practice. They were first prepared by the addition 
of the freshly-expressed juice to twice its weight of alcohol. The 
United States, as well as French Pharmacopoeias, adopted the 
process of Soubeiran, which consisted in macerating the fresh,cut 
or bruised drug with alcohol in definite proportions. As a rule, 
these are very active preparations, for it is justly claimed that the 
process of drying, in order to prepare drugs for the process of 
grinding and powdering, injures or alters many sensitive active 
principles. On the other hand, uniformity in the strength of 
these preparations cannot be expected, for the freshly-collected 
drug contains a variable amount of moisture, according to the 
time of gathering and the length of subsequent exposure. The 
U. S. gives the following directions: “ These tinc- 
tures, when not otherwise directed, are to be prepared by the fol- 
lowing formula: Take of the fresh herb, bruised or crushed, 
500 Gm.; alcohol, 1000 Cc.; macerate the herb with the alcohol 
for fourteen days; then express the liquid and filter.” Among the 
tinctures made by this process and in frequent use are those of 
Rhus Toxicodendron, Conium, Digitalis, Hyoscyamus, Pulsatilla, 
Gelsemium, Aconite, Belladonna, etc. 
* “ Tinctures from Fluid Extracts,” J. W. England, Druggists' Circular, 1893, p. 245. 
fThe French Pharmacopoeia directs equal parts of the fresh drug and alcohol of 90 and to mace- 
rate 10 days. 262 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
SUCCI—JUICES. 
These are a class of preparations official in the British Pharma- 
copoeia, made by bruising and expressing fresh, succulent drugs. 
The juice is then mixed with a definite volume of alcohol (1 vol. 
alcohol to 3 vols. juice), the mixture set aside for seven days, and 
filtered. These preparations vary in strength for the same reasons 
which were just given under Tinctures of Fresh Herbs, which 
latter were introduced into the U. S. Pharmacopoeia in lieu of the 
“ Succi.” 
The British Pharmacopoeia recognizes Succus Belladonnae, 
Conii, Hyoscyami, Scoparii,and Taraxaci. 
EXPLANATORY (Tinctures). 
There are 71 tinctures official in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. 
Tinctura Ferri Chloride—This preparation should be al- 
lowed to stand at least 3 months before being dispensed, as directed 
by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. By this time it will have developed 
an agreeable ethereal odor due to the formation of a small amount 
of ethyl chloride (C2H5C1). Tincture of iron is incompatible with 
alkalies, alkaline earths or carbonates (production of Fe2(OH)6 or 
Fe2O3); likewise with preparations containing tannic acid (inky 
mixtures); also with mercurous salts (forming mercuric com- 
pounds) ; with mucilage of acacia it often produces a jelly. 
Assay.—See Liquor Ferri Chloridi. 
Tinctura Iodi.—Freshly prepared tincture of iodine forms a 
precipitate upon the addition of water; after long standing, how- 
ever, it is often found to yield a clear solution with water. This 
is due to the formation of hydriodicacid produced by the reaction 
between the iodine and alcohol. 
The British Pharmacopoeia adds potassium iodide to its tinc- 
ture for the purpose of rendering it miscible with water. This is 
not objectionable when it is intended for internal use ; but, as it 
is exceedingly rare to administer iodine in this form, the advan- 
tage of the addition of KI is scarcely apparent. 
The tincture should be recently prepared. It is incompatible 
with salts of the metals (forms insoluble metallic iodides); also 
alkalies, alkaline carbonates, ammonium chloride (iodide of nitro- 
gen, explosive), starch (iodide of starch), sodium hyposulphite 
(decolorized), and most alkaloids. 
The so-called Decolorized Tincture of Iodine is made by digest- 
ing 10 parts each of iodine, sodium hyposulphite and water, until 
solution is effected, then adding 16 parts of spirit of ammonia, 
shaking, adding 75 parts of alcohol, and filtering after three days. 
The title of the preparation is very misleading, for it does not 
contain a trace of free iodine, it having all combined with the ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
263 
alkalies, forming sodium and ammonium iodide, sodium tetra- 
thionate, with some ethyl iodide (C2H5I) and triethylamine hydrio- 
dide (N(C2H5)3HI). 
Assay.—The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs that 6.3 Cc. of the 
tincture be added to a solution of 2 Gm. of potassium iodide in 
25 Cc. of water: the alkali iodide is added for the purpose of pre- 
venting the precipitation of the iodine in the aqueous liquid. 
Gelatinized starch is then added, which forms a blue colored 
solution with the free iodide. To the mixture is now slowly 
added decinormal solution of sodium hyposulphite,* until the 
blue color disappears. One molecule of iodine (2 X 126.6 parts) 
unites with the two molecules of sodium hyposulphite (2 X 247.6 
parts) to form the soluble, colorless, sodium iodide,thus:— 
2(Na2S2O3.5H2O) + 21 = 2NaI + Na.2S4O6 4- IOH.,0 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. Sodium Iodide. Sodium Water. 
2 X'247.6 2 X 126.6 Tetrathionate. 
One molecule Hyposulphite, 247.6 p. One atom Iodine, 126.6 p. 
24.76 Gm. Hyposulphite (1000 Cc.) — 12.66 Gm. Iodine. 
0.02476 “ (1 Cc.) — 0.01266 “ 
35 Cc. Hyposulphite = 35 X 0 01266 — 0.443-f-Gm. Iodine. 
Since 6.3 Cc. of tincture were taken, then it must contain of 
iodine [(0.443 -s- 6.3) X 100] = 7 Gm. in 100 Cc. 
Tinctura Opii.—The directions of the Pharmacopoeia should 
be strictly adhered to, in the employment of a powdered opium, 
the morphine strength of which has been previously ascertained 
by assay. Crude opium (except on a manufacturing scale, and 
with rigid assay of the product) should never be used, because, 
from its variable percentage of moisture, it would yield a prepara- 
tion of a very unreliable strength. The object of the Pharmaco- 
poeia is to secure uniformity of strength ; any deviation from this, 
in so important a preparation, is indeed a serious matter. 
Assay.—The present official method of assay, for this tincture, 
is very simple, and no apothecary should excuse himself for 
applying it. The process is as follows :— 
“ If 100 Cc. of Tincture of Opium be assayed by the process im- 
mediately following, it should yield from 1.3 to 1.5 Gm. of crys- 
tallized morphine. 
Assay of Tincture of Opium. 
Tincture of Opium, one hundred cubic centimeters 100 Cc. 
Ammonia Water, three and five-tenths cubic centimeters, . . . 3.5 Cc. 
Alcohol, 
Ether, 
Water, each, a sufficient quantity. 
Evaporate the tincture to about 20 Cc., add about 40 Cc. of 
water, mix thoroughly, and set the liquid aside for an hour, oc- 
casionally stirring, and disintegrating the resinous flakes adhering 
* See Decinormal Solution of Sodium Hyposulphite. 264 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
to the capsule. Then filter, and wash the filter and residue with 
water, until all soluble matters are extracted, collecting the wash- 
ings separately.” 
The tincture should be slowly evaporated in a dish or beaker 
glass of about 150 Cc. capacity, on a water-bath, and not boiled. 
A higher temperature will result in a partial destruction of the mor- 
phine. Before an attempt is made to precipitate the morphine, such 
impurities as resin and caoutchouc, with as much coloring and 
extractive matter as possible, should be removed; otherwise these 
would be carried down with the morphine precipitate, and give 
false results. Hence the tincture is evaporated to a small bulk 
(20 Cc.), when the loss of alcohol causes the partial separation of 
the resin and caoutchouc. This is made more complete by the 
addition of 40 Cc. of cold water, in which these are comparatively 
insoluble. After standing the specified time, it should be carefully 
filtered through a small (3 in.) plain filter, the guiding-rod being 
used to direct the flow of fluid without loss. The residue in the 
capsule or beaker is rinsed on to the filter and the washing con- 
tinued the filtrate comes through devoid of all traces of 
bitter taste ; or better, until a few drops of the filtrate collected 
on a watch-glass, and acidulated with a drop of dilute hydro- 
chloric acid, ceases to give a precipitate with Mayer’s Reagent* ; 
or with Lugol’s Solution. 
“ Evaporate in a fared capsule, first, the washings to a small 
volume, then add the first filtrate, and evaporate the whole to a 
weight of 14 Gm. Rotate the concentrated solution about in the 
capsule until the rings of extract are redissolved, pour the liquid 
into a fared Erlenmeyer flask, having a capacity of about 100 Cc., 
and rinse the capsule with a few drops of water at a time, until 
the entire solution weighs 20 Gm. Then add 10 Gm. (or 12.2 Cc.) 
of alcohol, shake well, add 25 Cc. of ether, and shake again. Now 
add the ammonia water from a graduated pipette or burette, 
stopper the flask with a sound cork, shake it thoroughly during 
ten minutes, and then set it aside, in a moderately cool place, for 
at least six hours, or over night.” 
The weaker solution is first evaporated to a small volume, and 
the first filtrate, which contains nearly all of the morphine, is 
then added. In this way the injurious effect of prolonged heat 
is avoided. After having transferred the entire solution into a 
fared assay flask, by washing with a little water until the whole 
weighs 20 Gm., we are ready for the precipitation of the mor- 
phine. This alkaloid is in solution, combined chiefly with 
meconic acid, and inasmuch as morphine is practically insoluble 
in water (1 in 4350), it may be readily precipitated from its solu- 
tion by the addition of an alkali, preferably ammonia (since 
soda or potassa readily dissolves this alkaloid). The ammonia 
♦Prepared by dissolving 13.546 Gm. of mercuric chloride and 49.8 Gm. of potassium iodide in suf- 
ficient distilled water to make 1000 Cc. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
265 
water must be of ten per cent, strength, and not more than 3.5 
Cc. should be added, for an excess of this, over and above that 
necessary to combine with the meconic acid present, will cause 
some of the morphine to be retained in solution. Alcohol and 
ether are added before the ammonia water; the volume of the 
former is not sufficient to exert any solvent effect on the mor- 
phine, while its presence serves to retain the coloring matter in 
solution, preventing its being carried down with the mor- 
phine. The ether serves to promote the rapid and thorough 
separation of the morphine as well as to take up coloring matter 
and narcotine. 
“ Remove the stopper carefully, and, should any crystals ad- 
here to it, brush them into the flask. Place in a small funnel 
two rapidly-acting filters, of a diameter of 7 Cm., plainly 
folded, one within the other (the triple fold of the inner filter 
being laid against the single side of the outer filter), wet them 
well with ether, and decant the ethereal solution as completely as 
possible upon the inner filter. Add 10 Cc. of ether to the contents 
of the flask, rotate it, and again decant the ethereal layer upon 
the inner filter. Repeat this operation with another portion of 
10 Cc. of ether. Then pour into the filter the liquid in the flask, 
in portions, in such a way as to transfer the greater portion of the 
crystals to the filter, and, when this has passed through, transfer 
the remaining crystals to the filter by washing the flask with 
several portions of water, using not more than about 10 Cc. in all. 
Allow the double filter to drain, then apply water to the crystals, 
drop by drop, until they are practically free from mother-water, 
and afterwards wash them, drop by drop, from a pipette, with 
alcohol previously saturated with powdered morphine. When 
this has passed through, displace the remaining alcohol by ether, 
using about 10 Cc., or more if necessary. Allow the filter to dry 
in a moderately warm place, at a temperature not exceeding 60° 
C. (140° F.) until its weight remains constant, then carefully 
transfer the crystals to a fared watch-glass and weigh them. 
“The weight found represents the amount of crystallized mor- 
phine obtained from 100 Cc. of the Tincture.” 
The filter is first wetted with ether, otherwise, should some of 
the aqueous filtrate be poured, through carelessness, on the filter, 
this would prevent the ether from filtering through. After the 
ether washings have all been decanted upon the filter, the latter 
is allowed to stand a few minutes until the ether has evaporated, 
then the aqueous fluid containing the crystals of morphine in 
suspension is poured, in portions, upon the filter. Crystals 
always remain adhering to the sides of the flask. These can be 
easily removed by rinsing out first with a portion of the filtrate, or, 
if necessary, they may be detached by means of a rubber-tipped 
glass-rod. The flask is now rinsed out with 10 Cc. of water, used 
in portions. The U. S. P. directs, that, as soon as the filter has 
drained, water should be dropped (not poured) over the crystals 266 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
until they are free from mother liquor; for this purpose not more 
than about 8 to 10 Cc. of water should be used.* If the crystals 
are of a light gray or buff color, they will be sufficiently pure, 
but should they be of a brown, or very dark gray color, then they 
should be further washed with alcohol saturated with morphine, 
followed with ether as directed. It is important that the ether 
follow the morphinated alcohol as soon as the latter has dis- 
appeared from the surface of the precipitate on the filter; other- 
wise, the morphine introduced by the morphinated alcohol might 
remain in the precipitate, upon evaporation of the alcohol, and 
the ether would not be able to displace it. The drying is done at 
a moderate heat, since it is only necessary to remove the ether, 
when crystallized morphine will remain behind. 
Tincture of Opium is incompatible with solutions containing 
free ammonia (aromatic spirit of ammonia), solutions containing 
tannic acid, and other substances affecting alkaloids. 
One grain of powdered opium is represented, in U. S. measures, 
by 10.5 minims (U. S.), 14 minims (B. P.) 11.3 minims (Ph. Ger.), 
and 9 minims (Fr. Ph.) of the tincture. 
The powdered or dry opium employed by these several Phar- 
macopoeias should contain of morphine, 13 to 15 per cent, of crys- 
tallized (U. S.), about 10 per cent, of anhydrous (B. P.), at least 10 
to 12 per cent, of anhydrous (Fr. Ph.), and 10 per cent, of anhy- 
drous (Ph. Ger.). 
One hundred parts of crystallized morphine correspond to 
94.06 parts of anhydrous; and. 100 parts of anhydrous correspond 
to 106.31 parts of crystallized morphine. 
* Water saturated with morphine (morphinated water) may be employed in larger quantities, as it 
does not exert any solvent action on the morphine. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
267 
Official Title. 
Bek Cent.* 
Active 
Constituents. 
Constituents. 
Menstruum. 
Dose. 
Ti nctura— 
Opii Camphorata, 
Each 0.4 
P. Opium, Benzoic Aeid, Camphor, each 4 Gm., Oil Anise 4 Cc. 
Dil. Alcohol, Glycerin. 
0.5-15 Cc. 
Nucis Vomicae, 
2 
Ext. Nux Vomica 20 Gm, 
Ale. 3 p., Water 1 p. 
0.3-1 Cc. 
Cantharidis 
5 
P. Cantharides 50 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
0.3-1 Cc. 
Capsici, 
5 
P. Capsicum 50 Gm. 
Ale. 95 p., Water 5 p. 
0.5-3 Cc. 
Mosch i, 
5 
Musk 50 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
1-2 Cc. 
Strophanthi, 
5 
P. Strophanthus 50 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
0.2-0.6 Cc. 
lodi 
7 
Iodine 70 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
External. 
Aloes, 
10 
Aloes 100 Gm., Liquorice Root 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-15 Cc. 
Aloes et Myrrh®, 
10 
Aloes, 100 Gm., Myrrh 100 Gm., Liquorice Root 100 Gm. 
Ale. 75 p., Water 25 p. 
2-7 Cc. 
Arnie® Radicis, 
10 
Arnica Root 100 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
External. 
Bryoni®, 
10 
Bryonia 100 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
External. 
Calumb®, 
10 
Calumba 100 Gm. 
Ale. 60 p., Waler 40 p. 
3-14 Cc. 
Cardamom!, 
10 
Cardamon 100 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
3-8 Cc. 
Catechu Composita, 
10 
Catechu 100 Gm., Cassia 50 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
2-10 Cc. 
Chirat®, 
10 
Chirata 100 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
2-8 Cc. 
Cinchon® Composita, 
10 
Red Cinchona 100 Gm., Serpentaria 20 Gm., Bitter Orange 
Peel 80 Gm. 
Cevlon Cinnamon 100 Gm. 
Ale. 85 p.,Water 7.5 p.,Glycerin. 
3-8 Cc. 
Cinnamom i 
10 
Ale. 75 p.,Water 20 p. Glycerin. 
3-15 Cc. 
Croci 
10 
Saffron 100 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
Color. 
Gentian® Composita, 
10 
Gentian 100 Gm., Bitter Orange Peel 40 Gm., Cardamom 10 Gm. 
Ale. 60 p., Water 40 p. 
3-8 Cc. 
Kino, . 
10 
Kino 100 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p.,Water 20 p., Glycerin. 
2 8 Cc. 
Matico, 
10 
Matico 100 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
3-8 Cc. 
Opii, 
10 
P. Opium 100 Gm. (Calc. Phosp.) 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-0 9 Cc. 
Opii Deodorati, 
10 
P. Opium 100 Gm. (Ether—Calc. Phos.) 
Ale. 20 p., Water 80 p. 
0.3 0.9 Cc. 
Quassi®, 
10 
Quassia 100 Gm. 
Ale. 35 p., Water 65. 
2-4 Cc. 
Rhei, 
10 
Rhubarb 100 Gin., Cardamom 20 Gm. 
Ale 60 p.,Water 30 p., Glycerin. 
3-15 Cc. 
Rhei Dulcis, 
10 
Rhubarb 100 Gm., Liquorice 40 Gm., Anise 40 Gm., Cardamom 
Ale. 50 p.,Water 40 p., Glycerin. 
3-8 Cc. 
Serpen tari®, 
10 
10 Gm. 
Serpentaria 100 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
2-8 Cc. 
Suinbul, 
10 
Sumbtll 100 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
1-4 Cc. 
Tolutana, 
10 
Balsam Tolu 100 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
Flavor. 
Vanill®, 
10 
Vanilla 100 Gm., Sugar 200 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p , Water 35 p. 
Flavor. 
Ferri Chloridi, 
13.6 
Sol. Fe2Cl6 250 Cc. 
Alcohol. 
0.3-1 Cc. 
Belladonn® Foliorum, .... 
15 
Belladonna Lvs. 150 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-0.9 Cc. 
Cannabis Indic®, 
15 
Cannabis Ind. 150 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
0.3-1 Cc. 
Colchici Seminis, 
15 
Colchicum Seed 150 Gm. 
Ale. 60 p., Water 40 p. 
0.6-3 Cc. 
Digitalis, 
15 
Digitalis 150 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-1.5 Cc. 
Gelsemii, 
15 
Gelsemium 150 Gm. 
Ale. 65 p., Water 35 p. 
0 1-0 9 Cc. 
Hyoscyami, 
15 
Hyoscyamus 150 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.6-3 Cc. 
SYLLABUS OF TINCTURES. 
* See Footnote on page 225. 268 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Official Title. 
Per Cent.* 
Active 
Constituents. 
Constituents. 
Menstruum. 
Dose. 
Tinctura— 
Physostigmatis, 
15 
Physostigma 150 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
0.3-0.6 Cc. 
Sanguinari®, 
15 
Sanguinaria 150 Gm., Acetic Acid 20 Cc. 
Ale. 60 p., Water 40 p. 
1-2 Cc. 
Scill®, 
15 
Squill 150 Gm. 
Ale. 75 p., Water 25 p. 
0 3-1 Cc. 
Stramonii Seminis, 
15 
Stramonium Seed 150 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-0.6 Cc. 
Arnie® Florum, 
20 
Arnica Flos. 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
External. 
Asafcetid®, 
20 
Asafcetida 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
0.5-2 Cc. 
Aurantii Amari, 
20 
Bitter Orange Peel 200 Gm. 
Ale. 60 p., Water 40 p. 
Flavor. 
“ Dulcis, 
20 
Fresh Sweet Orange Peel 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
Flavor. 
Benzoini, 
20 
Benzoin 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
Lotion. 
Calendul®, 
20 
Calendula 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
External. 
Cimicifug®, 
20 
Cimicifuga 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
3-7 Cc. 
Cinchona;, 
20 
Cinchona 200 Gm. 
Ale. 67.5 p., Water 25 p., Gly- 
3-7 Cc. 
Cubeb®, 
20 
Cubeb 200 Gm. 
cerin. 
Alcohol. 
2-7 Cc. 
Gall®, 
20 
Nutgall 200 Gm. 
Alcohol, Glycerin. 
Lotion. 
Guaiaci, 
20 
Guaiac 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
1-4 Cc. 
“ Ammoniata, 
20 
Guaiac 200 Gm. 
Sp. Ammonia Arom. q. s. 
1-4 Cc. 
Humuli, 
20 
Hops 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
3-12 Cc. 
Hydrastis, 
Ipecacuanhas et Opii, .... 
20 
Hydrastis 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
1-3 Cc. 
20 
Fl. Ext. Ipecac 100 Cc., Deod. Tr. Opium 1000 Cc. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.3-1 Cc. 
Krameri®, 
20 
Rhatany 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
2-8 Cc. 
Lobeli®, 
20 
Lobelia 200 Gm. 
Dil. Alcohol. 
0.5-1 Cc. 
Myrrh®, 
30 
Myrrh 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
1-1.5 Cc. 
Pyrethri, 
Quillaj®, 
20 
Pyrethrum 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
External. 
20 
Quillaja 200 Gm. 
Ale. 35 p., Water q. s. 
External. 
Khei Aromatica, 
20 
Rhubarb 200 Gm., Cinnamon, Cloves each 40 Gm., Nutmeg 
Dil. Alcohol, Glycerin. 
1.5-10 Cc. 
Valerian®, 
20 
20 Gm. 
Valerian 200 Gm. 
Ale. 75 p., Water 25 p. 
3-8 Cc. 
“ Ammoniata, . . . 
20 
Valerian 200 Gm. 
Sp. Ammon. Ar. q. s. 
3-8 Cc. 
Zingiberis, 
20 
Ginger 200 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
1-3 Cc. 
Benzoini Composita 
20 
Benzoin 120 Gm., Purif. Aloes 20 Gm., Storax 80 Gm., Balsam 
Alcohol. 
Lotion. 
Aconiti, 
Veratri Viridis 
Cardamomi Composita, .... 
35 
Tolu 40 Gm. 
Aconite Root 350 Gm. 
Ale. 70 p., Water 30 p. 
0.06-0.18 Cc. 
40 
Veratrum Viride 400 Gm. 
Alcohol. 
0.06-0.3 Cc. 
40 
Cardamom, Cinnamon each 20 Gm., Caraway 10 Gm., Cochineal 
Dil. Alcohol, Glycerin. 
Aromatic. 
Lactucarii, 
Lavandnl® Composita, .... 
50 
5 Gm. 
Lactucarium 500 Gm. (Benzine). 
Dil. Alcohol, Glvcerin. 
0.5-3 Cc. 
Oil Lavender Fl. 8 Cc., Oil Rosemary 2 Cc., Cinnamon 20 Gm., 
Cloves 5 Gm., Nutmeg 10 Gm., Red Saunders 10 Gm. 
Ale. 70 p.,Water 25 p., Dil. Ale. 
2-7 Cc. 
SYLLABUS OF TINCTURES.—Continued. 
* See Footnote on page 225. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
269 
EXTRACTA FLUID A—{Fluid Extracts). 
Fluid Extracts are concentrated fluid preparations of nearly 
uniform strength, representing the activity of the drug, volume 
for weight. When properly prepared they afford a permanent, 
active, concentrated liquid, representing the drug in definite pro- 
portions. 
As required by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 1 cubic centimeter of 
the preparation represents the medicinal activity of 1 gramme 
of the drug. Previous to 1880, the strength was represented by 
1 troy-ounce of the drug to 1 fluidounce of the fluid extract. On 
comparison it will be seen that our present fluid extracts are 
about 5 per cent, weaker than those of the Pharmacopoeia of 
1870, thus:— 
100 troy ounces of drug (3110.4 Gm.) yield 100 fluidounces (2956.4 Cc.) of fluid 
extract.—U. S. P., 1870. 
100 grammes of drug yield 100 Cc. of fluid extract.—U. S. P., 1880 and 1890. 
It will be seen that according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1870, 
3110.4 Gm. (100 troy ounces) of drug yielded 2956.4 Cc. (100 
fluidounces) of fluid extract, instead of 3110.4 Cc., as the present 
Pharmacopoeia requires; hence there is a difference of 154 Cc. 
in the proportion of volume to drug, which render our present 
fluid extracts about 5 per cent, weaker as compared with those 
based on troy weight and fluidounces, and which is certainly a 
point in their favor. 
The British Pharmacopoeia directs that its liquid extracts (with 
the exception of those of cinchona, glycyrrhiza, opium and 
pareira), be made of the strength of 1 avoirdupois ounce to 1 
fluidounce imperial. They are practically identical with our 
own. 
The German Pharmacopoeia has introduced four fluid extracts, 
the method of preparation and strength of which is the same as 
those directed by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs that all fluid extracts be pre- 
pared by the process of percolation, with authority to employ the 
method of repercolation, if this be found desirable. 
Menstruum.—The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs the employ- 
ment of certain menstrua, which are selected with the view of 
extracting all the activity of the drug, and at the same time of 
affording a stable preparation. The different menstrua employed 
consist of alcohol, various mixtures of alcohol and water, and 
either of these in conjunction with glycerin. In two instances 
(triticum and castanea) boding water is employed to exhaust the 
drug, with subsequent addition of alcohol, or alcohol and glycerin, 
to insure the stability of the preparation. 
Acetic acid of a strength varying from about 60 per cent, to 
20 per cent, or less, has been used by Dr. Squibb as a menstruum 
for drugs containing ethereal oils, aromatic resins, alkaloids, etc. 270 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
It is claimed to yield a very effective and palatable preparation; in 
experiments with nux vomica and belladonna this menstruum 
has proven its superiority to alcohol. 
Fluid Extracts are prepared by “ simple ” or “ fractional perco- 
lation.” By “simple” percolation we understand that the entire 
drug is percolated at one operation; under this head we have the 
official process, that of vacuum percolation, and percolation combined 
with maceration and pressure. In “ fractional percolation ” the 
drug is divided into two or more portions, the reserved (first) 
percolate from each portion is set aside, while the subsequent 
(weaker) percolates are employed for macerating and percolating 
each subsequent portion. This process is known as that of 
repercolation. 
PERCOLATION (U. S. Pharmacopoeia Process). 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1890 directs that all fluid extracts be 
prepared by the process of percolation. 1000 Gm. of the drug of 
the proper degree of fineness are moistened, packed, macerated 
and percolated (see Percolation, page 191), until exhausted. From 
700 to 900 Cc. of the first portion of the percolate are pre- 
served, and the weaker portion is evaporated at a low tempera- 
ture (50° C.), to the consistence of a soft extract, which is then 
dissolved in the reserved portion, to which enough menstruum is 
finally added to make the finished preparation measure 1000 Cc. 
The objections to the U. S. Pharmacopoeial process of 1870 were 
that the weak percolate, when evaporated to an ascertained volume, 
sustained a loss of most or all of its alcohol, leaving a more or less 
aqueous residue, which, when added to the strongly alcoholic 
reserved portion, caused a precipitation of more or less resinous 
or other active matter. The operator should be careful not to 
employ too high a degree of temperature in evaporating the weak 
percolates, otherwise injury or destruction of organic principles is 
liable to occur. The official process is often objected to, because 
of the employment of heat in part of the operation ; however it 
must be remembered that from 75 to 90 per cent, of the activity 
of the drug is represented by the reserved portion, and that but 
a very small percentage is subjected to the action of heat, as a rule, 
which, if properly regulated, will not materially injure the prep- 
aration (exceptions are Allium, Prunus Virginiana, etc.). 
Repercolation (“ fractional ” * percolation), as described by Dr. 
Squibb, its originator (1866), “ consists in the successive applica- 
tion of the same percolating menstruum to fresh portions of the 
substance to be percolated.” Its object is the preparation of a 
fluid extract without the use of heat. The operation may be 
briefly described thus: 32 parts of the drug in powder are divid- 
ed into four equal portions of eight parts each, one of which is 
*See Prof. Diehl’s paper, “ Proceed. Am. Phar. Assoc.,” 1878, p. 681. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
271 
moistened, packed, macerated, then percolated until exhausted, 
this weaker percolate being received in several distinct portions. 
The first six parts of the percolate are reserved, and the remaining 
portions are used successively for moistening and percolating the 
second eight parts of the powder. Of the second percolate 8 parts 
are reserved, and the weaker percolate which is again received in 
several portions, used for the following third portion, as directed 
above. 
The third and fourth fractions of 8 parts each are then treated 
in the same manner, 8 parts of percolate being reserved from each 
fraction. Finally, the four reserved portions of 6 + 8 + 84-8 
fluidounces are mixed to obtain 30 parts of fluid extract.* The 
weak percolate remaining over from the last portion of the drug 
is set aside for a subsequent operation on a fresh lot of the same 
drug. The National Formulary gives the following directions:— 
Fractional Percolation.—Take of the drug, in powder of 
the prescribed fineness, sixteen (16) troy ounces, and divide this 
into three portions, of eight (8), five (5) and three (3) troy ounces, 
respectively. 
Moisten the first portion (8 troy ounces) with the menstruum 
and percolate in the usual manner. Set aside the first three (3) 
fluidounces of the percolate, and continue until twenty-four (24) 
fluidounces more of percolate have passed, which should be re- 
ceived in several portions, so that the more concentrated will be 
separate from the last, weak percolate. 
Then moisten the second portion of the drug (5 troy ounces) 
with the most concentrated of the percolates received during the 
* As a practical example of this operation a typical description of the preparation of a fluid extract, 
as given by Dr. Squibb, is cited :— 
EXTRACTUM CINCHONAS FLUIDUM—(Fluid Extract of Cinchona). 
R Yellow Cinchona, in powder No. 50, 32 parts. 
Stronger Alcohol, s. g. 0.819, 2 parts, ) For sufficient 
Glycerin, s. g. 1.250, 1 part, > quantity of 
Water, 2 parts J menstruum. 
Weigh the stronger alcohol, glycerin, and water in succession, in any convenient quantity at a time, 
into a fared bottle, and mix them thoroughly for a menstruum. 
Moisten 8 parts of the cinchona with 8 parts of the menstruum, by thoroughly mixing them, and 
allow the mixture to stand 8 hours in a closely covered vessel. Then pass the moist powder through 
a No. 8 sieve, and pack it firmly in a percolator. Pour menstruum on top until the mass is filled with 
liquid and a stratum remains "on top unabsorbed ; cover the percolator closely and macerate for 48 
hours. Then arrange the percolator for an automatic supply of menstruum, and start the percolation 
at such a rate as to give 1 part of percolate in about 4 hours. Reserve the first 6 parts of percolate 
and continue the percolation until the cinchona is exhausted, separating the percolate received after 
the reserved portion into fractions of about 8 parts each. 
Moisten a second port ion of 8 parts of the cinchona with 8 parts of the weak percolate—the portion 
that was obtained next after the reserved percolate—and allow the moist powder to stand for 8 hours 
in a vessel closely covered. Then pack it moderately in a percolator, and supply the percolator auto- 
matically with "the remaining fractions of the weak percolate in the order in which they were 
received, and finally, with fresh menstruum until the cinchona is exhausted. Percolate in the same 
manner and at the same rate as with the first portion of cinchona, and reserving 8 parts of the first 
percolate, separate the weaker percolate into fractions of about 8 parts each. 
Percolate the third and fourth portions of 8 parts each of the cinchona in the same way as the 
second portion. 
Finally mix the four reserved percolates together to make 30 parts of finished fluid extract; and 
having corked, labeled, and numbered the bottles containing the fractions of weak percolate, set 
them away until the process for cinchona is to be resumed. 
When this fluid extract is to be again made, repeat the process as with the second portion, and 
reserve 8 parts of the first percolate as finished fluid extract from each 8 parts of cinchona from that 
time forward so long as the fractions of weak percolate are carried forward with which to commence 
each operation. 
Upon this small scale the percolate from the first portion should weigh from 3 to 4 times the weight 
of the powder; and for the repercolations from 5 to 7 times the weight of the powder. 272 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
preceding operation after the first 3 fluidounces had passed, and 
percolate again in the usual manner, using the several reserved 
percolates, successively, as menstrua. Set aside the first five (5) 
fluidounces, and continue the percolation until ten (10) fluidounces 
more have passed, which should also be received in several portions. 
Finally moisten the third portion of the drug (3 troy ounces) with 
the most concentrated of the last reserved percolates, and proceed 
as directed for the second portion. Collect the first eight (8) flaid- 
ounces separately, and mix them with the two portions previously 
set aside so as to make sixteen (16) fluidounces of Fluid Extract. 
This process is adapted for the preparation of solid as well as 
fluid extracts, but not for other pharmaceutical preparations made 
by percolation. 
This process yields a perfect fluid extract without the use of 
heat, thereby adapting it to the most sensitive drug. It recom- 
mends itself to the apothecary, in that it avoids the loss and 
expense caused by subsequent concentration; it nearly always 
insures a perfect preparation, because, though it be indifferently 
applied, the inaccuracies of one operation are likely to be made 
up and compensated in others, so that, when the results of the 
different percolations are mixed together, the general result will 
be practically uniform. 
The only disadvantage the process offers, is that it necessitates 
the keeping of a series of weak percolates which must be stored 
away, to be used for the same drug in a subsequent operation. 
These methods are employed principally by manufacturers on 
the large scale. The first method consists of a combination of 
percolation with expression. One hundred parts of the drug are 
moistened, packed, and allowed to macerate several days in a 
percolator; percolation is then commenced and continued, until 
120 parts of menstruum have been added, then -when the perco- 
lation ceases, the upper stratum, constituting about one-fifth of 
the drug, is removed and subjected to powerful pressure; the 
fluid obtained is poured over the balance of the moist drug in 
the percolator, and when this again ceases to percolate, a second 
like portion is removed and treated as before; this procedure is 
continued until the entire amount of drug has been expressed. 
The reserved percolates are mixed with the fluid obtained from 
the last expression, making a total of 95 parts of fluid extract. 
The second method is simply that of maceration and expression, 
in which the drug is allowed to macerate from 10 to 12 days 
with about its own weight of menstruum. The maceration is 
conducted in a tight cylindrical copper vessel, which is inverted 
at intervals to facilitate the action of the solvent. At the end of 
the specified time, the drug is removed and subjected to powerful 
pressure; the marc is returned to the macerator and sufficient 
PERCOLATION AND MACERATION WITH EXPRESSION. ALCOHOLIC OR HYDROALCOHOLIC SOLUTIONS. 
273 
menstruum is added to make up the desired yield. The products 
of the two expressions, when mixed, constitute the fluid extract. 
Maceration and Percolation in Vacuo.—As already ex- 
plained (page 206), the principle underlying this process is this: 
that, by exhausting the air from the drug, the menstruum is 
rapidly brought into intimate contact with the cells of the drug, 
whereby the maceration and exhaustion is expedited. This form 
of apparatus has been adopted by some of our manufacturers for 
the preparation of Fluid Extracts. The advantages claimed are 
that it can be very economically operated, requiring only 16 fluid- 
ounces of menstruum for the exhaustion of each pound of drug, 
besides avoiding much loss of alcohol; and also economizing time. 
No class of pharmaceutical preparations has met with so much 
favor as the fluid extracts. They certainly deserve their popu- 
larity, for (if properly prepared) they fully represent all of the 
active properties of the respective drugs, in a compact form. 
Aside from this, they present another advantage over the tinc- 
tures, namely, this, that owing to their concentrated form, they 
contain a proportionally much smaller amount of alcohol, the 
presence of which is a serious objection in such preparations as 
tincture of conium or of digitalis, for the medicinal action of 
these drugs is considerably counteracted by the antidotal effects 
of the excess of the alcohol present. 
Preservation.—Fluid Extracts should be kept from the direct 
rays of the sunlight, and in a room where there is but little varia- 
tion of temperature. These precautions should be observed so as 
to avoid changes that may arise from possible precipitation, 
which, however, cannot be altogether avoided. 
The various causes which give rise to precipitates in fluid 
extracts are, according to the researches of Lloyd :*— 
1st. Oxidation.—Many vegetable principles are prone to unite 
with oxygen, forming thereby new and insoluble compounds, 
which, on being precipitated, carry more or less of the active 
constituents with them. 
Again, an interaction between the plant principles may take 
place, either gradually or suddenly, with the formation of new or 
insoluble bodies. 
Fluid extracts of astringent drugs, such as geranium, stillingia, 
cinchona, etc., which contain large amounts of tannates, especially 
drugs containing red tannates, form, in time, precipitates which 
are insoluble in all menstrua. 
2d. Change of Solvent Power by Evaporation.—Medicinal sub- 
stances are very frequently deposited through a loss of the solvent 
power of the menstruum, in consequence of the evaporation of 
alcohol during percolation, or particularly so upon mixing the 
reserved alcoholic with the evaporated aqueous percolate. 
* “ Precipitates in Fluid Extracts,” Proceed. Am. Phar. Assoc., 1882, p. 509; 1883, p. 336; 1884, p. 
410 ; 1885, p. 411. 274 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
3d. Change of Temperature.—Through a lowering of the tem- 
perature, precipitation results from the inability of the liquid to 
hold in solution matter which was perfectly soluble in it at a 
higher temperature. For this reason many manufacturers prefer 
to prepare their fluid extracts during the winter. 
“ The fact that the drugs employed are merely air-dry and 
contain varying amounts of moisture, gives rise to the most 
important cause of precipitation, namely the change of the 
alcoholic strength of the menstruum. Some plant powders are 
very hygroscopic and absorb from 5 to 15 pounds of water per 
100, absorbing moisture even in the driest weather. Hence when 
such drugs are percolated the first part of the percolate contains 
the water, which is thereby converted into a dilute alcohol, and 
hence differs from later percolates in alcoholic strength.” 
This is illustrated by Lloyd in Fluid Extract of Cannabis, 
which, upon percolation with alcohol, yields a first percolate of 
reddish-brown color, while the later ones are of deep green color. 
“ The first portions of such percolates contain gum, extract- 
ives, and bodies which are more soluble in water than alcohol, 
while the last portions contain the resins, oils, and such bodies 
which are more soluble in an alcoholic menstruum; hence, when 
the several percolates are mixed, a gradual separation of the 
several dissolved matters takes place.” 
Still another cause is given by Lloyd, as follows: 
“ The solvent power of the menstruum varies at different 
stages of the operation of percolation, aside from that due to the 
presence of more or less water. . . . Plants contain more or less of 
gums, gummy extractives, fixed and volatile oils, resins, oleo- 
resins, resinoids, glucosides, tannates, glucose, sugar, chlorophyll, 
alkaloids, inorganic salts, etc. As the menstruum enters the 
powder it extracts the matter soluble in that fluid, and this at 
once forms a new menstruum, which has power to dissolve sub- 
stances which are only partly soluble or insoluble in the original 
menstruum. Thus, during percolation, a constantly changing 
menstruum is passing through the powder, although the original 
menstruum be the same. The percolate is accordingly variable 
in composition and solvent powers; it may be considered as a 
collection of percolates and menstrua of different solvent power 
and varying composition, and hence one fraction of it may react 
with another, giving rise to precipitation.” 
The quality, that is, strength of a fluid extract or of any liquid 
pharmaceutical preparation should never be judged by its color. 
The amount of solid residue left upon evaporation, or the specific 
gravity, gives also no reliable criterion ; the only sure method of 
ascertaining the medicinal value of such a preparation is to test 
its activity physiologically, or where it is possible, to make an 
assay of its active constituents. CHAPTER XXIX. 
SYRUPI—(Syrups—Strops—Sirupi). 
Syrups are dense saccharine solutions, generally medicated or 
flavored. 
A dense solution of sugar in water is called simple syrup. 
When this is impregnated with one or more medicinal sub- 
stances, it is called a medicated syrup. 
Simple syrup is employed as a vehicle for the administration 
of medicinal substances. In order to render it more pleasant 
and better able to disguise the taste, syrup flavored with aro- 
matic substances is also employed. 
The presence of sugar exerts a strong preservative influence 
upon aqueous extracts of plants, which, without this, would 
ferment quickly. The preservative action of concentrated solu- 
tions of sugar is such, that they do not afford nourishment for 
micro-organisms, since the sugar withdraws water from these, 
which is essential to their cell-growth. For this reason, the 
amount of sugar in the syrup must be adjusted with a view to 
its preservation. Should the syrup be too concentrated, upon 
standing, a portion of the sugar is liable to crystallize out, caus- 
ing thereby a diminution in saccharine strength, giving rise to 
the same difficulty of fermentation that would take place were 
the syrup made too weak. For the preparation of simple syrup, 
the U. S. Pharmacopoeia employs about 18.6 parts sugar to 10 
parts of water,* the British Pharmacopoeia 20 parts to 10, the 
German Pharmacopoeia 15 parts to 10, the French Pharmacopoeia 
18 parts to 10.f If the solution contains alcohol or much 
extractive, then a correspondingly smaller amount of sugar must 
be taken. Only the best refined white sugar should be employed, 
and this should conform to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia requirements 
of 
Preparation.—The method of preparation depends largely 
upon the nature of the substances employed. 
* Bulk of syrup, resulting from the solution of sugar in water: 
Sugar. 
Waler. 
Bulk. 
Sp. Gr. 
32 ozs. Av. 
24 fld. ozs. 
45 fld. ozs. 
1.273 
32 “ 
20 
41 
1.298 
32 “ 
16 “ 
37 
1.330 
28 “ 
14 “ 
30 “ 
1.317 
28 “ 
16 “ 
“ 
1.311 
24 
16 
32 “ 
1.290 
20 “ 
16 
29 “ 
1.264 
16 “ 
16 
26% “ 
1.231 
f Differences of climate partly warrant this difference of concentration. 
I The so-called rock-candy syrup should not be employed in preparing the official syrups. 
275 276 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
1st. The sugar is dissolved in the medicated liquid by a 
moderate degree of heat (for instance, a water-bath). 
2d. The sugar is dissolved in the fluid by a moderate degree of 
heat, and the solution then raised to the boiling point. 
3d. The sugar is dissolved by agitation or by percolation with 
the wld, medicated solution. 
4th. The sugar is added in the form of ready-prepared syrup 
to the concentrated medicated liquid. 
The hot process (1st and 2d) is employed in preparing syrups 
from such solutions of drugs as are not injured by heat. The 
first method is adapted for preparing such syrups as those of 
orange or lemon, as the degree of heat is not sufficient to cause 
any injury to the preparation. The main objection to this process, 
however, is that it does not yield as clear and bright a syrup as 
process No. 2. In the preparation of syrups from drugs which 
are not injured by heat, the second process is preferable. In this 
the syrup is raised to the boiling point, whereby albuminous 
matters are coagulated, which are afterwards removed by strain- 
ing. Syrups which require concentration should be boiled 
briskly, until they have become sufficiently dense; this may be 
ascertained by dipping a rod or spatula into the liquid, and 
noting the viscosity on cooling. The syrup, on cooling, should 
not form a pellicle or crust upon the surface, which would show 
that it has been concentrated too far. The object of rapid con- 
centration is to avoid the browning of the syrup, which is caused 
by the prolonged application of heat. Saccharometers are often 
employed for this purpose; these enable the operator to control 
the concentration to a close degree of accuracy. 
The cold process is best adapted for the preparation of such 
syrups as those of garlic, almond, orange flowers, etc., as these 
depend on the presence of sensitive volatile principles for their 
activity. The sugar is dissolved either by simple agitation or by 
percolation as directed in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. Syrups pre- 
pared according to this method from aqueous extracts of drugs, are 
very liable to ferment, owing to the presence of albuminous and 
certain extractive matters. These can be removed only by boiling, 
which causes their coagulation and precipitation. With this end 
in view, the Pharmacopoeia employs an alcoholic menstruum to 
exhaust the drug, thus avoiding the extraction of inert matter, 
while the active principles are retained in solution. In the 
concentration of these alcoholic solutions, care should be taken 
that the evaporation be carried on at as low a temperature 
as possible. 
The method of preparing syrups by the addition of fluid ex- 
tracts to simple syrup, is not under all circumstances advisable. 
Syrups made in this way usually deposit a sediment in time. 
The presence of a small amount of alcohol thus added is liable 
to bring about acetic fermentation of the syrup. SYRUPI. 
277 
Clarification.—Before the sugar is added, the medicated fluid 
should be perfectly clear and transparent. Many syrups after 
being prepared contain particles of finely divided matter in 
suspension, which interfere with their transparency, hence it is 
necessary that they be clarified. This may be accomplished by 
adding paper pulp (prepared from white filter paper) to the syrup, 
and agitating, or better, by adding it and heating it with the syrup 
during the process of solution, then filtering through paper of loose 
texture. The white of eggs (albumen) is also employed for this 
purpose; it should be beaten with a little water to form a froth, 
then mixed with the syrup, and the mixture boiled for a short 
time. The albumen coagulates, forming a scum which rises to 
the surface, which must be removed by skimming. The syrup is 
then filtered through paper or flannel. 
Preservation.—The fermentation (souring) of syrups is brought 
about by a variety of causes. One cause is the pouring of a syrup 
into an unclean or carelessly rinsed bottle. The presence of but 
a very small amount of old, partly soured syrup, or rinse-water, 
is sufficient to ruin the most carefully made preparation in a 
very short time. Syrups which contain too little sugar are very 
prone to ferment,'since, according to reasons already given, weak 
saccharine liquids afford excellent media for the growth of various 
microscopic organisms. Those syrups which contain too much 
sugar, deposit a portion of it on the sides and bottom of the 
vessel on standing; this causes a diminution in saccharine 
strength and liability to the same difficulty as above. 
Prolonged boiling of syrups, particularly when they contain 
acids, causes a partial inversion of the cane sugar into invert, or 
grape sugar. This latter is deposited in the bottle as a white, 
granular mass, thereby weakening the syrup, which rapidly fer- 
ments, owing to the favoring influence of the grape sugar present. 
Again, pouring hot syrups into bottles and not entirely filling 
them, favors fermentation, since the ascending aqueous vapors 
condense above and flow back to the surface, thereby diluting the 
upper layer of syrup; fermentation once having started, it rapidly 
extends throughout the entire mass. Bottles should hence be 
well filled and repeatedly shaken until cold. 
The commencement of vinous, or of acetic fermentation is 
readily noticed by the fluidity and frothiness of the syrup as well 
as by the odor ; the fluidity is caused by the loss of sugar, which 
has decomposed into carbonic acid (causing the frothing), and 
alcohol or acetic acid which are distinguished by their odor. 
The preparation may be saved if fermentation has not pro- 
ceeded too far, by boiling, which destroys the germs. It should 
not be forgotten, however, that this can only be applied to such as 
are not injured by heat. Syrups should be preserved in well 
filled, cork-stoppered vials in a cool place. 278 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
EXPLANATORY. 
Syrupus Acidi Hydriodici.—The hydriodic acid is developed 
by the reaction between the potassium iodide and tartaric acid, 
thus:— 
KI + H2C4H4O6 = KHC4H4O6 4- HI 
Potassium Tartaric Acid. Acid Potassium Hydriodic 
Iodide. 149.6 Tartrate. Acid. 
165.5 127.5 
The dilute alcohol is employed as solvent for the purpose of 
assisting the separation of the potassium bitartrate which is 
insoluble in this menstruum. The potassium hypophosphite * 
acts here as preservative agent, preventing decomposition of the 
hydriodic acid, which is caused by the separation of iodine, 
brought about by the influence of light and air (2HI -f- 0 — H2O 
-f- I2). The reaction between the hypophosphite and liberated 
iodine is as follows:— 
KH2PO2 + 41 4- 2H2O = KI + H3PO4 + 3HI 
Potassium Iodine. Water. Potassium Phosphoric Hydriodic 
Hypophosphite. Iodide. Acid. Acid. 
It is important that the potassium iodide be free from iodate, 
otherwise subsequent discoloration of the syrup will take place, 
through liberation of iodine by the action of the acid solution on 
the iodate in presence of iodide. 
This syrup is incompatible with potassium chlorate, mineral 
acids and salts of the metals; see also Syrupus Ferri lodidi. 
Assay.—In the U. S. Pharmacopoeia process of assay 31.88 Gm. 
of the syrup are first neutralized exactly with ammonia water, 
whereby ammonium iodide (HI J- NH3.H2O = NHJ -f- H2O) 
is formed. This is done in order to avoid the liberation of free 
nitric acid, which would prevent the precipitation of the silver 
iodide upon the addition of decinormal silver nitrate V. S., thus: 
AgNO3 + HI = Agl -f- HNO3. After neutralization with am- 
monia the reaction is as follows:— 
AgNO3 4- NHJ = Agl + NH4NO3 
Silver Nitrate. Ammonium Silver Ammonium 
165.5 Iodide. Iodide. Nitrate. 
HI = 127.5 
Yellow potassium chromate f is used as indicator, to show the 
end of the reaction; the silver solution is added until the red 
color produced ceases to disappear on stirring, leaving the solu- 
tion of a permanent red tint (silver chromate). The silver will 
not unite or remain united with the yellow chromate of potassium 
(indicator) as long as any free hydriodic acid (or NHJ) is present, 
but as soon as the last trace of this has been precipitated, then 
* It is probable that traces of hypophosphorous acid are also produced 
H2C4H4O6 + KH2PO2 = KHC4H4O6 + H3PO2 
Tartaric Acid. Potassium Acid Potassium Hypophosphorous 
Hypophosphite. Tartrate. Acid. 
t See Decinormal Silver Nitrate Volumetric Solution. SYRUPL 
279 
the next addition of silver solution produces the red silver chro- 
mate, at which point we stop. 
Since one molecule (169.5 parts) of silver nitrate is equivalent 
to one molecule (127.5 parts) of hydriodic acid, we have— 
AgNO3 Hl 
Silver Nitrate. Hydriodic Acid. 
16.95 Gm. (1000 Cc. f0 V. S.) = 12.75 Gm. 
0.01695 Gm. ( 1 Cc. ? y. S.) = 0.01275 Gm. 
25 Cc. = 25 X 0.01275 = 0.3188 Gm. of Hydriodic Acid = 1 per 
cent, of 31.88 Gm. Or [(0.3188 -s- 31.88) X 100] = 1 per cent. 
Therefore, if 31.88 Gm. of the sample required 25 Cc. of deci- 
normal silver solution under the above conditions, the syrup is 
of the strength (HI) of 1 per cent. 
Exercise.—How much hydriodic acid can be produced from 13 
Gm. of potassium iodide? 
If, according to the equation (page 278), 165.5 parts of potas- 
sium iodide are capable of yielding 127.5 parts of hydriodic acid, 
then 13 Gm. of potassium iodide will, under the same circum- 
stances, yield 10 + Gm. of hydriodic acid, for 
KI Hi KI Hl 
165.5 : 127.5 :: 13 : x 
x = 10 -f- Gm. 
Exercise.—How much . tartaric acid is necessary to decompose 
13 Gm. of potassium iodide into hydriodic acid ? 
According to the same equation, 149.6 parts of tartaric acid are 
necessary for the decomposition of 165.5 parts of potassium 
iodide, hence 13 Gm. of potassium iodide would require 11.7 + 
Gm. of tartaric acid:— 
ki h2c4h4o6 ki h2c4h4o6 
165.5 : 149.6 : : 13 Gm. : x 
x = 11.7 + Gm. 
The U. S. P. requires 12 Gm. of tartaric acid for this purpose, 
so there is a slight excess of about 0.3 Gm. above the theoretical 
amount. 
Syrupus Allii (Syrup of Garlic).—The value of garlic depends 
upon its volatile oil, which consists mainly of allyl disulphide 
fc3h5—si rc3H5—s ] 
I I I (60 per cent.) and allyl propyl disulphide I I (7 
L C3H5—s J . I c3h7 s j 
per cent.); these are very volatile, hence the syrup should be pre- 
pared by the cold process. The best menstruum for this purpose 
is diluted acetic acid. 
Syrupus Amygdala?.—This syrup is demulcent and sedative. 
The latter property is due to the presence of a small amount of 
hydrocyanic acid, which is formed, together with benzaldehyde 
(oil of bitter almonds), by the action of water upon the glucoside 
amygdalin contained in the almonds, under the influence of another 280 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
constituent, emulsin, which acts as a ferment, but does not take 
part in the reaction itself: 
C20H27NOu 4- 2H2O 4- Emulsin = 2C6H12O6 4- HCN 4- C6H5COH 4- Emulsin 
Amyg- Water. Glucose. Hydrocyanic Benzaldehyde. 
dalin. Acid. 
This syrup is prepared by the cold process, to avoid any danger 
of volatilizing the prussic acid. The same ferment or albuminoid, 
emulsin, also aids in emulsionizing the fixed oil present in the 
almonds, when the latter are triturated with water, the result 
being a milk-like fluid. 
Syrupus Calcis (Liquor Calcis Saccharatus, B. P.)—Cane sugar 
unites with different oxides and hydroxides of the metals to form 
a class of soluble compounds known as Saccharates. This is the 
case with calcium hydrate, the sugar forming with it at least 
four different compounds, according to the proportion of the two 
and the temperature employed (C12H220n. zCaO). When admin- 
istered, it should be well diluted with water. The syrup should 
be kept in well-closed vials, since it readily absorbs carbon dioxide 
from the air. 
Syrupus Ferri Iodidi.—On bringing iodine and clean, bright 
iron wire (card teeth) in contact, in presence of water, the follow- 
ing reaction takes place:— 
(a) Fe 4- 21 = Fel2 
Iron. Iodine. Ferrous Iodide. 
55.9 2 X 126.6 308.9 
The reaction is known to be complete by the solution assum- 
ing a greenish color. Care should be taken that no particles 
of iodine remain adhering around the sides or neck of the flask, 
otherwise in pouring off the solution it will become contaminated 
with free iodine. The resulting syrup should have a bright pea- 
green color, free from any trace of yellowish cast. The solution 
on exposure to the air, also the syrup on standing, is prone to 
become discolored (yellow to brown), due to the separation of free 
iodine, thus:— 
(&) Fel2 4- 2H2O 4- O = Fe(OH)3 4- I 4- HI 
Ferrous Water. Oxygen. Ferrous Iodine. Hydriodic 
Iodide. Hydrate. Acid. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs to test for the presence of free 
iodine by the addition of starch paste, which produces a blue 
color. When in such a condition, the syrup should not be dis- 
pensed. 
The syrup or solution of ferrous iodide may be kept indefinitely, 
retaining its pea-green color, if a few pieces of clean iron wire 
(card teeth) be placed in the bottle, which is to be kept well closed. 
Should it have become discolored, it is best exposed to the direct 
sunlight; this causes a re-combination of the free iodine with the 
iron present. SYRUPI. 
281 
Syrup of ferrous iodide is incompatible with potassium chlo- 
rate, since free iodine is liberated, thus:— 
(c) 2FeI2 -|- KC1O3 — Fe2O3 + KC1 + 41 
Also with salts of the metals, such as those of mercury, lead, 
silver, etc.; likewise with the inorganic acids. 
Assay.—The amount of ferrous iodide present is ascertained 
by means of decinormal solution of silver nitrate, which reacts 
according to the following equation :— 
(d) 2AgNO3 4- Fel2 = 2AgI + Fe(NOs)2 
Silver Nitrate. Ferrous Iodide. Silver Iodide. Ferrous Nitrate. 
2 X 169.5 308.9 
Now, in this case, a measured excess of the silver solution is 
added, and the amount of uncombined silver is ascertained by 
means of decinormal potassium sulphocyanate V. S.,* ferric 
ammonium sulphate T. S. being used as indicator.! 
1.55 Gm., or, if greater accuracy is required, 1.5447 Gm. of the 
Syrup are weighed off, and if it be of proper strength, 10 per cent, 
of this (0.155) should be ferrous iodide. To just precipitate this, 
10 Cc. of the silver solution are required, for 
(e) 2AgNO3 Fel2 
Silver Nitrate. Ferrous Iodide. 
2 X 169.5 p., 308.9 p. 
169.5 p.,154.4+ p. 
16.95 Gm. (1000 Cc. V. S.), 15.444- Gm. 
0.01695 Gm. (1 Cc. V. S.), 0.0544+ Gm. 
10 Cc. = 10 X 0.01544 = 0.1544 + Gm. Fel2. 
But, since an excess of silver solution over and above what is 
necessary for the precipitation of the ferrous iodide has been 
added, this excess is estimated by adding decinormal potassium 
sulphocyanate V. S., until a red-brown tint remains after shaking. 
This shows that the sulphocyanate solution has precipitated all 
of the/ree silver nitrate, and that the slight excess of the sulpho- 
cyanate has reacted with the ferric ammonium sulphate, produc- 
ing a red-brown color (sulphocyanate of iron). 
(/) KSCN + AgNO3 = KNO3 + AgSCN 
Potassium Silver Nitrate. Potassium Silver Sulpho- 
Sulphocyanate. Nitrate. cyanate. 
Potassium Sulphocyanate, 97 p. = Silver Nitrate, 169.5 p. 
9.7 Gm. (1000 Cc. V. S.) = 16.95 Gm. (1000 Cc. V. S.) 
0.0079 Gm. (1 Cc. V. S.) = 0.01695 Gm. (1 Cc. V. S.) 
Thus one cubic centimeter of the sulphocyanate solution is 
equivalent to one cubic centimeter of the silver solution. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia states that only one cubic centimeter 
of the sulphocyanate solution should be required, if we had 
originally added 11 Cc. of the silver solution. Hence, 10 Cc. of 
this has been consumed by the ferrous iodide, indicating, accord- 
* See Decinormal Volumetric Potassium Sulphocyanate Solution. 
f Potassium chromate cannot be used here as indicator, since it reacts with the ferrous salt. 282 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
ing to the equation e, that the syrup is of proper strength (10 per 
cent.). 
Exercise.—Two grammes of a sample of Syrup of Ferrous 
Iodide were titrated. First, 12 Co. of decinormal silver nitrate 
V. S. were added, and afterward 3 Cc. of decinormal potassium 
sulphocyanate V. S. were required, until the solution assumed a 
red-brown color, ferric ammonium sulphate T. S. being used as 
indicator. What was the strength of the syrup? 
Since 1 Cc. of the sulphocyanate V. S. is equivalent to 1 Cc. 
of the silver V. S., hence 9 Cc. (12 Cc. — 3 Cc. = 9 Cc.) of 
the silver solution were consumed by the ferrous iodide. Now, 
since 1 Cc. of decinormal silver nitrate V. S. is equivalent to 
0.0154 Gm. of ferrous iodide, hence 9 X 0.01544 = 0.1389 Gm.; 
consequently the 2 Gm. of the syrup contain 0.1389 Gm., or 
6.94 + per cent, of ferrous iodide.* 
Exercise.—How much ferrous iodide can be obtained from 83 
Gm. of iodine? 
Since, according to equation a, 253.2 parts of iodine yield 308.9 
parts of ferrous iodide, 83 Gm. of iodine will yield 101.2 + Gm. 
of ferrous iodide, for 
Iodine. Ferrous Iodide. Iodine. Ferrous Iodide. 
253.2 : 308.9 : : 83 : x 
x = 101.2 + Gm. ferrous iodide. 
Thus 83 Gm. of iodine will yield 101.2 + Gm. of ferrous 
iodide. 
* In a reaction of this kind the theoretical yield is never obtained, for moisture and impurities in 
the iodine will lower the results. SYRUPI. 
283 
TABLE OF U. S. P. SYRUPS CLASSIFIED ACCORDING TO MODE OF 
PREPARATION. 
Title. 
Active Constituents. 
Properties. 
Dose. 
Hot Process. 
Syrupus 
Acidi Hydriodici, . . 
HI, 1%. 
Alterative, 
20 nv 
Calcis, 
Calcium Saccharate. 
Antacid, 
20 m. 
Picis Liquidae, . . . 
Tar. 
Expectorant, 4-8 Cc. 
Eubi Idaei, 
Raspberry Juice. 
Vehicle. 
.’ 4 
Sarsaparillae Com- 
positus, 
Fid. Ext. Sarsaparilla ; Fid. 
Alterative, 
15 Cc. 
Ext. Senna. 
Syrupus. 
Vehicle. 
Tolutanus, 
Balsam of Tolu. 
Vehicle. 
Cold Process. 
Syrupus 
Allii, 
Garlic. 
Stimulant, Expec., 4 Cc. 
Althaeae, 
Marshmallow. 
Demulcent. 
Amygdalae, 
Almond—HCN. 
Demulcent, Sedative. 
Aurantii, 
Sweet Orange Peel. 
Vehicle. 
Aurautii Florum, . . 
Orange Flower Water. 
Vehicle. 
Calcii Lactophos- 
phatis, 
Calcium Lactophosphate. 
Tonic, 
10-15 Cc. 
Hypophosphitum, . . 
Ca, K, Na, Hypophosphites. 
Tonic, 
4-8 Cc. 
Ipecacuanhae, .... 
Fid. Ext. Ipecac. 
Expectorant, 
2-30 nt. 
Lactucarii, 
Lactucarium. 
Hypnotic, 
7-10 Cc. 
Pruni Virginianae, . . 
Wild Cherry. 
Vehicle. 
Scillae, 
Vinegar of Squill. 
Expectorant, 
10-30 nt. 
Diaphoretic. 
Scillae Co., 
Fid. Ext. Squill ; Fid. Ext. 
Senega ; Tartar Emetic. 
Senegae, 
Fid. Ext. Senega. 
Expectorant, 
3-8 Cc. 
Sennae, 
Senna. 
Cathartic, 
4-15 Cc. 
Zingiberis, 
Fid. Ext. Ginger. 
Vehicle. 
Simple Admixture 
with Syrup. 
Syrupus 
Acaciae, 
Mucilage of Acacia. 
Vehicle. 
Acidi Citrici, .... 
Citric Acid. 
Vehicle. 
Ferri lodidi, .... 
Ferrous Iodide, 10%. 
Alterative, 
10-20 Cc. 
Ferri, Quininae et f 
Ferric Phosphate, 2%. 1 
Strycbninae Phos-j 
Quinine Sulphate, 3%. >■ 
Tonic, 
4 Cc. 
phatum, . . . . ( 
Strychnine, 0.02%. J 
Hypophosphitum 
cum Ferro, .... 
Ferrous Lactate, 1% Syrup of 
Tonic, 
4-8 Cc. 
Hypophosphites. 
Krameriae, 
Fid. Ext. Krameria. 
Astringent, 
2-4 Cc. 
Rhei, 
Fid. Ext. Rhubarb. 
Laxative, 
4 Cc. 
Rhei Aromaticus, . . 
Arom. Tr. Rhubarb. 
Purgative, 
4 Cc. 
Rosae, 
Fid. Ext. Rose. 
Vehicle. 
Rubi, 
Fid. Ext. Rubus. 
Astringent, 
4-8 Cc. 284 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
MELLITA— (Honeys). 
The official Honeys are a class of thick or semi-liquid, sweet, 
medicated preparations, differing from syrups in that honey is 
employed as the base instead of simple syrup. 
This class of preparations was formerly quite popular, but their 
number has been gradually lessened by the various pharma- 
copoeias, until at present Mel Despumatum and Mel Rosse consti- 
tute the only ones remaining. These two are employed simply 
as bases, or vehicles, for the administration of other remedies. 
Great caution should be observed in the selection of honey for 
pharmaceutical purposes; for, because of its peculiar viscidity, it 
is easily adulterated with glucose. 
Mel Despumatum. — The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs the 
strained honey to be clarified by heating it on a water-bath with 
paper pulp, as long as any scum (consisting of wax and other 
lighter impurities) rises to the surface. This is removed by 
skimming. Then, after straining, 5 per cent, of glycerin is added 
for the purpose of protecting the honey from any change. A 
more brilliant preparation is obtained if it be filtered through 
paper* in a steam-jacketed funnel (“Hot Filtration,” page 179). 
Various other clarifying agents are in use and have been sug- 
gested, among which are gelatin, white of egg, Irish moss, animal 
charcoal, aluminum hydroxide, etc.; but all these require that 
the honey be diluted with water, necessitating therefore subse- 
quent evaporation, which results in impairing the aroma and 
often the color of the honey. 
These consist of simple or medicated honey mixed with acetic 
acid. 
Oxymel of the British Pharmacopoeia consists of a mixture of 
clarified honey (40 oz.), acetic acid, and water (each 5 fl. oz.). 
Other pharmacopoeias direct that the honey be mixed with dilute 
acetic acid and evaporated. The simplest process is that of the 
Ph. Ger. I, which consists in mixing 40 parts of clarified honey 
with 1 part of acetic acid (sp. gr. 1.040). The most popular 
preparation of this class is the Oxymel Scillse, which is made by 
mixing Vinegar of Squill with clarified honey. 
OXYMELLITA. 
B. P. 
Fr. Ph. 
Germ. Ph. 
Vinegar of Squill, 
1 pt. 
1 pt. 
1 pt. 
Clarified. Honey, 
1.6 pt. 
4 pt. 
2 pt. 
* For filtering syrups, honey, oils, etc., Schleicher & Schtill’s filter paper, Nos. 586 and 584, are 
especially adapted. SYRUPI. 
285 
ELIXIRIA—{Elixirs). 
Elixirs are sweetened, aromatic, hydro-alcoholic, medicated 
preparations. 
The word “elixir” is derived from the Arabic ilcsir (itself 
derived from the Greek), a name applied by alchemists to a 
wonderful powder capable of transforming base metals into gold 
and silver. This term was later applied to compound tinctures 
which were supposed to possess rare medicinal virtues. In 
modern times, this title was applied in European countries to 
concentrated alcoholic extracts of drugs usually of disagreeable 
taste. Later, in American pharmacy, it has been applied to an 
entirely different class of preparations, characterized by their 
pleasant aromatic taste and containing from 20 to 25 per cent, of 
alcohol. 
The objection to these preparations is that, owing to the small 
percentage of medicinal agent present, the dose is necessarily 
large, the alcohol present often seriously interfering with the 
medicinal action of the drug. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes Elixir Aromaticum, which 
is employed simply as an aromatic flavoring agent, and Elixir 
Phosphori, each cubic centimeter of which represents 0.00025 
Gm. of phosphorus, corresponding to about of a grain in each 
teaspoonful. CHAPTER XXX. 
SOLUTIONS (G-ycerin as Solvent). 
GLYCERITA—(Glycerites). 
Glycerites are solutions of medicinal agents in glycerin. 
Glycerin, because of its valuable solvent properties and freedom 
from rancidity, forms an excellent vehicle for the external appli- 
cation of many organic and inorganic substances. 
Glycerin not only effectually protects sensitive compounds 
from oxidation and change, but also affords permanent elegant 
solutions which form emollient and soothing applications. Such 
concentrated solutions as those of carbolic, tannic, and gallic 
acids, etc., are very convenient, because they readily yield clear 
solutions on dilution with water. The U. S. Pharmacopoeia 
recognizes 6 glycerites. 
GLYCERITA, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Properties. 
Glyceritum Amyli, . . . 
Starch, Water, each 10 Gm. 
Glycerin, 80 Gm. 
Emollient, Base, and 
Excipient. 
“ Acidi, Carboli- 
ci, . . . . 
Carbolic Acid, 20 Gm. 
Glycerin, 80 Gm. 
Diluted as a Wash. 
“ Acidi, Tanni- 
ci, . . . . 
Tannic Acid, 20 Gm. 
Glycerin, 80 Gm. 
Local Application, 
Astringent. 
“ Boroglycerini, 
Boric Acid, 310 Gm. 
Glycerin to make 1000 Gm. 
Antiseptic. 
“ Hydrastis,. . 
Hydrastis, Water (Alcohol). 
Glycerin. 
Diluted, Wash. 
“ Vitelli, . . . 
Egg Yolk, 45 Gm. 
Glycerin, 55 Gm. 
Local Application. 
286 CHAPTER XXXI. 
SOLUTIONS (Oleic Acid as Solvent). 
Oleates are solutions of bases (metallic or alkaloidal) in oleic 
acid. These preparations as recognized by the Pharmacopoeia 
are not definite chemical compounds; they are simply solutions 
obtained by triturating the medicating substance with a large 
excess of oleic acid. In the preparation of the oleates, wherever 
possible, the application of heat should be avoided, since, owing 
to the reducing properties of the oleic acid, the metallic oxides 
may be reduced to their metals, which precipitate from solution. 
As an example of this, the official oleate of mercury, even when 
prepared in the cold, will on standing deposit more or less 
metallic mercury. This decomposition will take place more 
rapidly if heat has been employed in its preparation. 
In preparing the oleates of any of the metals, only the freshly 
precipitated, well-dried metallic oxide should be used, on account 
of the comparatively greater solubility of the freshly prepared 
oxide. When preparing the oleates of the alkaloids, it must be 
remembered that only the free alkaloids, and not their salts, are 
soluble in oleic acid. When the free alkaloid is not at hand, it 
can be readily prepared from any of its salts by dissolving the 
necessary quantity in water, by aid of a little dilute acid if 
necessary, then adding slowly, with constant stirring, diluted 
ammonia water, or another suitable alkali, until it is in slight 
excess. The precipitated alkaloid is then collected on a plain 
filter, washed with cold water to remove most of the ammonium 
or alkali salt present, and dried at 100° C., when it is ready for 
solution in the oleic acid. 
In preparing these oleates, only porcelain or glass utensils 
should be used, and either glass rods or horn spatulas should be 
used for stirring 
Dry Oleates.—These dry oleates, or more properly oleopalmi- 
tates, are not official; they are definite chemical compounds 
obtained by interaction between solutions of sodium oleate and 
metallic salts. 
Sodium Oleate may be made by warming 100 parts of oleic 
acid in a dish to 60° C., then adding a solution of 16 parts of 
caustic soda in a mixture of 30 parts of alcohol and 90 parts of 
water, until the acid is neutralized, which is shown by the fact 
that a faint red tint is imparted to the solution by phenolphta- 
lein. 
This soap (sodium oleate) is then dissolved in about 2000 parts 
OLE AT A—(Oleates'). 
287 288 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
of water, and into it is poured, under constant stirring, a solution 
of the salt (in molecular proportion) in about 800 parts of water. 
The resulting precipitate should settle rapidly, leaving a clear, 
supernatant liquid. Should this not be the case, but the solution 
remain of a milky appearance, then an insufficient amount of the 
salt has been added. The reaction takes place according to the 
following equation:— 
2C17H33COOH + 2NaOH = 2C17H33COONa + 2H2O 
Oleic Acid. Sodium Hydrate. Sodium Oleate. Water. 
2 X 281.3 2 X 40 2 X 303.3 
2C17H33COONa + Zn(C2H3O2)2 = { }Zn + 2NaCffI3O2 
Sodium Oleate. Zinc Acetate. _V *?, , Sodium 
2 X 303.3 182.8. Zinc Oleate. Acetate. 
The following formula may be given for practical use:— 
Oleic Acid (sp. gr. 0.890 to 0 900), 100 grains. 
Sodium Hydrate 16 grains or q. s. 
Alcohol, 1 fluidrachm. 
Zinc Acetate, 550 grains. 
Or, Lead Acetate, 675 grains. 
Or, Copper Sulphate, 442 grains, etc. 
If cold solutions are employed, the oleate will form a light, 
flocculent precipitate; if the solutions are hot, the oleate will form 
a soft, sticky mass. If a dry pulverulent oleate is desired, the 
precipitate obtained under the beforenamed conditions is collected 
on a strainer and well washed until all traces of the inorganic 
salt formed in the reaction have been removed; it is then dried 
by spreading it out on porous tiles or bibulous paper and 
placing it in a dry place. The oleate obtained by precipitation 
from a hot solution should be washed by stirring it with hot water, 
then deprived of water by placing it in a dish on a water-bath 
and heating. When cold it may be moulded into sticks or pul- 
verized. These oleopalmitates* may be more conveniently made 
by dissolving 1 part of Castile soap (sodium oleopalmitate) by 
means of heat in 8 parts of water, allowing to stand 24 hours so 
as to permit the deposition of the greater portion of sodium pal- 
mitate; the clear, supernatant liquid, consisting of sodium oleate, 
is then decanted off. To this solution is now added, under the 
same conditions as already mentioned, a slight excess of an 
aqueous solution of a metallic salt. It should be observed that 
the saline solution should not contain any free acid, otherwise free 
palmitic acid will be precipitated. For all practical purposes, an 
oleate prepared as above directed is sufficiently free from palmi- 
tates.! 
These Oleates are employed in dermal medication, their medi- 
cinal properties depending upon the base present, and their 
action being influenced by the readiness with which oleic acid is 
absorbed by the skin. 
* Druggists' Circular, 1885, page 2. 
f Dr. L. Wolff, Amer. Jour. Phar., 1881, p. 545. SOLUTIONS. 
289 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes two oleates made from a metallic 
base, viz., Oleatum Hydrargyri and Zinci, and one made from an 
alkaloid, viz., Oleatum Veratrinae. 
Exercise.—It is desired to prepare 1 fluidounce of a 25 per 
cent, solution of Oleate of Quinine, it being assumed that the 
operator has no free quinine (that is, the alkaloid itself) in stock, 
but that he has the sulphate. 
The first step will be to ascertain how much of the free alka- 
loid will be needed ; thus, 25 per cent, of 410.1 grains, the weight 
of one fiuidounce of oleic acid (455.7 X 0.900), is 102.5 + grains, 
the weight of the alkaloid necessary; this is then to be dissolved 
in 353.2 grains of oleic acid. Owing to the fact that the alkaloid 
does not occupy the same bulk, weight for weight, as the oleic 
acid, we would obtain a little less than one fluidounce, hence it 
is better to prepare a little more (taking, for instance, 500 grains 
of oleic acid) than necessary, and to throw the slight excess away, 
or to reserve it for future use. The 102.5 grains of the alkaloid 
Quinine, which are required for the above-given problem, must 
be prepared from the Sulphate. Now, if, according to the follow- 
ing equation, 646.6 parts of Quinine correspond to 870.2 parts of 
the Sulphate, to obtain 102.5 grains of the alkaloid will require 
137.9 fl- grains of the Sulphate. 
(C20H24N2O2)2H2SO4.7H2O + 2NH4OH = 2C20H24N2O2 + (NH4)2SO4 + 9H2O 
Quinine Sulphate. Ammonia Water. Quinine. Ammonium Water. 
870.2. 2NH3 = 34. 2 X 323.3 Sulphate. 
For 
Quinine. Quinine Sulphate. Quinine. Quinine Sulphate. 
646.6 : 870.2 : : 102.5 : x 
x = 137.9 + 
Hence, we would require 137.9 + grains of quinine sulphate 
and 353.2 grains of oleic acid to prepare a fluidounce (approxi- 
mately) of a 25 per cent, solution. CHAPTER XXXII 
ETHEREAL SOLUTIONS. 
OLEORESIN JE-(Oleoresins). 
Oleoresins are ethereal extracts of an oleoresinous nature, 
obtained from vegetable drugs by percolation with ether. 
The drugs selected for this class of preparations are those 
whose activity resides chiefly in their fixed oil and resin. These 
constituents are readily extracted from the drug by means of 
such solvents as ether, chloroform, acetone,* benzin, etc. Among 
these the Pharmacopoeia selects ether as the most suitable. Fluid 
extracts are also prepared from some of these drugs, but they do 
not represent the same medicinal properties, since alcohol extracts 
a different class of principles. 
The Pharmacopoeia directs that the drug be firmly packed in 
a suitable percolator for volatile liquids, and that this be provided 
with a glass stopcock (Fig. 307). In the absence 
of such an apparatus, any small percolator may 
be used, and loss through volatilization of men- 
struum be guarded against by closing the top of 
the percolator securely by means of a large jar- 
cork, through which air is admitted by means 
of a small tube. The perforated cork inserted in 
the outlet of the percolator should carry a long 
glass tube which extends into a securely covered 
receiving bottle, allowance being, of course, made 
for the escape of air. Rubber should not be used. 
Another form of percolator adapted to this pur- 
pose is shown in Fig. 328. The powdered drug 
is packed in the percolator, a, and the solvent 
poured over it. After sufficient maceration, the 
stopcock, c, is opened sufficiently to allow the proper 
rate of percolation. The connecting tube is to 
prevent any loss of volatile solvent, also for the purpose of equal- 
izing the air pressure. It will be seen that the process of perco- 
lation demands the handling and use of comparatively large 
quantities of ether, which, with the subsequent distillation neces- 
sary, renders the process more or less dangerous as well as 
wasteful. These difficulties are readily overcome, when only 
small quantities of the drug are to be operated upon, by the use of 
the Soxhlet’s Extraction Apparatus (Fig. 329), which permits the 
complete extraction of the powdered drug with a very small 
amount of ether. In the flask, a, is placed the necessary volume 
Fig. 328. 
Percolator for 
Volatile Solvents. 
* G. M. Beringer, Amer. Jour. Phar., p. 145, 1892. 
290 ETHEREAL SOLUTIONS. 
291 
of ether (about 50 Cc.). The powdered drug (about 50 Gm.), e, 
having been firmly packed into a cartridge of filter paper, is 
introduced into the Soxhlet tube, d; the latter is in turn con- 
nected with the upright condenser, c. The flask, 
a, is now heated gently on a water-bath, the vapor 
of the ether rises through b, condenses above and 
drops on to the powder in the cartridge. After 
percolating through to the bottom of the tube, d, 
the solvent charged with the soluble matter of 
the drug rises in the siphon, f, which, as soon as 
it becomes sufficiently filled, discharges its con- 
tents into the flask, a. This process repeats itself, 
and is continued until the drug is exhausted, 
requiring usually from one to two hours. The 
flask, a, may be connected with a condenser, and 
the solvent recovered by distillation, or the con- 
tents of a may be poured into an evaporating dish 
and the slight excess of ether allowed to evapo- 
rate spontaneously. 
Commercial oleoresins vary considerably in 
quality; it therefore behooves the apothecary to 
prepare his own. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes six oleoresins; 
specifying in the instance of oleoresin of male 
fern, that the granular-like deposit (filicic acid) to 
which the activity is mainly due, should be thor- 
oughly mixed with the liquid portion before use. 
In oleoresin of cubeb a waxy and crystalline de- 
posit (cubebin) also occurs on standing, but as this 
has no medicinal value, it should be discarded. 
The oleoresins should be administered in diluted form, either 
in emulsion or pill. Male-fern is best administered in gelatin 
capsules. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 6 Oleoresins. 
Fig. 329. 
Soxhlet’s Extraction 
Apparatus. 
OLEORESINA5, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Color—Average Yield. 
Properties. Dose. 
Oleoresina Aspidii, . . . 
Dark-Green, about 16-18%. 
Tamicide, 30-60 no. 
14 
Capsici, . . . 
Dark Red-Brown, about 
Stimulant, | to 1 no- 
17-20%. 
Rubefacient. 
4 4 
Cubeba:, . . . 
Greenish-Brown, about 
Diuretic. 
18-22%. 
Expectorant, 5-30 no. 
44 
Lupulini, . . 
Reddish Brown ; about 55 %. 
Tonic, sedati ve, 2-10 no. 
44 
Piperis, . . . 
Greenish-Black, about 6-8%. 
Stimulant, | to 1 no- 
4k 
Zingiberis, . . 
Dark-Brown, about 5%. 
Stimulant, j to 1 no. 292 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
COLLODIA—{Medicated Collodions). 
The medicated Collodions consist of collodion impregnated 
with medicinal substances. They are only employed externally. 
Collodion, the base of this class of preparations, is prepared 
by dissolving pyroxylin (soluble gun cotton) in a mixture of 3 
parts of ether and 1 part of alcohol. The Pyroxylin is obtained 
by the action of nitric acid (with assistance of sulphuric acid) 
upon cotton (cellulose). When nitric acid is caused to react on 
cellulose (C6Hi0O5), various substitution products are formed, 
according to the strength of the acids employed, being designated 
as mono-, di-, and tfn-nitrocellulose,* etc. Only one of these, the 
di-nitrocellulose, is completely soluble in the ether-alcohol mix- 
ture; this should not be confounded with the explosive hexa- (or 
tri-) nitrocellulose. 
When collodion is applied to a dry surface, the ether and alcohol 
rapidly evaporate and leave a transparent, adhesive, and con- 
tractile film behind. For this reason it forms a valuable application 
for keeping together the edges of small wounds, or for covering 
ulcers or abraded surfaces. When it is simply desired to protect 
the surface, a flexible (non-contracting) film is desirable; for this 
purpose the official Collodium Flexile should be used. 
Collodion is made the vehicle for the application of various 
remedies, such as iodine, cantharides, corrosive sublimate, etc. 
Because of the volatile nature of the ether, the collodions should 
be kept in well-stoppered vials in a cool place, and because of the 
extremely inflammable nature of both the pyroxylin and the 
ether-alcohol, it should not be dispensed or applied in proximity 
to a light, or fire. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Use. 
Collodium, 
Pyroxylin, 30 Gm.; Ether, 750 
Cc.; Alcohol, 250 Cc. 
Protective Application. 
Collodium Cantharidatum, 
Cantharides, 60 Gm.; Chloro- 
form; Flexible Collodion, 85 
Gm. 
Blistering Application. 
Collodium Flexile, . . . 
Collodion, 920 Gm.; Canada 
Turpentine, 50 Gm.; Castor 
Oil, 30 Gm. 
Protective Application. 
Collodium Stypticum, . . 
Tannic Acid, 20 Gm.; Alcohol, 
5 Cc.; Ether, 25 Cc. 
Styptic Application. 
COLLODIA, U. S. P. 
* These are compounds in which the nitric acid residue (NO3) replaces hydroxyl (Oil) groups in the 
cellulose formula. The double formula of cellulose (C12H20Oi0) is taken. Then by the action of nitric 
acid under different circumstances we obtain, 
CjoHigOg (NOS),Mono-nitrocellulose. 
C12H13O8 (N03)2, Di-nitrocellulose, official soluble gun cotton. 
Ci2II1707 (NO3'3, .... Tri-nitrocellulose. 
C12H1404 (NO3 6,Hexa-nitrocellulose, explosive gun cotton. CHAPTER XXXIII. 
MIXTURES. 
FLUID MIXTURES. 
These consist of transparent, or opaque fluids, resulting from 
the mixing of various liquids, or liquids and solids. 
LINIMENTA. 
Liniments, according to the Pharmacopoeia, are solutions or 
mixtures of various medicinal substances with alcohol or oleag- 
inous fluids, intended for external application. 
When dispensed, they should always be properly labeled as 
Liniments, or for “External Use.” 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 9 Liniments. 
LINIMENTA, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Base. 
Linimentum 
Ammoniae, 
Ammonia Water, 350 Cc.; 
Cotton Seed Oil. 
(Volatile 
Alcohol, 50 Cc.; Cotton Seed 
Belladonnae, 
Oil, 600 Cc. 
Camphor, 50 Gm.; Fl’d. Ext. 
Fl’d. Ext. Belladonna. 
Calcis (Catron Oil), . . 
Belladonna, to make 1000 Cc. 
Solution Id me ; Linseed Oil, 
Linseed Oil. 
Camphor®, 
equal parts. 
Camphor, 200 Gm.; Cotton 
Cotton Seed Oil. 
Chloroformi, 
Seed Oil, 800 Gm. 
Chloroform, 300 Cc.; Soap 
Soap Liniment. 
Saponis, 
Liniment, 700 Cc. 
Soap (powd.), 70 Gm.; Cam 
phor, 45 Gm.; Oil Rosemary, 
10 Cc.; Alcohol, 750 Cc.; 
Water, to make 1000 Cc. 
Soft Soap, 650 Gm.; Oil Lav- 
Diluted Alcohol. 
Saponis Mollis, .... 
Diluted Alcohol. 
Sinapis Coinpositum, . 
ender Flowers, 20 Cc.; Alco- 
hol, 300 Cc.; Water, to 
make 1000 Cc. 
Vol. Oil Mustard, 30 Cc.; Fl. 
Ext. Mezereum, 200 Cc.; 
Camphor, 60 Gm.; Castor 
Oil, 150 Cc.; Alcohol, to 
make 1000 Cc. 
Resin Cerate, 650 Gm.; Oil 
Alcohol. 
Terebinthinae, .... 
Oil of Turpentine. 
Turpentine, 350 Gm. 
293 294 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
MISTURA?—{Mixtures). 
Mixtures, as here understood, are a class of aqueous prepara- 
tions which contain solid, insoluble substances, in such a con- 
dition of subdivision, that, upon agitation, the particles remain 
for some time in a state of suspension. In three instances the 
Pharmacopoeia directs the intervention of gum arabic or sugar 
for the purpose of assisting suspension. As exception to the 
above definition, due to the indiscriminate use of the term, we 
have two solutions included under this class, viz., Mistura 
Glycyrrhizae Composita and Mistura Rhei et Sodae. 
This class of preparations should not be kept on hand any 
great length of time, since they are prone to ferment. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 4 Mixtures. 
MISTURzE, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Properties. 
Dose. 
Mistura Cretae, 
(Chalk Mixture). 
Comp. Chalk Powder, 200 Gm.; 
Cinnamon Water, 400 Cc.; 
Water, sufficient to make 
1000 Cc. 
Antacid, 
15 Cc. 
‘ ‘ Ferri Composita, 
(Griffith's Mixture). 
‘ ‘ Glycyrrhizae Com- 
Ferrous Sulphate, 6 Gm. ; 
Myrrh, 18 Gm.; Sugar, 18 
Gm.; Potassium Carbonate, 
8 Gm.; Spirits Lavender, 60 
Cc.; Rose Water, sufficient 
to make 1000 Cc. 
Tonic, 
30-60 Cc. 
posita, .... 
(Brown Mixture). 
Ext. Liquorice, pure, 30 Gm.; 
Syrup, 50 Cc. ; Mucilage 
Acacia, 100 Cc.; Camphor- 
ated Tr. Opium, 120 Cc.; 
Wine of Antimony, 60 Cc.; 
Spirits of Nitrous Ether, 30 
Cc.; Water, sufficient to make 
1000 Cc. 
Expectorant, 5-30 Cc. 
“ Rhei et Sodae, . . 
Sodium Carbonate, 35 Gm.; 
Fid. Ext. Rhubarb, 15 Cc.; 
Fid. Ext. Ipecac, 3 Cc.; Gly- 
cerin, 350 Cc.; Spirit of 
Peppermint, 35 Cc.; Water, 
sufficient to make 1000 Cc. 
Carminative, 2-4 Cc. 
Laxative, 15-60 Cc. MIXTURES. 
295 
EMULSA, OR EMULSIONES—(Emulsions). 
Emulsions are artificial mixtures of a milky appearance, which 
consist of oils, fats or resinous substances suspended in water by 
the intervention of some viscid, or mucilaginous substance. 
The object sought is to break up the substance which is to be 
emulsified, into as minute particles as possible, enveloping each 
of these in a coat of the emulsifying agent, which tends to pre- 
vent them from reuniting. 
Natural Milk, which consists of minute globules of fat (butter) 
suspended in water by means of the casein present, may be 
regarded as a sample of a perfect emulsion. The more closely 
an artificial emulsion can be made to resemble milk, the more 
permanent will be the product. An emulsion is perfect when the 
oil globules are invisible to the naked eye. The completeness of 
emulsification may be judged by placing a sample on a slide under 
the lens of a microscope, and comparing the size and uniformity 
of the oil globules of the emulsion with those contained in a 
sample of milk. 
Emulsions may be divided into three classes—the Natural 
Emulsions, the Gum-Resin and Seed Emulsions, and the Oil or 
Artificial Emulsions. 
1st. Natural Emulsions are such as exist ready formed in nature, 
such as milk, yolk of egg, certain plant juices, etc. 
2d. Gum-fem and Seed Emulsions.—Such gum resins as am- 
moniac, asafoetida, and myrrh, when triturated with water, form 
emulsions in which the resinous and oily constituents are sus- 
pended by means of the gummy matter present. In preparing 
these emulsions (Emulsa, U. S. P.), the powdered gum-resins 
should never be employed, since the process of drying and 
powdering not only destroys the volatile constituents, but also the 
emulsifying properties of the gum. Selected tears of the gum 
resins should be reduced to a coarse powder and then triturated 
with a small quantity of water, until a smooth paste is obtained, 
then the balance of water added, and the mixture finally strained. 
Under this class, the Pharmacopoeia recognizes two, viz.: Emul- 
sum Ammoniaci and Emulsum Asafoetidae. 
On triturating such seeds or fruits as the poppy, hemp or 
almonds with water, an emulsion is obtained in which the oily 
matter present is suspended (emulsified) by means of the albumi- 
nous and gummy matter. Under this class the Pharmacopoeia 
recognizes Emulsum Amygdalae, in which acacia and sugar are 
added to enhance the permanency of the preparation. 
3d. Oil or Artificial Emulsions.—There are a great many differ- 
ent agents and methods by which we can produce artificial 
emulsions; most general among these, are the two methods 
known as the Continental and English. 296 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
1st. The Continental Method. 
This method depends on the formation of a nucleus obtained by- 
agitating or triturating together certain quantities, by weight, of 
oil, gum and water. This so-called nucleus being once prepared, 
it may be diluted with water, in all proportions, without any 
danger of subsequent separation. 
This method never fails to produce a model emulsion, if the 
proper proportions (by weight) of oil, gum, and water be observed. 
The German Pharmacopoeia directs the following proportions: 
oil, 2 parts; pulverized acacia,* 1 part; water,f 1| parts, for such 
oils as are difficult to emulsionize, like the class of volatile oils. 
For the class of fatty oils (cod-liver oil, castor oil, etc.), the propor- 
tion of acacia to oil may be reduced to 1 part of gum to 4 parts 
of oil. The operation may be carried out in three different ways, 
the first being the most generally employed. 
(а) The 2 parts (or 4) of oil are stirred with the 1 part of powd. 
acacia in a dry mortar, then the If parts of water, are added at 
once, the whole being rapidly stirred with the pestle until a thick, 
creamy emulsion results, which is then diluted as desired. After 
some experience, this operation may be carried out in a bottle, 
which must, however, be thoroughly dry before the acacia is 
introduced. The chief mistake committed by beginners is that 
they permit the acacia and oil to remain too long in contact, 
whereby the gum becomes a hard mass, which afterward dissolves 
only with great difficulty. The two should be stirred or shaken 
together sufficiently long enough to thoroughly coat each particle 
of gum with a layer of oil, after which the water should be 
immediately added. 
(б) The 1 part of pulv. acacia is triturated with If parts of 
water until a uniform paste results, then the 2 parts (or 4) of oil 
are added at once and triturated rapidly until a thick, creamy 
emulsion nucleus results. 
(c). In a mortar place 1 part of powdered acacia; in a flask 
shake a mixture of 2 parts (or 4) of oil and If of water, and pour 
this over the gum, stirring rapidly until emulsified. 
This nucleus should, when properly prepared, present a uniform, 
creamy appearance; a pearly, translucent appearance assumed 
by the mixture indicates that an insufficient amount of water or 
gum is present, and that globules of uncombined oil are floating 
about. If this is not quickly remedied, the emulsion will “ crack,” 
that is, the oil will separate from the aqueous fluid. 
2d. The English Method.—This method is applied generally to 
uncertain combinations, and must be followed carefully to insure 
* Coarsely powdered (granulated) acacia should always be preferred for making emulsions, 
because, of its ready solubility, and when triturated with oil or water, it is not liable to 
form “ lumps” like the tine powder; the latter is also open to the objection that it is often found 
adulterated in the market. 
f That is, as much in weight as one-half of the sum of the weight of oil and gum together. MIXTURES. 
297 
success. A thick, smooth mucilage of gum and water is first 
prepared in a mortar, and to this are added the oil and water, 
alternately, in small portions at a time, under rapid stirring, so as 
to break up the oil into globules, which are immediately enveloped 
by the viscid solution. 
Care should be taken in the early stage of the process to add 
the oil and water very cautiously, until a thick, creamy emulsion 
is obtained ; afterward they may be added more rapidly. A fresh 
portion of oil should never be added until the former has been 
thoroughly emulsionized. 
It often happens, from too great haste in adding the first por- 
tions of oil and water, or by reason of the mucilage not being 
thick enough, that the emulsion “ cracks; ” when this is the case, 
a fresh portion of thick mucilage of acacia should be taken and 
the mixture re-emulsionized in this by thorough trituration after 
each addition. 
As an example of this method of emulsionizing, the following 
formula is selected :— 
R. Copaibae, f 3 vj 
Pulv. Acaciae, £iij 
Aquae, q. s. ad. 
Place the Acacia (granulated) in a mortar and triturate with 
two drachms of water, until a perfectly smooth, thick paste 
results; then add under constant, rapid stirring, alternately, first 
a little of the copaiba, then a little water, continuing thus until 
all of the balsam has been thoroughly emulsified, after which 
the balance of the water may be added. 
In the preparing of an emulsion, such as usually prescribed by 
physicians, the various ingredients should be mixed in the follow- 
ing order: first, the emulsion nucleus of the oil is prepared; 
then the flavoring is added, if it be an oil; and this is followed 
by the syrup and the greater portion of the diluent. Should 
there be any salts, solid extracts, etc., to be combined, they are 
dissolved in a little of the reserved diluent and added last with 
agitation. Should there be small amounts of alcoholic liquids 
or acid solutions to be added, they should be diluted with a 
portion of the diluent, and added last, in small portions, the 
mixture being well agitated after each addition. 
Among the many proposed, the following are the most 
important:— 
Tragacanth forms an excellent emulsifying agent, a much less 
quantity of it being required than of acacia, while it yields, at the 
same time, a more prominent emulsion. For emulsifying the 
fatty oils, a smooth paste* composed of 1 part of tragacanth and 
OTHER EMULSIFYING AGENTS. 
* Best made by placing 1 part of pulverized tragacanth in a graduate, thoroughly moistening 
■with the same amount of alcohol, then adding the boiling water under constant agitation. 298 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
20 parts of water is macle, and to this is added at once, with rapid 
stirring, 20 parts of the oil to be emulsified, and 10 parts of 
water. For volatile oils (oil of turpentine, cubebs, etc.), the fol- 
lowing procedure may be followed: Oil, 8 parts; powdered traga- 
canth, 1 part, and water 15 parts. To the oil, contained in a dry 
bottle or mortar, add the tragacanth and shake or stir well, then 
add the water (15 parts), and agitate vigorously. This may be 
followed by the syrup and remaining diluents, added gradually 
in portions, the mixture being agitated after each addition. 
Yolk of Egg.—This being a perfect natural emulsion, forms an 
excellent nucleus, yielding a permanent combination. The albu- 
men of the egg should be entirely removed (as its presence is apt 
to give rise to failure), the yolk is placed in a mortar and ren- 
dered perfectly smooth by trituration, then, with a rapid circular 
motion of the pestle, the oil is added by degrees; should it become 
too thick, a little water may be added, which is then to be fol- 
lowed by the syrup and the other constituents. 
The emulsifying power of one fair-sized egg is equivalent to 
about 10 grammes of gum arabic or 1.25 grammes of tragacanth. 
The National Formulary has the following formula:— 
Cod-liver Oil, 8 fl. ozs. (other fatty oils may be 
substituted in place of this). 
Glycerite of Yolk of Egg, ... 2 J fl. ozs. 
Syrup of Tolu, 2 fl. ozs. 
Flavoring, (a sufficient quantity). 
Water, enough to make 16 fl. ozs. 
“ Triturate the glyconin in a mortar with the oil added in 
small portions at a time, and thoroughly incorporate each portion 
before adding the next. Then, continuing the trituration, gradu- 
ally add the syrup of tolu and flavoring. Finally, add enough 
water to make 16 fluidounces.” 
Dilute acids or acid salts or glycerin may be added to these 
emulsions without danger of causing them to “ crack.” 
Irish Moss.—For emulsifying oils, this is superior to acacia, 
because a subsequent separation of the emulsion does not take 
place. It also retains resinous bodies longer and more effectually 
in suspension. On the other hand it does not effect as fine a 
subdivision of the oil as is the case with acacia. In using Irish 
Moss it is necessary first to prepare a clear smooth mucilage. For 
this purpose 1 part of Irish Moss is washed in cold water to 
remove the adhering impurities and saline matter, then placed 
in a capsule or beaker and 40 parts of water added, then heated 
on a boiling water-bath for at least 15 minutes, under frequent 
stirring. The resulting mucilage* is then strained through wetted 
muslin, and enough water passed through the strainer to make 
* Should the mucilage be of a dark-brown color, it may be readily bleached by adding a few cubic 
centimeters of sulphurous acid, agitating, then placing in a capsule and heating on a water-bath 
until the odor of the acid has entirely disappeared. MIXTURES. 
299 
the product weigh 40 parts. Five parts of this mucilage are suffi- 
cient to emulsionize 8 parts of oil (fixed). To the mucilage con- 
tained in a bottle, add the oil in portions, agitating thoroughly 
after each addition; follow this up by the syrup, flavoring, and 
water as may be necessary. 
These emulsions are very prone to fermentation; hence, when 
it is necessary to preserve them for any greater length of time, it 
is well to introduce about 1 part of alcohol (substituting this for 
the same volume of water) into each 16 parts of emulsion. 
The mucilage of Irish Moss may be better preserved by pour- 
ing it while hot into bottles, which are filled to the neck, then 
adding a' thin layer of olive or cotton-seed oil, and securely 
sealing and preserving in a cool place. 
Quillaja Bark.—This contains a principle (called saponin), 
which possesses powerful emulsifying properties, but, owing to the 
large amount necessary and its expectorant properties, it should 
not be employed unless by consent of the physician. For pre- 
paring emulsions, it is employed in the form of a tincture, which 
may be made, according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, by boiling 
200 Gm. of the bark, in fine chips, with 800 Cc. of water, washing 
the residue, boiling the whole liquid down to 600 Cc., then strain- 
ing, adding 350 Cc. of alcohol, filtering, and adding enough water 
to the filtrate to make it measure 1000 Cc. One part of the tinc- 
ture is sufficient to emulsionize 8 parts of fixed oil (cod-liver oil, 
castor oil, etc.). Volatile oils (oil of turpentine, cubebs, etc.) 
require their own measure of the tincture. 
The valuable feature of Quillaja as an emulsionizing agent lies 
in the fact that it is utterly indifferent to all substances tending 
to destroy gum emulsions. 
Extract of Malt.—This forms a valuable emulsifying agent for 
cod-liver oil, for which purpose it is admirably adapted thera- 
peutically. An extract of malt should emulsify its own weight 
of cod-liver oil. The oil should be gradually added to the extract 
of malt under constant stirring. 
Casein (Saccharated).—In the prototype of a perfect natural 
emulsion, milk, we find that the fat (butter) is held in suspension 
by the casein of the milk. The idea of the employment of this 
casein occurred to M. L6ger, of Paris, who proposed a process* for 
its separation and use. Fie directs that such substances as resins, 
balsams, oleoresins, etc., should be first dissolved in a small 
amount of alcohol. Then for a 100 Cc. mixture, about 8.5 Gm. of 
saccharated casein, dissolved in an equal weight of water, is added, 
* Lexer’s process is briefly as follows: To 4 liters of milk add 60 Cc. of ammonia water (Ph. Fr., 
20 per cent.), shake well, and set aside for twenty-four hours. It will then have separated into two 
layers, the semi-saponified fat above, and the lacto-serum below. Draw off the lower layer, precipi- 
tate the casein by acetic acid, collect the magma on a strainer, and express the liquid. Remove the 
casein from the strainer, mix it with 10 Gm. of sodium bicarbonate by thorough trituration, and 
finally add enough sugar to obtain a powder containing, when dry, about 10 per cent, of its weight 
of casein. 300 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the mixture thoroughly shaken, after which the remaining con- 
stituents are added in their proper order with continual shaking. 
For emulsifying the oils the manipulations are the same as with 
acacia. 
It is claimed for this emulsifying agent that it yields perfect 
and stable emulsions, which are very palatable and easily 
tolerated by the most delicate stomach, which cannot be said of 
gum-arabic emulsions. 
Pancreatin, a mixture of natural ferments, forms an excellent 
emulsifying agent when employed in an alkaline medium (as 
sodium bicarbonate). The emulsions obtained by means of it are 
rarely permanent, but are often preferred, because of their easy 
assimilation, for the administration of such fats as cod-liver oil to 
consumptives. Pancreatin is often added to emulsions to assist 
the thorough emulsification of the fats or oils. It should be 
mixed with an equal bulk of sodium bicarbonate and dissolved 
in a small quantity of water; to this is then added the oil or 
emulsion gradually, the mixture being well shaken after each 
addition. 
Gelatin has been proposed (patented) for emulsifying paraffin 
oils. The patent directs that in 12 parts of a solution of gelatin 
(4 ounces to the gallon of water), 1 part of phosphate or carbonate 
of sodium or potassium is to be dissolved. This mixture is capable 
of emulsifying from 24 to 36 parts of animal or vegetable oils. 
For emulsifying mineral oils, the alkali is replaced by soft soap. 
Salol is melted in a warm mortar and emulsified with powdered 
acacia, according to the continental method, warm water being 
employed. On standing, it separates as a fine powder, which is 
easily reincorporated by agitation. 
Jouisse’s formula is as follows: Salol and pulverized acacia, 
each, 4 Gm., tragacanth 0.2 Gm., tincture of tolu 10 Gm., syrup 
30 Gm., water, sufficient quantity. The tincture of tolu is added 
to the water, the mixture strained, and the emulsion made as 
above directed. 
Resins or Resinous Substances (Guaiac, Jalap, Turpentine, etc.) 
should, if possible, be reduced to a powder and rubbed with one- 
half their weight of pulverized acacia, with gradual addition of 
water; or they may be dissolved in a little alcohol and emulsified 
with yolk of egg, mucilage of chondrus (Irish moss), or traga- 
canth. 
Camphor should be first pulverized by the aid of a little alcohol 
or ether, then mixed with ten times its weight of gum arabic or 
with yolk of egg. 
EMULSIFICATION OF SPECIAL DRUGS. MIXTURES. 
301 
Waxes (Spermaceti, Cacao Butter, etc.) are emulsified like the 
fixed oils, the fat being first melted, then poured into a hot mor- 
tar (the pestle being also heated). An equal weight of pulverized 
acacia is added and the whole thoroughly triturated, then hot 
water (1| times as much as there is of fat) is gradually added 
under constant stirring. 
Lycopodium, or Lupulin.—These are rubbed in a mortar with 
a little water until a crumbly mass is obtained, then triturated 
with an equal weight of acacia, and the water gradually added 
with trituration. 
Balsam Peru.—This may be emulsionized with yolk of egg or 
acacia. Of the latter, a quantity is taken equal in weight to the 
amount of balsam used. 
Pressure should not be used in preparing emulsions—it is the 
triturating (agitating) motion that is desired. The motion should 
be rapid and light. Over-manipulation often causes “ cracking.” 
A rather deep mortar with shallow bottom should be selected 
for this purpose. 
Emulsions of fixed oils should be made with the mortar and 
pestle, while volatile oils are best emulsified by agitation in a flask 
or bottle. 
When small amounts of oils (croton, cubebs, etc.) or volatile 
fluids (chloroform, etc.) are to be emulsified, it is best to mix them 
first with a little olive or almond oil, which assists in the suspen- 
sion and imparts a creamy finish to the emulsion. 
Alkalies (solution of potassa, solution of lime, borax, etc.) favor 
the emulsification of fixed oils, but they should never be used, 
since a combination with the fat-acids takes place with the forma- 
tion of soap, resulting in the impairment of the therapeutic 
properties of the oil. 
The addition of acids, acid solutions, acid salts, glycerin, alcohol, 
or alcoholic liquids, generally destroys gum emulsions, chiefly 
owing to the gum being thrown out of solution. The addition 
of glycerin, alcohol, or large amounts of salts act physically in 
abstracting water, thereby rendering the emulsionizing agent less 
viscid. The addition of borax or tincture of iron will cause an 
acacia emulsion to become gelatinous on standing. When any 
of the above incompatibles are ordered in small quantity in an 
emulsion, they should be added last, in diluted condition, and in 
small portions at a time, the whole being shaken after each 
addition. When the amount ordered is large enough to destroy 
a gum emulsion, recourse may be had to yolk of egg, Irish moss 
mucilage, or tincture of quillaja. 
NOTES. 302 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes 4 emulsions: 
EMULSA, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Class. 
Properties. 
Dose. 
Emulsum 
Ammoniaci, 
Ammoniac, 40 Gm. 
Water, a sufficient quan- 
tity to make 1000 Cc. 
Gum-resin 
Emulsion. 
Expectorant, 
15-30 Cc. 
Emulsum 
Asafcetidae, 
Asafoetida, 40 Gm. 
Water, a sufficient quan- 
tity to make 1000 Cc. 
Gum-resin 
Emulsion. 
Antispasmodic, 
15-30 Cc. 
Sweet Almond, 60 Gm. 
Emulsum 
Amygdalae, 
Acacia p., 10 Gm. 
Sugar, 30 Gm. 
Water, a sufficient quan- 
tity to make 1000 Cc. 
Seed 
Emulsion. 
Demulcent, 
60-200 Cc. 
Chloroform, 40 Cc. 
Expressed Oil of Al- 
Emulsum 
Chloroform i, 
mond, 60 Cc. 
Tragacanth, Powdered, 
15 Gm. 
Water, a sufficient quan- 
tity to make 1000 Cc. 
Oil 
Emulsion. 
Anodyne, 
15-20 Cc. CHAPTER XXXIV. 
SOLIDS. 
I. FOR INTERNAL USE. 
PUL VERES—(Powders). 
Substances which are in a finely subdivided condition are known 
as powders. Of these we recognize different degrees of fineness; 
but the official powders are of the finest degree of subdivision. 
According to the use for which they are intended they may be 
divided into two classes:— 
1st. Those for External Use. 2d. Those for Internal Use. Such 
powders as are intended for external use, as for dusting* over in- 
jured or inflamed surfaces, or for insufflation in the treatment of 
throat affections, or for blowing into the ear or nostrils, should not 
be mixed by trituration, as this renders them too compact, depriv- 
ing them of their necessary lightness. When more than one 
constituent enters into such a powder, they should, if possible, be 
separately reduced to a very fine powder, then sifted and mixed 
with a spatula. Such powders should be dispensed in dry vials. 
Powders intended for internal use may be mixed or triturated 
in a mortar, as lightness is not the essential feature demanded. 
Compound powders, whether they contain potent drugs or not, 
should be thoroughly and uniformly mixed, for the value of the 
constituents, and frequently the life of the patient, depends on 
this precaution. When such substances as extracts, oils, liquids 
or hygroscopic salts, such as potassium acetate or citrate, are to be 
combined into a powder, these should be first triturated with some 
dry, absorbent powder, then combined with the balance of the 
ingredients. Powders which contain hygroscopic substances 
should not be kept in stock, and when dispensed should be 
enclosed in waxed paper (paraffin paper). 
Powders containing volatile substances, such as camphor, am- 
monium carbonate, etc., should likewise be dispensed in waxed 
paper. 
In some instances a chemical reaction! is liable to take place, 
for instance, in mixtures containing potassium chlorate or hypo- 
phosphite, and organic substances, such as tannic acid, sulphur, 
etc. In such cases the powders, separately dried, should be 
cautiously mixed on smooth paper by the aid of a horn or wooden 
spatula without friction. In other instances, certain chemicals, 
* Examples:— 
Ijt. Lycopodii, 90.0 Jfc. Bismuthi Subearbonatis, 0.008 
Acidi Salicylici, 1.0 Pulv. Catechu, 0.005 
Rhizomatis Iridis, 9.0 Morphinee Sulphatis, 0.004 
II. lodoformi, 10.0 
Cumarini, 0.05 
f See Incompatibles. 
303 304 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
when triturated together, liquefy* These should be pulverized 
separately and then mixed without pressure and dispensed in waxed 
papers; many of these combinations cannot be dispensed at all 
without liquefaction; hence the several ingredients should be dis- 
pensed separately, 
Dividing.—It is the habit of many pharmacists to divide all 
powders by hand, collecting the powder and flattening it out to a 
rectangular shape, then dividing into the necessary 
number of equal portions by means of a spatula. This 
habit of guesswork should not be permitted, particu- 
larly if the powder contains a potent drug. In all cases, 
where the powder contains an active drug, each portion 
should be weighed. In those instances in which the 
powder is of a harmless nature, accuracy of division 
may be assisted by mechanical devices. 
Fig. 330 illustrates a cup-shaped device, made of 
hard wood, which is intended for measuring out certain 
quantities of powders. It is particularly adapted for 
measuring Seidlitz mixture. 
A very convenient device is shown in Fig. 331. This consists 
of a trough nine inches long, one inch wide, and three-eighths inch 
deep, closed at one end, and graduated inside. 
This, together with the leveler and spatula, is 
made of brass and nickel-plated, the spatula 
having an ebonized wood handle. The powder 
is placed in the graduated trough, and the rubber 
plug placed opposite the graduation denoting the 
number of powders into which the prescription 
is to be divided. The powder is then leveled in 
the trough by means of the leveler, after which 
the plug is removed, and by use of the spatula 
in connection with the graduation marks, the 
powder is accurately divided into the necessary 
number of parts, each of which is then removed 
through the open end of the trough. 
The paper selected for wrapping powders 
should be of good quality, with a well-calendered 
or glazed surface. After the required number 
of powder-papers have been laid out in rows, 
they should be creased by folding down a narrow 
margin along one of the longer sides; then after 
the powder has been distributed upon the several 
papers, the edge is folded over so as to correspond 
exactly to the line of the crease; the folded edge 
is then picked up and turned back toward the 
operator to such an extent, that a package of a definite and uniform 
Fig. 330. 
Seidlitz Powder 
Measure. 
Fig. 331. 
Diamond Powder Divider. 
* For example Chloral and Camphor, 
Acetate of Lead and Zinc Sulphate, 
Antipyrin with Chloral, Naphthol, Piperazin, Sodium Salicylate, etc. SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
305 
width results. Then the ends of the powder are folded over by 
means of a spatula, the length being regulated to suit the size 
of the box in which they are to be placed. In order to secure 
uniformity in length, the powder-folder may be employed (Figs. 
332-4). This is usually constructed so that various lengths may 
be accurately adjusted. 
Nauseous powders are often administered in wafers. These 
consist of thin brittle sheets (square or circular pieces), made by 
pouring a mixture of flour and water on hot plates. When used, 
one of these is first dipped into cold water to render it limp. It 
is then quickly laid upon a tablespoon ; the powder is emptied 
into the center, then the edges are folded over so as to enclose it 
securely on all sides, water is then poured into the spoon and the 
whole is swallowed without the least difficulty. 
An improvement on this is the “ cachet.” These are concave 
discs of wafer, made by dampening and pressing wafer-paper 
(small discs) between warm moulds. The powder is placed inside, 
then an empty disc, with its edges moistened, is placed over it 
and sealed by sufficient pressure. These are dipped into cold 
water, and swallowed with a draught of cold water. 
Figs. 332, 333, 334. 
Powder Folders. 
Various forms of elaborate apparatus have been devised for 
sealing these. Among the simpler ones is the apparatus shown in 
Fig. 335. The nickel-plated mould (a) is so constructed as to 
hold any size of cachet. One of the halves is placed in the 
mould, then over the top is placed the “ filler ” (5) to ensure the 
even filling of the cachet without spilling any of the powder over 
the edges. Then by means of the holder (c) the empty half is 
picked up, moistened on a piece of wet felt, and, by pressing, 
joined to the lower half; an automatic spring enables the opera- 
tor to loosen the sealed cachet. 
Fig. 336 illustrates another form in which the cachets are 
pressed into the circular spaces of plates a and b, then plate c is 
folded over on to plate b, and, by means of a short funnel, the 
powders are rapidly deposited in the center of the lower cachets, 
and if necessary, pressed down and made compact by means of a 
plunger. When filled, plate c is removed from plate b, then a 
damping roller is passed over plate a, the edges of the covers 
being moistened; this is now closed over b with slight pressure, 306 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
which seals the cachets, leaving them adhering to the plate a, 
when opened. 
A very convenient substitute for the wafers is the Japanese 
Fig. 335. 
Apparatus for Filling and Sealing Cachets (Chapereau). 
Usego paper. This is thin and strong, the powder is laid in the 
center of a small disc, the ends are gathered and twisted so as to 
Fig. 336. 
Cachet Filling and Sealing Apparatus (Konseal). 
form a small cylindrical package, which is then dipped in water 
and swallowed. The paper is digested with the medicine. SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
307 
GELATIN CAPSULES. 
The gelatin capsule affords a convenient method of administer- 
ing nauseous powders and liquids. 
Capsules are designated as 
hard and soft. 
They are made by dipping 
smooth olive-shaped moulds 
into a hot solution of gelatin,* 
allowing the coating to set and 
then removing. The moulds 
consist of olive-shaped solid 
heads (c) of polished bone, ivory, 
or metal, fixed upon rods (6) of 
wood, or metal, which are placed 
upright in perforations in a slab 
of wood (Fig. 337), in the back 
of which a handle is fixed. 
The moulds (olives) with the 
neck of the supporting rod are 
slightly oiled by means of a piece of cloth, secured in the base, 
then the frame is grasped by the handle, and the tips immersed 
a few seconds in the gelatin solution, which is kept at a uniform 
temperature (about 40° C.). On removing the moulds, the excess of 
solution is allowed to run off, then the moulds are rotated so as to 
distribute the film evenly on all sides; as soon as the mass has 
set sufficiently, they are put aside until cold and firm enough for 
removal. A knife is passed round the shank of the mould, close 
to the bulb, so as to separate that portion adhering to the handle. 
Then, by grasping the capsule lightly between two fingers it is 
gently removed, and placed in supports (d) for drying. 
The soft capsules are filled by means of a syringe with a long- 
pointed tip, or by means of a pipette. Care must be taken that 
no fluid of an oily nature be allowed to drop on the upper edge 
of the capsule. Then by means of a camel’s-hair brush, or glass 
rod, the open end of the capsule is sealed over with a portion of 
the melted composition. These soft gelatin capsules are useful 
for the administration of such liquids as Terebene, Oil of Tur- 
pentine, Creosote, Apiol, etc.; they are made of various shapes, 
as ovoid, globular—flattened, round. The small, round (hard) 
capsules are known as gelatin “ pearls.” 
Elastic, or soft, empty capsules! can be obtained in the market, 
being ovoid in shape, elastic, and filled with air. They are placed 
Fig. 337. 
Capsule Moulds. 
Hard Capsules. 
Soft Capsules. 
* Gelatin, 
.... 6 pts., 
. ... 25 pts. 
Acacia, 
.... 1 pt., .... Glycerin, . 
. ... 10 pts. 
P. Sugar, 
.... 1 pt., 
. . . . 8 pts. 
Water, 
. . . . 5 pts., 
. ... 45 pts. 
Steep the gelatin in water, when soft add the gum and sugar, and heat in a covered vessel on a 
water-bath until dissolved. 
t Made by the Merz Soft Capsule Co., 
Detroit, Michigan. 308 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
on a stick perforated with holes, the elongated tops removed with 
a scissors, then filled with a pipette, or syringe, and sealed. 
The empty, hard gelatin capsules, Fig. 340, are of cylindrical 
shape, their capacity being indicated by various numbers. They 
should be filled with the powder in dry condition 
and not in mass form. They may be filled by 
grasping the longer half between the fingers, and 
by pressing downward with a slight rotary motion 
over the powder; for this purpose the powder 
Fig. 339. 
Elastic Gelatin Capsules. 
Fig. 340. 
Gelatin Capsules (Empty). 
should be heaped; after the capsules are filled, 
the tops are slid over as far as possible. 
Care should be taken to keep the fingers dry 
and clean, and after filling, to carefully wipe any 
adhering powder from the surface of the capsule. 
It is, however, preferable to employ 
the capsule filler, which is far more 
cleanly and accurate. 
There are several forms of these in 
the market, among which the following 
may be recommended for their sim- 
plicity :— 
The Davenport Capsule Filler, Fig. 
341, consists of a funnel of light metal 
(plated) with a very wide rim, flattened 
on one side, the tube of which is short 
and of a size adapted to fit the size of 
capsule for which it is intended. A 
plunger is provided for the purpose of forcing the powder com- 
pactly into the capsule. 
Globular and Ovoid 
Gelatin Capsules. 
Fig. 341. 
Davenport Capsule Filler. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
309 
The Raymond Capsule Filler, Fig. 342, consists of two blocks of 
hard wood, in the lower one of which sockets are bored sufficiently 
Fig. 342. 
Raymond Capsule Filler. 
Fig. 343. 
Acme Capsule Filler. 
deep to accommodate the capsules to one-half of their length. The 
upper block is pierced with corresponding funnel-shaped holes; 310 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
this, when placed over the lower block, encloses the capsules 
securely. The powders are emptied into the funnel-shaped aper- 
tures and forced down by means of a wooden plunger. The 
upper block is then removed and the tops of the capsules slid 
over the filled, lower portions. 
The Acme Capsule Filler, Fig. 343, consists of a block of wood, 
with perforations for holding a dozen capsules. This block slides 
back and forward in a metallic case, on one end of whose upper 
side is placed a funnel, through which, by means of a plunger, 
the powder is readily introduced into the capsules. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 9 compound powders. 
PULVERES, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Constituents. 
Properties. Dose. 
PULVIS 
Antimonialis, .... 
Antimony Oxide, 33 Gm. 
Ppt. Calcium Phosph., 67 Gm. 
Diaphoretic, 
Emetic, 0.2-0.5Gm. 
Aromaticus, 
P. Cinnamon, 35 Gm.; P. 
Ginger, 35 Gm.; P. Carda- 
mom, 15 Gm.; P. Nutmeg, 
15 Gm. 
Aromatic. 
Crete Compositus, . 
Prep. Chalk, 30 Gm.; Acacia, 
20 Gm.; Sugar, 50 Gm. 
Chalk Mixture. 
Effervescens Compositus 
(Seidlitz Powder), . 
Sodium Bicarb., 31 Gm.; Ro- 
chelle Salt, 93 Gm.; Tartaric 
Acid, 27 Gm. 
Laxative. 
Glycyrrhiz® Compositus, 
P. Senna, 180 Gm.; P. Liquor- 
ice, 236 Gm.; Washed Sul- 
phur, 80 Gm.; Oil Fennel, 
4 Gm.; Sugar, 500 Gm. 
Laxative, 2-8 Gm. 
Ipecacuanhas et Opii 
(Dover’s Powder), 
P. Ipecac, 10 Gm.; P. Opium, 
10 Gm.; Sugar of Milk, 80 
Gm. 
Diaphoretic, 0.3-1 Gm. 
Jalapae Compositus, . . 
P. Jalap, 35 Gm.; Potass. 
Bitart.,65 Gm. 
Cathartic, 1-4 Gm. 
Morphinae Compositus 
(Tully’s Powder), . , 
Morphia Sulphate, 1 Gm.; P. 
Camphor, 19 Gm.; P. Li- 
quorice, 20 Gm.; Ppt. Calc. 
Carb., 20 Gm. 
Diaphoretic, 
0.3-0.9 Gm. 
Rhei Compositus, . . . 
P. Rhubarb, 25 Gm.; Magne- 
sia, 65 Gm.; P. Ginger, 10 
Gm. 
Laxative, Antacid, 
0.3-12 Gm. 
These are a class of powders which contain active substances 
in a minute state of subdivision, obtained by trituration with 
sugar of milk. By means of these we can accurately regulate 
the doses of powerful substances. 
In the preparation of these powders it is advisable to employ 
the sugar of milk in small crystals or coarse powder, so that 
TRITURATIONES—{Triturations). SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
311 
during the process of trituration, which is necessary to bring it to 
a fine powder, the medicinal ingredient may at the same time 
receive thorough and uniform subdivision. 
The following general formula is given by the U. S. Pharma- 
copoeia :— 
“ Unless otherwise directed, Triturations are to be prepared by 
the following formula:— 
Take of 
The Substance, ten grammes, 10 Gm. 
Sugar of Milk, in moderately fine powder, ninety grammes . 90 Gm. 
To make one hundred grammes, . . 100 Gm. 
Weigh the substance and the sugar of milk separately; then 
place the substance, previously reduced, if necessary, to a moder- 
ately fine powder, in a mortar; add about an equal measure of 
sugar of milk, mix well by means of a spatula, and triturate them 
thoroughly together. Then add fresh portions of the sugar of 
milk, from time to time, until the whole is added, and continue 
the trituration until the substance is intimately mixed with the 
sugar of milk and reduced to a fine powder. 
TRITURATIO ELATERINI (Trituration of Elaterin). 
Elaterin, ten grammes, 10 Gm. 
Sugar of Milk, in moderately fine powder, ninety grammes, . 90 Gm. 
To make one hundred grammes, . . 100 Gm. 
Mix them thoroughly by trituration.” 
EL2EOSACCHARA—OLEOSACCHARA (N.F.)—(Oleosaccharates). 
Oleosaccharates, or oil-sugars consist of sugar flavored with 
volatile oil or some other volatile aromatic substance. 
The German Pharmacopoeia directs that 1 gramme of volatile 
oil be added to 50 grammes of sugar in moderately fine powder, 
and the mixture thoroughly triturated. In France, oleosac- 
charates are made double this strength. The oleosaccharate of 
vanilla is prepared from 1 part of finely cut vanilla and 9 parts 
of crystallized sugar (rock candy), triturated until a fine powder 
results; in place of the vanilla bean, a mixture of vanillin and 
cumarin is often employed. 
Under the title of Oleosacchara, the National Formulary directs 
the following general formula: 
Volatile Oil, 1 drop. 
Sugar, 30 grains. 
Triturate the sugar with the volatile oil to a fine powder. 
The oleosaccharates are intended as a pleasant aromatic vehicle 
for administering medicinal substances in powder form. Those pre- 
pared from volatile oils should be freshly made when wanted for 
use. Only the best quality* of fresh volatile oil should be employed. 
* Old resinified oils impart a bitter, unpleasant taste, as well as terebinthinate odor, to the sugar. 312 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
MASSES RESULTING FROM ADMIXTURE OF POWDERS WITH FLUIDS. 
CONFECTIONES—(Confections). 
Confections (conficio = to make up) are soft masses resulting 
from the admixture of one or more medicinal substances with 
sugar. They are usually prepared by incorporating the drug or 
drugs in paste or powder form with some saccharine liquid. 
This is a very ancient method of administering medicines, but 
it has almost gone out of use at present. 
The Conserve (conserve = to keep) differs from the above in that 
sugar is added to the fresh drug beaten to a pulp, in sufficient 
quantity to form a soft mass; the sugar serving as a preservative 
agent as well as a vehicle. 
The Electuary* is a mixture of powders with pulps, syrup, or 
honey. It is of a softer consistence than the confections as under- 
stood by the Pharmacopoeia. But it should not be too soft, so as 
to deposit the ingredients on standing. 
Confections, when they have become hard from drying out, 
may be restored to a pulpy condition by working them over with 
a little glycerin. The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes Confectio 
Rosae, which is employed as a vehicle for massing pills and 
administering other remedies, and Confectio Sennae, which is 
employed as a cathartic. 
Red Rose, powdered, 80 Gm. 
Sugar, powdered, 640 “ 
Clarified Honey, 120 “ 
Stronger Rose Water, 160 Cc. 
Confectio Ros®. 
Senna, powdered, 100 Gm. 
Cassia Fistula, 160 “ 
Tamarind, 100 “ 
Prune, 70 “ 
Fig, 120 “ 
Sugar, 555 “ 
Oil of Coriander, 5 “ 
Confectio Sennae. 
Water, sufficient to make 1000 Gm. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes three pill masses. They 
are permanent preparations and are conveniently kept in stock. 
MASSjE. 
Massa Copaibas. 
(Dose 0.5 to 2 Gm.) 
Copaiba, 94 Gm. 
Magnesia, 6 “ 
Water, a sufficient quantity. 
On mixing copaiba with magnesia it gradually loses its fluidity, 
* Having as base, honey or syrup, pulp of prunes or tamarinds. The German Pharmacopoeia 
directs the following proportions to be observed:— 
For 1 part of powd. drug, 3 to 5 p. of Honey or Syrup. 
“1 “ “ “ 4 to 6 p. Prune or Tamarind Pulp. 
“ 1 “ difficultly soluble salt,... 1 p. of Syrup. 
“ 1 “ “ “ “ . . . 2 p. of Pulp. SOLIDS— FOR INTERNAL USE. 
313 
and finally becomes hard and brittle. This is due to the chemical 
combination of the magnesia with the copaibic acid (hard resin). 
The length of time required for this combination to take place 
varies with the condition of the copaiba. For this combination 
of the copaibic acid and magnesia it is essential that a certain 
amount of water be present. As there is rarely sufficient in the 
magnesia, it is generally added. 
Ferrous Sulphate, 100 Gm. 
Sodium Carbonate, 100 “ 
Clarified Honey, 38 “ 
Sugar, 25 “ 
Syrup and Water, of each, 
sufficient to make 1000 Gm. 
Massa Ferri Carbonatis 
(Vallet’s Mass). 
(Dose 0.2 to 0.5 Gm.) 
Syrup is added to the ferrous sulphate solution and the wash 
water, to protect the ferrous salt against the absorption of oxygen. 
Boiling distilled water is employed to avoid the oxidizing action 
of the air, which is contained in the unboiled water. The 
reaction which takes place between the ferrous sulphate and 
sodium carbonate, results in the formation of the greenish-gray 
colored ferrous carbonate (FeCO3). This readily undergoes oxida- 
tion ; hence it is necessary to carry on the washing as rapidly as 
possible, and to protect the ferrous carbonate by employing boiled 
water and syrup. The product is finally made into a mass with 
honey and sugar. This contains 42 per cent, of Ferrous Carbon- 
ate, and is probably the most efficient form for the administration 
of iron. 
Mercury, 33 Gm. 
Glycyrrhiza, powdered, 5 “ 
Althaea, powdered, 25 “ 
Glycerin, 3 “ 
Honey of Rose, 34 “ 
100 Gm. 
Massa Hydrargyri 
(Blue Mass or Pill). 
(Dose: 0.2 to 0.5 Gm.) 
This contains one-third of its weight of mercury. The mass 
can be prepared on a small scale by the pharmacist, but care must 
be taken that the extinguishment of the mercury is carried on 
until the globules are no longer visible through a lens mag- 
nifying at least ten diameters. Among the various agents that 
may be employed for the extinguishment of the mercury in this 
instance, the Confection of Rose is one of the best, as it is not 
only effective, but also protects the mercury quite well from oxida- 
tion. However, upon long standing, both mercurous and mer- 
curic oxide are apt to form, owing to the slow oxidation of the 
finely subdivided mercury. As these are toxic when present in 
any quantity, it is necessary that the sample be tested for their 
presence as directed by the Pharmacopoeia. 314 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
TROCHISCI—( Troches). 
TABELL2E—PASTILLI. 
Troches (lozenges) are round or oval, solid, flattened masses, 
consisting of medicinal substances combined with sugar and 
mucilage. 
They represent a convenient form of administering such 
remedies as are intended to act by continual application, through 
slow disintegration, on the throat. Troches generally vary in 
weight from one-half to one gramme. According to their method 
of preparation, they may be divided into two classes. 
1st. Those made by compression. In this case the medicinal 
constituents are mixed with powdered sugar, then moistened with 
some kind of mucilage, granulated and compressed into tablet 
form, as described under compressed tablets (page 335). 
Fig. 344. 
Troches (various forms'. 
2d. Those made by moulding. A mass is prepared, and after 
rolling it out to the desired thickness, the lozenges are cut out by 
means of moulds, or the mass is made into pills and reduced to 
the desired size and shape by compression. 
In preparing a mass, the one or more medicinal constituents, 
in a finely powdered condition, are thoroughly mixed with a finely 
powdered diluent (sugar),* then made into a mass by the careful 
addition of mucilage of tragacanth. In some instances the Phar- 
macopoeia directs the use of powdered tragacanth, and that the 
mass be made up by the addition of water. Great care must be 
exercised when proceeding by the latter method, to add the water 
cautiously, while the mass is being thoroughly worked, otherwise 
it is likely to become too soft for moulding. 
* Confectioners’ sugar. SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
315 
The manufacturer employs machinery for kneading the masses, 
while the apothecary relies upon the mortar and pestle. For this 
purpose the pill-pestle, as shown in Fig. 351, is best adapted. 
After the mass has been prepared, which should be of a consist- 
ence slightly softer than that of a pill-mass, it is rolled out upon 
a lozenge-board (Fig. 345), the thickness of the mass being made 
uniform, and regulated by a frame along the sides of the board 
upon which the ends of the roller rest. The surface of the mass 
is dusted with a mixture of powdered sugar and starch, and then 
divided into lozenges by means of a punch. These punches are 
made of various sizes and shapes, to suit the taste of the operator. 
They may consist of a hollow cylinder of tin or steel, or more 
elaborately constructed, as shown in the form illustrated in Fig. 
346. This consists of a hollow cylinder, inside of which, by 
means of the handle, g i, the plunger, d, is operated ; the screw, a, 
Fig. 345. 
Rolling out Mass for Troches. 
regulates the distance to which the plunger may recede, thereby 
controlling the thickness of the lozenge. This plunger, d, may 
consist of a die which stamps a letter or design on the lozenge in 
the operation of cutting; on pressing the arm, g, at i, the rod at d 
is forced downward and discharges the lozenge. 
After being moulded or cut, the lozenges are placed on trays and 
allowed to dry in a moderately heated drying room. 
In the absence of a lozenge punch, the mass may be rolled out 
into a cylinder, cut and formed into pills, which, when pressed 
with a spatula, may be made to yield a lozenge of any desired 
thickness, the edges of which may be rounded by rotating 
between the blades of two spatulas. Should the edges of a 316 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
lozenge, thus made, become ragged or crack, this generally 
indicates that the mass is too dry. It should then be returned 
to the mortar and worked over with the addition of a little 
tragacanth mucilage. 
Aside from sugar and tragacanth, extract of liquorice is often 
employed as a base. This can be medicated as desired, and owing 
Fig. 346. 
Troche Cutter. 
to its plasticity, can be readily formed into a variety of shapes, as 
shown in Figs. 347,348. When the mass is rolled out into a thin 
cylindrical rod (3 to 4 Mm. diameter) and cut into pieces of about 
10 to 12 Mm. in length, these little cylinders are designated 
“ bacilli ” or “ sticklets.” 
Fig. 348. 
Fig. 347. 
Ovoids. 
Mouth Pastilles. 
The following mixture may also be employed as a base; 1 part 
of chocolate (grated), 2 parts of powdered sugar, and 0.05 parts 
(for 30 Gm. of mass 0.5 Gm.) of powdered tragacanth. 
Currant paste is also employed as a basis for this purpose. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
317 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 15 formulas for troches. 
Title. 
Constituents—100 Troches. 
Active Constituent, to each 
Trochisci 
troche. 
Acidi Tannici, .... 
Tannic Acid, 6 Gm.; Sugar, 
powd., 65 Gm.; Tragacanth, 
powd., 2 Gm. ; Stronger 
Orange Flower Water, a 
sufficient quantity. 
Tannic Acid, 0.06 Gm. 
Ammonii Chloridi, . . 
Ammonium Chloride, 10 Gm.; 
Extractof Liquorice,25Gm.; 
Tragacanth, powd., 2 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 50 Gm.;Syrup 
of Tolu, a sufficient quantity. 
Ammonium Chloride, 
0.1 Gm. 
Catechu, 
Catechu, 6 Gm.; Sugar, powd., 
65 Gm.; Tragacanth, 2 Gm.; 
Stronger Orange Flower 
Water, a sufficient quantity. 
Catechu, 0.06 Gm. 
Cretae, 
Prepared Chalk, 25 Gm.; Aca- 
cia, 7 Gm.; Spirit of Nut- 
meg. 3 Cc.; Sugar, powd., 
40 Gm.; Water, a sufficient 
quantity. 
Prepared Chalk, 0.25 
Gm. 
Cubebte, 
Oleoresin of Cubeb, 4 Gm.; 
Oil of Sassafras, 1 Cc.; Ex 
tract of Liquorice, 25 Gm.; 
Acacia, powd., 12Gm.; Syr- 
up of Tolu, a sufficient 
quantity. 
Oleoresin Cubeb, 0.04 
Gm. 
Ferri, 
Ferric Hydrate, 30 Gm.; Van- 
illa, cut, 1 Gm.; Sugar, 
powd., 100 Gm.; Mucilage 
of Tragacanth, a sufficient 
quantity. 
Ferric Hydrate, 0.3 Gm. 
Glycyrrhizae et Opii, . . 
Extract of Liquorice, 15 Gm.; 
Powd. Opium, 0.5 Gm.: 
Acacia, powd., 12 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 20 Gm.; 
Oil of Anise, 0.2 Cc.; Water, 
a sufficient quantity. 
P. Opium, 0.005 Gm. 
Ipecacuanhas, 
Ipecac., powd., 2 Gm.; Traga- 
canth, powd., 2 Gm.; Sugar, 
powd.,65 Gm.; Syrup of Or- 
ange, a sufficient quantity. 
Extract of Krameria, 6 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 65 Gm.; Trag- 
acanth, powd., 2 Gm.; 
Stronger Orange Flower 
Water, a sufficient quantity. 
P. Ipecac, 0.02 Gm 
Krameriae, 
Ext. Krameria, 0.06 Gm. 
Menthae Piperitae, . . . 
Oil of Peppermint, 1 Cc.; Su- 
gar, powd., 80 Gm.; Mucil- 
age of Tragacanth, a suffi- 
cient quantity. 
Oil of Peppermint, 0.01 
Cc. 
Morphinae, et Ipecacu- 
Morphine Sulphate, 0.16 Gm.; 
Morphine Sulphate, 
0.0016 Gm.; P. Ipe- 
cac, 0.005 Gm. 
anhae, 
Ipecac, powd., 0.5 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 65.00 Gm.; 
Oil of Wintergreen, 0.2 Cc.; 
Mucilage of Tragacanth, a 
sufficient quantity. 
Potassii Chloratis, . . . 
Potassium Chlorate, 30 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 120 Gm.; 
Tragacanth, powd., 6 Gm.; 
Spirit of Lemon, 1 Cc.; 
Water, a sufficient quantity. 
Potassium Chlorate, 0.3 
Gm. 318 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Title. 
Constituents—100 Troches. 
Active Constituent, to each 
troche. 
Santonini, 
Santonin, 3 Gin.; Sugar, 
powd., 110 Gm.; Traga- 
canth, powd., 3 Gm., 
Stronger Orange Flower 
Water, a sufficient quantity. 
Santonin, 0.03 Gm. 
Sodii Bicarbonatis, . . 
Sodium Bicarbonate, 20 Gm.; 
Sugar, powd., 60 Gm.; 
Nutmeg, bruised, 1 Gm.; 
Mucilage of Tragacanth, 
a sufficient quantity. 
Sodium Bicarbonate,0.2 
Gm. 
Zingiberis, 
Tinct. Ginger, 20 Cc.; Traga- 
canth, powd., 4 Gm.; Sugar, 
powd., 130 Gm.; Syrup of 
Ginger, a sufficient quan- 
tity. 
Tincture of Ginger, 0.02 
Cc. 
PILULE—(Pills). 
Pills are spherical or elongated masses of medicinal substances 
of such a size as to be convenient for swallowing. The pill forms 
a very convenient method of administering such substances as 
are characterized by an unpleasant odor or taste. 
The weight* of pills varies from 0.1 to 0.3 Gm. for vegetable 
powders, and up to 0.6 Gm. for inorganic combinations; a pill 
which is much larger than this is known as a bolus. 
Very small coated pills are called granules. 
A piil-mass should be sufficiently plastic to admit moulding, 
and yet sufficiently firm to enable the pills, when moulded, to 
retain their shape. 
To be successful in the preparation of pill-masses, a knowledge 
of the nature of the substances to be combined is necessary, for, 
with systematic procedure, the most intractable substances can be 
managed. 
Pills should not be made too firm or hard, which would render 
them insoluble in the stomach, causing thereby nausea and 
irritation. 
The pill-mass consists essentially of two parts, viz., the active 
ingredients, whether solid or liquid, and the excipient, which im- 
parts the proper degree of consistence and tenacity. 
Some substances are of such a plastic nature as to render the 
addition of an excipient unnecessary, as, for instance, the soft 
extracts; others, like gum-resins or resins, when dry, possess no 
adhesiveness, yet acquire this property on addition of a little sol- 
vent, such as alcohol; such powders as extract of liquorice or 
some of the powdered extracts only require the addition of water 
to impart adhesiveness; thus, in many instances we develop, and 
do not impart adhesiveness. 
When the solid (as camphor, inorganic salts, etc.) does not 
* The size, as compared to the weight of pills, varies according to the nature of the substance, some 
being very light and bulky, while others are heavy and compact. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
319 
possess adhesiveness, we impart it by the addition of an excipient 
which has these qualities. 
Such substances as are in a fluid or semi-fluid condition 
should be incorporated with inert and absorbent powders, as 
liquorice root or powdered marshmallow; if the amount of fluid 
be such as to render the pill too large, it should be first evapor- 
ated until the residue has the consistence of a soft extract. 
Pills containing deliquescent substances should be coated im- 
mediately after their preparation. 
Inorganic salts which contain water of crystallization should 
be first dried before being combined into a pill-mass. 
Powders, when non-adhesive, should be combined with a soft 
extract or some adhesive excipient; the indiscriminate use of 
large quantities of powdered acacia or tragacanth is to be con- 
demned, since they render pills very hard and quite insoluble. 
When used as excipient they should be combined with a little 
glycerin. 
Active or potent substances, such as corrosive sublimate, arsen- 
ous acid, alkaloids, etc., which are administered in very small 
doses, should be intimately mixed with some inert powder (sugar 
of milk, etc.) by trituration, then incorporated into a mass. 
Care should be taken not to combine substances which react 
with one another, as, for instance, acid salts and carbonates, silver 
salts or permanganates with organic matter, etc. 
The hands and all utensils employed should be kept scrupu- 
lously clean. 
The first precaution in making up the pill-mass is to observe 
that all constituents have been reduced to a very fine powder and 
thoroughly mixed. Then, if an excipient is necessary, one should 
be selected which will least increase the size of the pill, and only 
enough added to yield a uniform and plastic mass. 
Under all circumstances the mass should be thoroughly worked, 
so as to secure a perfect and uniform distribution of the medicinal 
constituents. When the operator is uncertain as to the amount 
of excipient necessary, it is best to proceed by adding small 
quantities at a time until the desired degree of plasticity is ob- 
tained, the mass being rapidly triturated with pressure, the 
particles of powder that adhere to the sides of the mortar and 
pestle being detached by means of a spatula. 
The difficulty with beginners is, that in their haste to obtain a 
mass, they usually add too much excipient, causing the mass to 
become soft and pasty. To remedy this, some absorbent powder 
is generally added, frequently with the result of increasing the 
size of the pill to that of a bolus. Particular precaution should 
be observed not to add an excess of water to pill-masses containing 
soap. 
For the preparation of a pill-mass a deep wedgwood or porce- 
lain mortar, of a form similar to that shown in Fig. 349, is prefer- 
ably selected. Because of their lightness, and the firm grasp 320 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
afforded, pestles having a wooden handle are preferred. Fig. 351 
illustrates a form specially adapted for this purpose. 
After the mass has been formed, it should be given a cylindrical 
shape with the hands, then placed on a pill tile,* (Fig. 350), and 
by means of the roller (Fig. 352), which is a piece of hard wood 
with a smooth surface provided with a handle, or by means of a 
broad-bladed spatula (Fig. 353), it is rolled out into a long cylinder 
of the necessary length; then by means of a spatula it is divided 
into the desired number of parts. 
Many operators prefer to roll and divide the mass on the pill 
machine (Fig. 354). This consists of two pieces of hard wood; 
Fig. 349. 
Fig. 351. 
Fig. 352. 
Pill Mortar. 
Pill Roller (sectional view). 
Fig. 350. 
Fig. 353. 
Pill Tile. 
Pill Pestle, f 
Pill Spatula. 
the lower board (a) is encased with metal strips to prevent warp- 
ing, and to protect the raised edges from wear; on the upper end 
is a hemispherically-grooved brass plate. Corresponding to this 
is a similar plate on the upper board (6), at either end of which 
are fastened brass guides, so that the cutting edges of the grooved 
brass plates may accurately correspond in position. This upper 
board is provided with handles for operating. 
* These consist of slabs composed of queensware, porcelain or glass, on one side of which a gradu- 
ated scale is marked ; queensware is objectionable, because of the frequent cracking of the enamel on 
the surface, which permits the various substances to penetrate, rendering it after a time unfit for 
dispensing purposes. Glass is open to the objection that in use the surface becomes rough and 
scratched. Porcelain answers the best. 
f Made by Messrs. Whitall, Tatum & Co., New York, SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
321 
The pill-cylinder, as soon as formed, is laid across the grooves 
of the lower board ; then the upper board, by means of the guides, 
is brought upon the surface of the mass with a slight downward 
pressure, and with a backward and forward movement the pill- 
cylinder is divided into the desired number of pills. 
Fig. 354. 
Pill Machine. 
To facilitate the formation of the cylinders, in the manufacture 
of large quantities of pills, the pill (or plaster) press of Liebau 
(Fig. 355) may be employed. The pill-mass is placed in the cylin- 
drical hopper (5), which is provided with a double hot water 
jacket (supplied from a), for the purpose of retaining the mass in 
Fig. 355. 
Liebau’s Pill or Plaster Press. 
soft condition ; then by means of a plunger, operated by a screw, 
the mass is forced through the apertures in the steel block below, 
forming cylinders of uniform size. 
To prevent the mass from sticking to the pill tile or roller, 
it is usually dusted with rice flour; lycopodium is also used for 322 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
this purpose, but offers the slight disadvantage of color, and causes 
the mass to slip about when rolled. 
After the cylinder has been cut into the 
necessary number of parts, these are next 
rounded and finished by rotating them 
about with slight pressure, on a level, 
smooth surface, under the pill finisher (Figs. 
356-7). This is made of hard wood, and 
either of a fixed depth of surface or adjust- 
able. 
When the mass is of such a nature that it crumbles readily, it 
Fig. 356. 
Pill Finisher. 
Fig. 357. 
Pill Finisher, 
is not only permissible, but preferable, to round the pills by roll- 
ing them with the fingers. 
EXCIPIENTS (Fluid). 
Such excipients as are incompatible with the pill-mass are to 
be avoided, for instance, confection of rose with iron compounds; 
also those excipients which render pills too hard or too soft, like- 
wise those which tend to increase their size unduly. 
Water.—This is employed in all cases where the mass possesses 
sufficient inherent adhesiveness capable of being developed with 
water, as, for instance, pills of aloes, asafoetida, opium, compound 
cathartic pills, etc. Pills made with water are, however, liable to 
become exceedingly hard on standing; hence, when they are to 
be made in large quantities, it is advisable to add a small amount 
of glycerin. 
Syrup.—This differs from water in being slightly adhesive. 
Mucilage or Syrup of Acacia.—While either forms a very adhe- 
sive excipient, they should be avoided, since they render the pills 
very hard. 
Glycerin.—This, alone, is a poor excipient, since it is entirely 
devoid of adhesive properties. It is, however, excellent when 
used in combination with other excipients (glycerite of tragacanth, 
etc.), as it will maintain the pills in a soft condition. Owing to 
its hygroscopic nature, it should be used very cautiously, other- 
wise the pills soon lose their shape. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
323 
Glucose or Honey.—These form excellent excipients, being adhe- 
sive and tending to retain the mass in soft condition. 
Glycerite of Tragacanth*—This forms one of the best general 
excipients for all sorts of masses. It is adhesive, and does not 
render the pills hygroscopic. 
Castor Oil.—This is employed as an excipient in pills of cam- 
phor, also in the official Plummer’s Pill. 
General Excipient.—A combination of some of the above excip- 
ients, possessing their several virtues, forms perhaps the best for 
general use. 
Upham’s Formula : 
Powd. Acacia, 1 drachm. 
Powd. Tragacanth, 2 “ 
Glucose (white), 5 “ 
Glycerin, 3 ounces. 
Mix the powders in a suitable vessel, and incorporate the glycerin 
and glucose until a perfectly smooth paste is obtained; then apply 
sufficient heat until the mass thickens. 
Remington’s Formula : 
Glucose (white), 4 oz. av. 
Glycerin, 1 oz. av. 
Powd. Acacia, 90 grains. 
Benzoic Acid, 1 grain. 
In the glycerin contained in a capsule, heated on a water-bath, 
dissolve the benzoic acid (or better, replace the benzoic acid by 5 
drops of Tr. Benzoin); then add the acacia and glucose, and stir 
well until they are dissolved. 
EXCIPIENTS (Solid). 
Acacia (powdered).—Powdered acacia, by itself, is of but little 
value, but, when combined with powdered althaea (Hager), it 
binds well, making a mass of good consistence. 
Tragacanth (powdered).—This imparts solidity and elasticity to 
a mass, particularly if the latter tends to crumble. If too much 
is added, the mass becomes so elastic that it is almost impossible 
to render the pills round by rolling. 
Sbcp (powdered).—This is adapted to the formation of pill- 
masses containing resins, gum-resins, and vegetable powders. In 
the Pharmacopoeia, it is employed in making pills of aloes, aloes 
and asafoetida, asafoetida, opium and rhubarb. Water should be 
added very cautiously to these mixtures, otherwise they become 
too soft. Soap should not be used in masses which contain 
metallic salts, acid salts, etc. 
* Glycerite of Tragacanth, N. F.—Tragacanth, pulverized, 2 troy ounces ; glycerin, 12% fluid- 
ounces ; water, 3 fluidounces. Triturate the tragacanth with the glycerin, add the water (hot) gradu- 
ally, and continue trituratinguntil a homogeneous paste results. 324 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Althaea (powdered).—This, with a little water, is quite adhesive. 
When employed as an absorbent it should not be employed in 
large quantities, since it renders the mass very bulky and elastic. 
Powdered Extract of Liquorice.—This forms, with water, an ex- 
cellent binding material for all sorts of combinations. It should 
be employed only in masses of dark color. 
Pilular Extracts.—Such solid extracts, of pilular consistency, 
as those of Gentian, Taraxacum or Triticum, form a very useful 
excipient for a great variety of combinations. It should be 
borne in mind that they should only be employed in masses 
which are themselves of a dark color. 
Confection of Rose.—This is useful for combining small amounts 
of active drugs, but is objectionable because of its bulk. The 
Pharmacopoeia directs its use in Pills of Aloes and Myrrh. 
Petrolatum.—This, in conjunction with kaolin as diluent, forms 
the best excipient for pills containing readily oxidizable sub- 
stances, such as silver nitrate, potassium permanganate, etc. 
Suet (Mutton-tallow, benzoinated).—This, with one-third of its 
weight of white wax, forms the base of all pills which are to be 
coated with keratin. 
If the physician directs some particular excipient, this should 
be employed, if possible; but, if it be not practicable, the dispenser 
should follow his own judgment. The selection of excipients 
should be left to the dispenser, as his practical knowledge enables 
him better to determine this. 
MASSING* OF VARIOUS MIXTURES. 
INORGANIC SALTS. 
Crystalline salts which are soluble in water, should be finely 
pulverized and made into a mass with glycerite of tragacanth and 
a little inert powder, and the pills, when completed, should be 
varnished with tolu. For making the mass, Canada balsam has 
been recommended; also, a mixture of the salt (2 parts), powdered 
soap (1.5 parts), cacao butter (1 part), and petrolatum sufficient; 
also, a mixture of pulverized liquorice root and glucose; also, 
after dissolving the salt in the smallest quantity of water, to add 
enough powdered acacia to form a mucilage, then to add sufficient 
kaolin to form a mass of proper consistence, which is then to be 
rolled into pills and varnished. 
Such compounds as iodide or bromide of iron, are mixed with 
powdered marshmallow or liquorice root and powdered acacia, 
and massed with glycerite of tragacanth. 
* By “ massing ” is meant the conversion of powders or other substances, by means of an excipient, 
into a plastic condition, suitable for moulding into pills. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
325 
Exsiccated iron sulphate is usually directed to be combined 
with vegetable extracts; here a little glycerite of tragacanth 
should be added in order to prevent the pills from drying out 
and cracking. 
Reduced iron may be mixed with a little liquorice and massed 
with glycerite of tragacanth. When combined with vegetable 
extracts containing acids (such as citric, tartaric, malic, etc.), the 
pills soon swell and fall to pieces, owing to the evolution of hy- 
drogen arising from the action of the acids on the iron. 
Sensitive salts, such as silver nitrate, potassium permanganate, 
or gold chloride, require an inorganic basis, because the use of 
any organic substance, even though it be merely a dusting powder, 
will cause the reduction of these salts when coming in contact 
with them. For this purpose an inorganic substance, such as 
kaolin or infusorial earth, is employed as diluent, the mixture is 
made into a mass with petrolatum, and the finished pills rolled 
in powdered French chalk. Another base, consisting of a mix- 
ture of anhydrous sodium sulphate 1 part, kaolin 2 parts, and 
water 1 part, has also been recommended. 
Alkaloids or potent remedies, which are given in very small 
doses, should be well triturated with a little sugar of milk and 
powdered marshmallow or liquorice root, then made into a mass 
with glucose or glycerite of tragacanth. This procedure answers 
also, for such inorganic potent remedies as arsenous acid, corrosive 
sublimate, etc. 
Quinine Sulphate is best massed quickly and rolled out after 
moistening with a little dilute sulphuric acid. Some employ 
strong sulphuric acid; but this must be operated rapidly, other- 
wise the mass loses its plasticity. Another method (Kurssteiner’s) 
is to mix intimately 5 parts of quinine sulphate, and 1 part each 
of citric acid, powdered tragacanth, and sugar of milk, then to 
mass with syrup. 
Non-adhesive Bodies, such as acetanilid, naphthol, camphor, 
etc., should be beaten up with one-third of their weight of pow- 
dered acacia and massed with glycerite of tragacanth or glucose; 
or 1 part of powdered tragacanth should be mixed with 5 parts 
of the substance, and the mixture massed with a drop or so of 
water. 
Benzoic and Gallic Acids make a fair mass with glycerin or 
Canada balsam. 
Croton Chloral or the Valerianates, and very deliquescent 
salts, should be mixed with a little inert powder, and made into a 
mass with glycerite of tragacanth. 
ORGANIC SALTS. 326 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Creosote or Carbolic Acid.—It has been recommended to use 
pulverized animal charcoal as absorbent and to mass with turpen- 
tine or Canada balsam. For each minim of either of the above, 
a mixture of powdered soap (1 part), and powdered liquorice root 
(5 parts) has also been recommended. Infusorial eartli may also 
be employed as the absorbent. Another method consists in pre- 
paring a 50 per cent, jelly, made by melting together gelatin 11 
parts, water 24 parts, sugar 5 parts, to which is added creosote 40 
parts. This is to be mixed in a slightly warmed mortar with a 
small quantity of a vegetable powder, and massed. The German 
Unofficial Formulary directs Creosote 10 parts, Glycerin 2 parts, 
Ext. Liquorice powd. 10 parts, powd. Liquorice Root 18 parts. 
The main difficulty experienced with these pills is that most ab- 
sorbents fail to retain the oily material, but allow it to penetrate to 
the surface where it is absorbed by the dusting powder or the pill- 
box. 
Volatile Oils and Balsams.—Some absorbent powder should 
be used in connection with a little soap. What has been said of 
Creosote applies also to the volatile oils. Hager recommends the 
addition of one-third to an equal weight of yellow wax * (melted); 
but this should never be done except as a last resort. 
Resins and Gum Resins.—These should be finely pulverized, 
and mixed with a little soap, then made into a mass with a few 
drops of alcohol. When pulverized they may be made into a 
mass with a little potassium carbonate. Lupulin triturated with 
ether gives a good mass. 
Vegetable Powders.—These require adhesive excipients, 
such as glycerite of tragacanth, or glucose. . Where admissible, 
certain extracts, for instance those of taraxacum, or gentian, may 
also be used. 
Solid Extracts.—These, when hard or in dry powder, should 
be made up with water, or syrup, a trace of glycerin being added 
to prevent undue hardening of the pills. 
When pills are dispensed, they should be strewn with some 
absorbent inert powder, usually lycopodium, or starch, or in those 
cases in which an organic powder is not admissible, with powdered 
French chalk. It is not customary to use more of the dusting 
powder than necessary to cover the bottom of the box. 
COATING PILLS. 
Pills are coated for the purpose of masking their taste or odor, 
and for the purpose of adding to their permanency. 
* It is not advisable to make a practice of employing wax in making pills, as they are likely to 
pass the body in an unaltered state, or to remain a long time in the intestines. Wax contains very 
little that is soluble in the gastric juice or intestinal fluids, and, besides, its melting point (above 63° 
C.) is too high, as the temperature of the body is only 37° C. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
327 
Silvering and Gilding.—The coating of pills with silver or 
gold leaf has become somewhat antiquated. Indeed, it is quite 
rare, at the present time, that the apothecary is required to per- 
form this. 
Pills which contain sulphur, or sulphur compounds, should 
be first varnished with tolu, so as to prevent 
blackening of the leaf. 
The pills which should be free from dusting 
powder and quite hard, are placed in the 
hollow cylindrical silvering cup (Fig. 358), 
then moistened with mucilage of acacia (1 drop 
for a dozen pills), and rotated so as to distribute 
this evenly over their surfaces. Then the 
necessary number of gold or silver leaves are 
added (one for about 6 pills) and the box is 
shaken with a rotary motion until all the leaf 
has been taken up by the pills. The pills 
should not be made too moist, otherwise a 
larger number of leaves will be necessary and the finish will be 
dull. 
Varnishing Pills.—Pills containing easily oxidizable sub- 
stances, such as Phosphorus, Phosphides, Ferrous Iodide or 
Bromide, deliquescent salts, etc., are usually coated with a 
varnish. The pills are placed in a flat-bottomed capsule, then 
sufficient of the ethereal varnish is poured over them to wet 
them, the dish is covered and then rotated so as to distribute the 
varnish equally over their surface. They are then transferred to 
a pill tile, or any glazed surface, and allowed to dry. As a 
varnish, the Pharmacopoeia recommends a solution of balsam of 
Tolu, 10 parts, in 15 parts of ether. 
Hager recommends mastic, 5 parts, and balsam of Tolu, 15 
parts, to be dissolved in a mixture of 25 parts of alcohol and 8 
parts of ether. 
Collodion has also been recommended for this purpose. In 
this case the coating should be made as light as possible. 
Sugar Coating.—Sugar coating can only be carried on success- 
fully on the large scale. This is accomplished in very much the 
same manner as that employed by the confectioners in coating 
almonds; a large quantity of pills are rotated in a carefully 
heated copper kettle with powdered sugar, moistened from time 
to time with syrup. The smooth coating results from the attri- 
tion produced. The polish is imparted by rapidly rotating the 
finished pills with some pieces of wax, or paraffin. 
For coating small quantities of pills, the following formula 
of C. Faust yields fair results:— 
Moisten the pills with a mixture of 1 part of glycerin and 2 
parts of absolute alcohol, and throw them into a box containing a 
liberal supply of a fine powder composed of 4 parts of sugar, 2 
Fig. 358. 
Pill Silverer. 328 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
parts of tragacanth and 1 part of starch, and roll them around 
well. Sift them free of the powder, moisten, and again roll them 
in the powder. To give a glaze to the pills, moisten them with a 
mixture of 1 part of glycerin and 2 parts of ether, and roll in a 
powder consisting of equal parts of talc and calcium carbonate. 
In making the pills on a large scale the final polish is given by 
rotating them, after being coated, in a cylindrical vessel with some 
pieces of hard paraffin. 
Pearl Coating.—This consists in covering the pills with a 
thin layer of powdered French chalk. The pills contained in a 
cylindrical vessel are moistened with sufficient syrup of acacia to 
dampen their surface after rotating them; then an excess of very 
fine French chalk is added and the pills rotated until a smooth, 
polished surface results. It would be well to add a little powdered 
saccharin, so as to impart a more pleasant taste to the coating 
material. 
Gelatin Coating.—Gelatin-coated pills owe their popularity to 
the elegant appearance and ready solubility of this coating. For 
coating pills on the large scale, the invention of J. B. Russell, of 
Detroit, is largely employed. This consists in holding the pills 
securely upon the ends of small tubes by means of suction. The 
machine consists of a box to which are attached numerous small 
tubes; the vacuum caused by the air being exhausted from this 
produces suction, which attracts and holds the pills in position. 
The latter are then dipped into the gelatin solution, whereby one- 
half of their surface becomes coated, then they are quickly dried 
and reversed and again dipped. 
Gelatin coating may be readily and quickly imparted on the 
small scale by using the following gelatin solution:— 
French Gelatin (so-called Gold Brand), 4 parts. 
Acacia (select pieces), 1 part. 
Boric Acid, 0.25 part. 
Water, 40 parts. 
The gelatin and acacia are macerated in the water for twelve 
hours, and then dissolved by heating on a water-bath with the 
boric acid. The vessel should be kept covered during the heating, 
so as to avoid loss of water by evaporation and the formation of 
a scum on the surface. This solution, when cold, solidifies to a 
jelly. It may be kept in this condition and a portion melted 
when wanted. 
The first requisite is that the pill be dry and free from dusting- 
powder. The simplest form of coater may be made by inserting 
needles, eye-end down, in a large cork, at a sufficient angle so as 
not to interfere with one another. The pills are impaled on 
these, then dipped into the gelatin solution, withdrawn, and then 
held a moment to allow the superfluous gelatin to collect in the 
form of a drop, which is removed by touching the surface of the 
gelatin solution. The cork is then rotated about, so as to permit 
the gelatin to set evenly over the surface of the pills. SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
329 
A very convenient machine for gelatin-coating for the use of 
the pharmacist, is that devised by Mr. Maynard, of Chicago (Fig. 
359). The pills are first rolled 
into the conical indentations 
of a plate provided for this 
purpose. A needle-holder is 
provided, which consists of a 
circular plate in which are 
set a number of needles; on 
either edge of this plate are 
placed guiding pins, by means 
of which the operator is en- 
abled to accurately center the 
pills with the needle points. 
By means of the handle the 
needle - holder is pressed 
downward, until the pills are 
securely impaled on the 
needlepoints. These are then 
dipped into the solution, as 
directed above, and rotated; 
then, after the gelatin film has become cold and sufficiently hard, 
the pills are removed by a mechanical device, and set aside on 
little trays to dry. The gel- 
atin solution should be kept 
constantly covered when 
not dipping. 
The coater devised by 
Prof. Patch (Fig. 360) con- 
sists of wooden strips con- 
taining 16 needles for im- 
paling the pills. These strips 
are provided with adjustable 
handles, so that as soon as 
the pills have been dipped 
they may be rotated by 
hand sufficiently until they 
have set; then the strips 
holding the pills are secured 
on the wheel, which is made 
to rotate alternately in both 
directions, for the purpose 
of securing uniformity of 
the coating and facilitating 
the drying. The pills are 
removed from the needles by means of a comb attached to the 
box. 
Keratin or Salol Coating.—In those instances where it is desired 
to restrict the action of the medicinal agent (such as naphthalin, 
Fig. 359. 
Gelatin Pill Coater (Maynard). 
Fig. 360. 
Gelatin-Coating Machine (Patch). 330 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
koussin, tannic acid, etc.), to the intestinal tract, it is necessary 
that the pill be coated with some agent which is not acted on by 
the acid gastric juices, so that it may pass undissolved through 
the stomach into the duodenum, where the alkaline secretions 
cause a solution of the coating and subsequent disintegration of 
the pill. 
For this purpose we have two agents, namely Keratin * and 
Salol.f 
Keratin Coating.—For coating with keratin, oily excipients 
should be employed in making the pills; one excipient recom- 
mended for this purpose consists of a mixture of 3 parts of mutton 
suet and 1 part of white wax; should other excipients be neces- 
sary the pills should be first coated with a thin layer of cacao- 
butter. The coating solution is made by dissolving 7 parts of 
keratin in 100 parts of concentrated acetic acid, or 1 part of 
keratin in a mixture of 10 parts each of ammonia water and 
water. The pills are placed in a large porcelain capsule, 4 or 5 
drops of the keratin solution added, and then rolled about every 
five or ten minutes for half an hour. Then another addition of 
a few drops of the solution is made and the pills rotated as before. 
The procedure may be repeated once or twice more. Another 
method consists in impaling the pills on needles and applying 
the solution of keratin with a camel’s hair brush. Two applica- 
tions generally suffice; the first coat should be allowed to dry 
before applying the second. 
Salol Coating.—The pills should be impaled on needles (as in 
coating with gelatin), then dipped into the melted salol contained 
in a small, deep capsule. The coating hardens almost as soon as 
the pills are removed from the bath. Such pills have the appear- 
ance of being sugar-coated. The pin-holes left after removing 
the pills from the needles should be closed by applying a little 
melted salol with a brush. This coating may be applied to gelatin 
capsules as well. A coating of 0.2 to 0.3 Gm. of salol suffices to 
prevent the pill from being crushed by the pressure of the tongue 
against the palate. The pills must not be bitten, and not be taken 
with hot food or fluids. 
* The Preparation of Keratin.—Dieterich’s modified formula for the preparation of keratin is as 
follows: Digest 20 Gm. of finely cut goose quills in water for ten hours, and afterward macerate in a 
mixture of 100 Gm. of ether and 100 Gm. of alcohol for eight days; filter off the liquid, dry the 
quill, and put it in a large flask containing 200 Gm. of glacial acetic acid ; stopper the flask with a 
perforated cork, and insert a glass tube in the perforation to serve as a condenser. Boil gently in a 
sand-bath for 20 to 40 hours, and, when the quill is nearly all dissolved, filter through glass-wool and 
evaporate the filtrate in a porcelain capsule to a syrup; spread this on clean glass plates and dry. 
Finally, scrape off the keratin in scales. 
f Salol is the salicylic ether of phenol, its formula being CflH5C7Hr,O3. It is a crystalline compound 
which melts at 42° C. In the alkaline secretions of the small intestine it is broken up into phenol 
and salicylic acid. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
331 
TABLETTzE. 
TABLET TRITURATES. 
Tablet Triturates consist of the medicine, which, if a dry solid, 
has been triturated with sugar of milk until a thorough and com- 
plete division and distribution of it has been made. In the case 
of pasty or fluid bodies, these are mixed in a wet state with sugar 
of milk, the whole dried, and then finely subdivided by tritura- 
tion. The powder in either case is then formed into a pasty mass 
with varying proportions of alcohol and water, or other suitable 
menstruum, and afterwards moulded into tablets of uniform size 
and weight. 
The formula for each separate combination is arrived at in the 
following way:— 
The mould is filled with finely-powdered sugar of milk, which 
has been wetted to a pasty mass with diluted alcohol. The tablets 
are then pressed from the mould, thoroughly dried and weighed. 
This weight is generally sixty-five (65) grains for fifty (50) tablets 
for the rubber moulds now usually supplied, making a tablet 
Fig. 361. 
Rubber Tablet Triturate Mould.* 
weighing slightly less than one and one-third (1|) grains when 
filled with plain milk sugar. The weight of the plain sugar of 
milk tablet is slightly increased with the increased solvent action of 
the menstruum, as more of the sugar enters solution, making the 
tablet more compact. The next step is to ascertain how much 
milk sugar must be omitted from the previously ascertained 
amount in order to make room for the medicinal constituents. 
For this purpose one hundred and thirty (130) grains of milk sugar 
are weighed off, which is equivalent to one hundred (100) finished 
tablets of plain sugar of milk. From these 130 grains a bulk is 
taken, equivalent, as nearly as possible, to that of the substance 
to be incorporated, and its weight noted. The active ingredient, 
* This consists of two parts, the lower, heavier portion bearing the punch-pins, which number fifty 
for the regular tablet triturates, and one hundred for the hypodermic size. There are two extra, 
larger and higher pins at either end, which gauge the mould-plate so that the openings come in 
line with the punch-pins. The upper portion is the mould proper, consisting of a rubber plate with 
regularly arranged perforations, corresponding in di vision, size and location of the punch-pins. The 
mould-plate bears a number which is identical with that upon the plate bearing the pins, and when the 
tablets are to be pushed through, the two parts must be so adjusted that the ends bearing the num- 
bers come together, and the face of the mould-plate bearing the number must be turned upward. 332 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
if a dry solid, is now mixed with the remaining portion of sugar 
of milk by thorough trituration. In the case of solid extracts, 
tinctures and other fluids, these are mixed with the remaining 
portion of sugar of milk, if necessary, by the aid of water or some 
other menstruum which dissolves them perfectly, then the mass is 
dried and powdered. 
After the mixture has been made, dried and thoroughly tritu- 
rated, it is wetted with a suitable menstruum, and moulded, 
care being taken to scrape the mortar as clean as possible in order 
not to waste any of the material. The tablets are then carefully 
dried. If there be any mass in excess of that required for the 
one hundred tablets, it shows that not enough milk sugar has 
been taken from the original 130 grains. The weight of this 
excess is generally equal to that of an equal bulk of milk sugar. 
Hence it will only be necessary, at the next trial, to remove as 
much more milk sugar as the bulk of this excess amounts to. 
If there should be less than one hundred tablets, the weight 
of the number deficient is ascertained by determining the average 
weight of the finished tablets, and deducting the calculated weight 
of the missing tablets from the weight of the bulk of the sugar 
of milk originally separated. At the next trial the amount of 
milk sugar removed from the original 130 grains should be as 
much less, as the weight of the missing tablets amounted to. 
In each case the formula finally found, by actual experiment, 
to yield a correct result, should be noted in a special book, for the 
purpose of future reference. 
It is important that all the ingredients, and the mixture of 
powders ready for moulding, should be in the finest possible state 
of subdivision. If they are coarse, the tablets will not show a 
smooth, finished appearance. 
In tablets composed nearly all of sugar of milk, if the latter be 
in coarse powder, it necessitates the addition of more water to the 
alcohol than is required when the milk sugar is in very fine 
powder. The menstruum selected should possess a slight solvent 
action upon one or more of the ingredients, but the latter should 
not be too freely soluble, since the mass is then moulded with 
difficulty, and the tablets prepared therefrom will be uneven, 
sometimes being cracked on the surface and very hard. It should 
possess sufficient solvent action to make a firm, yet not too hard 
a tablet, one that will hold firmly together when shaken in a 
vial, and which should readily disintegrate upon the addition of 
water. It is, however, impossible to prepare all the various com- 
binations in such form that they readily dissolve or diffuse upon 
the addition of water, the rapidity of disintegration depending 
upon the proportion and soluble character of the constituents. 
The menstrua generally used are alcohol, absolute alcohol, 
alcohol and water, and chloroform. For tablets composed nearly 
entirely of sugar of milk, a menstruum composed of three vol- 
umes of alcohol and one volume of water is preferable. For SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
333 
bodies insoluble in alcohol the proportion of water is raised in 
proportion to the increase of active ingredient. The menstruum 
must, therefore, be so adjusted that it will dissolve enough of 
either the milk sugar, or of the active ingredient, to make a suf- 
ficiently firm tablet. As examples may be quoted: reduced iron, 
binoxide of manganese, oxalate of cerium, bismuth subnitrate 
and subcarbonate, and the higher strength calomel tablets. For 
codeine, podophyllin, leptandrin, aloin, and bodies very soluble 
in alcohol, it is better to use water exclusively for moulding. 
For such tablets in which a chemical reaction takes place 
between the various constituents, with the formation of a new 
product which is desired, a menstruum must be selected which 
does not exert a soluble action upon all of the active constituents. 
For example, we combine sodium bicarbonate with saccharin, in 
order to increase the solubility, thereby intensifying the sweetness 
of the latter; as a menstruum for moistening, we employ absolute 
alcohol, as it exerts a solvent action on the saccharin only, yet 
binding the constituents to a firm tablet. 
In the case of fluid extracts and tinctures, thorough trituration 
with the milk sugar is generally sufficient to produce a homo- 
geneous mass for drying. Solid extracts produce more difficulties. 
If water is to be used as diluent, not more than the absolutely 
required amount should be employed, since any excess will cause 
the mass to form lumps or large cakes, and render the subsequent 
drying difficult. After the mass is dried, it must be reduced to a 
fine powder, previous to being moulded. To form a paste, the 
best liquid in this case is a mixture of alcohol three volumes and 
chloroform one volume. Water alone usually renders the mass 
too sticky, and alcohol alone is not adapted to aqueous or hydro- 
alcoholic extracts, since the extracts abstract the water from the 
alcohol, and thus produce an unmanageable adhesive mass. 
In preparing the powder for moulding, it should be wetted to a 
pasty consistence, the mould be placed upon a smooth surface, a pill 
tile answering admirably, and the wetted powder pressed into the 
spaces with a horn or ivory spatula which is drawn over the mould. 
Sometimes the mass adheres to the spatula and is drawn from the 
holes. This is remedied by dipping the spatula in the menstruum 
used for wetting the mixture before drawing it over the surface. 
The mould is then reversed by sliding it toward and off the edge of 
the tile without raising it, the spatula is drawn over the other side 
of the mould and the latter then again drawn toward and off 
the edge. The tablets are now pressed out by the punch pin plate 
and allowed to dry a few minutes upon the punch pins, then 
shaken off by striking the pin-plate forcibly upon the counter 
covered with a sheet of paper to receive the tablets. 
If the tablets are to be finished as speedily as possible, it is 
advisable to blow heated air over the surface of the side of the 
mould which comes in contact with the punch pins. This is best 
accomplished by holding the mould some distance from a gas 334 
HANI JOK OF PHARMACY. 
flame and blowing the upper extremity of the flame towards the 
mould, the force of the breath carrying considerable heated air 
with its help to dry the surface quickly. Care should be exercised, 
if the mould is of rubber, that not too great a heat be directed 
toward the mould, otherwise it will warp. Moreover, if alcohol 
has been used for moistening, care must be taken to prevent igni- 
tion of the vapor. The rubbing of some dry powder (dry milk 
sugar or lycopodium) over the side of the mould to come next to 
the punch pins, helps to absorb the excess of moisture and pre- 
vents the tablets from sticking to the punch pins. 
The tablets should never be left in the moulds over ten minutes, 
because if they are allowed to dry in the mould, they cannot be 
pressed from it without crumbling. 
The drying process is best completed by placing them upon a 
sieve which exposes their entire surface, and allows more rapid 
evaporation of the menstruum. This is particularly necessary 
when the tablet is colored by the active ingredient, in solution in 
the menstruum. If such a tablet were dried while lying on a 
solid surface, the coloring matter would, by the law of capillarity, 
be deposited near the upper surface, and hence this side would be 
darker in color than the lower, the evaporation having been 
entirely from the upper end, while upon the sieve it will be from 
the entire surface, the color being equally distributed near the 
entire surface of the tablet, the interior always being lighter in 
color. 
In preparing tablets upon a large scale they are allowed to dry 
upon the punch pins in a draught of slightly warmed dehydrated 
air. When nearly dry, they are scraped from the punch pins and 
the drying completed in a hot-air chamber. 
For hypodermic tablets, sugar of milk is well adapted, and the 
rules to follow for their preparation are exactly similar to those 
for the Tablet Triturate. The rubber hypodermic mould, usually 
sold, makes tablets which weigh about three-quarters of a grain. 
The menstruum, used for most of the combinations, is three vol- 
umes of alcohol and one volume of water. In some of the higher 
strength morphine tablets it is necessary to use diluted alcohol. 
When solid extracts are to be combined into tablets, the mass 
should be moistened with a menstruum, composed of a mixture 
of alcohol three volumes and chloroform one volume. SOLIDS—FOR INTERS.j USE. 
335 
COMPRESSED TABLETS. 
Compressed tablets consist of some medicinal substance, or a 
mixture of substances, compressed to the form of a disc. The 
substance or mixture which is to be compressed must be in a 
granular form, either in its original granular condition, or pre- 
pared in a granular state by aid of a medium, such as cane sugar, 
or gum arabic, with the aid of water. 
In the preparation of compressed tablets it is important that the 
ingredients be brought by trituration to a very fine state of sub- 
division before being granulated, unless the substance is originally 
granular, or in a firm, hard crystalline form, from which a granular 
preparation may be obtained by grinding in a mill or mortar. 
If the material is compressed in the form of fine powder, it is 
difficult to be formed into uniform and nicely finished tablets. 
Not only does the powder not feed well into the mould, but, 
when pressure is applied, the air confined in the interstices of 
the powder has no chance of escaping, and is apt to produce 
tablets of irregular surfaces, edges, and weight, with a tendency 
to stick to the powders and die. 
To overcome these difficulties the substance is granulated by 
adding one-tenth of its weight of cane sugar and one-twentieth of 
its weight of acacia, thoroughly mixing and moistening with water 
until it is of such consistence that it can readily be forced through 
a No. 12 sieve without sticking to it, or clogging it. It is then 
dried. The finished granulation should always be perfectly dry, 
as a damp granulation occasions a great deal of trouble by 
sticking to the dies, and punches. The granulation is now forced 
through a No. 20 sieve, and the particles which do not readily 
pass through the meshes are forced through by the aid of a flat 
pestle. In adding the water to make the granulation, it should 
be thoroughly and evenly incorporated so that all the particles 
contain as nearly as possible an equal amount of moisture. The 
water is best added in small portions at a time. 
Some substances can be bought already granulated, and these, 
therefore, require no further preparation, and can be compressed 
in their original granular condition; for instance, ammonium 
chloride, potassium bromide, sodium bromide, potassium chlorate, 
potassium iodide. Some few crystalline salts, if in the form of 
hard crystals, without having lost any of their water of crystal- 
lization, can be ground in a mill to granular powder, or may be 
crushed to a granular form in a mortar; for instance, sodium 
phosphate and sodium sulphate. 
Cane sugar is the best material to use for granulating, as tablets 
prepared with it disintegrate or dissolve more quickly than those 
prepared with acacia. For beginners, it is better to use the cane 
sugar and acacia together as directed above, as this mixture is 
best adapted for granulating almost anything obtainable in a 
pulverulent condition. 336 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Before the granulation is compressed, it is necessary to add a 
lubricant. This is a hydrocarbon oil entirely free from odor, the 
proportion added depending upon the character of the material. 
Ten to twelve drops is usually sufficient for one pound of the 
granulation. It is best added by means of a spray, and further 
mixed by stirring the mixture upon paper, or by dropping the oil 
into a mortar, adding about one-fortieth of the bulk of the mate- 
rial, mixing well by rubbing gently so that the granulation may 
be as little as possible reduced to powder, then adding the 
remainder of the granulation, and stirring gently. 
The hydrocarbon oil possesses the property of lubricating the 
different particles, allowing them to glide by each other freely, 
easily falling into the mould space, feeding the same amount 
each time, and thus making the finished tablets equal in weight. 
While the granulation is undergoing compression, the greater pro- 
portion of the oil is forced to the surface and edges of the tablet, 
preventing the sticking of particles of the material to the die and 
faces of the punches. 
Finely powdered French chalk is used in connection with the 
hydrocarbon oil, its properties being likewise that of a lubricant. 
The proportion used should be just as small as possible, not more 
than one-fortieth of the weight of the material. It should be 
added after the oil. 
Boracic acid is also used as a lubricant in such cases where the 
tablet is required to form a clear solution. It does not act so well 
as the French chalk. 
The more perfect and even the granulation has been prepared, 
the smaller the quantity of lubricant which it is necessary to use. 
In the preparation of compressed tablets from solid extracts, 
fluid extracts and tinctures, the two latter are to be concentrated 
to a syrupy consistence. A solid extract is best rubbed to a syrupy 
consistence by the aid of water. In both cases there should be no 
small particles of undissolved extract, as these would give the 
finished tablet a mottled or spotted appearance. 
If the quantity of extract to be contained in a tablet is small, 
say one-fourth of a grain of extract contained in a tablet weighing 
two grains, the excess of water may be absorbed by finely pow- 
dered starch, of which as much as 25 per cent, of the weight of the 
tablet may be added, if necessary, the principle being to leave the 
mixture of starch and extract sufficiently wet so that it may exert 
the required solvent action upon the remaining ingredients to 
form a proper consistence for granulation. If too much starch 
has been added, the extra quantity of water required is easily 
added to the mixture of starch, extract, and other material. 
When a tablet is to contain two or more grains of extract, the 
addition of the required amount of starch, so that the product 
will pass through a No. 12 sieve, would make it too large. 
Therefore, when the extract is in large proportion, it is a good 
plan to add to it half its weight of starch after it has been SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
337 
softened, then to dry the mass upon a steam-bath, and finally 
to crush it in a mortar, or to grind it in a mill to a No. 20 granu- 
lation. 
When a caked mass is to be reduced, by rubbing in a mortar, 
to a No. 20 granule, the material should be transferred to the sieve 
at short intervals, in order to separate that portion which has been 
reduced to the proper fineness ; otherwise, by continued rubbing, 
the greater portion of the material would be reduced to a fine 
powder. 
Extracts may also be incorporated in the form of a dry, im- 
palpable powder, if the proportion be small, and in such cases it 
is also a good plan to add some powdered starch to the material 
and extract; next, sufficient water is added, and well incorporated, 
the mixture passed through a No. 12 sieve, then dried, and, lastly, 
forced through a No. 20 sieve. It is not necessary to use any adhesive 
material, such as acacia or cane sugar, for tablets containing ex- 
tracts, unless the proportion of extract be very small. Spongy 
bodies like charcoal must be in impalpable powder, and not less 
than 25 per cent, of cane sugar should be added for granulation. 
If the charcoal cannot be obtained in a finely subdivided state, it 
is a good plan to add the proportion of sugar as above, to wet the 
mixture to such a state that it forms small cakes, and to dry per- 
fectly. The cakes are then reduced to very fine powder, moistened 
with sufficient water to make the mass pass through a No. 12 
sieve, the granulation dried, and then reduced to granules, pass- 
ing through a No. 60 to 80 sieve. 
The powdered pepsin of the market is of a spongy nature, like 
charcoal, and is best prepared for compressing by adding one-tenth 
of its weight of cane sugar, then spraying diluted alcohol over the 
mixture, mixing thoroughly until all particles have been moist- 
ened, but are still in about No. 80 powder, then drying and com- 
pressing. 
Spongy substances should be fed to the machine in a very finely 
granular form. The large size granules offer too much resistance 
to the punches, and the tablet crumbles very easily. Spongy 
bodies, as a rule, require no lubricant. 
Scale pepsin and most of the other scale preparations can be 
compressed by reducing them to No. 30 or 40 granules, and lubri- 
cating them. 
Salts containing water of crystallization, organic or inorganic, 
which cannot be compressed without being first granulated, as, for 
example, lead acetate, zinc sulphate, alum and quinine sulphate, 
are best treated in the following manner:— 
The salt is reduced to a fine powder, mixed with one-twentieth 
of its weight of powdered gum arabic, moistened sufficiently with 
water to pass it through a No. 12 sieve, dried, again reduced to 
fine powder, mixed with one-tenth of its weight of cane sugar, 
moistened with just enough water to make it pass through a No. 
12 sieve, then dried, first without, and lastly by aid of heat. The 338 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
mixture is then forced through a No. 20 sieve, lubricated and com- 
pressed. 
Bodies which are hygroscopic or deliquescent are best granu- 
lated with gum arabic exclusively, taking one-tenth of the weight 
of the substance and water for moistening. 
Combinations of rhubarb and soda are best granulated by add- 
ing to them one-tenth of their weight of cane sugar, and granu- 
lating with a mixture of one volume of glucose, 1 volume of water 
and three volumes of alcohol, well mixed, this mixture preventing 
the action of the alkali upon the rhubarb. 
Glucose is an excellent medium for making tablets hard and 
tough, so that they will not readily disintegrate, as, for example, 
lozenges which are intended for slow solution in the mouth. To 
improve the lozenge, the greater portion of the material should 
be cane sugar, with 10 per cent, of gum arabic, and the glucose 
should be diluted with 25 per cent, of water before being added. 
In tablets to form etfervescing solutions or to form new com- 
pounds when added to water, the constituents should be granu- 
lated separately, and mixed in a perfectly dry granular condition 
just before being compressed. 
A very important quality which compressed tablets should 
possess is that of rapid disintegration and solution. This is 
brought about by adding finely powdered starch, to the amount 
of from one-twentieth to one-tenth of the weight of material, to 
the granulated substance ready to be compressed. It is most 
important for certain insoluble bodies, such as phenacetin, acet- 
anilid, sulphonal, etc., that they disintegrate rapidly. These are 
best granulated with one-tenth of their weight of cane sugar, 
water being used for moistening. As stated before, the addition 
of acacia retards rapid disintegration and solution; hence it should 
not be used where cane sugar acts as a sufficiently adhesive 
agent. 
Fig. 362 illustrates the simplest form of a compressed tablet 
machine; this consists of a cast steel cylinder, into the base of 
which fits a short post with a concave surface. A steel plunger, 
having a corresponding concave depression on its lower extremity, 
is used for compression. The granule is introduced into the 
cylinder, and after inserting the plunger, a quick, sharp blow is 
struck by means of a wooden mallet, whereby the powder is com- 
pressed; then, after the cylinder is removed from the base, the 
plunger is tapped, which forces the tablet out into a proper 
receptacle. An improvement on this is the tablet machine 
illustrated in Fig. 363. Its construction is simple, being operated 
by means of a lever. It is capable of turning out tablets quite 
rapidly. For the preparation of large quantities of tablets, the 
larger machines of thd market afford all that is desirable. 
The pressure used for compressing the tablets should be just as 
light as possible, for the firmer the pressure the slower the disin- 
tegration of insoluble bodies, firm pressure not affecting very SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
339 
soluble substances, since their solution takes place from the 
surface. The pressure should be regulated so that the tablets 
may readily be broken in half by the fingers, but should not 
break to pieces when dropped upon the floor. With a light 
pressure the material has a greater tendency to stick to the face 
of the punches. 
The dies and punches should be of very hard temper and 
should be kept in good condition. They should be polished from 
time to time by the aid of finely powdered emery, preferably on 
a lathe. If this is not at hand, a round smoothened end of a 
piece of wood answers very well, and is used by dipping the end 
in oil, then in the emery, and rubbing over the surface of the 
punches. For polishing the dies, a rounded piece of wood, a little 
Fig. 362. 
Fig. 363. 
Compressed Tablet Mould. 
Compressed Tablet Mould. (W., T. & Co.) 
smaller than the bore of the die, dipped in the oil and emery, is 
well adapted. 
If the surface of the dies and punches is not kept smooth and 
polished, the material works into the uneven surface and adheres 
to it, making a tablet with rough surface and scraped edges, neces- 
sitating the frequent cleaning of the faces of the punches. 
If the dies be of soft temper, such bodies as exert considerable 
friction, as acetanilid, phenacetin, and antipyrin, will wear down 
the die quickly in that portion where the tablet is compressed, 
and by the constant wear the die is widened at this spot, especially 
at the point of the upper and lower surface of the tablet where 
there is the most wear, hence the tablet is slightly wider than the 
bore of the remaining portion of die. In being forced upwards 340 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
to be expelled from the die, the tablet is forced into a narrower 
space than that into which it had been compressed, which tends 
to bend it and loosen the flat or convex upper or lower surface, 
which may readily be split off by the thumb nail, but which will 
fall off spontaneously after the tablet has been shaken about some 
little time. This is termed “ capping.” 
The best remedy for the “ capping ” is a hard-tempered die; 
but this is not always at hand. Dampening the granulation very 
slightly with water will prevent it; but this increases the adhesive 
qualities, and the material is more liable to stick to the punches. 
However, if these are smooth and well polished, little trouble will 
be experienced from the sticking qualities. 
Reducing the pressure is another remedy; but, if the punches 
are not in good condition, the material will stick to them. 
Changing the weight of the tablet is still another remedy, the 
tablet to be compressed in a portion of the die that is not worn. 341 
SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
EXTRACTA—{Extracts'). 
Extracts are solid or semi-solid preparations obtained by the 
evaporation of solutions of the medicinal principles of drugs. 
According to the solvent employed in exhausting the drug 
they are designated as alcoholic, hydroalcoholic, aqueous, ethereal, 
acetic, or ammoniated extracts. 
The strength of these preparations bears no definite relationship 
to the drug, for the amount of solid extract * obtained depends on the 
nature of the drug, the solvent employed, and the mode of prepara- 
tion. The more aqueous the menstrua, the greater is the yield of 
extract, the more alcoholic the menstrua, the smaller the yield. 
It must be remembered that the activity of most drugs resides, 
as a rule, in certain definite principles, which generally constitute 
the smallest portion of the bulk of an extract; the other constitu- 
ents of the drug, embracing gums, starch, inert extractive, 
coloring matters, etc., constitute the larger inert portion soluble in 
water. Hence, the solvent selected for extraction must be such as 
to take up all the active, with as little of the inert matter as pos- 
sible. If an unscrupulous manufacturer were to employ water or 
a feebly alcoholic menstruum for extracting a drug whose active 
principles are soluble in alcohol only, he would obtain a large 
yield of inert extractive matter, while his neighbor who employs 
alcohol only, would obtain a very small yield of a very active pre- 
paration. If both products were sold in the market at equal 
rates, the former would be a fraud upon the public. Extracts 
also vary in consistence. Some are as liquid as honey, others 
have the consistence of a pill mass, and still others are hard and 
dry, hence there is not likely to be any uniformity of strength, 
with such variations as these. Therefore, unless there is some 
guarantee of intrinsic value based on its alkaloidal strength or 
physiological activity, no reliance can be placed on the strength 
of one extract as compared with another. 
Solid extracts are prepared either— 
(a) From the dried and powdered drug, by extraction with a solvent, 
or— 
(&) From the fresh, moist drug, by expression alone. 
* Prepared with official menstrua (U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 1880), the yield in extract is, according to 
J. Lammer, Jr., “Proceed. Amer. Phar. Association,” 1887, p. 35:— 
Per cent. 
Extractum Aconiti 12.76 
“ Aloes, 91.54 
“ Arnicae Radicis, 19.53 
“ Belladonna Alcoholicum, . . . 32.23 
“ Cannabis Indicae, 16.56 
“ Cinchona, 26 40 
“ Colchici Radicis, 23.20 
“ Colocynthidis, 15.13 
“ Conii, 10.73 
“ Digitalis, 25.50 
“ Euonymi, 18.31 
“ Gentian®, 44.60 
“ Glyeyrrhiza Purum, 25.32 
“ Hamatoxyli, 5.30 
Per cent. 
Extractum Hyoscyami (ale.), 16.64 
“ Iridis, 8.90 
“ Juglandis, 16.82 
“ Kram erise . 8.40 
“ Leptandra, 15.97 
“ Mezerei, 7.10 
“ Nucis Vomicae 6.17 
“ Opii, 49.60 
“ Physostigmatis, 6.20 
“ PodophyTli, 8.31 
“ Quassia, 2.24 
“ Rhei, 25.66 
“ Stramonii 14.02 
“ Taraxaci 11.30 342 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
(а) When solid extracts are prepared from the dried drugs by 
extraction, the following rules should be observed:— 
1st. Only the best obtainable drug should be employed. Poor 
drugs cannot be expected to yield active preparations; it is, there- 
fore, advisable to exercise the greatest care in their selection. 
2d. That, whatever process of extraction is employed, it should 
be carried to as complete an exhaustion of the drug as possible. 
Extraction is effected by the process of maceration (15-20° C. for 
24 to 48 hours), or digestion (35-40° C. for 12 hours) with expres- 
sion ; or by percolation. 
3d. That the menstruum selected will deprive the drug of its 
active principles with as little inert matter as possible. The vari- 
ous menstrua directed by the Pharmacopoeia have been selected 
with this view; hence, an alteration of the menstruum with a view 
to economy is a reprehensible practice. 
4th. The concentration of the liquid extract of the drug should 
take place as rapidly, and at as low a temperature as possible. 
Under no circumstances should it be heated over a direct flame. 
The greatest care is necessary in conducting the evaporation 
of extracts from such drugs as conium, blackhaw, valerian, etc., 
for in these the virtues reside mainly in volatile products; hence 
the slightest degree of overheating destroys their therapeutic 
value. The temperature of a water-bath or carefully regulated 
steam-bath is sufficient, while the fluid is being kept constantly 
in motion; a stirring arrangement, specially adapted for the use 
of the apothecary is shown in Fig. 97, page 72. The evaporation 
should be conducted as rapidly as possible to avoid prolonged heat- 
ing of the fluid. For this purpose the vacuum apparatus is em- 
ployed (Fig. 106, page 77). The various methods of conducting 
evaporation are explained in detail under Vaporization. 
(б) Certain plant drugs, when recently gathered and subjected 
to expression, yield their juices, impregnated with all their active 
principles; these juices, when evaporated, constitute a class of 
extracts generally known as Succi Spissati, or inspissated juices. 
Among the drugs adapted to this treatment are taraxacum, 
belladonna, hyoscyamus, and colchicum. The plants should be 
worked up immediately after being collected, being cut into pieces 
and bruised until reduced to a pulp. In case the plant is not 
very succulent, a little water should be added to assist in diluting 
and extracting the juice. The pulp is then enclosed in a canvas 
bag and subjected to expression. The juice thus obtained from 
fresh plants, or leaves, is of a more or less green color, due to the 
presence of chlorophyll. 
When heated to about 70° C., the albumen of the juice co- 
agulates, forming a precipitate which encloses the suspended 
impurities. These are readily removed by filtration. The sub- 
sequent concentration is carried out as already explained. SOLIDS—.FOR INTERNAL USE. 
343 
PHYSICAL CHARACTERS AND PRESERVATION OF EXTRACTS. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes two degrees of consistence—the 
soft, or pilular, and the hard extract. The pilular consistence 
should be such that the extract readily admits being rolled into 
pills, which retain their shape. Twenty-five of the official extracts 
should be of this consistence. The pilular extracts of the market 
vary considerably as regards their consistence, many being 
exceedingly soft, while others are quite hard. 
The hard extracts, of which seven are official, admit of being 
reduced to powder. The dispensing conveniences which a pow- 
dered extract offers, have led to the general introduction of all the 
various extracts in powder form. 
The indiscriminate substitution of these powdered extracts in 
place of the official pilular product is to be condemned, for the 
heat necessary to reduce the extracts to the proper degree of dry- 
ness is, in many instances, sufficient to destroy most or all the 
virtues of the drug contained in them. Again, many extracts 
cannot be brought, by themselves, to a sufficiently dry condition; 
hence, they must be mixed with various diluents, such as sugar of 
milk, starch, the powdered drug itself, etc.; then spread out in thin 
layers, and exposed in a warm (30-40° C.), dry place; then reduced 
to a powder, and preserved in well-closed vials. It will be seen 
from this, that another cause of variation of strength of these 
powdered extracts is the admixture of inert matter, to which there 
is no definite limit. 
Extracts should be preserved in closely covered jars, it being 
best to place the jar of extract in a canister having a close-fitting 
lid. Some extracts readily dry out and become very hard. In 
such cases it is well to moisten the surface with a little glycerin. 
Other extracts, owing to the presence of deliquescent salts, are 
quite hygroscopic, and absorb moisture readily. Still others 
become inert on standing for a long time, due to an alteration of 
their principles by the action of the air. 
Many extracts (as those of stramonium, hyoscyamus, bella- 
donna, etc.), contain numerous crystals of inorganic salts (potas- 
sium nitrate or chloride, etc.). The presence of these is manifested 
by the grittiness of the extract when rubbed on a slab under a 
spatula. Such extracts should always be rubbed with a few drops 
of water before being combined into ointments or suppositories. 
The official extracts are 33 in number, 25 being of pilular 
consistency and 7 dry. According to the menstrua employed 
for exhaustion, they may be classified thus:— 
Title. I. ALCOHOLIC EXTRACTS. Dose—Grammes. 
Extractum Aconiti, 0.006-0.015 
“ Cannabis Indicae, 0.008-0.06 
“ Cimicifugae, 0.2 -0.3 
“ Iridis0.06-2.0 
Jalapae,0.1 -0.3 
“ Physostigmatis, 0.006-0.03 344 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
II. HYDRO-ALCOHOLIC EXTRACTS. 
Extractum Arnicae Radicis,0.1 -0.3 
“ Belladonnas Foliorum Alcoholicum, 0.008-0.05 
‘ ‘ Cinchonae,1. -2.0 
“ Colocynthidis,0.03 -0.1 
Conii (with acetic acid),0.01 -0.1 
Digitalis, 0.008-0.06 
“ Ergotae (with acetic acid),0.2 -10 
“ Euonymi, 0.06 -0.2 
“ Hyoscyami, 0.06 -0.2 
Juglandis,0.3 -0.2 
Leptandrae0.06 -0 3 
“ Nucis Vomicae (with acetic acid),0.01 -0.06 
“ Podophylli, 0.06 -0.3 
“ Rhei,0.3 -1.0 
“ Stramonii Seminis,0.01 -0.2 
“ Uvae Ursi,0.3 -1.0 
III. AQUEOUS EXTRACTS. 
Extractum Aloes,0.2 -0.6 
“ Colchici Radicis (with acetic acid),0.06 -0.1 
“ Gentianae,0.3 -0.6 
“ Glycyrrhizae, 
“ Glycyrrhizae Purum (with ammonia water), . . . . 
Haematoxyli,0.3 -2.0 
Krameriae,0.3 -2.0 
“ Opii,0 01 -0.06 
“ Quassiae,0.06 -2.0 
“ Taraxaci, 0.5 -2.0 
IV. COMPOUND EXTRACTS. 
Extractum Colocynthidis Compositum, 0.3 -1.5 
Extractum Nucis Vomicae.—The menstruum selected for the 
extraction of nux vomica must be of such a character that it will 
readily take up the alkaloidal principles and yet as little of the 
fatty oil as possible. The forty-eight hours’ maceration with the 
acidified menstruum of alcohol, 3 parts, and water, 1 part, is 
necessary for the softening of the tissues preparatory to extrac- 
tion. The presence of the acetic acid greatly assists the solution 
of the alkaloids. As the extract is directed to be reduced to a 
powder, it is necessary to first remove the fixed oil present. This 
is accomplished by washing the extract obtained from the con- 
centration of the percolates with ether. 
Since some of the alkaloids are associated with the fat which 
has been removed, it is necessary to remove these by washing the 
fat with acetic acid and hot water. 
After completion, a portion of the extract is assayed for alka- 
loids. In another portion, the amount of water is determined. 
From these results the total percentage of alkaloids in the dry 
extract is calculated, enough sugar of milk being added to bring 
the amount of total alkaloids in the dry extract up to 15 per cent. 
Example.—A sample of extract of nux vomica, prepared by the 
process of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, assayed 16 per cent, of alka- 
EXPLANATORY. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
345 
loids, and contained 22 per cent, of moisture. How much sugar 
of milk should be added to bring it to the pharmacopoeial require- 
ment of 15 per cent, of alkaloids when dry ? 
I. Since the moisture or water which is present has, eventually, 
all to be evaporated off, it need not be taken into account further 
than to deduct it from 100, whereby the percentage of dry extract 
is obtained. The further calculation will have to deal only with this. 
The extract contains 100 — 22 = 78 per cent, of dry substance. 
According to the assay, the 100 parts of moist, or 78 parts of dry 
extract contain 16 parts of alkaloids. The next step will be to 
ascertain how much of these 78 parts of dry extract will contain 
15 parts of alkaloids:— 
{Equation 1.) 16 : 15 :: 78 : x ; x — 73.125. 
Since 73.125 parts of the dry extract contain 15 parts of alka- 
loids, it will only be necessary to dilute these 73.125 parts with 
sugar of milk to 100 parts in order to convert the 15 parts of 
alkaloids into percentage :— 
{Equation 2.) 100 — 73.125 = 26.875. 
That is, for every 73.125 of dry extract, 26.875 parts of sugar of 
milk will have to be added. But the original extract contains 78 
parts of dry substance. Hence, the amount of sugar of milk 
required for this (which is equal to 100 parts of the moist extract) 
will be found by the proposition :— 
{Equation 3.) 73.125 : 78 — 26.875 : x •, x = 28.667 parts. 
II. The same result may be arrived at in another manner. 
The extract contains 100 — 22 = 78 per cent, of dry substance, 
and this contains 16 parts of alkaloids. Calculated to percentage, 
this would become:— 
(.Egwa/ion 4-) 78 : 100 = 16 : a: ; x = 20.513. 
That is, 100 parts of a dry extract of the same strength as the 78 
parts just mentioned, would contain 20.513 parts of the alkaloids. 
Now, since every 15 parts of alkaloids are augmented in this pro- 
duct to 20.513 parts, it will only be necessary to dilute the original 
extract with sugar of milk in the proportion of 15 to 20.513:— 
{Equation 5.) 15 : 20.513 = 78 of dry extract (= 100 moist) : x. 
x — 106.667. 
That is, to every 78 parts of dry extract, or to every 100 parts 
of moist extract, there will have to be added :— 
{Equation 6.) 106.667 — 78 = 28.667 parts of sugar of milk. 
III. Based upon either of the foregoing methods, which are really 
identical and differ only in form, a general formula may be derived. 
Let the several values be expressed by letters, as follows:— 
m = percentage of moisture in the moist extract. 
a = “ “ alkaloids “ “ “ 
d = “ “ dry substance “ “ 
x — amount of sugar of milk required to be added to every 100 parts 
of the moist extract, to make it contain 15 per cent, of alka- 
loids, when dry. 346 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Then we have, using equation (3), but substituting in it general 
terms derived from equations (1) and (2), and remembering that 
d = 100 — m :— 
{Equation 7.) - : d = (100 — : x. 
x — 6.667 a — d. 
Or, we may derive this value from equations (6) and (5), in a 
similar manner:— 
{Equation 8.) IOOji — x . x — 6.667 a — d. 
The rule, therefore, expressed in words, would be: “ To find 
the amount of sugar of milk required to be added to 100 parts 
of moist extract of nux vomica of known percentage of alkaloids 
and moisture, in order to make it contain 15 per cent, of alka- 
loids when dry, multiply the percentage of alkaloids found with 
6.667, and deduct therefrom the percentage of moisture.” 
Assay of Extract of Nux Vomica:— 
Extract of Nux Vomica, dried at 100° C. (212° F.), two grammes, (2 Gm.). 
Alcohol, 
Ammonia Water, 
Water, 
Chloroform, 
Decinormal Sulphuric Acid (V. S.), 
Centinormal Potassium Hydrate V. S., each, a sufficient quantity. 
“Put 2 Gm. of the dried Extract of Nux Vomica into a glass 
separator, add to it 20 Cc. of a previously prepared mixture of 
2 volumes of alcohol, 1 volume of ammonia water (specific gravity 
0.960), and 1 volume of water, and shake the well-stoppered sepa- 
rator until the extract is dissolved. Then add 20 Cc. of chloroform 
and agitate during five minutes. Allow the chloroform to separate, 
remove it as far as possible, pour into the separator a few Cc. of 
chloroform, and, without shaking, draw this off through the stop- 
cock to wash the outlet-tube. Repeat the extraction with two 
further portions of chloroform of 15 Cc. each, and wash the outlet- 
tube each time as just directed. Collect all the chloroformic 
solutions in a wide beaker, expose the latter to a gentle heat, on a 
water-bath, until the chloroform and ammonia are completely 
dissipated, add to the residue 10 Cc. of decinormal sulphuric acid 
measured with great care from a burette, stir gently, and then add 
20 Cc. of hot water. When solution has taken place, add 2 Cc. 
of brazil wood T. S., and then carefully run in centinormal potas- 
sium hydrate V. S., until a permanent pinkish color is produced 
by the action of a slight excess of alkali upon the brazil wood 
indicator. Divide the number of Cc. of centinormal potassium 
V. S. used by 10, subtract the number found from 10 (the 10 Cc. 
of decinormal acid used), multiply the remainder by 0.0364 and 
that product by 50 (or, multiplied at once by 1.82), which will 
give the percentage of total alkaloids in the Extract of Nux 
Vomica, it being assumed that strychnine and brucine are present 
in equal proportion, and the above factor being found by taking SOLIDS— FOR INTERNAL USE. 
347 
the mean of their respective molecular weights rounded off to 
whole numbers [(334 + 394) 2 — 364.] (U. S. Pharmacopoeia.)” 
As to the glass separator, the bulbed or pear-shaped form (50 Cc. 
capacity) as shown in Fig. 296, should be used. The extract 
readily dissolves in the mixture of alcohol and water, the ammonia 
water serving to liberate the alkaloids from their combination 
with igasuric acid ; the chloroform added dissolves the liberated 
alkaloids. After the chloroform is added, the mixture should be 
shaken by a rotary motion in order to avoid emulsification. When 
the chloroform once becomes emulsionized, it is a difficult matter 
to bring about a separation of the fluids. After the usual number 
of subsequent extractions, the chloroformic solutions, upon evap- 
oration, yield an alkaloidal residue consisting of a mixture of 
strychnine and brucine, assumed to be in equal proportions. 
Alkaloids, being strong bases, are capable of neutralizing acids 
in definite proportions. Hence, the usual method of estimating 
alkalies by means of a standard solution of an acid can be applied 
to certain alkaloids with a great degree of accuracy. The reaction 
is as follows:— 
2H2SO4 4- 2C21H„N,O, + 2C23H28N2O4 = (C21H22N2O2)2H2SO4 + (C23H26N2O4)2H2SO4 
Sulphuric Acid. Strychnine. Brucine. Strychnine Sulphate. Brucine Sulphate. 
2 X 97.82 2 X 333.31 2 X 393.17 
One molecule of Sulphuric Acid. Strychnine. Brucine. 
97.82 = 333.31 + 393.17 = 726.48 total. 
1000 Cc. containing 48.91 — 363.24 (J of 726.48) alkaloids. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.04891 = 0.0364 alkaloids. 
Hence each cubic centimeter of decinormal sulphuric acid is 
equivalent to 0.364 gramme of total alkaloids.* Since the usual 
indicators are not sufficiently sensitive in the presence of the 
alkaloids, the Pharmacopoeia directs the use of Brazil-wood test 
solution, which strikes a yellow color with acids and a pinkish 
color with alkalies. When operating with this indicator, it is 
always advisable to place alongside of the actual test-sample, on 
a piece of white paper, two beakers, each containing a like volume 
of water and indicator, to one of which about 1 Cc. of the normal 
acid has been added, and in the other the equivalent amount of 
alkaline volumetric solution; with these beakers as a means of 
comparison, the change of color in the solution for assay can be 
more conveniently fixed. 
Example.—The chloroformic residue obtained from 2 grammes 
of extract, which has been dissolved in 10 Cc. of decinormal 
sulphuric acid, required 28 Cc. of centinormal potassium hydrate 
V. S. for neutralization. What percentage of total alkaloids does 
the extract contain ? 
We have dissolved the alkaloids in an excess (10 Cc.) of the 
decinormal acid. In order to ascertain how much of the acid 
has not been neutralized by the alkaloids, we titrate back with 
* Assuming them to be present in equal proportions. 348 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
centinormal potassium hydrate, and subtract the equivalent 
amount of the latter from the former, thus: 10 Cc. of H2SO4, 
minus 1.6 Cc. of KOH (which is the same as 16 Cc. of KOH), 
leaves 8.4 Cc. of decinormal acid which has been neutralized by 
N 
the alkaloids. Then, if 1 cubic centimeter of 10- H2SO4 = 0.0364 
Gm. of alkaloid, 8.4 Cc. of the acid = 8.4 X 0.0364 = 0.3057 Gm. 
of alkaloid. Therefore, there are 0.3057 Gm. of total alkaloids 
(strychnine and brucine) present. The percentage may be found 
as usual (0.3057 -h 2 X 100 = 15.28 per cent.), or as directed by 
the Pharmacopoeia by multiplying by 50 (50 X 0.3057) = 15.28 
per cent. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
349 
ABSTRACTA {Abstracts). 
Abstracts are powdered extracts, the strength of which bear 
a definite and uniform relation to the drug. This class of pre- 
parations were introduced into the Pharmacopoeia of 1880, but 
because of their unpopularity* they were dropped from the 
present Pharmacopoeia of 1890. The strength of the abstracts 
represents twice that of the drug or of the fluid extract from which 
they are prepared. 
The general formula directed by the Pharmacopoeia of 1880 is 
as follows:— 
“ Drug, in No. 60 powder, two hundred parts [or four ounces av.] ; 
Sugar of Milk, recently dried and in fine powder, Alcohol, each, a 
sufficient quantity, to make one hundred parts [or two ounces av.]. 
Moisten the drug with eighty parts [or one and three-quarter fluid- 
ounces] of Alcohol, and pack firmly in a cylindrical glass perco- 
lator ; then add enough Alcohol to saturate the powder and leave 
a stratum above it. When the liquid begins to drop from the 
percolator, close the lower orifice, and, having closely covered the 
percolator, macerate for forty-eight hours. Then allow the perco- 
lation to proceed, gradually adding Alcohol, until the drug is 
exhausted. Reserve the first one hundred and seventy parts [or 
three and one-half fluidounces] of the percolate, evaporate the 
remainder to thirty parts [or half a fluidounce] at a temperature 
not exceeding 50° C. (122° F.) and mix with the reserved portion. 
Place the mixture in an evaporating dish, and, having added fifty 
parts [or one ounce av.] of Sugar of Milk, cover it with a piece of 
thin muslin gauze, and set aside in a warm place, where the 
temperature will not rise above 50° C.(122° F.), until the mixture 
is dry. Lastly, having added enough Sugar of Milk to make the 
mixture weigh one hundred parts [or two ounces av.], reduce it to 
a fine, uniform powder. Preserve the powder in a well-stopped 
bottle.” 
The abstracts recognized by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1880 
were Abstractum Aconiti, Belladonnae, Conii, Digitalis, Hyos- 
cyami, Ignatiae, Jalapae, Nucis vomicae, Podophylli, Senegae, and 
Valerianae. 
* It is unfortunate that this class of preparations of definite and uniform strength should not he 
able to supplant a class characterized by so little uniformity and so great a variation as the solid 
extracts. 350 
HANDBOOK OF PHABMACY. 
RESINJE—(Resins). 
These are solid preparations usually obtained by exhausting 
certain drugs with alcohol and precipitating the resinous prin- 
ciples by addition of water. 
The procedure is applied to those drugs whose activity resides 
in resinous principles. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes four resins, three of which are 
prepared in the following manner: The drug is exhausted with 
alcohol; after concentration of this alcoholic extract to a syrupy 
consistence it is poured slowly, with constant stirring, and in a 
thin stream, into a large excess of cold water, the precipitate is 
allowed to subside, washed by decantation, strained off, and dried 
with a gentle heat. Resin of podophyllum is precipitated with 
acidulated* water, in order to facilitate its separation, the acid 
imparting at the same time a brighter yellow color to the resin. 
The water used in precipitating this resin should be cold, and the 
resin dried by exposure to air in a cool place. Resin of copaiba, 
being one of the two constituents of balsam of copaiba, is more 
readily separated by distilling off the volatile oil. 
RESIN.E, U. S. P. 
Title. 
Preparation. 
Dose. 
Resina Copaiba?, .... 
Product remaining after 
distillation. 
0.3 to 1.5 Gm. 
“ Jalapae, .... 
Precipitation. 
<< 
0.1 to 0.3 Gm. 
“ Podophylli, . . . 
0.008 to 0.05 Gm. 
“ Scammonii, . . . 
u 
0.2 to 0.5 Gm. 
RESINOIDS-(Eclectic). 
These are a class of resinous powders or medicinal substances 
obtained by precipitation of the alcoholic tinctures of certain 
plants or plant-parts, either by means of water alone or aided by 
heat, or by acids or other agents. 
If the drug contains an oleoresin, it is necessary, in order to 
bring the precipitate to a powder form, to mix it with a sufficient 
quantity of the powdered drug. 
Such resinoids as hydrastin and sanguinarin are precipitated 
in water acidulated with an acid or rendered slightly alkaline 
with ammonia water. 
These preparations, the names of which generally end in -in, 
should not be confounded with the similarly sounding alkaloids 
or other active plant principles. 
They vary greatly in their activity, owing to various impurities 
and to the fact that many do not represent all the virtues of the 
plants from which they are obtained. 
* Water containing alum is also employed, but yields a product contaminated with alumina. SOLIDS—FOR INTERNAL USE. 
351 
The following list includes most of these preparations, with 
their average doses,* such as are given by eclectic authorities:— 
Obtained from 
Average 
dose in 
Average 
Obtained from dose in 
Aconitin, .... 
Aconite Root, . . . 
grains. 
Hydrastin, . . . 
grains. 
Goldenseal, 1-2 
Aletriii, . . . 
Star Grass 
i- 2 
Hydrastin Mur., 
Golden sea 1 (Berber i n a) 
ll it 
1- 3 
Alnuin, 
Tag Alder Bark, . 
2-10 
Hydrastin Sul., . 
1- 2 
Ampelopsin, . . 
American Ivy, . . 
2- 4 
Hydrastin Nit., . 
ll ll 
1- 2 
Apocynin, . . . 
. Bitter Root, . . . 
4- 1 
Hydrastin Phos., 
ll ll 
1- 2 
Atropin, .... 
. Belladonna, .... 
Hyoscyamin, . . 
Henbane, 
B- 1 
Asclepin, .... 
Baptisin 
. Pleurisy Root, . . 
Inulin, 
Elecampane, .... 
1- 3 
Wild Indigo Root, 
1- 3 
Irisin, .... 
Jalapin, .... 
Juglandin, . . . 
Blue Flag 
2- 4 
Barosmin, 
. Btichu, 
2- 3 
Jalap, 
1- 3 
Betin, 
. Beets, 
2- 4 
Butternut, 
2- 5 
Bryonin, . . 
White Bryony, . . 
4 2 
Leontodin, . . . 
Dandelion, 
2- 4 
Caiilophyllin, . . 
Blue Cohosh, . . . 
1- 5 
Leptandrin, . . 
Culvers Root, . . 
2- 4 
Cerasein, .... 
Choke Cherry, . . 
2-10 
Lobelin 
Lobelia, 
1- 3 
Chelonin, .... 
Chiniaphilin, . . 
. Balmony 
1- 2 
Lupulin, .... 
Hops, 
1- 2 
. Pipsissewa, .... 
2- 3 
Ly copin, .... 
Bugle Weed, .... 
1- 4 
Chionanthin, . . 
Fringe Tree, . . . 
1- 3 
Macrotin, .... 
Black Cohosh, . . . 
l~ 2 
Cimicifugin, . . 
. See Macrotin, . . 
4- 2 
Menispermin, . . 
Yellow Parilla, . . . 
1- 4 
Collinsonin, . . . 
. Stone Root, .... 
2- 4 
Mv ricin, .... 
Bayberry, ...... 
Poke Root, 
1- 3 
Colocynthin, . . 
. Bitter Apple, . . . 
Phytolaccin, . . 
1- 3 
Cornin, 
. Dogwood, .... 
2- 4 
Prunin, 
Wild Cherry 
2- 3 
Corydalin, . . . 
. Turkey Pea, . . . 
1- 3 
Populin, .... 
Poplar, 
2- 4 
Cypripedin, . . 
. Lady Slipper, . . . 
1- 3 
Podophvllin, . . 
Mandrake, 
i~3 
Digitalin, . . . 
. Foxglove, . . 
4- I 
Podophvllin Neut. 
4- 2 
Dioscorein, . 
. Wild Yam, .... 
J- 4 
Ptelein, . . 
Wafer Ash, 
1- 3 
Ergotin, . . . 
. Ergot 
*£1 
Rhein, 
Rhubarb, 
1- 4 
Erythroxylin, 
. Coca Leaves, . . . 
Rhusin, 
Sumach, 
1- 2 
Euonvmin, . . . 
. Wahoo, 
i-3 
Rumin, 
Yellow Dock, .... 
1- 3 
Eupatorin (Perf.), 
Boneset, . . 
1- 3 
Sanguinarin, . . 
Blood Root, 
1- 3 
Eupatorin (Purp.), 
Queen of Meadow, 
1- 4 
Scuteliarin, . . . 
Scullcap, 
1- 2 
Euphorbin, . . . 
. Blooming Spurge, . 
i- 3 
Senecin, .... 
Smilacin, .... 
Life Root, 
Sarsaparilla (Hon.), . 
1- 3 
Eupurpurin, . . 
. Queen of Meadow, 
1- 4 
2- 5 
Frazerin 
. American Colombo, 
1- 3 
Stillingin, . . . 
Queen’s Root, .... 
1- 3 
Gelsemin, . . . 
Yellow Jessamine, 
4- 1 
Trilliin, . . . 
Beth Root, 
Am. Hellebore, . . . 
2- 4 
Geraniin 
. Cranesbill 
1- 3 
Veratrin, .... 
Gossypiin, . . . 
. Cotton Root, . . . 
1- 5 
Viburnin, .... 
Cramp Bark, .... 
Hamamelin. . . 
. Witch Hazel, . . . 
1- 3 
Viburnin Prunif., 
Black Haw, 
1- 3 
Helonin, .... 
. False Unicorn, . . 
2- 4 
Xanthoxylin, . . 
Prickly Ash, .... 
1- 2 
* These drugs are subject to some variation, according to the manufacturer. CHAPTER XXXV 
II. FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
UNGUENTA—(Ointments'). 
Ointments are soft, unctuous preparations, composed of fats, 
generally medicated, which are applied to the skin by inunction. 
An ointment consists of medicinal agents combined with a base, 
which is generally of the consistence of lard. 
Base.—The U. S. Pharmacopoeia directs, in most instances, the 
use of benzoinated lard or simple ointment. Among other bases 
proposed and in use are petrolatum, wool-fat, diachylon oint- 
ment ; mixture of yellow wax (3 parts) and olive oil (7 parts), 
mixtures of such fats as spermaceti, suet or cacao-butter with 
almond oil; mixture of expressed oil of nutmeg (6 parts), olive 
oil (2 parts), yellow wax (1 part), etc. 
The three most popular bases, namely, benzoinated lard, wool-fat, 
and petrolatum, should not be used indiscriminately. 
Petrolatum is not adapted for use as an absorbent base. For 
this reason it should never be substituted where lard or wool-fat 
is directed. It answers as a bland neutral protective dressing. 
Wool-fat forms the best basis for dermal medication; it is more 
readily absorbed by the skin than lard, does not become rancid, 
and is miscible with aqueous solutions to the extent of its own 
weight. When inorganic salts are to be combined with it, they 
should be first dissolved in a little water, and then added to the 
wool-fat. 
Lard is not as readily absorbed by the skin as wool-fat, but 
owing to its cheapness, and the readiness with which it may be 
purified, it forms the most popular basis. It is often objection- 
able because of its tendency to rancidity; but, if properly purified 
and benzoinated, it can, with care, be kept almost indefinitely. 
Ointments, according to the method of preparation, are made 
either (1) \yy fusion, (2) by mechanical admixture, or (3) by chemical 
reaction. 
1st. By Fusion.—In preparing ointments by fusion, those sub- 
stances which have higher melting points should be fused first, 
then the balance of the fats added, the whole strained, if necessary, 
well stirred, and, while it cools, such additional substances incor- 
porated as may be directed. The fats should be melted by the 
heat of a water-bath, and never directly over the flame. 
2d. By Mechanical Admixture.—A large variety of substances 
are directed to be incorporated into ointments. The admixture 
may be accomplished either by trituration in a mortar or by 
352 SOLIDS— FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
353 
working the materials, on an ointment slab,* with a spatula (Fig. 
364). In handling such materials as iodine, corrosive sublimate, 
salicylic acid, tannic acid, etc., a steel spatula should not be used, 
but, in place of it, one of horn or hard rubber should be substi- 
tuted. 
When solids are to be incorporated, they should be first reduced 
to a very fine powder, then intimately mixed with a small portion 
of the fat, after which the remainder is gradually and thoroughly 
incorporated, until a perfectly homogeneous mixture is obtained. 
Solid extracts are first reduced to a smooth, thick paste by 
addition of a few drops of a solvent (water, alcohol, etc.), and 
rubbing in a mortar, or on a pill-tile with the spatula; then they 
are incorporated with the base, as directed above. 
When comparatively large amounts of dry powders are directed 
to be incorporated into an ointment, in order to prevent lumping, 
the powder should be triturated in a warm mortar with a portion 
of the melted fat. When this is reduced to a smooth, uniform 
paste, and the fat begins to cool, the balance should be added 
gradually, and the whole thoroughly mixed. 
Fig. 364. 
Ointment Spatula. 
Soluble salts, such as zinc sulphate, mercuric chloride, silver 
nitrate, etc., which are prone to crystallize, should be rubbed to a 
smooth paste with a little olive or almond oil before being incor- 
porated ; glycerin should not be used for this purpose. No more 
oil should be employed than is absolutely necessary. 
Very soluble or deliquescent salts, such as potassium iodide or 
carbonate, zinc chloride, etc., should be rubbed with a few drops 
of water. 
As exception to the above procedure, tartar-emetic should be 
mixed, in the state of a fine powder, directly with the ointment. 
Alkaloids should be first dissolved in a little oleic acid before 
being mixed with the base. 
Aqueous fluidsf should be combined slowly by trituration: 
alcoholic liquids are difficult to combine in ointments. If the 
active constituents in the alcoholic liquid are not volatile, it may 
be evaporated at a low temperature to the consistence of an extract, 
and then incorporated in the ointment. 
* A convenient substitute for this is the so-called Diamond Ointment Pad, made by Fox, Fultz & 
Webster, of New York. This consists of a block-pad made of parchment-paper, which is impervious 
to fats and liquids of all kinds. Immediately after use, the soiled leaf is torn off, thus saving the 
labor and time of cleansing. 
t Lard will take up mechanically and hold about one-fifth, Petrolatum about one-tenth, and 
Wool-fat about its own weight of aqueous fluid. 354 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The quantities of fat should be weighed (waxed paper being used), 
and not guessed at. Immediately after the completion of an oint- 
ment, the mortar or slab should be cleansed by rubbing it with 
sawdust, the last traces of fat removed with paper, and the utensil 
afterward cleaned with soap-suds. 
3d. By Chemical Reaction.—There is only one official ex- 
ample of this, namely, ointment of mercuric nitrate (page 355). 
PRESERVATION AND DISPENSING. 
Ointments should be kept in well-closed jars, in a cool and 
dark place. It is well to cover the surface of the ointment with 
paper impregnated with Tincture of Benzoin. 
Never dispense an ointment which has the slightest degree of 
rancidity. 
Fresh ointments should never be placed in a jar containing 
old ointment, even though there be but traces present. 
Ointments should be perfectly smooth and free from solid 
particles. 
Ointments should be dispensed in glass or porcelain jars (galli- 
pots), imparting a smooth finish to the surface of the ointment 
before dispensing. 
Before being refilled, the jars should be thoroughly cleansed. 
Wooden or lacquered pasteboard boxes should not be used, as the 
fat quickly penetrates and renders them unsightly. 
It is often necessary to mask the odor of certain medicinal 
agents. For this purpose Cumarin, Heliotropin, or the Oils of 
Rose, Geranium, Neroli, etc., are employed. 
Ointments of a firm consistence may be spread on linen and 
preserved in rolls, which forms a very convenient method of dis- 
pensing them. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 23 ointments. 
Title. 
Per Cent, of Active Constituent. 
Base. 
Unguentum, 
Lard, 80 % ; Yellow Wax, 
20 %. 
Acidi Carbolici, 
Carbolic Acid, 5 %. 
Unguentum. 
Acidi Tannici, 
Tannic Acid, 20 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Aquae Rosse, 
Spermaceti, White Wax, 
Exp. Oil Almond, 
Stronger Rose Water, 
Sodium Borate. 
Belladonnas, 
Ext. Belladonna Leaves, 
10 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Chrysarobini, 
Chrysarobin, 5 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Diachylon, 
Lead Plaster, Olive Oil, 
Oil Lavender fl. 
Gallae, 
Hydrargyri, 
Nutgall, 20 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Mercury, 50 %. 
Lard and Suet. 
Hydrargyri Ammoniati, . 
Ammoniated Mercury, 
10%. 
Benz. Lard. 
UNGUENTA, U. S. P. 355 
SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
Title. 
Per Cent, of Active Constituent. 
Base. 
Unguentum— 
Hydrargyri Nitratis, . . . 
Mercuric Nitrate, about 
Lard Oil. 
Hydrargyri Oxidi Flavi, . 
121 %. 
Yellow Mercuric Oxide, 
Unguentum. 
Hydrargyri Oxidi Rubri, . 
10 %. 
Red Mercuric Oxide, 10 %. 
Unguentum. 
lodi, 
Iodine, 4% (with KI). 
Benz. Lard. 
lodoformi, 
Picis Liquids?, 
Iodoform, 10%. 
Benz. Lard. 
Tar, 50 %. 
Yellow Wax and Lard. 
Pl unibi Carbonatis, . . . 
Lead Carbonate, 10%. 
Lead Iodide, 10%. 
Benz. Lard. 
Plumbi lodidi, 
Benz. Lard. 
Potassii lodidi, 
Potassium Iodide, 12 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Stramonii, 
Ext. Stramonium Seed, 
Benz. Lard. 
Sulpburis 
10 %. 
Washed Sulphur, 30 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Veratrinae, 
Veratrine, 4 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Zinci Oxidi, 
Zinc Oxide, 20 %. 
Benz. Lard. 
Unguentum Hydrargyri.—On triturating or agitating mer- 
cury with certain solids or fluids, it will be found that after a time 
the mercury gradually loses its metallic appearance and assumes 
a gray color. This mass, on close examination, will be seen to 
consist of globules of mercury in a very minute state of division. 
To accomplish this subdivision, or “ extinction,” as it is more 
properly called, a great variety of substances have been recom- 
mended, varying according to the use for which the mercurial 
preparation is intended; that is, internally or externally. The 
various substances employed act by enclosing each globule of 
mercury, as rapidly as separated, with a thin coat of material, 
which prevents it from reuniting with the rest; the presence of a 
trace of water causes the globules to unite again. 
Among the extinguishing agents are chalk, honey, fats, oleic 
acids, resinous tinctures, confection of rose, wool-fat, mercurial 
ointment, oleate of mercury, etc. 
Oleate of mercury, as recommended by the Pharmacopoeia, 
forms perhaps one of the best and most satisfactory extinguishing 
agents. The triturating should not be accompanied by pressure, 
but the motion should be light and rapid; then, as soon as the 
mercury has disappeared and a dull-gray colored magma is 
formed, the fused and partly cooled fats should be gradually 
added with continued trituration, until a portion, when spread 
out in a thin layer on a piece of white paper, does not reveal 
globules of mercury under a lens magnifying ten diameters. 
On the large scale this subdivision of the mercury is carried on 
by “ succussion ” in an apparatus operated by machinery, the 
mercury being extinguished by means of fused fats or powders. 
On long standing, mercurial ointment becomes slightly darker, 
owing to the oxidation of the mercury. 
Unguentum Hydrargyri Nitratis (Citrine Ointment).—By 
the action of nitrous acid or mercuric nitrate on the “ drying 
EXPLANATORY. 356 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
oils ” (olive, almond, lard, neatsfoot, etc.), the olein of the oil is 
converted into an isomer called elaidin, which is characterized by 
its yellow color and butyraceous consistence. 
The preparation of citrine ointment depends on the formation 
of this elaidin, which serves as a vehicle for the mercuric nitrate. 
The first step of the process is to heat the oil with a portion of 
nitric acid, which suffers reduction to nitrous acid. The latter, 
in turn, converts the olein into elaidin. Care should be taken 
not to raise the temperature above that directed (100° C.). The 
effervescence produced is not of a violent nature, but proceeds 
quietly and slowly, the liquid mass assuming thereby an orange 
(not brown) color. 
After the addition of the mercuric nitrate the mass should be 
stirred constantly until cold, by which time it will have assumed 
a semi-solid consistence and a bright lemon-yellow color. Over- 
heating causes the ointment to assume a brown color. Either a 
horn, porcelain, or wooden spatula should be employed for 
stirring, because of the readiness with which mercuric nitrate 
attacks metals. SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
357 
CER ATA—(Cerates). 
Cerates (cera, wax) are a class of preparations similar to oint- 
ments, but of a firmer consistence. 
They are made by mixing oil or lard with wax, or some other 
substance having a higher melting point, imparting to them a 
consistency between that of an ointment and plaster. When 
applied to the skin they do not melt like ointments, but retain 
their soft consistence. The materials selected (oil or lard) should 
be free from all traces of rancidity. 
The wax or materials of higher fusing point should be first 
melted on a water-bath, then the oil or lard added in portions; 
when all is liquefied, the fluid should be stirred constantly while 
cooling, and those portions which congeal on the sides of the 
vessel re-incorporated until the whole assumes the proper con- 
sistence. 
Cerates should be kept in a cool place, in clean and well-covered 
jars. Those made with white wax, owing to its incipient rancidity, 
are liable to become rancid, while those containing yellow wax 
keep unaltered. 
Cerates are employed chiefly as dressings for inflamed surfaces. 
Steatins*—These are a class of preparations which have the 
consistence of cerates, and contain suet combined with wax or 
lead plaster as base. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 6 Cerates. 
Title. 
Composition. 
Ceratum, 
White Wax, 300 Gm.; Lard, 700 Gm. 
Ceratum Camphorse, 
Camphor Liniment, 100 Gm., White Wax, 
300 Gm.; Lard, 600 Gm 
Ceratum Cantharidis, 
Cantharides pulv., 320 Gm. ; Yellow Wax, 
Blistering Cerate, 
180 Gm.; Resin, 180 Gm.; Lard, 220 Gm.; 
Oil of Turpentine, 150 Cc. 
Ceratum Cetacei 
Spermaceti, 100 Gm.; White Wax, 350 Gm.; 
Spermaceti Cerate, 
Olive Oil, 550 Gm. 
Ceratum Plumbi Subacetatis, . . 
Solution of Lead Subacetate, 200 Gm.; Cam- 
phor Cerate, 800 Gm. 
Ceratum Resinse, 
Resin, 350 Gm.; Yellow Wax, 150 Gm.; Lard, 
Basilicon Ointment, 
500 Gm. 
CERATA. 
., U. S. P. 
* Proposed by Mieleke, Phar. Centralhalle, 1881, Nos. 20-21. 358 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
EM PLASTR A—{Plasters). 
Plasters are compounds of various fusible solids of a melting 
point higher than that of the human body, being friable when 
cold, but rendered adhesive by the warmth of the body. Accord- 
ing to the base employed, they may be designated as Plasters proper, 
or as Resinous Plasters. Emplastrum Plumbi forms the base of 
the former class, while the latter consist of various combinations 
of resins. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes two ready-spread plasters, namely, 
Emplastrum Ichthyocollae and Emplastrum Capsici. 
In the preparation of plasters, care should be taken that no 
higher degree of heat be employed than that of the water-bath, 
otherwise decomposition of the volatile medicinal constituents 
might ensue. 
Some plasters are made by simply fusing the various constitu- 
ents together; others require the admixture of various solids, 
which are added to the fused mass either in a state of fine powder, 
or in the condition of a smooth paste obtained by treatment with 
a proper solvent. While cooling, the mass should be well stirred 
to insure uniformity in composition. 
After preparation, the plaster mass is usually moulded * into 
sticks or rolls, and wrapped in waxed or paraffin paper. 
When kept for some time the plaster mass becomes hard and 
brittle, due to the oxidizing influence of the air; it may be restored 
to its original plasticity by re-melting it, with the addition of a 
little oil. 
Owing to the introduction of the rubber base, the preparation 
of plasters has almost entirely fallen into the hands of the manu- 
facturer; it is seldom that the dispenser is required to spread 
other than cantharides plaster. 
Spreading of Plasters.—Plasters are usually spread on either 
muslin or leather (sheepskin), which is cut to the necessary size 
Fig. 365. 
Plaster Spatula. 
and shape, from one-quarter to one inch being allowed all around 
for a margin. The piece of leather or muslin is then stretched 
* The Plaster-press, as shown in Fig. 355, page 321, is adapted for this purpose. SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
359 
evenly on a smooth surface, being held in position by means of 
thumb-tacks. Over this is laid the form (Fig. 366), made of thin 
card-board or heavy paper, cut of the desired shape and size, and 
this is secured firmly by means of thumb-tacks. 
Fig. 366. 
Forms for Spreading Plasters and Cerates. 
Plasters of an ointment like consistence (like Emp. Cantharidis) 
may be readily spread in a cold condition by means of a spatula. 
The plasters proper, because of their friable nature, are first 
melted and then spread with a hot spatula.* Sufficient of the 
Fig. 367. 
Fig. 368 
Plaster Block. 
Plaster Iron. 
plaster-mass (for the surface required) is selected and cautiously 
melted in a porcelain capsule over a gas-flame; the melted mass 
is then allowed to cool until it is of a honey-like consistence and, 
* The form shown in Fig. 365 is specially designed for this purpose. 360 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
by means of a warm spatula blade, quickly and evenly spread 
over the surface. The mass should not be applied too hot, other- 
wise it will penetrate the leather or muslin. After the plaster is 
spread, the surface should appear even and smooth; if it is not, 
a hot spatula should be quickly passed over it. Care should be 
taken, while heating the blade, to remove all particles of plaster 
adhering to it, otherwise the surface of the plaster will become 
discolored. Before removing the paper, or cardboard frame, the 
hot edge of the spatula should be passed around the line of con- 
tact, so that, when the frame is removed, a smooth, sharp edge 
may be left. 
For spreading larger numbers of plasters, the operation may be 
facilitated by the employment of the plaster-block (Fig. 367). 
This consists of a rectangular block of hard wood, the upper sur- 
face of which is convex. To one end of the upper surface is 
attached, by means of a hinge, a sheet-iron frame with an opening 
of the size desired for the plaster. The muslin or leather of proper 
size is laid on the convex surface of the block; over this is secured 
the sheet-iron frame, then the necessary amount of melted and 
partly-cooled plaster is poured in the center, and by means of a 
heated (triangular-shaped or round) plaster iron (Fig. 368), it is 
spread uniformly over the surface, the excess of plaster being 
forced over on the edges of the frame. 
Perforation of Plasters.—This is done to permit the escape 
of exhalations from the skin, also to enable the plaster to adapt 
Fig. 369. 
Plaster Perforating Machine. 
itself better to the skin, and to adhere more firmly. Perforation 
of plasters is carried on by the manufacturers of plasters on the 
large scale, by means of specially constructed machinery. For SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
361 
the use of the apothecary the perforating machine of Lentz is par- 
ticularly adapted (Fig. 369). An inexpensive perforating appara- 
tus has been devised by Professor Remington (Amer. Jour. Phar., 
1878, p. 171), which consists of a brass cylindrical wheel studded 
with steel punches, which is driven with some force across the sur- 
face of the plaster, resulting in perforating along the line of contact. 
The employment of a rubber mass, as a base, has practically 
superseded all others. Its advantages reside in its flexibility and 
adhesiveness at ordinary temperatures, and in its not requiring 
any heat in applying or removing. This base consists essentially 
of a mixture of rubber with certain resins (burgundy pitch and 
olibanum), variously medicated. This pliable and adhesive rubber 
base retains its soft consistence indefinitely, and yields its medici- 
nal constituents readily when applied to the skin. 
EXPLANATORY. 
Emplastrum Plumbi (Lead Plaster).—When fats are treated 
with alkali hydrates or with a number of other metallic oxides, 
decomposition takes place, the fatty acids combining with the 
metals forming soaps, while the glycerin is set free. Those soaps 
whose base is either soda or potassa, are known as the “ soluble,” 
while those whose base constitutes a metallic oxide, are known as 
“ insoluble ” soaps. To this latter class Lead Plaster belongs. It 
may be prepared in either of two ways, viz.:— 
1st. By the interaction between soluble soaps and lead salts, 
(page 287). 
NaC18H33O2 | p. /C2H3O2 — 
NaC18H33O2 + rD\C2H3O2 “ rD\CI8H33O2 
Sodium Oleate. Lead Acetate. Lead Oleate. 
2d. By the process of saponification * (U. S. P. process). 
2C3H5(C18H33O2)3 + 3PbO + 3H2O = 3Pb(C18H,,O2)2 + 2CSH5(OH)3 
Olein (Olive Oil). Litharge. Water. Lead Oleate. Glycerin. 
Any oil which consists of nearly pure olein may be used for 
this purpose. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia recognizes 13 Plasters. 
EMPLASTRA, U. S. P. 
Plasters Containing Emp. Plumbi as Base. 
Emplastrum Ferri, 
“ Hydrargyri, . . 
“ Opii, 
Ferric Hydrate, 90 Gm.; Olive Oil, 50 
Gm.; Burgundy Pitch, 140 Gm.; Lead 
Plaster, 720 Gm. 
Mercury, 300 Gm.; Oleate of Mercury, 12 
Gm.; Lead Plaster, sufficient quantity, 
to make 1000 Gm. 
Ext. Opium, 60 Gm.; Burgundy Pitch, 
180 Gm.; Lead Plaster,760Gm.; Water, 
80 Gm. 
* In the restricted sense, as employed here, saponification is the separation of fats into their respec- 
tive acids and glycerin. Here, the fatty acids are liberated by the action of the litharge (in the 
presence of water)', uniting with the lead and separating out as an Insoluble soap. 362 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Plasters Containing Emp. Plumbi as Base.—Continued. 
Emplastrum Plumbi, .... 
“ Resina), .... 
“ Saponis, .... 
Lead Oxide, 3200 Gm.; Olive Oil, 6000 
Gm.; Water, sufficient quantity. 
Resin, 140 Gm.; Lead Plaster, 800 Gm.; 
Yellow Wax, 60 Gm. 
Soap, 100 Gm.; Lead Plaster, 900 Gm.; 
Water, sufficient quantity. 
Plasters—Resinous. 
Emplastrum Ammoniaci cum 
Hydrargyro, . 
“ Arnicse, .... 
“ Belladonnas, . . 
“ Picis Burgundicae, 
“ Picis Canthari- I 
datum, ... I 
Ammoniac, 720 Gm.; Mercury, 180 Gm.; 
Oleate of Mercury, 8 Gm.; Dilute Acetic 
Acid, lOOOCc.; Lead Plaster, sufficient 
quantity. 
Ext. Arnica Root, 330 Gm.; Resin Plaster 
670 Gm. 
Ale. Ext. Belladonna Lvs., 200 Gm.; 
Resin Plaster, 400 Gm.; Soap Plaster, 
400 Gm. 
Burgundy Pitch, 800 Gm.; Olive Oil, 50 
Gm.; Yellow Wax, 150 Gm. 
Cantharides Cerate, 80 Gm.; Burgundy 
Pitch, to make 1000 Gm. 
Plasters—Spread. 
Emplastrum Capsici, .... 
Ichthyocollae, . 
Oleoresin of Capsicum; Resin Plaster. 
Isinglass, 10 Gm.; Alcohol, 40 Gm.; Gly- 
cerin, 1 Gm.; Water, and Tincture of 
Benzoin, each, sufficient quantity. 
The official Papers consist of paper saturated or covered with 
medicinal substances. 
The Pharmacopoeia recognizes only two of these medicated 
papers. 
Charta Potassii Nitratis.—This consists of white unsized 
paper saturated with a solution of potassium nitrate. It is em- 
ployed in cases of asthma, by burning it, and inhaling the smoke. 
It is often saturated with fluid extract of belladonna or of 
stramonium. 
Charta Sinapis.—The fixed oil present in the black mustard 
is first removed by percolating with benzin. The solution of 
india rubber serves as an adhesive coat, firmly retaining the pow- 
der. The irritating properties of the powdered black mustard 
depend upon the generation of a vesicating volatile oil, which 
takes place when the powder is moistened with water. This 
volatile oil is formed through the decomposition of a glucoside 
called sinigrin (potassium myronate), caused by the influence of 
an albuminous ferment myrosin, which does not enter the reaction 
itself; the reaction being thus:— 
c10h18kns2o10 = c3h5cns 4- khso4 + c6hI2o6 
Sinigrin. Allyl Sulphocyanate Acid Potassium Glucose. 
(Potassium (Oil of Mustard). Sulphate. 
Myronate). 
CIIA RTzE—(Med tea ted Pape rs). SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
363 
Hot water causes coagulation of the albuminous ferment, hence 
no oil will be produced; only lukewarm or cold water should be 
used to moisten the drug. 
SUPPOSITORIA—(Suppositories). 
Suppositories are suitably-shaped masses of medicated fats, 
which readily fuse when introduced into the body. 
According to their size and shape, there are three forms, 
namely, the Rectal (cone-shaped) which should 
weigh about one gramme (U. S. P.), but which 
may also be made to weigh as 
much as two grammes; the 
Urethral (pencil-shaped) should 
weigh about one gramme (U. S. 
P.); the Vaginal (globular or 
cone-shaped) should weigh about 
three grammes (U. S. P.), but 
may also be made to weigh over 
four grammes. 
Suppositories are sometimes 
given a double cone-shape, that 
is, pointed at both ends. The usual cone- and 
double cone-shaped suppository is sometimes 
difficult of retention, because of the peculiar 
contraction of the sphincter muscles; in view 
of this, Wellcome 
(August, 1893) sug- 
gested a modification 
of their shape, which, 
allowing the introduc- 
tion of the bulbous end 
first, ensures perfect 
retention,by the reflex contraction of the sphincter. 
The base employed should be of such con- 
sistence as to retain its shape at the ordinary 
temperature of the air, yet it should be sufficiently 
soft not to produce any injury on insertion. It 
should not become rancid and yet be capable of 
being mixed with most medicinal substances 
without any lowering of its fusing point. 
The various bases employed may be designated 
as fatty (cacao butter), saponaceous (curd soap from 
animal fat), and gelatinous-, neither of the latter, 
however, give the general satisfaction that is 
obtained from the use of cacao butter. 
The Gelatin Base forms a valuable and service- 
able substitute where objections are made to a fatty basis. Accord- 
Fig. 372. 
Fig. 370. 
Suppositories (Rectal). 
Fig. 371. 
Wellcome’s Improved Suppository. 
Wellcome’s Improved 
Bougie. 364 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
ing to theory, it is not adapted for administering tannic acid, since 
they are supposed to form an insoluble compound. These gelatin 
suppositories are more readily made than those of cacao butter, 
but present the difficulty of lacking firmness. They are made 
by moulding. For this purpose the moulds must be thoroughly 
cleaned and dried, then wiped inside with a piece of flannel 
impregnated with oil. The base is fused in a capsule on a water- 
bath, the medicinal ingredients dissolved in a little water and 
stirred in until thoroughly diffused or dissolved. When of proper 
degree of consistence the mass is poured into well cooled moulds. 
The same mass is not applicable to all medicaments, since some 
render it too hard, others too soft. The gelatin base may be kept 
almost indefinitely, provided it is poured into bottles and, when 
cold, covered with alcohol. 
The following gelatin bases * have been proposed : — 
I. Gelatin 10 parts, water 40 parts, glycerin 15 parts; evapo- 
rate to 25 parts. This combination is suitable for hygroscopic 
drugs, for bougies containing ferric chloride (dissolve 1 part of 
ferric chloride in 9 parts of water and add to 19 parts of the mass), 
for tannin suppositories (0.2 per cent.,—not in accordance with 
theory), and for vaginal pessaries containing such salts as potas- 
sium iodide or bromide, sodium bromide or salicylate, ergotin, 
chloral hydrate, etc. 
II. Gelatin 10 parts, water 40 parts, glycerin 20 parts; evapo- 
rate to 50 parts. A good base for general use. Phenol or such 
substances as are soluble in alcohol are first dissolved in a little 
alcohol, added to 7 parts of glycerin and 50 parts of this mass. 
Alum bougies are made by adding a hot solution of 7 parts of 
alum in 10 parts of glycerin, and 5 parts of water to 25 parts of 
the mass liquefied on a bath with 10 parts of water. The whole 
is evaporated, under stirring, to 35 parts. 
III. Gelatin 10 parts, water 40 parts, glycerin 30 parts; 
evaporate to 60 parts. This mass is adapted as a vehicle for such 
substances as cupric or zinc sulphate, silver nitrate, extract of 
opium, mercuric chloride, etc. 
IV. Gelatin 30 parts, water 120 parts, glycerin 15 parts ; evap- 
orate to 104 parts. A basis for bougies containing a large per- 
centage of insoluble drugs. Iodoform bougies (50 per cent.) are 
made by adding 27 parts of pulverized iodoform to 27 parts of 
the mass. 
For a glycerin suppository,)" the following has been recom- 
mended; glycerin 10 parts, water 5 parts, gelatin 1 to 2 parts ; in 
order to render the suppositories sufficiently firm, it has been 
recommended to dip them into melted cacao butter. 
Cacao Butter Suppositories.—According to their method of 
* C. H. Oehse, “ Art of Dispensing,” Chemist and Druggist, London. 
t 'Phis was proposed previous to the appearance of the U. S. P. of 1890, in which “ Suppositoria 
Glycerini,” made by another process, were made official. SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
365 
preparation they may be designated as hand-rolled, moulded, and 
compressed. 
Hand-rolled.—The method of forming by hand is very simple, 
the operation being carried out much in the same manner as that 
of making a pill mass. The Cacao butter is grated and weighed ; 
the medicinal agents are reduced to a fine powder in the mortar, 
or, if they consist of extracts, they should be moistened with a little 
water and rubbed to a smooth paste; to this is added the cacao- 
butter and the whole thoroughly incorporated and beaten into a 
pill mass. In order to impart plasticity, a few drops of castor or 
olive oil are often added. The mass is then rolled out on a pill 
tile into a cylinder of the desired thickness and length, finely 
powdered starch being employed as dusting powder. The cylin- 
der is then divided into the necessary number of parts, and by 
carefully rounding one end by rolling on the tile with the spatula 
or by forming between the fingers, the desired shape is imparted. 
The hands and all utensils must be kept scrupulously clean. 
A rusty spatula or a poorly cleansed tile is sufficient to ruin the 
appearance of the most carefully made suppository. 
Sometimes, through lack of adhesiveness, the mass crumbles 
when rubbed. It should then be worked over in the mortar with 
addition of a drop or two of oil if necessary, and formed into a 
cylinder with the hands, with sufficient rapidity to avoid undue 
softening of the mass. Also care should be taken not to incor- 
porate too much of the dusting powder in the operation of rolling 
out the cylinder, otherwise the mass will crumble, from lack of 
adhesiveness. 
Moulded Suppositories.—The directions of the Pharmacopoeia 
are as follows:— 
Take of 
The Medicinal Ingredient, the prescribed quantity. 
Oil of Theobronia, a sufficient quantity. 
Having weighed out the medicinal ingredient or ingredients, 
and the quantity of Oil of Theobroma required, according to the 
kind of Suppository to be prepared, mix the medicinal portion 
(previously brought to a proper consistence, if necessary) with 
a small quantity of the Oil of Theobroma, by rubbing them 
together, and add the mixture to the remainder of the Oil of 
Theobroma, previously melted and cooled to the temperature of 
35° C. (95° F.). Then mix thoroughly, without applying more 
heat, and immediately pour the mixture into suitable moulds. 
The moulds must be kept cold by being placed on ice, or by im- 
mersion in ice-cold water, before the melted mass is poured in. 
In the absence of suitable moulds, Suppositories may be formed 
by allowing the mixture, prepared as above, to cool, care being 
taken to keep the ingredients well mixed, and dividing the mass 
into parts, of a definite weight each, of the proper shape. 366 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Unless otherwise specified, Suppositories should have the fol- 
lowing weights and shapes, corresponding to their several uses:— 
Rectal Suppositories should be cone-shaped, and of a weight of 
about one (1) gramme. 
Urethral Suppositories should be pencil-shaped, and of a weight 
of about one (1) gramme. 
Vaginal Suppositories should be globular, and of a weight of 
about three (3) grammes. 
Insoluble substances, when forming the constituents of a sup- 
pository, should be reduced to a very fine powder; solid extracts 
should be rubbed with sufficient water to form a smooth paste. 
This latter point should be carefully observed, because the solana- 
ceous extracts generally contain numerous minute crystals of 
potassium nitrate and chloride,which prove very irritating wffien 
allowed to remain in crystalline condition. 
Care should be taken not to heat or to continue heating the 
melted mass after the medicinal ingredients are added, otherwise 
they will separate in a solid mass from the fused fat. The medi- 
cinal ingredients are simply in a state of suspension, hence they 
should be added just before the mass cools, when the cacao- 
butter is of a syrupy consistence; after these have been added, 
the mass should be constantly and vigorously stirred, while it is 
poured into the moulds, otherwise the medicinal constituents will 
be unevenly distributed, the last suppository receiving more than 
the others. 
The moulds should be as cold as possible, so as to secure rapid 
congelation of the mass, thereby preventing the heavier particles 
from settling to the bottom. 
If the moulds are properly cleansed and cooled, the suppository 
will shrink sufficiently to enable the operator to remove it without 
any difficulty, hence there is no occasion for the use of dusting 
powder. Some operators prefer to wipe out the moulds with a 
piece of flannel moistened with soap liniment. 
MOULDS. 
The simplest moulds may be made by rolling glazed or waxed 
paper into cones of the proper size, placing them into sand or 
supporting them in holes made in a cardboard box. 
Among the older forms of moulds are those made of white 
metal (Fig. 373, c), which are supported in perforations in the lid 
of a tin box filled with crushed ice or snow. The suppositories 
are removed from these moulds by inverting them and tapping; 
after the moulds have been in use some time, which renders them 
rather difficult to clean properly, particles of the mass are apt 
to remain adhering to the inside, which tends to interfere with 
the subsequent removal of the suppositories. 
The moulds a and b (Fig. 373), are improvements over the first- SOLIDS—.FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
367 
named form in that they are composed of two distinct parts, which 
greatly facilitates the removal of suppositories and the subsequent 
cleaning of the mould. In the form shown in b, the two halves 
are held in position by means of a rubber band; while in the Wirz 
mould (Fig. 373, a), the halves are held firmly in position by rings, 
which are slipped over the handles. The so-called hinged, double 
Fig. 373. 
Suppository Moulds. 
mould of gun metal (Fig. 373, d), because of its compactness and 
the close fitting of its parts, is one of the most convenient forms 
made; this is usually so constructed as to accommodate two 
different sizes of suppositories. The moulds shown in Figs. 
374 and 375 are constructed on this same principle, but instead of 
FIG. 374 
Fig. 375. 
See’s Suppository Mould. 
Blackmann’s Suppository Mould. 
opening perpendicularly, as the others, they open horizontally. 
These forms of moulds have the advantage of size and compact- 
ness of shape. After the mass has been poured into the mould, 
ample time should be allowed for the suppositories to contract; 
then, if on pressing them slightly on top they show that they are 368 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
sufficiently loose, the upper half or inside ring of the mould should 
be carefully detached by raising it equally on all sides, otherwise 
there would be danger of fracturing the suppositories. 
Compressed Suppositories.—The preparation of suppositories by 
the process of melting and moulding is at present being sup- 
planted by the method of cold compression. This possesses not 
only the advantage of rapidity, but also yields a perfect, compact 
suppository at all times without the use of ice. As before stated, 
some organic bodies, for instance chloral, creosote, phenol, volatile 
oils, etc., when warmed with cacao-butter, influence its melting- 
point to such a degree that the mass refuses to harden. This 
difficulty also arises when they are made cold by hand. 
Among the earlier forms of these cold-pressure moulds is that 
devised by Archibald. This is operated by placing the mixture 
of grated cacao-butter and medicinal substances in a hopper, 
where the mass is then forced by means of a plunger, operated by 
a handle-lever, into the mould below. The objection to this form 
of apparatus is that the removal of the suppositories from the 
mould is necessarily slow and attended with difficulty. More- 
over, in order to avoid the fracture of the suppositories, the moulds 
must be kept very cold and well greased or dusted, so as to pre- 
vent the mass from adhering to the sides. The necessity of filling 
the hopper each time is also not a point in favor of this apparatus. 
These difficulties have all been overcome in the later forms, 
which are based on the principle of forcing the entire mass, con- 
tained in a cylinder, under a powerful pressure, by means of a 
plunger operated by a screw, through small apertures in the 
bottom of the brass mould secured into the end of a cylinder; 
the end of the mould resting against a movable plate. 
One of the older forms constructed on this principle is the 
mould made by Mr. Knowlson of Troy, N. Y. A later machine 
of similar construction is shown in Figures 376 and 377. 
This consists simply of a cylinder swinging in a frame, in 
which the mould is placed with the small holes up. The mass, 
previously prepared, is thrown into this cylinder, which at this 
time is open, as in Fig. 376. The cylinder is then closed, and 
the screw pressure is applied until all resistance is overcome. 
Before opening the bed-plate, the screw should be loosened by 
half a turn, then the bed-plate thrown back (see Fig. 377) and 
the screw again gently turned downward until the suppositories 
drop out. After these are secured, the bed-plate is closed and 
the operation repeated, until the cylinder is emptied of the mass. 
The small cylindrical pieces which force the suppositories from 
the moulds, should, of course, be returned to the cylinder at the 
last working, for conversion into suppositories. 
In making Urethral or Nasal Suppositories, remove the cap at 
No. 2, Fig. 377, and screw on the small tube, taking care to have 
a mould in the cylinder covered with a brass disc, which is SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
369 
furnished. The mass is then simply put into the cylinder as be- 
fore, pressure applied, and the suppositories cut into any length 
desired. 
Fig. 376. 
Fig. 377. 
When Suppositories are ordered, it is at the option of the Phar- 
macist to employ either cacao butter, grated on a lemon grater, 
Perfection Suppository Machine. 
Fig. 378. 
Suppository Machine (W., T. & Co.’s). 
with the extracts in a state of powder, and by means of a slab 
and spatula to thoroughly incorporate the cacao and extracts to- 
gether, then to throw the material into the cylinder and to use 
the screw; or he may take the cacao butter as ordinarily sold in 370 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the market, and work it in with the extracts in the same manner 
that a pill mass is made, taking care to thoroughly diffuse the 
active ingredient, and when they are thoroughly mixed to throw 
the mass into the cylinder, and to operate the screw to compress 
the suppository. 
Another new machine is illustrated in Fig. 378. This is of 
simple construction and easily and quickly operated. 
Each machine is furnished with a set of moulds for making 
suppositories of three sizes—15-grain, 30-grain, and vaginal—and 
with a mould for forming bougies. These moulds are of brass and 
are screwed into the end of the cylinder. They can be easily and 
rapidly inserted or removed. 
In making suppositories the cacao butter mixed with the medi- 
cinal substance is placed in the cylinder, the mould required 
being first attached, and the cylinder is put in position with the 
end of the mould resting against the movable plate at the end of 
the machine. The mass is then compressed in 
the forms by turning the wheel and screwing 
the plunger into the cylinder. After the sup- 
positories are formed, the end plate is re- 
moved, and a further turn of the wheel forces 
them out upon the tray. The operation is 
then repeated until all the mass has been used. 
By a special device, the screw on the plunger 
rod may be released so that the plunger may 
be pushed into the cylinder or withdrawn 
from it without the slow process of screwing. 
BOUGIES are solid cylindrical rods of 2 to 
four millimeters diameter and from 7 to 15 cen- 
timeters long, pointed atone end and weighing 
about one gramme. These are formed by hand, 
or in special moulds or may be made by cold 
pressure (Fig. 379). In the absence of moulds 
they may be moulded by pouring the mass into 
glass tubing of the proper size (oiled inside). 
When cold, they are forced out by means of a 
glass rod, then cut into pieces of the desired 
size, and pointed at one end. Owing to the 
brittle nature of the cacao butter,* they are generally made of 
gelatin. H. Helbingf recommends the following:— 
“ Gelatin Mass is best prepared from 10 oz. best gelatin, 16 oz. 
Fig. 379. 
Bougie Press, 
* The following formula is proposed by N. Pritzker:— 
Cacao butter, grains 480 
Powd. acacia “ 240 
Water, min. 240 
Glycerin, “ 120 
Po’wd. boric acid sufficient. 
Melt the cacao butter and triturate it in a warm capsule with the acacia, and add the water previously 
mixed with the glycerin ; place the capsule in cold water or on ice until the mass has solidified, and set 
the vessel aside. When required for use, take of the above four drachms, incorporate it with the 
medicaments and with from 10 to 25 per cent, cacao butter, triturate until intimately mixed, and roll 
out into 10 bougies. 
f Proceed. Amer. Phar. Ass’n., 1889, p. 402. SOLIDS—FOll EXTERNAL USE. 
371 
best glycerin, and sufficient water. The gelatin is dissolved in 
sufficient water and the glycerin by the aid of a water-bath in a 
porcelain dish, the water lost by evaporation being compensated 
for by the addition of more. The ingredients, if not soluble in 
water, are mixed in a finely powdered condition with the warm 
and tenacious glue, and the pencils are moulded in moulds simi- 
lar to those used for making caustic, previously moistened with oil 
or soap liniment. When cold they are quite elastic, but not sticky. 
11 Iodoform Pencils, 33 per cent.—Iodoform, 1 part; cacao butter, 
2 parts. 
“Cocaine Pencils, 2 per cent.—Cocaine hydrochlorate, 1 part; 
cacao butter, 49 parts. To be cut in pieces containing | grain of 
the cocaine salt each. 
“Salol Pencils, 20 per cent.—Dissolve 1 part of salol in 4 parts 
of the liquefied cacao butter, stir constantly until cool, powder the 
mass, and form cylinders by the aid of the press. 
“Opium Pencils, 5 per cent.—Powdered opium, 1 part; cacao 
butter, 19 parts. Divide into sticks containing 1 grain of opium 
each. 
“Thallin Pencils, 5 per cent.—Sulphate of thalline, 1 part; cacao 
butter, 19 parts. 
“Mercurial Pencils, 25 per cent.—Made with equal parts of mer- 
curial ointment and white wax, previously melted. When cool 
the pencils are pressed out. The following elastic pencils may be 
made with a mass containing tragacanth, starch, etc.:— 
“Iodoform Pencils, 33 per cent.—Iodoform, 5j; starch, 5iij ; 
tragacanth, 5j ; dextrin, 5j; sugar, §ss; water and glycerin, each 
sufficient. 
“Salicylic Acid Pencils, 5 per cent.—Salicylic acid, 5j; traga- 
canth, 5j; starch, 5j; dextrin, 5vij; sugar, 3iij; water and 
glycerin, each sufficient. These pencils may be polished, if 
desirable, by rolling them on a porcelain slab with a thin board. 
“ Urethral Pencils.—Urethral pencils, retaining their shape for 
some hours, are prepared from cacao butter, 6; beeswax, 5; boric 
acid (or iodoform, etc.), 2; zinc oxide, 1; and tragacanth, 4 parts. 
These pencils possess a certain degree of elas- 
ticity, and are prepared of a conical form. 
“Caustic Pencils—Dr. De Sinety’s.—Crystal- 
lized phenol, 0.05 Gm.; tannin, 4.0 Gm.; gly- 
cerin, 5 drops; tragacanth sufficient.” 
Suppository Capsules.—These consist of 
gelatin shells which are filled with the medi- 
cinal substance, or with a mixture of it and 
cacao butter. The upper and outer margin of 
the lower half is moistened with water and 
the cap slid over it, so as to prevent the two 
halves from coming apart in handling. Before they are inserted, 
they should be dipped in water so as to enable them to slip in easily. 
Fig. 380. 
Gelatin Suppository 
Capsules. 372 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Hollow Cacao Butter Suppositories.—These are very con- 
venient for the dispenser and answer quite well when the medi- 
cating ingredient is of a neutral nature, but they should never be 
used when the remedy is in any degree locally irritating. The 
main object of employing an excipient (cacao butter or gelatin) 
Fig. 381. 
Hollow Cacao Butter Suppositories, 
in a suppository is to secure slow and uniform diffusion of the 
remedy. The medicinal substance should be well mixed with a 
little grated cacao butter before it is filled into the cavity, which 
is then closed by the plug provided for this purpose. 
Fig. 382. 
Hollow Cacao Butter Suppositories. 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
Suppositories are usually dispensed in partitioned paper boxes, 
or in wide-mouthed vials. The practice of wrapping them in 
paraffin paper or foil is not advisable, owing to the possible SOLIDS—FOR EXTERNAL USE. 
373 
ignorance of many patients, who might use them without 
removing the wrapper. 
As in the case of pill masses, the medicinal ingredients should 
always be thoroughly incorporated with the mass before it is 
moulded. 
When such heavy salts as potassium iodide or bromide, or 
lead acetate are directed to be incorporated in suppositories, they 
should be made by hand or by cold compression. For, when they 
are made by the process of fusing, even with the greatest of care 
and skilled manipulation, the salts, owing to their gravity, will 
settle and collect at the point of the suppository, which is not only 
disagreeable but may be dangerous to the patient. For this class 
of remedies, the gelatin basis is the most advantageous, since the 
inorganic salt may previously be dissolved in a portion of the water. 
When iodine is directed to be incorporated in a suppository it 
should be first powdered with a little potassium iodide, then dis- 
solved in a small amount of water and added to the gelatin basis. 
Alkaloids (that is, free alkaloids), should be dissolved in a little 
oleic acid before being combined with the cacao butter. 
Green Extracts and Tannin.—When such extracts as those 
of belladonna, stramonium or hyoscyamus are prescribed with 
tannin, the suppositories should be made by cold pressure. It is 
possible, with due care, to prepare these by the warm process; 
the extract, after having been reduced to a smooth paste with a 
little water, is combined with the melted fat, then, when the mass 
is sufficiently cool and ready to pour, the tannin is quickly stirred 
in. But the slightest degree of overheating causes the tannin to 
unite with the extract, forming hard lumps. 
Wax, owing to its high fusing point, should never be added to 
a suppository mass in any quantity. 
Suppositoria Glycerini, U. S. P.—This is the only official 
suppository. It is made by heating stearic acid, glycerin, and 
sodium carbonate together until effervescence ceases, then pour- 
ing into moulds. The reaction that takes place results in the 
formation of sodium stearate, a very hard soap:— 
2HC18H35O2 + Na2CO3 = 2NaC18H33O2 + H2O + CO2 
Stearic Acid. Sodium Sodium Stearate. Water. Carbon 
Carbonate. Dioxide. 
This with the large amount of glycerin present (90 per cent.) 
forms a firm, stable suppository. 
According to Thumann * these may also be made from cacao 
butter rendered liquid at 35° C. and agitated with an equal 
weight of warmed glycerin (50 per cent.) until the mixture begins 
to solidify, when it is poured into moulds. 
Owing to the hygroscopic nature of these glycerin suppositories, 
they should be dispensed in wide-mouthed vials or glass tubes 
which are securely corked and sealed. 
* American Journal of Pharmacy, 1893, p. 368. PART III. 
CHAPTER XXXVI. 
THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
THE PRESCRIPTION. 
A prescription is a written formula of remedies, with directions 
to the apothecary for their preparation, and instructions for the 
guidance of the patient or of his attendant. 
The word prescription is derived from the Latin word prsescrip- 
tio, title; order; ordinance, etc., from preescribo “ to write before; 
to ordain.” 
For writing prescriptions, the Latin language is almost univer- 
sal, because, being a language of science, it is generally understood 
in civilized countries. And being a dead language, it is not sub- 
ject to the various changes peculiar to modern tongues.* More- 
over, for various reasons, it is not advisable, as a rule, that the 
patient be aware of the kind and nature of the remedies admin- 
istered. 
The prescription consists of the following parts, thus classi- 
fied:— 
(1) The Superscription, . R. 
(2) The Inscription,Remedy (genitive) ; Quantity (accusative). 
Repeat for each constituent. 
(3) The Subscription,Misce (directions to compounder). 
(4) The Signature,Signa (directions for the patient). 
(5) This is generally followed by the name of the patient, f and always by the 
name or initials of the prescriber, with date. 
1st. The Superscription (superscribo — to write on top) or Head- 
ing. 
The symbol is usually placed at the head of every prescrip- 
tion. 
The letter R stands for the Latin word Recipe, the imperative 
mood of the verb recipio, il to take.” When the prescription is 
written in English, this letter R is replaced by the words “ take 
of”; in French, it would be replaced by a P (abbreviation for 
prenez, take); in German, it would be replaced by the word 
“nimm” (take). 
♦Vernacular names in various languages may vary in different parts of the same country, and 
are often unintelligible to foreigners. Hence a prescription written in the native language in one 
part of the country may be unintelligible in another part. 
f Also written in the upper corner of the prescription. 
375 376 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
The sign according to some, is derived from the symbol if, 
the zodiacal sign for the planet Jupiter. In ancient times, it was 
customary to invoke the blessings of the deity, Jupiter or others, 
on the remedies to be taken, by a formal prayer at the beginning 
of the prescription. This was, in time, contracted to simply plac- 
ing the sign of the respective deity addressed at the head of the 
prescription. 
2d. The Inscription (inscribe = to write upon) includes the 
names and quantities of the various ingredients. These ought 
to be arranged, if possible, in a definite manner, somewhat after 
the following plan :— 
The Basis—the principal active agent. 
The Auxiliary (adjuvant)—the ingredients which aid or promote 
the action of the Basis. For example, the combination of chloral 
and potassium bromide is more certain as an hypnotic than 
either alone, hence, while chloral is placed first, potassium bro- 
mide follows as an auxiliary. With cathartics, the auxiliary, 
while assisting the action of the base, renders it more manage- 
able, lessening its liability to irritate, as for example the ad- 
juvant Myrrh, when combined with Aloes. In conjunction with 
Quinine, the adjuvants Capsicum and Opium are often pre- 
scribed for breaking up intermittent fevers. 
The Corrective.—The ingredient which corrects or modifies the 
action of the first. For example, the griping tendency of many 
purgatives is usually overcome by combining them with aro- 
matics. 
The Vehicle (excipient or diluent). — The ingredient which 
assists in imparting proper form, and also in diluting the active 
constituents. 
Example. 
R. Aloes Purificatae, 2 Gm. (ftose). 
Myrrhae, 1 Gm. (adjuvant). 
Pulveris Aromatici, 5 Gm. (corrective). 
Extract! Gentianae, q. s. (excipient). 
Fiat massa ; divide in pilulas xvi. 
or 
R. Quininae Sulphatis,gr. xx (base). 
Ferri et Ammonii Citratis, .'gr. xl (adjuvant). 
Acidi Citrici,gr. x (excipient). 
Syrupi Limonis,fl,?j (vehicle). 
Aquae purae, . . q. s. ad. fl 5 ij (diluent). 
Misce. 
GRAMMATICAL CONSTRUCTION.* 
The following example is selected as an illustration of Latin 
construction, as applied in prescriptions: 
* Only the briefest outlines can be given here. The reader is referred to special text-books, such 
as Robinson’s Latin Grammar, or “The Prescription,” by Wall. Consult, also: “The Latin Gram- 
mar of Pharmacy ; ” by Joseph Ince, London. 377 
THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
R. Quininae Sulphatis,drachmam unam (3j) 
Tincturae Cinchonae Compositae,uncias duas 
Glycerini,unciam unam et semis- 
sem (3 iss) 
Acidi Sulphurici Diluti,quantum sufficiat (q. s.). 
Aquae,q. s. [quantum sufficiat] ad uncias quatuor (ad 
£iv). 
Recipe; Quininae Sulphatis drachmam unam. 
Take thou of Quinine Sulphate drachm one. 
K is the symbolic abbreviation for recipe, the imperative 
mood of the active verb, recipio, recepi, receptum (3d con- 
jugation), meaning “to take;” its object is drachmam, the 
accusative singular of drachma, ae; unam is the accusative 
singular of the adjective unus, a, um, which agrees with 
drachmam. Thus we have, “take one drachm,”—of what? 
of sulphate of quinine. This is put in Latin in the genitive 
(possessive case in English); sulphatis is the genitive of Sul- 
phas ; quininse is the genitive of Quinina. 
Recipe Tincturae Cinchonas Compositae uncias duas. 
Take of Compound Tincture of Cinchona, ounces two. 
Uncias is the accusative plural of uncia, se, governed by recipe. 
Duas is the accusative plural (fem.) of the numeral adjective, 
duo, se, o, and agrees with uncias. 
Tincturae, noun feminine, genitive, depending on uncias, from 
Tinctura, se. 
Cinchonae, noun feminine, genitive, depending on tinctura, from 
Cinchona, se. 
Compositae, adjective, feminine, genitive, (from compos itus, a, um), 
agreeing with tincturae. (The tincture is a “compound tinc- 
ture.”) 
Recipe Glycerini unciam unam et semissem. 
Take of Glycerin ounce one and a half. 
Glycerini is the genitive of the neuter noun glycerinum,-i, depend- 
ing on unciam. 
Unciam is the accusative singular of the feminine noun uncia, se, 
governed by recipe. 
Unam, a numeral adjective, accusative singular, agreeing with 
unciam. 
Dt,is the conjunction “ and.” 
Semissem, the accusative singular of semis, gen. semissis, a noun 
(masc.) meaning “ a half part.” 
Recipe Acidi Sulphurici Diluti, quantum sufficiat. 
Take of Acid Sulphuric Dilute, as much as may suffice. 
Quantum, accusative singular neuter of the interrogative and 
correlative pronoun quantus, a, um, “ how great, how much ;” 
the neuter standing here for a noun, “ how great a thing.” 
There is to be supplied, as object of the verb “ recipe," the de- 
monstrative pronoun tantum, “ so much : recipe [tantum] quantum 378 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
sufficiat, “ take [so much] how much may suffice ” = “ take as 
much as may suffice.” 
Sufficiat, third person, singular, present subjunctive, of sufficio, 
suffeci, suffectum (3d conj.), “ to suffice.” 
Acidi, genitive singular of Acidum, i, “ the acid.” 
Sulphurici, genitive singular of the adjective sulphuricus, a, um, 
“ sulphuric,” agreeing with Acidi. 
Diluti, genitive singular of the adjective dilutus, a, um, “ diluted,” 
also agreeing with Acidi. 
Recipe Aquae ad uncias quatuor: 
Take of water to ounces four. 
Aquae is genitive singular of aqua, ae, “ water.” The genitive de- 
pends on a word (tantum) which must be supplied mentally 
(see below). 
Ad, preposition with accusative, “ to, up to.” 
Uncias, accusative plural of uncia, sc, “ ounce.” 
Quatuor, indeclinable numeral, “ four.” 
The sentence is curtailed, since there is apparently no object 
(accusative) dependent on recipe. In its complete form, the 
sentence would be: Recipe tantum aquae quantum sufficiat ad 
uncias quatuor, “ take as much water as [much] would be suffi- 
cient up to four ounces.” 
It is rare that the names of the various ingredients are ever 
written out in full in a prescription, abbreviation being almost a 
necessity. This should, however, be carefully and considerately 
done, for such abbreviations can in some instances give rise to 
serious errors. As examples, a number of such misleading abbre- 
viations are given here :— 
May be taken for 
Acidum Hydrochloricum. 
“ Hydrocyanicum. 
Acid. Hydroc. 
Aq. Chlor. 
Aqua Chlori. 
“ Chloroform!. 
Calc. Chlor. 
Calcii Chloridum. 
Calx Chlorata. 
Chlor. 
Chlorum (Chlorine). 
Chloroform. 
Chloral Hydrate. 
Extractum Colchici. 
Colocynthidis. 
Ext. Col. 
Calomel. 
Corrosive Sublimate. 
Hydrate of Chloral. 
Hyd. Chlor. 
Hyd. or Hydr. 
Hydrargyrum (Mercury). 
Hydras (Hydrate). 
Hydrochlorate. 
Hydrocyanate, etc. 
Potassium Chlorate. 
‘ ‘ Chloride. 
Pot. Chlor. 
Potassium Sulphate. 
“ Sulphite. 
“ Sulphide. 
Pot. Sulph. 379 
THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
Sod. Hypo. 
Sodium Hypophosphite. 
‘ ‘ Hyposulphite. 
May be taken for 
Sodium Sulphate. 
“ Sulphite. 
“ Sulphide. 
Sod. Sulph. 
Zinc Phosphate. 
“ Phosphide. 
Zinc Phos. 
The quantity of the various ingredients is very seldom written 
in full, except perhaps occasionally in metric prescriptions, but is 
expressed by the various appropriate signs, thus :— 
Weights. 
The Ounce (troy), .Symbol 5 Latin Uncia (480 grains). 
The Drachm, . . ‘‘ 3 “ Drachma (60 grains). 
The Scruple, . . . “ § “ Scrupulum (20 grains). 
The Grain, ... “ gr. “ Granum. 
Measures. 
The Pint, . . Symbol O Latin Octarius (16 fluidounces). 
The Fluidounce, “ “ Fluiduncia. 
The Fluidrachm, “ “ Fluidrachma (60 minims). 
The Minim, . . “ n£ “ Minimum of a fluidrachm). 
A half, .... “ ss or11 Semis. 
Doses.—The doses given in the text-books are either the maxi- 
mum and minimum, or the average quantity necessary to pro- 
duce the full effect of the remedy on a healthy adult. These 
must be diminished for children, females or aged persons, or in 
other special cases. For children, the dosage may be regulated 
according to the rule of Dr. Young, viz.: “ Divide the age of the 
child, in years, by the age of the child plus twelve.” For example, 
if the age is 6 years, the dose would be 6 + = Ts" = ~3~ 
the dose for a child of six years is, therefore, one-third of that for 
an adult. 
Dr. Cowling’s rule is, “ to add 1 to the age of the child in 
years and divide by 24.” For example, if the age is 5 years, add 
1 which makes 6, and divide by 24, which gives or |. Hence 
the dose for a child aged 5 years would be one-fourth of that for 
an adult. 
3d. The Subscription.—This includes special instructions to the 
dispenser for compounding. Since the modern apothecary is pre- 
sumed to be sufficiently educated to deal with all sorts of com- 
binations, the physician, as a rule, contracts the directions to a 
word or even a letter, thus: M. (misce), S. (solve), F. (fiat). 
Example:— 
R. Morphinae hydrochloratis, gr. iij 
Sacchari albi pulveris, 3 iij. 
M (isee). F(iaf) p(wZr?.s) ; d(whte) i(n) p(artes) aeq(zm7e.s) n(imero) ;rx 
Mix. Let be powder; divide into parts equal by number 20 
made 380 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
4th. The Signature (signatura — label).—The directions for the 
patient are frequently abbreviated and usually begin with “ Sig.” 
or “ S.” (= signa, imperative of the verb signo, “to mark; to 
label ”); sometimes with : “ Misce, detur cum signatura” 
(mix ; let it be given with the directions ....). 
Among American physicians, the directions are rarely given in 
Latin, to avoid any possibility of misinterpretation; also for the 
sake of the patient, who should fully understand the directions. 
Hence they are usually written in full, and explicitly, in plain 
English. 
5th. Following the instructions for the patient, the physician 
signs either his name or initials, with date. The name of the 
patient should always be written in the upper or lower corner of 
the prescription, in order to avoid any error on the part of the 
dispenser or the patient. 
LATIN TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS OFTEN USED IN PRE- 
SCRIPTIONS. 
Word or Phrase. 
Usual Contraction. 
Meaning. 
Ad, 
To, or up to. 
Ad duos vices, . . 
Ad 2 vic. 
At twice taking. 
Ad secundam vicem, . . . 
Ad sec. vic. 
For the second time. 
Ad tertian vicem, . . . 
Ad 3 tiam vic. 
For the third time. 
Adde, 
Add. 
Add. 
A ddantur, 
Add. 
Let (them) be added. 
Addendus, 
Add. 
To be added. 
A dhibendus, 
Adhib. 
To be administered. 
Ad libitum, 
Ad lib. 
At pleasure. 
Admove, 
Admov. 
Apply. 
Admoveatur, .... 
Admov. 
Let (it) be applied. 
Agitato vase, 
A git. vas. 
The vial being shaken. 
Aliquot, 
Aliq. 
Some. 
Alter, 
Alt. 
The other. 
Alternis horis, 
Alt. hor. 
Every other hour. 
Alvus, 
Alv. 
The belly. 
Amplus, 
Amp. 
Large. 
Ampulla, 
Ampul. 
A large bottle. 
Ana, 
A, or aa, or aa. 
Of each. 
Aut, 
Or. 
Aqua, 
Aq. 
Water. 
Aqua bullions, ... 
Aq. bull. 
Boiling water. 
Aqua communis, . . . . 
Aq. com. 
Common water. 
Aqua fervens, 
Aq. ferv. 
Hot water. 
Aqua fluvialis, 
Aq. fluv. 
River water. 
Agwa/oniana, 
Aq. font. 
Spring water. 
Aquapluvialis, 
Aq. pluv. 
Rain water. 
Bene, 
Well. 
Bibe, 
Bib. 
Drink (thou). 
Biduum, 
Bid. 
Two days. 
Bis, 
Twice. 
Bis in die, or bis in dies, . 
Twice a day. 
Bolus, 
Bol. 
A large pill. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
381 
LATIN TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS OFTEN USED IN PRESCRIP- 
TIONS. —Contin ued. 
Word or Phrase. 
Usual Contraction. 
Meaning. 
Bulliat or Bulliant, . . . 
Bull. 
Let boil. 
Calefactus, 
Calef. 
Warmed. 
Caute, 
Cautiously. 
Cape, 
Cap. 
Take (thou). 
Capiat, 
Cap. 
Let him take. 
Capsula, 
Capsul. 
A capsule. 
Charta, 
Chart. 
Paper. 
Chart ula, 
Chartul. 
A small paper. 
Cibus, 
Cib. 
Food. 
Cochlear, or Cochleare, . . 
Coch. 
A spoonful. 
Cochleare amplum, . . . . 
Coch. amp. 
A dessertspoonful. 
Cochleare magnum, . . . 
Coch. mag. 
A tablespoonful. 
Cochleare parvum, .... 
Coch. parv. 
A teaspoonful. 
Coctio, 
Coct. 
Boiling (noun). 
Cola, 
Col. 
Strain. 
Colaturse (dative), .... 
Colatur. 
To the strained liquor. 
Collutorium, 
Collut. 
A mouth wash. 
Collyrium, 
Collyr. 
An eye wash. 
Compositus,-a,-um, . . . 
Comp. 
Compounded. 
Concisus,-a,-um, 
Concis. 
Cut. 
Congius, 
Cong. 
A gallon. 
Contusus,-a,-um, . . . . 
Coutus. 
Bruised. 
Cogue; Coquantur, . . . 
Coq. 
Boil ; let them be boiled. 
Cortex, gen. Corticis, . . . 
Cort. 
The bark. 
Cras (adv.) ; Crastinus, 
(adj), 
Crast. 
To-morrow. 
Cras mane sumendus, . . 
To be taken to-morrow morning. 
Cras node, 
To-morrow night. 
Cujus, Cujus-libet, .... 
Cnj. 
Of which, of any. 
Cum, 
C. 
With. 
Cyathus, or Cyathus vina- 
rius, 
Cyath., C. vinar. 
A wine-glass. 
Da; detur, 
D., det. 
Give ; let be given. 
De, 
Of, or from. 
Decanta, 
Dec. 
Pour off. 
Decern; Decimus, . . . . 
Decem. 
Ten; the tenth. 
Dein, 
Thereupon. 
Deglutiatur, 
Let be swallowed. 
Dentur tales doses No. v, . 
D. t. d. No. v. 
Let 5 such doses be given. 
Diebus alternis, 
Dieb. alt. 
Every other day. 
Dilue; Dilutus,-a,-um, . . 
Dil. 
Dilute (thou) ; Diluted. 
Dimidius,-a,-um, . . . 
Dim. 
One-half. 
Dividatur in partes eequales, 
D. in p. seq. 
Let it be divided into equal parts. 
Dosis, 
D. 
A dose. 
Drachma, 
Dr. or 3. 
A drachm (60 grains). 
Eadem (fem.) 
Ead. 
The same. 
Ejusdem, 
Ejusd. 
Of the same. 
Emesis, 
Vomiting. 
Et, 
And. 
Extende, 
Ext. 
Spread. 
Fac, 
F. 
Make. 
Fiat, 
Ft. 
Let be made (sing.). 
Fiat mistura, .... 
Ft. mist. 
Let a mixture be made. 
Fiat pulvis et divide in 
Ft. pulv. et div. in 
Let a powder be made, and 
chartulas no xii, .... 
chart, xii. 
divide it into 12 papers. 
Fiant, 
Fnt., or Ft. 
Let be made (pl.). 
Fac pilulas duodecim, . . 
F. pill. xii. 
Make twelve pills. 382 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
LATIN TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS OFTEN USED IN PRESCRIP- 
TIONS.—Continued. 
Word or Phrase. 
Usual Contraction. 
Meaning. 
Fervens, 
Ferv. 
Boiling. 
Filtra, 
Gargarisma, 
Filter (thou). 
Garg. 
A gargle. 
Gradatim, 
Grad. 
By degrees, gradually. 
Gutta; Guttse, . . 
Gtt. 
A drop; drops. 
Haustus, 
Haust. 
A draught. 
Hebdomas, 
Hebdom. 
A week. 
Hora, 
H. 
An hour. 
Idem, 
Id. 
The same. 
In dies, 
Ind. 
Daily, or from day to day. 
Inter, ........ 
Between. 
Internus,-a,-um, 
Int. 
Inner or Internal. 
Juxta, 
Near to. 
Lac, gen. Lactis, .... 
Lac. 
Milk, of Milk. 
Lotio, 
Lot. 
A lotion. 
Macera, 
Mac. 
Macerate. 
Magnus,-a,-um, 
Mag. 
Large. 
Mane, 
In the morning. 
Manus, 
Manus. 
The hand, 
Mica panis........ 
Mic. pan. 
Crumb of bread. 
Minimum, 
M. or min. 
A minim. 
Misce, 
M. 
Mix. 
Mitte, 
Mit. 
Send. 
Modicus,-a,-um, 
Modo prtescripto, .... 
Modic. 
Middle-sized. 
Mod. praesc. 
In the manner prescribed. 
Non, 
Not. 
Non repetatur, 
Non repetat. 
Let it not be repeated. 
Nox, gen. Noctis, .... 
Night. 
Numero, 
No. 
In number. 
Omni hora, 
Omn. hor. 
Every hour. 
Omni mane, 
Every morning. 
Omni node, ...... 
Partitis vicibus, .... 
Every night. 
Part. vic. 
In divided doses. 
Pastillus; Pastilium, . . . 
Pastil. 
A pastille. 
Per, 
Through, By. 
Pilula, 
Pil. 
A pill. 
Poculum, 
Pocul. 
A cup. 
Potus, 
Praeparatus,-a,-um, . . . 
Drink (noun). 
Praep. 
Prepared. 
Primus,-a,-um, 
Primus. 
The first. 
Pro.......... 
For. 
Pro re nata, 
P. r. n. 
Occasionally, as occasion 
mands. 
Pulvis, 
Pulv. 
A powder. 
Quantum libet, 
Quantum sufficiat, .... 
Q. lib. 
As much as is desired. 
Q. s. 
As much as is sufficient. 
Quaque (abl.), 
Qq. 
Each, or Every. 
Quartus,-a, -um, 
Quatuor, 
Quart. 
Fourth. 
Quat. 
Four. 
Quinque, 
Quinq. 
Five. 
Quintus,-a,-um, 
Quint. 
The fifth. 
Quotidie, 
Quotid. 
Daily. 
Recipe, 
B. 
Take. 
Reliquus,-a,-um, 
Remaining. 
Repetatur, 
Rept. 
Let it be repeated. 
Saturatus,-a,-um, .... 
Sat. 
Saturated. 
Scatula, 
Scat. 
A box. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
383 
LATIN TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS OFTEN USED IN PRESCRIP 
TIONS.—Continued. 
Word or Phrase. 
Usual Contraction. 
Meaning. 
Scrupulum, ...... 
Scrap., or 9- 
A scruple (20 grains). 
Secundem artem, .... 
S. A. 
According to art. 
Secundus-a,-um, 
Second. 
Second. 
Semis, gen. Semissis, . . . 
Ss. 
A half. 
Septem, 
Sept. 
Seven. 
Sex, 
Six. 
Signa, 
Sig. 
Write, or Mark (thou). 
Simul, 
Together. 
Sine, 
Without. 
Solve, 
Solv. 
Dissolve. 
Somnus, 
Somnus. 
Sleep. 
Statim, 
Stat. 
Immediately. 
Same, ......... 
Sum. 
Take (thou). 
Supra, . . . . . . 
Above. 
Tails, 
Tai. 
Such a one. 
Ter, 
Thrice, or Three times. 
Ter in die, or Ter die, . . 
T. i. d., or T. d. 
Thrice daily. 
Tere, 
Rub (thou). 
Tertius,-a,-um, 
Tert. 
Third. 
Tres, 
Three. 
Triduum, 
Trid. 
Three days. 
Tussis, . 
Tus. 
A cough. 
Ultimo preescriptus, . . . 
Ult. praesc. 
The last ordered. 
Una, 
Una. 
Together. 
Uncia, 
Unc. or 5. 
An ounce. 
Ut dictum, 
Ut. Diet. 
As directed. 
Vas vitreum, 
Vas vit. 
A glass vessel. 
Vel, 
Or. 
Vinum, 
Vin. 
Wine. 
Vires (plus.), 
Vir. 
Strength. 
Vitellus, 
Vitel. 
Yolk. 
Vitreus,-a,-um, 
Vitr. 
Made of glass. 
FOREIGN PRESCRIPTIONS. 
German prescriptions offer some differences of nomenclature, 
particularly in the use of the adjective, thus:— 
From 
R. Kali hydrojodici, 5.0 (Kalium 
Hy droj odicum). 
Aquae camphoratae, 50.0 (Aqua cam- 
phorata). 
Syrupi, 120.0 (Syrupus). 
Rendered into Anglo-Latin: 
Potassii lodidi, 5.0 
Aquae Camphorae, 50.0 
Syrupi, 120.0 
Thus Natrium aceticum is written for Sodii Acetas; Ferrum 
jodatum for Ferri iodidum ; Ferrum sulfuricum for Ferri Sulphas, 
etc. 
A few physicians of the old school still employ some cabalistic 384 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
signs* (Fig. 383) derived from alchemistic times; and certain 
obsolete terms are occasionally employed to designate well known 
Fig. 383. 
Aqua. V 
Aqua fontana. V7 
Aqua pluvialis. 
Aurum. (£) 
Argentum. J) 
Camphora. 
Crystallum. \ X 
Cuprum. Q 
Destillatus. 
Ferrum. 
Poison. 
Hydrargyrum. 
Nitrum. 
Phosphorus. 
Plumbum, p 
Precipitatus. Tfg 
Pulvis. 
Saccharum. 
Acidum. + 
Sal. Q 
Spiritus. 
Spiritus Viui rectificatus. 
Spiritus Viui rectificatissimus. 
Stannum. 2|_ 
Stibium. 
Omni hora. 
Sublimatum. -n- 
Sulphur. 
Tartarum. 
Vitriolum. 
Vitrum. 
Volatile. 
remedies. The following table will explain a number of such 
terms.! 
For Acetum plumbi 
‘ ‘ “ saturninum 
‘ ‘ Aqua saturni 
“ “ phagedaenica 
“ “ fbntana 
‘ ‘ Aquila alba 
“ Flores benzbes 
“ “ naphae 
“ “ zinci 
“ Gummi mimosae 
‘ ‘ Lapis iufernalis 
“ Magisterium bismuthi 
‘ ‘ Mercurius 
“ Natrum carbonicum acidulum 
“ Natro-kali tartaricum 
“ Nihilum album 
“ Oleum anthos 
“ Protojoduretum hydrargyri 
“ Saccharum saturni 
‘ ‘ Sal amarum 
“ “ mirabile 
“ Sapo viridis 
“ Spiritus Mindereri 
“ Tinctura thebaica 
“ Acidum phenylicum 
‘ ‘ Aqua amygdalarum amararum 
“ Calcaria usta 
“ Cortex chi use 
‘ ‘ Chininum 
read Liquor Plumbi subacetatis. 
“ “ “ “ dilutus. 
“ Lotio hydrargyri flava. 
“ Aqua pura. 
“ Hydrargyri subchloridum. 
‘ ‘ Acidum benzoicum. 
“ Flores aurantii. 
“ Zinci oxidum. 
‘ ‘ Acacia. 
“ Argenti nitras. 
1 ‘ Bismuthi subnitras. 
1 ‘ Hydrargyrum. 
“ Sodii bicarbonas. 
‘ ‘ Potassii et sodii tartras. 
“ Zinci oxidum. 
“ Oleum rosmarini. 
“ Hydrargyri iodidum viride. 
“ Plumbi acetas. 
‘ ‘ Magnesii sulphas. 
“ Sodii sulphas. 
“ Sapo mollis. 
“ Liquor ammonii acetatis. 
‘ ‘ Tinctura opii. 
“ Acidum carbolicum. 
“ Aqua laurocerasi. 
1 ‘ Calx. 
“ Cinchona. 
“ Quinina. 
* Real-Encyclopeedie der Pharmacie, by Geissler and Moeller, Vol. I, p. 23, Wien. 
f Selected (with alterations) from “ The Art of Dispensing,” Chemist and Druggist, London. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
385 
For Flores cinte 
“ Gutti 
“ Hydrargyrum amidato-bichlorat. 
‘ ‘ Kalium 
“ Kali 
“ Linimentum volatile 
“ Radix liquiritiae 
“ Liquor ammonii caustici 
“ Natrium 
“ Natrum 
‘ ‘ Stibium 
“ Semen strychni 
“ Tartarus depuratus 
“ “ natronatus 
“ “ sti hiatus 
“ Tinct. opii benzoica 
“ Vinum stibiatum 
read Santonica. 
‘ ‘ Cambogia. 
“ Hydrargyrum ammoniatum. 
“ Potassium. 
“ Potassa. 
“ Linimentum ammoniaj. 
‘ ‘ Glycyrrhiza. 
“ Liquor Ammonite. 
“ Sodium. 
“ Soda. 
“ Antimonium. 
“ Nux vomica. 
‘ ‘ Potassii bitartras. 
“ Potassii et sodii tartras. 
“ Antimonii et potassii tartras. 
‘ ‘ Tinctura opii camphorata. 
“ Vinum antimonii. 
The quantities ordered are always understood weight, unless 
specially specified. The metric system being employed exclus- 
ively by the Continental countries, a few typical examples are 
given. (See also Typical Prescriptions.) 
B. Apomorph, mur. cryst., 0.04 04 
Morph, mur., 0.02 02 
Aquae amygd. amar., 5.0 or 5 
Elix. pectoralis, 20.0 20 
Aqu. destill., 30.0 30 
B. Ammonii Chloridi, 10 Gm. 
Ext. Glycyrrh. Fid., 10 Gm. 
Aquae Foeniculi, 250 Gm. 
B. Morphinae sulphatis, 0.001 Gm. 
Sacchari, 1.5 Gm. 
French Prescription. 
B. Kermes mineral, 0.10 gramme. 
Gomme arabique, q. s. 
Eau destillee, 150 grammes. 
Teint. d’aconit, 6 gouttes. 
Sirop diacode, 30 grammes. 
“TABLE OF TERMS LIKELY TO OCCUR IN FRENCH AND GERMAN 
PRESCRIPTIONS”* 
A, Fr., to, or ; Trois it quatre paquets 
(three or four powders). 
Abendessen, Abend-brod, -mahlzeit, 
-tisch, Ger., supper. Drei von diesen 
Pillen vor dem Abendessen. (Three 
of these pills before supper.) 
Acide azotique, Fr., nitric acid. 
Aetz - Ger., caustic. 
Aetzstein, Ger., caustic potash. 
Alcohol sulphuris, Ger. Lat., carbon 
bisulphide. 
Alcohol de soufre, Fr., carbon bisul- 
phide. 
Al tschaden wasser, Ger., lotio flava, 
yellow wash. 
Aqua calcaria, G. L., lime water. 
Aqua chlorata, G. L., chlorine water. 
Arsenige Saure, Ger., arseuious acid. 
Arsensa ure, Ger., arsenic acid. 
Augenstein, Ger. lapis divinus. 
Azotate, Fr., nitrate. 
Barbotine, Fr., santonica. 
Baudruche, Fr., goldbeater’s skin. 
Bissen, Ger., bolus. Sechs Bissen im 
Tage zu nehmen auf drei Gaben ver- 
theilt. (Six boluses to be taken 
daily, divided into three doses.) 
Blauholz, Ger., logwood. 
Bleiessig, Ger., liq. vplumbi subacetatis. 
Bol, Fr., bolus. A prendre six bols par 
♦Selected from “ The Art of Dispensing,” Chemist and Druggist, London.—Ger. Lat. or G. L. means 
“ German-Latin,” that is modern Latin, as employed in Germany and some other European countries. 386 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
jour en les partageant en trois doses. 
(Six boluses to be taken every day, 
dividing them into three doses.) 
Bourdaine, Fr., Rhamnus Frangula. 
Calcaria, G. L., calx or calcium. 
Carboneum, G. L., carbon. 
Carbonicus,-a,-um, G. L., carbonas, or 
carbonate. 
Cautere potentiel, Fr., caustic potash. 
Chamomilla vulgaris, G. L. ; Matricaria 
chamomilla, L. 
Chaux, Fr., lime. 
Chinin, Ger., quinine. 
Chininum, G. L., quinine. 
Chloratus,-a,-um, G. L., chloride. 
Chlorsaures, Ger., chlorate. 
Cinchoninum, G. L., cinchonine. 
Citricus,-a,-um, G. L., citrate. 
Coccionella, G. L., cochineal. 
Colla piscium, G. L., ichthyocolla. 
Coton carde, Fr., wadding, cotton wool. v 
Coucher, Fr., bed-time, going to bed. A 
prendre deux pilules avant le coucher. 
(Two pills to be taken at bed-time.) 
Cyanatus,-a,-um, G. L., cyanidum, cy- 
anide. 
Cuilleree & cafe, Fr., teaspoonful. Une 
cuilleree it cafe, au cas d’Une attaque 
de toux. (A teaspoonful to be taken 
if the cough comes on.) 
Cuilleree & soupe, Fr., tablespoonful. 
Prenez une cuilleree a soupe toutes 
les deux heures. (One tablespoonful 
every two hours.) 
Dower’sches Pulver, Ger., Dover’s 
powder. 
L’effet voulu, Fr., the desired effect. 
Une cuilleree & cafe toutes les demi- 
heures jusqu’tl l’effet voulu. (A tea- 
spoonful every half hour till it acts.) 
Einspritzung, Ger., injection. 
Eisessig, Ger., glacial acetic acid. 
Emplastrum adhresivum anglicum, G. 
L., court plaster. 
Emplastrum picatum, G. L., pitch 
plaster. 
Essen, Ger., meal. 
Essig, Ger., vinegar. 
Esslbffel, Ger., tablespoon. Alle zwei 
Stunden einen Esslbffel-voll. (A 
tablespoonful every three hours.) 
Ferrocyanatus,-a,-um, G. L., ferrocyan- 
ide. 
Flasche, Ger., bottle. Schiitteln Sie die 
Flasche. (Shake the bottle.) 
Fois, Fr., time. Prenez en quatre fois 
a une demi heure d’intervalle. (To 
be taken in four portions at intervals 
of half an hour.) x 
Gouttes, Fr, drops. A prendre dix 
gouttes trois fois par jour. (Ten 
drops to be taken thrice daily.) 
Clas, Ger., glass, tumbler. 
Hirschtalg, Ger., mutton suet. 
Hollenstein Ger., silver nitrate, lunar 
caustic. 
lodure de formyle, Fr., iodoform. 
Kohlensaure, Ger., carbonic acid. 
v Kummel, Ger., caraway. 
A jeun, Fr., fasting. Prenez deux 
ou trois de ces pilules & jeun. (Take 
two or three of these pills fasting.) 
Latwerge, Ger., electuary. 
Lavement, Fr., enema. 
Limonade sfeche, Fr., effervescent saline. 
Liquiritia, G. L.. glycyrrhiza. 
Mai, Ger., time, portion. Auf vier Mai 
in halbstundigen Zwischenraumen 
zu nehmen. (To be taken in four 
portions at intervals of half an hour.) 
Mittagsessen, Ger., dinner (properly 
‘mid-day meal’). Dieses Pulver un- 
mittelbar vor dem Mittagsessen zu 
nehmen. (This powder to be taken 
immediately before dinner.) 
Natrium, G. L., sodium ; Natrum, G. 
L., soda, sodium oxide. 
Nuchtern, Ger., sober, fasting. Vieroder 
sechs von diesen Pillen nuchtern zu 
nehmen. (Four or six of these pills 
to be taking fasting, or before break- 
fast.) 
Oblate, Ger., wafer. Ein Pulver vor 
der Mahlzeit in einer Oblate zu 
nehmen. (A powder to be taken in a 
wafer before meals.) 
Ordonnance, Fr., prescription. 
Ouate, Fr., wadding, cotton wool. 
Pain azyme, Fr., wafer. Un de ces 
paquets ;i prendre dans du pain 
azyme avant le repas (One of these 
powders to be taken in a wafer before 
meals.) v 
Paquet, Fr., a packet, powder. A pren- 
dre un paquet toutes les deux heures. 
(One powder to be taken every two 
hours.) On prend un de ces paquets 
peu de tempsavant 1’attaque defievre. 
(One of these powders to be taken 
shortly before the fever fit.) 
Pasta gummosa, G. L., pate de guimauve 
Fr. Marshmallow paste. s 
Pastilles, Fr., lozenges. A prendre de 
quatre i six pastilles par jour. (Four 
to six lozenges to be taken daily.) 
Pastillen, Ger., lozenges. Man nimmt 
von diesen Pastillen auf einmal nur 
eine alle zwei Stunden. (One only of 
these lozenges to be taken every two 
hours.) 
Pierre A cautfere, Fr , caustic potash. 
Pillen, Ger., pills. Zwei Pillen jeden 
Abend vor dem Zubette-gehen. (Two 
pills every evening before going to 
bed.) 
Pilules, Fr., pills. Deux pilules chaqne 
soir avant le coucher. (Two pills 
every evening before going to bed.) 387 
THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
Pincee, Fr., a pinch. Infusez une pincee 
de ces herbes avec un demi-litre d’eau 
bouillante pour faire une tisane. 
(Infuse a pinch of these herbs in half a 
pint of water to make a draught.) 
Potasse la chaux, Fr., caustic potash. 
Potion, Fr., mixture, potion. 
Poudre, Fr., powder. Matin et soir une 
poudre dix minutes avant le repas. 
(One powder every morning and 
evening, ten minutes before meals.) 
Poudre alexitfere Fr., Dover’s Powder. 
Poudre anodine, Fr., Dover’s Powder. 
Poudre diaphoretique, Fr., Dover’s 
Powder. 
Poudre gazeuse, or Poudre gazifere pur- 
gative, Fr., Seidlitz powder. 
Poudre gazogene, Fr., effervescent or 
gazogene powder. 
Poudre gazogene neutre, Fr., soda 
powder. 
Poudre gazogene laxative, Fr., Seidlitz 
powder. 
Poudre Savory, Fr., Seidlitz powder. 
Poudre sudorifique, Fr., Dover’s Pow- 
der. 
Priser par le nez, Fr., to snuff. Pour 
priser par le nez cinq ou six fois par 
jour. (To be snuffed five or six times 
daily.) 
Pulver, Ger., powder. Ein Pulver jeden 
Morgen und Abend zehn Minuten vor 
dem Essen. (One powder every morn- 
ing and evening, ten minutes before 
meals.) Man nimmt ein Pulver kurz 
vor Fieberanfall. (A powder to be 
taken shortly before the fever fit.) 
Pulvis aerophorus, G. L., effervescent 
powder, gazogene powder, soda pow- 
der. 
Pulvis aerophorus laxans, G. L., 
Seidlitz powder. 
Pulvis gummosus, G. L., pulvis traga- 
canth® co. 
Raucherkerzchen, Ger., fumigating pas- 
tilles. 
Raucheressig, Ger., toilet or disinfecting 
vinegar. 
Repas, Fr., meals. 
Rezept, Ger., prescription. 
Riechessig, Ger., aromatic vinegar. 
Saindoux, Fr., lard. 
Saure, Ger., acid. 
Schlafengehen, Ger., “ going-to-bed,” 
bed-time. Vor dem Schlafengehen 
zwei Pillen zu nehinen. (Two pills 
to be taken at bed-time.) 
Schnupfen, Ger., to snuff. F'unf bis sechs 
Mai im Tage zu schnupfen. (To be 
snuffed five or six times daily.) 
Schwarzes Wasser, Ger., black wash, 
lotio nigra. 
Schwefel, Ger., sulphur. 
Schweflige Saure, Ger., sulphurous acid. 
Schwefelsaure, Ger., sulphuric acid. 
Sebum, G. L., sevum, suet. 
Sei de lait, Fr., milk sugar. 
Soufre vegetal, Fr., lycopodium. 
Stibium, G. L., antimonium. 
Sucre de Saturne, Fr., lead acetate. 
Sulfuratus,-a,-um,G. L., “sulphurated,” 
sulphidum, sulphuretum, sulphide. 
Sulfuricus, a,-um, G. L., “sulphuric,” 
sulphas, sulphate. 
Table, Fr., stable. Se mettre a table. (To 
dine.) A prendre deux de ces pilules 
en se mettant h table. (Two pills to 
be taken before dining.) 
Taffetas d’Angleterre, Fr., court plaster. 
Tartarus boraxatus, G. L., soluble tartar, 
potassium boro-tartrate. 
Tartarus depuratus, G. L., potassium 
acid tartrate, cream of tartar. 
Tartarus natronatus, G. L., Rochelle 
salt, potassium and sodium tartrate. 
Tartarus stibiatus, G. L., tartar emetic, 
antimonium tartaratum. 
Theeloffel, Ger., a teaspoon. Ein Thee- 
loffelvoll, a teaspoonful. 
Tisane, Fr., draught, medicated drink. 
Tisch, Ger., table. Zu Tische gehen. 
(To take a meal.) Man nehme zwei 
von diesen Pillen wenu man zu 
Tische geht. (Take two pills before 
eating.) 
Trifolium fibrinum, G. L., Menyanthes 
trifoliata, buckbean. 
Tropfen, Ger., drop. Drei Mai des 
Tages zehn Tropfen zu nehmen. (Ten 
drops to be taken thrice daily.) 
Verordnung, Ger., prescription. 
Verre, Fr., glass, tumbler. Un verre 
d’eau sucree. (A tumbler of sugar 
and water.) 
Wasserstoff, Ger., hydrogen. 
Weinsteinsaure, Ger., tartaric acid. 
Wirkung, Ger., action, effects. Ein 
Theeloffelvoll alle halbe Stunden bis 
zur Wirkung zu nehmen. (Take a tea- 
spoonful every half-hour until it acts.) 388 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Homoeopathic medicines are prepared in the form of:— 
Solutions in water, alcohol, or a mixture of these, or, very rarely, 
in ether, glycerin, or syrup. 
Triturations with sugar of milk. 
Liquid Attenuations.—Pilules and globules are merely forms of 
dispensing the liquid attenuations. 
The mother tinctures are of the strength of 10 per cent., based 
on a percentage of dry plant. Should the fresh plant be employed, 
the amount of moisture is estimated and a corresponding quan- 
tity taken. The process of attenuation (dilution) begins from a 
point termed “zero,” which is marked. This represents usually 
the pure medicinal substance. The strong or mother tincture is 
marked The first decimal (lx) attenuation contains 10 per cent, 
of the tincture; it is made by adding 10 parts of mother tincture 
to 90 parts of the diluent. Or, it may be made as follows: 
Select a clean half-ounce bottle with a good tight-fitting cork; 
then put in 20 minims of the mother tincture and 180 minims 
of alcohol of the same strength; cork the bottle and shake. This 
constitutes the first decimal attenuation, and should be marked 
lx. Each subsequent attenuation is prepared in like manner 
from the one preceding it, and should be marked in order, 2x, 
3x, etc. This constitutes the decimal scale. The centesimal 
attenuations are prepared in the same way, but are diluted in the 
proportion of 1 in 100 instead of 1 in 10, and are generally marked 
in figures 1, 2, 3, etc. 
HOMEOPATHIC DISPENSING. 
Hahnemann published minute directions for making tritura- 
tions, and his method is still adhered to, with the small alteration 
of the quantity of sugar of milk used at each stage of the pro- 
cess. He recommends that 1 grain of the substance be triturated 
with 99 grains sugar of milk for one hour. It is, however, 
recommended in the Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia to use the 
proportion of 1 to 9, as it is found that a better and more perfect 
mixture results. The substance is to be first triturated in a clean 
Wedgwood mortar with an equal amount of sugar of milk, a horn 
or ivory spatula being occasionally used to scrape the mixture 
from the sides of the mortar. This completes the first stage of 
the process. 
The second stage consists in adding and mixing, as before, three 
times the amount of sugar of milk used in the first stage. The 
third stage consists in adding and mixing, as before, five times 
the amount first used, when the trituration is regarded as com- 
pleted, and can be transferred to a perfectly clean, dry bottle, 
carefully corked and labeled lx. This constitutes the first deci- 
HOMOEOPATHIC TRITURATIONS. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
389 
mal attenuation, containing 1 part of the substance in 10. For 
making subsequent triturations, 1 part of the first trituration and 
9 parts of sugar of milk in fine powder are mixed in two stages in 
a manner similar to that employed in making the first decimal 
trituration. It should be noted that coarse sugar of milk is used 
in the first and second stages of the first trituration and fine sugar 
of milk in all subsequent triturations. 
The method of medicating pills and globules consists in 
putting a suitable quantity in a clean, dry bottle, and pouring 
over them a sufficient quantity of tincture (of the strength 
required) to thoroughly saturate them, shaking the bottle in a 
circular direction so as to insure them all being equally saturated, 
and then drying them by allowing the spirit to evaporate. 
Tincture triturations are a form of powder now used, and for 
the preparation of which definite instructions are given in the 
Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia. Briefly, they are prepared by 
pouring successive quantities of tincture on sugar of milk, con- 
tained in a mortar, thoroughly mixing, and allowing the mixture 
to dry after each addition of tincture, so that the strength of the 
powder ultimately obtained represents 1 minim of tincture in 
each grain:— 
R. Tinct. Nucis Vomicae, 6x, -l52- 
Aquae destill.,vj. 
M. Ft. mistura, cujus capiat cochlearia duo magna tertiis horis. 
Twelve drops of the sixth dilution are prescribed. 
R. Nucis Vomicae, f 
Sacch. Lactis, q. s 
Ft. pulvis. Mitte vj. 
Two grains of the third dilution are triturated with sufficient 
Sugar of Milk and made into powders. 
R. Pil. Chamomillae, 
Direct a pilule to be taken every three hours. 
Three pilules saturated with tincture of the twelfth attenuation. 
R. Tinct. Belladonnae, 3x, 
Aquae destill., 
Ft. Misce. Dessertspoonful every six hours. 
Tinct. Pulsatillae 0,ryx 
Aquae dest., 
The Tincture of Belladonna should be the third attenuation. 
The Tinct. of Pulsatilla should be the mother tincture (10 per 
cent). 
R. Trit. Mercurii sol., 6x,gr. J 
Mitte tales chart, xij. 
This should be diluted with a little Sugar of Milk before 
dividing. The trituration of Mercurius Solubilis is prepared from 
Suboxide of Mercury (Hg2O). 390 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
SOLUBILITIES. 
In the compounding of prescriptions, an acquaintance with the 
general rules of solubility is of great value to the dispenser. For 
this purpose the general table of solubilities in water (normal 
temperature), as compiled by Prof. Attfield, is given:— 
Acetates.—Soluble. 
Arsenates and Arsenites.—Insoluble, except those of alkali metals. 
Bromides.—Soluble, except Hg(ous) and Ag.—Sb, Bi, with water form insoluble 
Oxysalts. 
Carbonates.—Insoluble, except those of alkali metals. 
Chlorides.—Soluble, except Hg(ous) and Ag.—Pb sparingly. 
Citrates.—Soluble, except those of Mu, Hg(ous), Ag, Sr—Al, Ba, Bi, Cd, Cu, Pb, 
Zn, sparingly soluble. 
Cyanides.—Insoluble, except Hg (ic), and those of alkali metals and earths. 
Hydrates.—Insoluble, except Ba, Sr, alkali metals.—Sr, Ca, Pb, sparingly soluble. 
Iodides.—Soluble, except Sb, Bi, Au.—Pb, Hg(ic), Hg(ous), and Ag, sp’r soluble. 
Oxalates.—Insoluble, except alkali metals—Sb, Cr, Fe(jc), (ous), Sn(ic), sparingly 
soluble. 
Oxides.—Insoluble, except Ba, Sr, Ca, and alkali metals. 
Nitrates. — Soluble. 
Sulfates.—Soluble, except Ba, Sr.—Ca. Sb, Hg(ous) sparingly soluble. 
Sulfites.—Soluble, except Al, Sb, Bi.—Fe(ous), Ca, Mn, Ag, Zn, sparingly soluble. 
Tartrates.—Soluble, except Sb, Ba, Bi.—Ca, Fe(ous), Pb, Mu, Hg(ic), (ous), Sr, 
Zn, sparingly soluble. 
Certain chemical compounds, when brought together under 
favorable conditions, either give rise to violent reaction, or favor 
the formation of new bodies which explode on the application 
of mechanical force. To give rise to such violent or explosive 
reactions all favorable conditions must be fulfilled, hence, in order 
to operate with such bodies with safety we must avoid these con- 
ditions as much as possible, by such precautions as previous dilu- 
tion of the active agents, avoiding pressure or force, heat, etc. 
The following list * is a general classification of such bodies as 
are liable to give rise to such difficulties. 
Explosive Bodies and MixTUREs.f 
I. Spontaneously Inflammable Bodies. 
Phosphorus (also subsulphide). 
Compounds of methyl and ethyl with Al, Zn, B, As, Sb, 
etc. 
II. Bodies Which Explode on Heating. 
Ammonium nitrate (when suddenly or strongly heated). 
Chlorine monoxide (C12O), trioxide (C12O3), tetroxide 
(C12O4). 
Mercurous oxalate. 
EXPLOSIVE MIXTURES. 
*See on this subject: “ Explosive Bodies and Mixtures,” by Dr. Chas. Rice, New Remedies, 1878, pp. 
165-196. Another paper on this subject is by C. D. Lippincott, Proceed. Penn. Phar. Ass’n., 1886 ; 
see also “ Art of Dispensing,” London, Chemist and Druggist. 
fOnly the better known bodies are given here; for a more complete list, consult Dr. Rice’s article, 
New Remedies, 1878, pp. 165-197. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
391 
Urea nitrate (suddenly heated). 
Most organic nitro-substitutioii compounds, containing 
the group NO2. 
Picric acid explodes when quickly heated in a confined 
space. 
Picrates when strongly heated, especially in a confined 
space. 
Hypophosphites (also in solution) when heated too high. 
Silver Chlorite (AgC102) explodes at 105° C. 
Silver oxalate, citrate, fumarate, malate. 
Ammonium iodate and periodate. 
Chlorates explode when heated in presence of combusti- 
ble bodies. 
Methyl and ethyl nitrate; their heated vapor explodes. 
Permanganic acid. 
III. Bodies ivhich Explode on Percussion or ivhen Triturated. 
Substances which contain carbon and oxygen with 
nitrogen in a feeble state of combination with the 
entire amount or a portion of the oxygen. When ex- 
plosion takes place, the nitrogen is set free, and the 
oxygen unites with the carbon present to form carbon 
monoxide and dioxide. If hydrogen is present, it 
forms water in the shape of greatly expanded vapor. 
Certain nitrogen oxides when substituted in place of 
hydrogen, may form very explosive compounds, 
such as nitroglycerin or the hexanitrocellulose (gun 
cotton). 
Chlorates should never be prescribed in powder, mixed 
with organic or inorganic combustible or oxidizable 
bodies. Some of these mixtures should never be 
mixed, but dispensed separately or in solution. When 
it is necessary that such be mixed, the greatest caution 
should be observed, and only small quantities should 
be operated on at a time, with the precaution of 
pulverizing each ingredient separately and mixing 
without pressure. Commercial potassium chlorate, if 
it contains organic impurities, will explode on tritur- 
ation. 
Tannic and Gallic Acids, 
Antimony Sulphides, 
Amorphous Phosphorus, 
Charcoal, 
Catechu, 
Lycopodium, 
Glycerin, 
Sulphur, 
Iodine, 
Oxalic Acid, 
Sugar, 
Hypophosphites, 
Starch, 
Phenol, 
Salicylic Acid, 
Morphine, 
Shellac. 
Chlorates* with Organic 
Substances in Gen- 
eral, as for Exam- 
ple :— 
♦The preparation of colored fires is attended with much danger, as they generally contain potassium 
chlorate or nitrate and various easily combustible bodies. Each of the ingredients should be dried 
and powdered singly, then the whole mixed with a wooden spatula, with great care. 392 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Chlorates, Bromates, and Iodates when rubbed or heated 
with iodine, sulphur, reduced iron, sulphides, etc. 
Fulminates are exceedingly explosive. 
Glonoin (nitroglycerin). 
Nitrogen Chloride, produced by the action of chlorine 
on a solution of ammonium chloride. 
Nitrogen Iodide, generated by bringing together iodine 
and ammonia. Even the vapor of ammonia on com- 
ing in contact with iodine may produce it. 
Nitric Acid (fuming), with readily oxidizable substances, such 
as glycerin, alcohol, tinctures, volatile oils, resins, sugar, phos- 
phides, etc. With straw or sawdust it is liable to ignite. 
Permanganates with organic extracts, organic powders, organic 
acids, fats and oils, hypophosphites, reduced iron, sulphur, or sul- 
phides, glycerin, alcohol, etc. These react in very dilute solutions 
in causing a reduction (decolorization) of the permanganate to 
manganate; when triturated or even mixed with many organic 
compounds, they give rise to violent reactions or explosions, due 
to the extremely loose state of combination of their oxygen. 
Oxide and nitrate of silver, when made into pills with saccharine 
or other reducing agents, do not usually explode with violence, 
but cause the pills to swell up rapidly and to fall to pieces. 
Mixtures from which a gas is evolved, should not be corked 
until the evolution of the gas has ceased, unless it is especially 
desired to confine the gas together with the liquid, in which case 
the necessary precautions must be taken. 
The following combinations are dangerous, some of them hav- 
ing caused serious accidents:— 
R . Potassii Chloratis, Should not be triturated together, nor 
Acidi Tannici. mixed together and dispensed in dry 
M. form. Dispense the powders separately. 
R. Potassii Chloratis, -n- i • at. ! 
Acidi Tannici Dissolve the tannin in the glycerin, 
rivccrini ’ and chlorate in the water, and then 
(’ mix. Do not rub the chlorate, tannin 
M. Ft. Sol. and S1ycerin together. 
R. Potassii Chloratis, The two salts must not be rubbed 
Sodii (or Calcii) Hypophosphitis, together or an explosion will result. 
Aquse. They should be dissolved separately in 
M. Ft. Sol. water and mixed. 
R. Potassii Chloratis, . . . 5ss-?i Tr , , . .. . 
Tincture Ferri Chloridi, iss-.?ij ™ed’ the mixture « liable to 
Glycerini,3ss-£iij. explode' 
R. Olei Terebinthinae, These should be cautiously mixed in 
Acidi Sulphurici or Acidi Nitrici. an open vessel, as the reaction is quite 
violent. 
This. dwi11 bur?.t. <>n standing, 
Extract! Gentians. owing to the decomposition of the silver 
M Ft Pill oxide by the organic extract. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
393 
R. Potassii Chloratis, . . . . gr. iij 
Sulphuris Precipitati, . . gr. v 
Zinci Valerianatis, . . . . gr. j This should not be dispensed. When 
Sacchari,gr. xx. carelessly mixed it is liable to explode. 
M. Ft. pulvis. Dentur tales doses 
No. x. 
R . Potassii Permanganatis, . . 5 j These, on being brought together, will 
Glycerini, fgss. cause an explosion. 
R. Acidi Chromici,gr. x rm.* • j i i • 
Glycerini, . . ’f|j. This is dangerously explosive. 
R . lodi,f 3 ss This mixture has given rise to an ex- 
Linimenti Camphorse Co., plosion, owing to the formation of 
Saponis, . nitrogen iodide, from the presence of 
M. Ft. linimentum. the ammonia in the Lin. Camph. Co. 
R. Acidi Nitrici, This mixture is liable to explode a few 
Tincture Nucis Vomic®, aa f 3 ij. hours after bein" mixed- 
R. Acidi Nitromuriatici, . . . f?ss . ... . . 
Tincture Cardamomi, . . ffj. Thls mixture W1U exPlode’ 394 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
INCOMPATIBLES. 
Incompatibility, that is, the incongruity among the constituents 
of a prescription, or their interference with each other, may be of 
three kinds, viz.: 1, chemical; 2, pharmaceutical; 3, therapeu- 
tical. 
Chemical Incompatibility.*—This arises when a chemical 
change takes place with the formation of one or more new com- 
pounds which were not expected or intended to be produced by 
the prescriber. A prescription may be chemically incompatible, 
and yet be just what the physician desires. For instance, acids 
are generally said to be incompatible with alkalies, yet they are 
prescribed together, in many instances intentionally, so as to 
produce the corresponding salts. Liquor calcis is chemically 
incompatible with mercuric or mercurous chloride, yet the pro- 
ducts of the reaction with either one of these chlorides are 
actually intended to be produced, as they are the therapeutic 
agents wanted. The dispenser, with a little experience, can 
readily distinguish a case of intentional from one of unforeseen in- 
compatibility. 
Examples. 
Alkalies (caustic or carbonated) are incompatible with alkaloids 
in aqueous or weak alcoholic solutions; also, with acids, metallic 
salts, ammonia salts, etc. 
Alkaloids (aqueous or weak alcoholic solutions) are precipitated 
from their solutions by liquids containing albumen, tannin, 
mercuric chloride, free iodine, Donovan’s solution, Lugol’s solu- 
tion, double iodides, alkalies or alkali carbonates, picric acid, 
auric or platinic chloride, and many other compounds. 
Acacia in solution forms a jelly with tincture of ferric chloride, 
borax, alcoholic or ethereal solutions, solution of lead sub- 
acetate, etc. 
Arsenous Acid, with tannic acid, salts and oxide of iron, lime and 
magnesia, is rendered insoluble. 
Antipyrin is incompatible with carbolic acid, nitric acid, ammonia 
alum, syrup of ferrous iodide. With spirit of nitrous ether or 
amyl nitrite, it produces a bright-green colored solution, due to 
the formation of isonitroso-antipyrin; with ferric salts, it 
develops an intensely red-colored solution. Like the alkaloids, 
it is incompatible (precipitated) with all solutions containing 
tannic acid (such as infusions, certain fluid extracts, tinctures, 
etc.), tincture of iodine, mercuric chloride, Lugol’s solution, etc. 
Bromides are subject to nearly the same reactions as the iodides. 
Bismuth Subnitrate or Subcarbonate is incompatible with tannin, 
sulphides, mercurous and mercuric salts, etc. 
* Consult typical prescriptions given under this head. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
395 
Calomel is decomposed by alkalies, alkaline earths, their carbon- 
ates, sulphides, solution of lime, iodides, iodine, soap, acids, 
salts of lead, iron and copper, silver nitrate, etc. 
Chlorides are incompatible with silver salts and mercurous salts, 
lead salts, etc. 
Chloral is incompatible with alkalies (CHC13 being liberated), 
sulphites, ammonia water, calomel; in alcoholic solution chloral 
alcoholate (see Prescription No. 84) is formed; in aqueous solu- 
tion it slowly undergoes decomposition, etc. 
Chlorates. See page 391. 
Chlorine Water is incompatible with silver, lead, and mercurous 
salts, organic substances, emulsions, hyposulphites, etc. 
Corrosive Sublimate is incompatible with alkalies, alkali carbon- 
ates, solution of lime, the iodides or bromides, alkaloids (in 
aqueous solution), sulphides, reduced iron, silver nitrate, albu- 
men, gelatin, tannic acid, etc. 
Hydrogen Peroxide is incompatible with vegetable tinctures, alkali 
citrates and tartrates, ferrous salts. It sometimes liberates iodine 
from iodides. This is due to the presence of iodates, the iodine 
being liberated by the action of the small amount of acid pre- 
sent in the hydrogen peroxide. 
Iodine is incompatible with ammonia or its salts, starch, metallic 
salts, fatty or volatile oils, emulsions, chloral, solutions contain- 
ing alkaloids, sodium hyposulphite, etc. 
Iron (reduced) is incompatible with vegetable extracts (containing 
organic acids), metallic salts, acids, mercuric chloride, potassium 
permanganate, etc. 
Iron Salts are incompatible with alkalies and the alkali carbon- 
ates, solutions containing tannic acid, mucilages, emulsions, 
solutions of the iodides or bromides, etc. 
Iodides. The alkali iodides, also ferrous iodide, are incompat- 
ible with the strong mineral acids, many alkaloids, metallic 
salts, silver nitrate, potassium chlorate, chlorine water, hydro- 
gen peroxide (see Hydrogen Peroxide), etc. 
Lime-water is incompatible with acids, ammonia compounds, salts 
of the metals, soluble carbonates, etc. 
Lead Acetate is incompatible with iodides, bromides, chlorides and 
sulphates, alkalies and their carbonates, lime-water, soap, sul- 
phides, acids, acacia, tannin, etc. 
Lead Subacetate (Goulard’s Extract) is incompatible with the alkali 
carbonates, alkalies, alkali earths, sulphuric or hydrochloric 
acids, sulphides, solution of acacia, solutions containing tannin, 
also most vegetable coloring matters, albumen, etc. 
Pepsin, when combined with alkalies or alcoholic liquids, or tan- 
nates, loses its digestive activity. 396 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Potassium Permanganate is incompatible with all organic com- 
pounds. 
Quinine Sulphate gives rise to many complications. When or- 
dered in a mixture, it should not be dissolved (by,aid of an 
acid) unless so ordered by the physician ; it is far more in- 
tensely bitter in solution than when simply suspended. Qui- 
nine and its salts can be dispensed in a suspended condition 
in combination with various incompatibles without inconve- 
nience, but when it is first dissolved before combining, then 
many difficulties arise. Thus we may suspend the quinine 
in a mucilaginous mixture with such incompatibles as tannin, 
alkalies, salicylates, etc., without giving rise to the unsightly 
insoluble mass which is formed when these are added to its 
solution. 
Strychnine when in solution combined with bromides is generally 
deposited, on standing, as insoluble strychnine bromide. 
When any of these alkaloidal precipitants is prescribed in a solu- 
tion with an alkaloid, the former should be slowly added in a 
well diluted condition to the latter in solution, in order to 
obtain the insoluble precipitate in as finely divided condition 
as possible, so that, when shaken, it readily remains suspended. 
Such incompatible combinations are admissible in mixtures 
containing quinine, and in many others in which the total 
amount of alkaloid is small. Combinations which contain 
larger amounts of active and powerful alkaloids, such as strych- 
nine or morphine, as insoluble precipitates, should under no 
circumstances be dispensed, since the patient may receive the 
whole of the precipitated alkaloid at one dose. 
Silver Nitrate is incompatible with chlorides, iodides, bromides, 
cyanides, alkali and earthy carbonates, sulphides, organic bodies, 
etc. 
Salicylic Acid is incompatible with iron compounds, alkali 
iodides; salts of salicylic acid likewise with iron compounds, 
also with alkaloids, acids, etc. 
Tartar Emetic is decomposed in solution by the addition of acids, 
alkalies, soap, calomel, tannin, acacia, opium, etc. 
Tannin and all solutions containing it, are incompatible with all 
metallic salts, gelatin, albumen, alkali carbonates, alkaloids, 
etc. 
Pharmaceutical or Mechanical Incompatibility.*—Many 
substances or solutions cannot be brought to the state of a clear 
* For example:— 
The addition of resinous tinctures or fluid extracts (as tinctures of guaiac, benzoin, etc.), to aque- 
ous solutions. 
The combination of emulsions with alcoholic liquids or acids, or solutions of liquorice or glycyr- 
rhizin with acids or acid salts, tincture of iron with mucilage of acacia, infusions with ferric salts, 
etc. 
Volatile or fixed oils with aqueous liquids. 
Compound infusion of gentian with infusion of wild cherry or compound infusion of cinchona. 
Alcoholic tinctures and fluid extracts, with aqueous preparations, etc., etc. THE ART OF DISPENSING. 
397 
uniform mixture, the production of such being a violation of 
correct pharmaceutical procedure. 
In many cases it is impossible to combine the ingredients of a 
prescription to a clear mixture, owing to the insolubility of one 
or more of the substances present.* While there are cases in 
which it is proper or even necessary to separate such insoluble 
matters by filtration, there are many others in which this would 
be inadmissible, and would defeat the intentions of the prescriber. 
It is impossible to provide rules for all these cases. Each pre- 
scription has to be considered by itself. In general a prescription 
may be pronounced effectively incompatible, if any of its constituents 
would suffer changes which weaken or destroy the intended effect, or 
which produce effects not intended. 
Therapeutic Incompatibility.—This occurs where there is 
an antagonism of physiological action, one ingredient being, as 
it were, an antidote to the other. 
Difficulties that arise in this connection do not concern the 
apothecary, but lie solely within the power of the physician to 
correct. 
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. 
It is important that the dispenser possesses an accurate knowl- 
edge of chemical reactions, solubilities and doses, in order that 
he may be able intelligently to compound the great variety of 
combinations prescribed, and discover any serious errors of judg- 
ment on the part of the prescriber. Physicians are rarely good 
chemists, hence the dispenser should be accordingly qualified. 
Before attempting to compound a mixture, the dispenser should 
first satisfy himself that no error has been committed on the 
part of the writer, in prescribing doses of powerful remedies, that is, 
excessive quantities which would result in endangering the life of 
the patient. In such instances the physician should be consulted. 
In cases of chemical incompatibility, the question that first 
arises is, whether this incompatibility is intentional or was un- 
foreseen on the part of the prescriber. For example, it will be 
seen at once that in mixture No. 85 the incompatibility was 
intentional, hence it is the duty of the dispenser to compound 
this to the best of his ability. In the case of the prescriptions No. 
37, 48, 59, etc., the dispenser will perceive that the incompatibil- 
ity was unforeseen by the prescriber through his deficiency of 
knowledge concerning chemical reactions. Now an unforeseen 
incompatibility should not, under all circumstances, lead the dis- 
penser to refuse compounding a prescription; for in such cases as 
prescriptions No. 63, 79, the mixture should be dispensed with cer- 
tain precautions—as, to be shaken well before using. However, 
there are many cases in which the presence of a precipitate of 
a potent nature or other substances which have been set free in 
* Consult typical prescriptions given under this head 398 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
the mixture (for instance, iodine, bromine, chlorine, etc.), would 
lead the dispenser to refuse compounding it, because it is liable 
to endanger the life of the patient; as examples of such, consult 
prescriptions Nos. 46, 64, 68, 83, etc. 
The prescriber should not be troubled unless the prescription 
presents difficulties which the dispenser cannot overcome. 
Under no circumstances should the dispenser attempt substitution. 
In the compounding of various mixtures, precipitation is of very 
frequent occurrence. The question naturally arises, shall these 
precipitates be removed or not. Precipitates should not be 
removed, unless the solution is intended as an application to the 
eye or inflamed surfaces, for in such instances the particles of solid 
matter might prove a source of irritation. In mixtures intended 
for internal use, precipitation may arise from a variety of causes,* 
but such precipitates should not be removed, for as a rule we de- 
prive the mixture of a portion, or in some cases, of its entire 
activity. For example, should we filter such mixtures as No. 
55, 56, 86, etc., we would obtain a clear inert solution. So also if 
the precipitate which results from the admixture of alcoholic 
solutions of resinous substances with aqueous liquid, be removed, 
we deprive the mixture of the greater part of its activity. In 
other cases, the precipitate resulting is inert, yet it may, when 
removed, retain active matter which is retained mechanically. 
Mixtures which contain precipitates of active or potent sub- 
stances are a source of danger, because, unless the mixture be 
shaken before using, so that the precipitate will become uni- 
formly suspended, the last doses may contain a poisonous quan- 
tity. In such instances the prescriber should be consulted. Some 
precipitates cannot be evenly distributed by shaking; examples 
are Nos. 28, 74, etc. 
Insoluble powders should never be added directly to a mixture, 
but they should be put in a mortar and reduced to the condition 
of a smooth paste with a portion of the mixture (syrup or muci- 
lage, if ordered), and then transferred to the bottle by washing 
the mortar with the remainder of the liquid. When such mix- 
tures are dispensed, the proper direction regarding the necessity 
of shaking the bottle should be given. Soluble salts should be 
powdered if necessary, and dissolved in a suitable amount of the 
most appropriate liquid constituent of the prescription, before the 
remainder of the ingredients is added, the liquid which dissolves 
the salt the least being added last. For example, if the salt is 
readily soluble in aqueous and but little soluble in alcoholic liq- 
uids, it should first be dissolved in one of the aqueous constituents, 
and the alcoholic ones added last. And if it be more soluble in 
alcoholic liquids, the aqueous constituents should be added last. 
Potent substances, such as poisonous alkaloids or their salts, 
should always be in solution before being added to the mixture. 
* See Precipitation, page 156. TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
399 
TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS 
WITH EXPLANATORY NOTES. 
No attempt has been made to give the names of the ingredients in strictly pharmacopoeial Latin. 
As the prescriptions here quoted have been taken from promiscuous sources, the original phraseology 
or nomenclature has been preserved. 
(1) General Examples. 
R. Potassii Permanganatis, . . gr. xxx 
Auri et Sodii Chloridi, . . . . gr. iss 
Misce et fiant pilulae No. xl. 
1. 
Organic matter should not be em- 
ployed in making these pills. Use 
infusorial earth, or kaolin, with petro- 
latum. 
2. 
R . Liquoris Ammonii Acetatis, . . 60 Cc. 
Tincturse Ferri Chloridi, ... 30 Cc. 
Syrupi,q. s. ad 150 Cc. 
If the spirit of Mindererus be alka- 
line, and the ferric chloride free from 
excess of acid, a precipitation of ferric 
carbonate will occur. It is necessary 
to make sure that the former is at 
least slightly acid, or to render it so by the addition of a little acetic acid. 
3. 
R. Pulv. Camphorae, 
Chloral Hydratis, ... aa 5 Gm. 
Cocainae Hydrochloratis, . . 5 Dg. 
M. Apply externally. 
These should be triturated together 
until a thick, clear fluid results. 
R . Hydrargyri Chloridi Corrosivi, gr. xvj 
Collodii, f 5 ss 
M. Ft. sol. 
4. 
The mercuric chloride should be 
triturated in a small glass mortar with 
just sufficient alcohol for solution, 
then this added to the collodion. 
5. 
R. Lupulini, 5.00 
Pulveris Camphorae, 1.00 
Terebinthinae Venetae, 8.00 
M. Fiant pilulae No. cxxv. 
The lupulin should be rubbed in 
a mortar until a crumbly mass results, 
then the powdered camphor and tur- 
pentine added, and massed with mag- 
nesia. 
6. 
R. Asafoetidae, 5j 
Aquae, 
M. F. enema. 
The asafoetida, in tears, should be 
reduced to a mass, and then triturated 
with a little water until a smooth 
paste results ; then the remainder of 
the water should be added, and the mixture finally strained. 
7. 
R . Olei Terebinthinae, f 3 iss 
Syrupi Simplicis, 
Aquae Cinnamomi f 3 ij 
Olei Limonis, Tqyiij 
M. Sig.—Teaspoonful as directed. 
In this instance it would be advis- 
able for the dispenser to add powd. 
acacia (45 grains) sufficient to emulsify 
the oils. 400 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
8. 
R. Copaibae, 10 Cc. 
Liquoris Potassae, 3 Cc. 
Olei Gaultheriae, 0.5 Cc. 
Glycerini, 15 Cc. 
Aquae Cinnamomi, .... 60 Cc. 
M. Sig.—Teaspoonful. 
Mix the liquor potassae with double 
its volume of cinnamon water in a 
bottle, then add gradually, with con- 
stant agitation, the copaiba and oil of 
Wintergreen, next the glycerin and re- 
mainder of the w7ater. The solution 
of potassa does not emulsify, but 
saponifies the copaiba. 
9. 
R. Chloroformi, 
Acidi Nitrici, 
Creosoti, aa f 3 v 
M. For cauterizing. 
The nitric acid should be first added 
to the creosote and the mixture al- 
lowed to cool before the chloroform is 
added, otherwise the latter would be 
volatilized by the heat generated by 
the reaction of the other two in- 
gredients. 
10. 
R. Sodii Biboratis, 3 iv 
Chloralis, 3 ij 
Atropinae, gr- iv 
Spiritus Vini Rectificati, . . . . 
Aq. Sambuci, . . . . q. s. ad 
M. Ft. lotio. 
This should be kept in a cool place, 
and well-stoppered, for chloroform will 
be developed by the action of the 
borax on the chloral. 
11. 
If the acid be added to the chlorate 
followed by the water, a yellowish 
colored solution will result, which 
contains free chlorine. If the chlorate 
be dissolved in the water and the acid 
added last, a colorless solution will 
result. It is best to consult the phy- 
sician as to which is desired. 
R. 
Potassii Chloratis, 3 ij 
Acidi Hydrochlorici, f 3 ij 
Aquae, f £ viij 
M. Ft. gargarisma. 
R. 
Potassii Cyanidi, gj 
Morphinae Sulphatis, .... gr. ij 
Acidi Citrici, ijiss 
Syrupi, q. s. ad f § viij 
M. Ft. sol. Sig.—Coch. parv. t. i d. 
Hydrocyanic acid is developed ac- 
cording to the equation : 
3KCN + H3C6H5O7 =3HCN + K3C6H6O7. 
195 81 
If 195 grains of KCN are capable of 
yielding 81 grains of HCN, then 60 
grains of KCN will yield approxi- 
mately 2.5 grains of HCN, which is 
equivalent to about 130 minims of the official dilute hydrocyanic acid, leaving about 
two minims to the dose. The mixture may, however, be dispensed. 
12. 
13. 
R. Tincturae Ferri Muriatici, . . . 
Spiritus JEtherisNitrosi, . . . f£iv 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, fj|j 
Syrupi,q. s. ad 
When mixed in the order written, 
the mixture forms a jelly-like mass. 
If each of the constituents be diluted 
with an equal quantity of the syrup, 
and then mixed, a clear mixture will 
result. 401 
TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
14. 
R . Extract! Buchu Fluidi, 
Extract! Cubebae Fluidi, . aa 
Olei Terebinthinae, f 3 ij 
Tincturae Hyoscyami, ... . 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, . . q.s. ad fsjiv 
Mix the fluid extracts, tincture and 
oil of turpentine ; then add this slowly 
to the mucilage, agitating constantly; 
a precipitate forms but can be readily 
diffused by agitation. Should we add 
the mucilage of acacia to the other 
mixed ingredients, the gum is pre- 
cipitated in a lumpy condition. 
15. 
Solutions containing alkaloids are 
incompatible with alkalies or their 
carbonates, but in this case the in- 
compatibility may be neglected. 
There is about of a grain of strych- 
nine in the solution and this is precipitated by the sodium salt. But inasmuch as 
the alkaloid strychnine is soluble in 6700 parts of water, it will here remain in solu- 
tion, as there are over 9000 parts of water to each part of liberated alkaloid. 
R. Liquoris Strychnia), B. P., . . 
Sodii Bicarbonatis, gr. xv 
Aqua;, ad f 
R. Acidi Sulphurici, 
Acidi Nitrici, aa 10.00 
Olei Terebinthinae, 30.00 
Alcoholis, 50.00 
M. Ft. sol. 
Owing to the violent reaction which 
ensues on mixing these acids with oil 
of turpentine great caution should be 
observed to prevent accidents. The 
mixed acids should be added to the 
oil slowly and cautiously. The dish 
containing the mixture should be 
placed in the open air and at least at arm’s length from the operator. After the 
mixture has cooled the alcohol may be gradually added. 
16. 
17. 
R. Acid. hyd. dil., 
Syrupi, fgij 
Here is an ambiguous abbreviation ; 
the dispenser would be at a loss as to 
whether hydrobromic, hydriodic, hy- 
J|drochloric or hydrocyanic acid was 
intended. The prescriber should be consulted before dispensing. 
R. Acidi Sulphurici Aromatici, . 8.00 
Tincturae Cinchonae Composite, 30.00 
Glycerini, ' 30.00 
Aquae Destillatae 60.00 
Quininae Sulphatis, 2.00 
M. Ft. sol. Sig.—Cochleare parvum ter 
in die. 
18. 
The quinine salt should be added to 
the compound tincture of cinchona in 
a graduate, and dissolved in the latter 
with the aid of the aromatic sulphuric 
acid, under stirring. Then the gly- 
cerin should be added and lastly the 
water. The glycerin prevents the 
formation of a precipitate from the 
tincture, when it is afterwards mixed 
with water. 
19. 
R. Acidi Salicylici, 
Sodii Bicarbonatis, aa 
Aquae, f£vj 
M. Ft. sol. Sig.— 3j 3 t. d. 
The two substances may be mixed 
in a large mortar, and the water gradu- 
ally added, under stirring, until effer- 
vescence ceases. Or, the sodium 
salt may be mixed in a large capsule, 
on a water-bath, with the larger por- 
tion of the water, and the acid added until effervescence ceases. The solution will 
be of a dark color, due to the excess of alkali present at the close of the reaction :— 
NaHCO3 + HC7HSO3 = NaC7KsO, + CO2 + H2O 
83.8 137.6 159.6 402 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
If the acid and the sodium salt were in molecular proportions, darkening of the 
solution could be prevented by dissolving the acid in boiling water (or adding 
it to boiling water, if there is too much to be dissolved), and then gradually adding 
the sodium salt to saturation. 
20. 
The phosphoric acid must be free 
from “meta” or “ pyro ” acid or 
precipitation of iron will occur. If 
sufficient phosphoric acid is added, 
the red ferric chloride changes into 
colorless acid ferric phosphate. The 
quinine salt is dissolved in the tinc- 
ture, the strychnine salt in some of 
the water ; these are added to the 
syrup, followed by the balance of the 
water and lastly the acid. After a time the phosphates of the alkaloids will precip- 
itate. The mixture should be dispensed with a ‘ ‘ shake label. ’ ’ 
R. Tincturae Ferri Chloridi, . . . 10.00 
Acidi Phosphoric! Diluti, . . 10.00 
Quininae Suiphatis, 3.00 
Strychninae Suiphatis, .... 0.10 
Aquae Destillatae, 100.00 
Syrupi Limonis, 80.00 
M. Sig.—Dose, a teaspoonful. 
21. 
R. Copaibae, 20.00 
Tincturae Lavandulae Composite, 
Spiritus JEtheris Nitrosi, . . aa 10.00 
Olei Gaultheriae, 0.50 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, .... 30.00 
Aquae Destillatae, . q. s. ut ft. 250.00 
M. sec. art. Sig.—Coch. mag. t. i. d. 
To the mucilage contained in a bottle 
add the copaiba and oil in small por- 
tions at a time, shaking well after each 
addition. Then add the greater part 
of the water, next the tincture and 
spirit, all in portions, and lastly the 
remainder of the water. The balsam 
and oil are made into a sort of emul- 
sion with the mucilage, and the alco- 
holic liquids are added last. 
22. 
R. Olei Jecoris Aselli, £3 viij 
Olei Amygdalae Amarae, 
Olei Gaultheriae, aa rrj_x 
Pepsini pulv., gj 
Pancreatini 3j 
Pulveris Acaciae, . .... 5 j 
Glycerini, f£j 
Syr. Hypophosphitura, .... f.Aj 
Acidi Phosphoric! Diluti, . . . f,5ss 
Aquae Destillatae, . q.s. ut ft. 
M. Ft. emulsio sec. art. 
Sig.—Coch. mag. t. i. d. 
Triturate one-half of the cod-liver 
oil and the essential oils with the pep- 
sin, pancreatin and acacia ; add at once 
one-half of the water, and triturate 
rapidly until an emulsion results. To 
this add gradually the remainder of 
the cod-liver oil, using a little water 
to prevent the emulsion from separ- 
ating (“ cracking ”)• Next incorpor- 
ate the syrup and the remainder of the 
water, leaving room for the acid, 
which is to be added last. 
(2) Pharmaceutical Incompatibility. 
23. 
R. Tincturae Ferri Muriatici, ... 
Decocti Uvae Ursi, f 3 vj 
M. Signa.—Coch. mag. t. i. d. 
24. 
R. Extracti Buchu Fluidi, 
Extracti Cubebae Fluidi, . aa f £ iss 
Aquae Cinnamomi, f 3 iij 
M. Sig.—To be well shaken. 
The tannin of the Uva Ursi forms 
an inky mixture (tannate of iron) 
with the ferric chloride. 
This forms a very unsightly mixture, 
owing to the separation of the resinous 
and oily matter when the fluid ex- 
tracts are added to the cinnamon 
water. TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
403 
25. 
R . Tincturae Ferri Chloridi, ... f 3 iij 
Tincturae Guaiaci Ammoni- 
atae, 
Tincturae Aloes, f.?ss 
Syrupi, q. s. ad. fjjiv 
This forms a black mixture, the 
tincture of guaiac being pharmaceuti- 
cally incompatible with the ferric chlor- 
ide. Also both resinous tinctures pre- 
cipitate on coming in contact with an 
aqueous solution, in this case the syrup. 
26. 
The chloral should be dissolved in 
the syrup, and the camphor, reduced 
to fine powder, be gradually mixed by 
trituration with the syrup, so that it 
may remain in suspension. The mix- 
ture should be directed to be well 
shaken before being used. 
B • Chloral Hydratis, gr. xl 
Camphorae, gr. x 
Syrupi Zingiberis, fjjij 
Aquae, q. s. ad. f ij 
B. Ferri et Quininae Citratis, . . 10.00 
Acidi Phosphorici Diluti, . . 10.00 
Tincturae Cardamomi Com- 
posite, 30.00 
Syrupi Limonis, 20.00 
Aquae, 100.00 
27. 
The scale salt is dissolved in the 
water, followed by the syrup, tincture 
and acid in order. The mixture will 
not be clear because of the separation 
of the resinous matter of the carda- 
mom. The quinine phosphate which 
is formed, owing to its comparative 
insolubility, will generally precipitate. 
28. 
B • Tincturae Guaiaci Ammoni- 
atae, 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, ... aa 
Potassii lodidi, Qij 
Tincturae Hyoscyami, 
Aquae Cinnamomi, . q. s. ad. . f 3 iij 
This forms an unsightly mixture, 
o wing to the separation of the resinous 
matter of the tincture of guaiac, which 
adheres to the sides of the bottle. 
29. 
R. Copaibae, 
Spiritus yEtheris Nitrosi, . aa f£ iss 
Extracti Cubebae Fluidi, 
Tincturae Cinnamomi, . . aa f£iv 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, 
M. 
If the copaiba is emulsified by the 
mucilage, the addition of the alcoholic 
liquids will cause the gum to separate 
in a solid mass. As it stands it cannot 
be dispensed. 
R. Extracti Buchu Fluidi, 
Extracti Cubebae Fluidi, 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, . . . . aa 
Olei Terebinthinae, f 3 j 
Tincturae Hyoscyami, .... 
M. 
30. 
The mucilage of acacia is intended to 
emulsify the turpentine. This emul- 
sion is, however, destroyed by the 
addition of the fluid extracts and 
tincture, the alcohol of which coagu- 
lates the acacia. 
R. Potassii Bromidi, 3 vj 
Aquae Camphorse, f 3 vj 
M. Ft. solutio. 
31. 
The addition of soluble salts to cam- 
phor water causes the separation of 
the camphor, which floats on the sur- 
face of the mixture. The mixture 
should be well agitated before being taken. The addition of soluble salts to any 
of the medicated waters causes a separation of most of the volatile constituents. 404 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
li. Extracti Cannabis Indicae 
Fluidi, fgj 
Copaibae, 
Tincturae Guaiaci, f 3 ij 
Spiritus Terebinthinae, .... f 5 ij 
Tincturae Camphorae, fgss 
Syrupi Zingiberis, . . . q.s. ad. 
M. Ft. mistura. 
32. 
Upon mixing the first five ingredi 
ents a clear or nearly clear solution 
will result. Upon adding this to the 
syrup, the resinous matters, camphor, 
copaiba and oil will separate, render- 
ing the mixture unsightly. 
R. Acidi Carbolici, 10.00 
Collodii, 90.00 
M. Ft. sol. 
33. 
On mixing these, a jelly will be 
produced. 
(3) Chemical Incompatibility. 
34. 
R. Argenti Nitratis, gr. v 
Tincturae Opii, f 3 iss 
Aquae Cinnamomi, . . q.s. ad 
Silver nitrate, when brought into 
contact with organic substances, suf- 
fers reduction to metallic silver. 
35. 
R. Argenti Nitratis, 1.50 
Sodii Chloridi, .60 
Aqua, 200.00 
Sig.—Use as a wash. 
There is sufficient sodium chloride 
present to decompose the entire 
amount of argentic nitrate. The pre- 
cipitate that forms being argentic 
chloride. The solution is practically 
inert. The reaction is as follows ; 
AgNO3 + NaCl = NaNO3 + AgCl. 
R. LiquorisPlumbi Subacetatis, . . 
Mucilaginis Acaciae, 
Aquae Destillatae, . . q. s. ad. f5 iv 
M. Ft. lotio. 
36. 
The Goulard’s Extract produces a 
heavy white precipitate with the muci- 
lage of acacia. The mixture is incom- 
patible and should not be dispensed. 
37. 
R . Strychnii Nitratis gr. ij 
Sol. Fowleri, 
M. Sig.—Gtt. v, t. i. d. 
This would prove to be a dangerous 
mixture if dispensed as written, for 
the alkalinity of the Fowler’s solu 
tion will cause the precipitation of the 
strychnine. The addition of a few 
drops of dilute nitric acid sufficient to retain the strychnine in solution would 
remove the difficulty. 
38. 
R . Lithii Salicylatis, 3 ij 
Ferri et Ammonii Citratis, ... 3 iv 
Syrupi Limonis, 
Aquae, aa 
On bringing together the solutions 
of the first two ingredients, a reddish- 
brown precipitate of ferric, salicylate 
will form. The prescriber should be 
notified, if possible. If this is impos- 
sible, directions to shake the bottle 
should be added. 
39. 
R. Cocainae Hydrochloratis, ... 2 Gm. 
Sodii Biboratis, 5 Dg. 
Aquae Destillatae, 100 Cc. 
M. Ft. sol. Sig.—Apply, as directed, to 
the eye. 
The cocaine is precipitated by the 
borax. Boric acid should have been 
used. TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
405 
40. 
This mixture should not be dis- 
pensed, because the mercuric chloride 
will be entirely decomposed by the 
alkali hydrate and carbonate present 
in the aromatic spirit of ammonia, 
and the whole of the mercury be pre- 
cipitated ; part of which as ammoni- 
ated mercury. 
R. Hydrargyri Chloridi Corrosivi, . gr. iij 
Tincturae Cinchonae Compositae, f 5 vij 
Spiritus Ammoniae Aromatici, . 
M. Ft. sol. 
41. 
R. Aluminis, gr. xxx 
Ammonii Carbonatis, . . . . gr. lx 
Tincturae Belladonnae, f 3 ij 
Glycerini, f J iij 
Infusum Senegae, . . q.s. ad 
On adding the solution of the am- 
monium salt to that of the alum, a 
precipitate of aluminum hydrate will 
fall, carrying with it the coloring 
matter and activity of the tincture of 
belladonna and infusion of senega. It 
is not advisable to dispense this. 
42. 
R. Potassii Permanganatis, .... 3j 
Glycerini, fgj 
Aquae, f§ij 
The glycerin (being organic) causes 
decomposition of the permanganate ; 
instead of a bright, red-colored solu- 
tion, a colorless liquid with a dark 
precipitate (of manganic oxide) will 
result. 
R. Quininae Sulphatis, 1.30 
Sodii Salicylatis, 15.50 
Acidi Hydrobromici Diluti, . 30 Cc. 
Aquae, q. s. ad 250 Cc. 
43. 
No matter how compounded, this 
mixture will contain a heavy precipi- 
tate of salicylic acid caused by the 
decomposition of the sodium salicylate 
by the hydrobromic acid. 
44. 
R. Liquoris Hydrargyri Perchloridi, npx 
Potassii lodidi, gr. x 
Decocti Cinchona?, . . . q. s. 
Liquor Hydrargyri Perchloridi is 
official in the British Pharmacopoeia. 
It contains 10 grs. each of HgCl2 and 
NH4CI in 1 pint (Brit.) of water. The 
addition of potassium iodide to this 
will produce the reagent known as Mayer’s, which causes a precipitate with the 
alkaloids of the decoction of Cinchona to form. To render this as diffusible as 
possible it is best to add the solution of the mercury salt to a portion of the decoc- 
tion, and to dissolve the potassium iodide in another portion, then to mix the two 
gradually. 
45. 
R. Ferri et Quininae Citratis, . . . 2.00 
Potassii lodidi, 5.00 
Syrupi, 
Aquae Destillatae, aa 30.00 
Potassium iodide and the scale salt 
are incompatible, hydriodate of qui- 
nine being precipitated ; should the 
solution become warm, the precipitate 
would form a sticky mass. 
46. 
R . Liquoris Ferri Perchloridi, . . . 
Potassii Bromidi, gr. xxx 
Aquae, fgij 
This mixture would not be safe to 
dispense if the ferric chloride contains 
an excess of acid, because of the libera- 
tion of bromine ; however, if the liquor 
be nearly neutral no difficulty will 
occur. 406 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
47. 
R. Strychnin® Sulphatis, .... 0.065 
Potassii Bromidi, 25.000 
Aqu®, q. s. ad 250 Cc. 
M. Ft. sol. 
The strychnia sulphate is dissolved 
in a portion of the water, and the bro- 
mide in the remainder; a clear solu- 
tion will result. On standing over two 
days, crystals of strychniae hydrobro- 
mate will gradually separate. If one 
fluid ounce of alcohol be used in place of water, no precipitate will appear. 
48. 
R. Tinct. Guaiaci Ammoniatae, . . 3 ij 
Mucilag. Acaciae,gij 
Quin. Sulph., gr. viij 
Acid. Sulph. Dil., giv 
Potass. Bicarb., 
Aquae,q. s. ad §iv 
The potassium bicarbonate being in 
excess will precipitate the quinine, 
and the resin of the ammoniated tinct- 
ure of guaiac; will be thrown out by 
the water. The mixture is hopelessly 
incompatible. 
49. 
R. Acidi Carbolici,5.00 
Sodii Bicarbonatis,20.00 
Sodii Biboratis, 30.00 
Glycerini, 360.00 
On mixing these, active efferves- 
cence follows. Glycerin reacting with 
borax (sodium biborate) combines 
with part of the boric acid to form 
glyceryl metaborate (C3H5BO8) and 
sodium metaborate (NaBO2). The 
glyceryl metaborate, in presence of water, resolves itself into glycerin and boric 
acid ; the latter reacts with the sodium bicarbonate liberating carbon dioxide. 
50. 
R. Quininae Bisulphatis,£ss 
Extracti Eucalypti Fluidi, ... 
Aquae,f£ij 
M. Ft. sol. 
Sig.—Cochleare parvum omni hora suma- 
tur. 
The tannic acid of the fluid extract 
unites with the quinine to form the 
insoluble quinine tannate, which sepa- 
rates in the form of an insoluble pre- 
cipitate. 
51. 
R. Potassii lodidi, J)j 
Syrupi Ferri lodidi, .... f3 iv 
Aqua;, q. s. ad 
Syrup of Ferrous Iodide generally 
gives with potassium iodide a precipi- 
tate of ferrous, quickly changing to 
ferric carbonate or hydrate, because 
the KI is usually slightly alkaline. 
The addition of a little citric acid to the solution of the iodide will keep the mix- 
ture clear. 
52. 
R. Plumbi Acetatis, T)j 
Tincturae Opii,ffi ij 
Syrupi, 
Aquae,q. s. ad 
M. Ft. lotio. 
The lead salt should be dissolved in 
an excess of the water and added to 
the diluted tincture. The precipitate 
formed should not be filtered off. 
53. 
R. Argenti Oxidi,gr. vj 
Creosoti,gtt. vj 
Pulveris Radicis Glycyrrhizae, q. s. 
M. Fiant pil. No. vj. 
Silver oxide parts with its oxygen 
with great facility and often with 
explosive force when combined with 
organic substances. TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
407 
R. Potassii lodidi, 12.0 
Tr. Digitalis, 8.0 
Extract! Erythroxyli Fluidi, . . 30.0 
Sp. JEtherisNitrosi, 30.0 
Glycerini, 30.0 
Aquae, q. s. ad 125.0 
54. 
When the ingredients are mixed in 
the order given and shaken, efferves- 
cence will occur, with evolution of 
nitrous fumes. Preparations contain- 
ing tannic acid react with nitrous 
ether, resulting in its decomposition. 
The spirit of nitrous ether should be 
added last and in portions, and the 
mixture should be allowed to stand uncorked for at least five hours for the escape 
of nitrous fumes. 
55. 
R. Liq. Plumbi Subac. Dil., . . . 
Extract! Opii Aquosi, .... gr. xx 
M. Ft. lotio. 
The extract of opium, if not already 
in powder, should be reduced to a fine 
powder and triturated with the “lead 
water” gradually added. The turbid 
mixture should not be filtered. 
56. 
R . Hydrargyri Chloridi Corrosivi, gr. j 
Liquoris Calcis, f§viij 
M. Ft. lotio. 
This forms the well-known “Yel- 
low Wash.” The yellow precipitate 
formed consists of mercuric oxide. 
This should not be filtered off. 
57. 
R. Potassii lodidi, 3 iss 
Tincturae Ferri Perchloridi, . . fsjss 
Aquae, q. s. ad fgiv 
M. Signa.—Cochleare parvum ter in 
die. 
This mixture should not be dis- 
pensed, because of the presence of free 
iodine, liberated by the action of ferric 
chloride :— 
Fe2C16 + 2KI = I2 + 2FeCl2 + 2KC1. 
58. 
R. Caffeinae Citratae, 
Ammonii Carbonatis, . . . . aa Q ij 
Elixir Guaranae, 
M. Signa.—Cochleare parvum p. r. n. 
The alkali carbonate precipitates the 
caffeine from both of the other ingre- 
dients. The patient should receive 
caution to shake the bottle before 
using. 
59. 
On pulverizing these two together, 
the mixture will acquire a dark color, 
due to the separation of metallic mer- 
cury, mercuric bromide being formed 
at the same time. The powders 
should not be dispensed. 
R. Potassii Bromidi, gr. x 
Calomelanos, gr. iij 
M. Ft. pulv.; mitte tales vj. 
60. 
R. Bismuthi Subnitratis, £j 
Sodii Bicarbonatis, .... gr. xxx 
M. Fiantpil. No. xx. 
These pills, after being made, swell 
considerably and disintegrate. This 
is due to the evolution of carbonic 
acid gas, caused by the reaction be- 
tween the subnitrate and the bicar- 
bonate. 
R. Potassii Bitartratis, £j 
“ lodidi, 3j 
Spiritus JEtheris Nitrosi, ... f £ iv 
Syrupi Aurantii, f o iv 
Aquae, q. s. ad f 
61. 
The following reaction takes place, 
resulting in the decomposition of the 
nitrous ether and the liberating of free 
iodine from the iodide : KHC4H4Ofi+ 
C2H5NO2 + KI = K2C4H4Oe 4- C2H5- 
OH + NO + I. The mixture should 
not be dispensed. 408 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
R. Morphinae Acetatis, 0.05 
Potassii lodidi, 2.00 
Ferri Sulphatis, 1.00 
Aquae, 50.00 
M. Ft. sol. 
Sig.—Cochleare parvum omnibus 
noctibus. 
62. 
The addition of potassium iodide to 
such metallic salts as iron or copper 
sulphate gives rise to the precipitation 
of the iodide of the metal as well as 
the liberation of free iodine. The 
mixture is incompatible and should 
not be dispensed. 
63. 
R . Calcii Sulphidi, gr. xv 
Liquoris Hydrargyri Perchloridi, 3 vj 
Potassii lodidi, gr. xj 
Potassii Bicarbonatis, 3 iij 
Aquae Chloroformi, . . q. s. ad 5 viij 
If the calcium sulphide he added to 
the solution of the mercuric chloride, 
the latter will be decomposed with 
formation of mercuric sulphide. If 
the potassium bicarbonate be added to 
the mercuric chloride, mercuric car- 
bonate or oxychloride will be thrown 
down. However, as the amount of 
mercury salt present in the mixture is comparatively small, the mixture might 
be dispensed, with directions to shake the bottle. 
64. 
R. Potassii Chloratis, 3 ij 
Syrupi Ferri lodidi, 
Vini Antimonii, f’3 ss 
Spiritus Chloroformi, .... f 3 ij 
Aqua*, q. s. ad. f§viij 
The addition of the potassium chlo- 
rate to the solution containing the 
ferrous iodide causes a liberation of 
free iodine. Under the circumstances 
the mixture would be dangerous to 
dispense. 
R. Liquoris Strychnin® Hydrochlor- 
atis, 
Liquoris Arsenicalis,rq, Ixx 
“ Potass®, 
Spiritus Vini Rectificati, . . . f§ iij 
65. 
The strychnine is precipitated by 
the alkali, but redissolved by the 
alcohol. In compounding, add the 
liquor potassae last. 
66. 
R. Tincturae Myrrhae, f 3 ij 
Morphinae Acetatis, gr. j 
Acidi Tannici, 3 ss 
Syrupi Zingiberis, 
M. Ft. sol. 
The tannin unites with the mor- 
phine, forming an insoluble precipi- 
tate. The tinct. of myrrh precipitates 
its resin when added to the syrup. A 
hopeless case of chemical and pharma- 
ceutical incompatibility. 
67 
There is an insufficient amount of 
alcohol for dissolving all of the iodine ; 
hence to the powdered iodine mixed 
with the alcohol, the oil of turpentine 
is slowly added. Ignition would result 
if the iodine and turpentine were 
brought together directly. 
R. lode mStallique, 10 Gm. 
Alcool, 30 Gm. 
Essence de t6r6benthine, . . 200 Gm. 
(To be used as spray). TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
409 
68 
R. Strychninae Hydrochloratis, . . gr. j 
Tincturae Cinchonae, 
Liquoris Ferri Dialysati, . . . f 3 iv 
Liquoris Potassii Arsenitis, . . f 3 ij 
Syrupi, 
Aquae,q. s. ad. 
M. Ft. solutio. 
Signa.—Capiat cochleare parvum post 
prandium. 
The dialyzed iron forms an insol- 
uble inert compound with the Fow- 
ler’s Solution. There is also danger 
of the strychnine being thrown out of 
solution by the alkali of the Fowler’s 
Solution, which would render the 
mixture dangerous to dispense, as the 
whole of the strychnine might possibly 
be given with the last dose. 
R. Liquoris Ferri Dialysati, . . . 25.00 
Liquoris Potassii Arsenitis, . . . 4.00 
Hydrated oxide of iron will separate, 
produced by the action of the alkali 
carbonate of the Fowler’s Solution. 
This ferric hydrate combines to the 
inert insoluble ferrous arsenate, with the arsenous acid of the Fowler’s Solution. 
Dialyzed iron is employed as an antidote for arsenical poisoning. 
69. 
R. Potassii Cyanidi, 
Chloralis, &a 10.0 
Unguenti, 30.0 
On bringing the chloral and potas- 
sium cyanide in contact, decomposi- 
tion takes place at once, with the 
disengagement of hydrocyanic acid. 
In this case immediate reaction may 
be prevented by triturating the substances separately with a portion of the oint- 
ment. However, the ointment will turn brown in a short time, with disengagement 
of hydrocyanic acid. 
70. 
71. 
R. Zinci Phosphidi 
Potassii Permanganatis, . . aa gr. x 
Extracti Taraxaci, ... q. s. 
M. Ft. pil. cxx. 
The phosphide and permanganate 
should not be triturated together. 
Zinc phosphide, when combined with 
many organic extracts, gives oft’ phos- 
phoretted hydrogen (PH3), while 
potassium permanganate is immedi- 
ately decomposed under the same circumstances. This should not be dispensed. 
72. 
R. Liquoris Arsenicalis (Fowl.), . . 
Hydrargyri Perchloridi, . . . . gr. j 
Aquae,q. s. ad f§iv 
M. Ft. mist. 
Sig.—f 3 iJ t- i- d- 
The alkali carbonate of the Fowler’s 
solution decomposes the mercuric 
chloride which has been dissolved in 
the water, with formation of mercuric 
carbonate or oxychloride. The pre- 
scriber should have chosen Liquor 
Acidi Arsenosi. If circumstances are 
such that the mixture must be dispensed at once without consulting the prescriber, 
the patient should be instructed to shake the bottle, in order to avoid the risk of 
taking the entire precipitate with the last dose. 
73. 
The alkali carbonate of the Fowler’s 
solution precipitates a portion of the 
iron first as ferrous carbonate, which 
soon loses its CO2, and eventually 
changes to ferric hydroxide. The 
iodine liberated unites with the potassium. The intentions of the physician are 
defeated by this incompatibility, hence he should be consulted. Otherwise nothing 
R. Syrupi Ferri lodidi, 
Liquoris Potassii Arsenitis, aa f 3 ij 
Syrupi Tolutanae, . . q. s. ad 410 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
would be left for the dispenser to do but to compound the mixture by diluting each 
of the active ingredients with half of the Syrup of Tolu and mixing gradually. The 
proper precautions in regard to shaking before using should be observed. 
R. Quinin® Sulphatis, . . . . 2.0 Gm. 
Tinctur® Cantharidis, ... 3.5 Cc. 
Spiritus Rosmarini, . . . 15.0 Cc. 
Infusi Salvi®,120.0 Cc. 
M. Ft. lotio. Sig.—Apply to scalp as directed. 
74. 
The tannic acid in the infusion 
forms an insoluble mass with the 
quinine. The mixture is unmanage- 
able. 
75. 
Spirit of nitrous ether effervesces 
quite violently when added to fluid 
extract of buchu or uva ursi, or any 
preparation containing tannin. The 
potassium citrate, when alkaline, 
causes the decomposition of the 
nitrous ether. 
R. Extracti Bnchu Fluidi, . ... f,5j 
Potassii Citratis, 3 iij 
Spiritus JEtheris Nitrosi, ... 
Syrupi Limonis, . . q. s. ad 
76. 
R. Hydrargyri lodidi Rubri, . . . 0.20 
Potassii lodidi, 12.00 
Ext. Cinchona: Fluidi, . . . .20.00 
Syrupi, 150.00 
M. Ft. sol., cujus aeger cap. coch. 
parvum ter in die in cyatho vinario 
aq. frig, postjentac., prand. et cenam. 
The mercuric iodide and potassium 
iodide are dissolved in the smallest 
possible amount of water, replacing an 
equal bulk of syrup. Next the fluid 
extract is gradually added. The whole 
of the cinchona alkaloids contained in 
this will be precipitated by the po- 
tassio-mercuric iodide. A “shake” 
label should be attached. 
77. 
R. Plumbi Acetatis, gr. xl 
Bismuthi Subuitratis, 5 ss 
Acidi Sulphurici Aromatici, . , 
Quininas Sulphatis, gr. xx 
Aquae Anisi, .... q. s. ad f iv 
M. Ft. sol. 
Upon addition of the aromatic sul- 
phuric acid to the solution of the lead 
salt, lead sulphate will be precipitated. 
As this would be likely to be all taken 
with the last dose, and as it is, more- 
over, liable to remain for a long time in 
the digestive organs, and apt to cause 
lead-poisoning, the mixture should not 
be dispensed without the prescriber being consulted. If this be impossible, the lead 
sulphate should be removed by filtration. 
78. 
R. Alu minis,£j 
Plumbi Acetat.,3 v 
Aquae Destillatae, 
M. Ft. lotio. 
Each of the salts is dissolved in a 
separate portion of water. On mixing 
these solutions a heavy precipitate of 
lead sulphate falls, resulting from the 
reaction between the aluminum and 
potassium sulphate and the lead 
acetate. Unless the prescriber directs otherwise, the lead sulphate should not he 
removed by filtration, but directions to shake the mixture before use should be 
attached. TYPICAL PRESCRIPTIONS. 
79. 
411 
R. Acidi Tannici, gr. x 
Quininae Sulphatis, gr. iij 
Acidi Sulphurici Diluti, .... tqj’j 
Aquae, q s. ad f§j 
The quinine salt should be dissolved 
in one-half of the water by aid of the 
dilute acid ; to this add slowly the 
solution of the tannic acid in the re- 
mainder of the water ; a light floccu- 
lent precipitate of quinine tannate will 
result. Dispense with a shake label. 
80. 
R. Olei Morrhuae, 
Aquae Calcis, f.?iv 
Solve et. adde :— 
Syrupi Ferri lodidi, f 3 iv 
Olei Cinnamomi, f 3 ss 
Syrupi, f 3 xij 
The lime-water serves the purpose 
of emulsionizing, or, rather, partially 
saponifying, the cod-liver oil. But on 
bringing this mixture in contact with 
the ferrous iodide, ferrous hydrate will 
be precipitated, while the iodine will 
combine with the calcium. 
81. 
R . Liquoris Arseni et Hydrargyri 
lodidi, * . . 10 Cc. 
Potassii lodidi, 5 Gm. 
Quininae Sulphatis, 2 Gm. 
Acidi Sulphurici Diluti, . . . q. s. 
Aquae, q. s. ad 300 Cc. 
The Donovan’s Solution forms with 
the quinine an insoluble compound 
which precipitates. The quinine 
solution should be added last and in 
small portions to the mixture in order 
to obtain the precipitate in as finely 
subdivided a condition as possible. 
82. 
R. Sodii Salicylatis, 8 Gm. 
Quininae Sulphatis, 5 Dg. 
Liquoris Ammonii Acetatis, . 10 Cc. 
Syrupi Zingiberis, . . q. s. ad 60 Ce. 
M. Sig.—Teaspoonful in water. 
The two salts are dissolved in the 
solution of ammonium acetate, which, 
for this purpose, must be neutral. 
The solution is then mixed with the 
syrup. If the spirit of Mindererus 
were acid, some of the salicylic acid 
would be thrown out of solution. 
On diluting the finished, clear mixture with water, insoluble quinine salicylate 
precipitates. 
83. 
R. Liquoris Acidi Arsenosi, ... 1’5 j 
Hydrargyri Bichloridi, . . . . gr. j 
Strychnin® Sulphatis,gr. j 
Spiritus Vini Rectificati, . . . . fsjj 
Aqu®,fgj 
When strychnine and mercuric 
chloride are brought together in solu- 
tion in the presence of hydrochloric 
acid, a dense precipitate of strychnine 
chloro-mercurate is thrown down. 
This is insoluble in water, but soluble 
in alcohol. In this mixture there is 
not sufficient alcohol to effect solution. dispensing this, or, in fact, any mixture 
which contains a potent substance in the form of an insoluble precipitate, a great risk 
will be incurred by the dispenser, for any carelessness on the part of the patient, in 
omitting to shake the bottle, may be attended with serious results. 
R . Potassii Bromidi, 
Chloralis Hydrat., . . . . aa 10 Gm. 
Tincturae Opii Camphoratae, 
Syrupi Zingiberis, . . . . aa 50 Cc. 
84. 
On standing, chloral-alcoholate will 
separate as oily drops. Certain salts, 
as KBr, NaBr, NaCl, MgSO,, etc., 
cause the formation of chloral alco- 
holate (CC13COH,C2H6O) in hydro- 412 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
alcoholic solutions with chloral. While this chloral alcoholate acts as an hypnotic, 
it is harsh in its action, leaving unpleasant secondary effects. Alcoholic prepara- 
tions should not be prescribed with chloral, especially not in connection with the 
bromides of sodium and potassium, because, if the solutions used are at all con- 
centrated, the chloral will separate as alcoholate, float on the surface, and a great 
risk will be incurred of giving a large overdose if the patient is not very careful to 
shake the bottle before taking a dose. 
This forms an unsightly and in- 
compatible mixture, yet should be 
dispensed unfiltered. The zinc sul- 
phate and lead acetate* react, produc- 
ing the insoluble lead sulphate. Lead 
acetate is incompatible with the wine 
of opium and tincture of catechu. 
The zinc sulphate and lead acetate 
should each be dissolved in two 
ounces of water and mixed, and the wine of opium should be diluted with an ounce 
of water and added, followed by the tincture of catechu, likewise diluted. This 
yields a brownish colored liquid, holding a fine precipitate in suspension. 
R. Zinci Sulphatis, 
Plumbi Acetatis, aa gr. x 
Vini Opii, 
Tinctures Catechu aa f 3 ij 
Aquae, q. s. ad 
M. Ft. sol. 
85. 
R . Hydrargyri Chloridi Corrosivi, gr. iij 
Aquae Destillatae, f3 iss 
M. ft. solutio et adde : — 
Albuminis Ovi, f3iss 
Aquae Destillatae, . . . ql s. ad f 3 v 
Misce, cola, et adde :— 
Aquae destillatae, . . . q. s. ad f3 x 
86. 
On adding the solution of the mer- 
curic chloride to the solution of the 
egg albumen, an insoluble compound 
forms, which, when the mixture is 
strained, removes the entire amount 
of mercuric chloride, resulting in an 
inert solution. 
87. 
R . Hydrargyri Chloridi Corrosivi, 
Ammonii Chloridi, .... ail gr iij 
Aquae Destillatae, f 3 iss 
M. ft solutio et adde : — 
Albuminis Ovi, fjiss 
Aquae Destillatae, . . . q. s. ad f 3 v 
Misce. cola, et adde : — 
Aquae Destillatae . . . q s ad f 3 x 
The ammonium chloride assists the 
solution of the mercuric chloride in 
the water. It also prevents the for- 
mation of the insoluble compound of 
the mercuric salt with the albumen 
* Lead Acetate is incompatible with such preparations as contain organic acids, as it forms 
insoluble compounds with these. In the above instance it unites, forming an insoluble compound, 
with the meconic acid of the opium and the catechuic acid of the catechu. 
Lead Subacetate, being of an alkaline reaction, precipitates alkaloids, organic acids, solutions of 
gummy and coloring matters, tannins, albumen, etc. CHAPTER XXXVII. 
VOLUMETRIC QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS. 
Volumetric Analysis is the method by which we determine 
the quantity of certain substances by means of the volume of 
selected reagents which are required to perform a given reaction. 
The process of adding the liquid reagent from graduated mea- 
sures is called Titration. 
The strength of a volumetric solution as compared with that of 
another, or, in other words, its ratio to the latter, is called its Titer. 
A Volumetric or Standard Solution is a solution of definite 
strength, which is made by dissolving a given weight (in grammes) 
of a reagent, in a definite volume (in cubic centimeters) of water. 
These solutions are usually made by dissolving the molecular 
weight of a reagent in grammes or a fraction thereof in 1000 cubic 
centimeters (one liter) of water. The following abbreviations are 
in use: 
N or j (normal). “Volumetric solutions are designated as 
N 
normal ( -) when they contain in 1 liter the molecular weight 
of the active reagent, expressed in grammes, and reduced to 
the valency corresponding to one atom of replaceable hydrogen 
or its equivalent. 
“ Thus, hydrochloric acid, HC1 = 36.37, having but one H 
atom replaceable by a basic element, has 36.37 Gm. of HC1 in 
1000 Cc. of the normal volumetric solution; while sulphuric 
acid, H2SO4 = 97.82, having two replaceable II atoms, contains 
only one-half this number, or 48.91 grammes of H2SO4 in 1000 
Cc. of its normal solution. Potassium hydrate, KOH = 55.99, 
has but one K to replace one H in acids, hence its normal solu- 
tion contains 55.95 grammes of KOH in one liter.” 
1T (decinormal) — Solutions which contain in one liter one-tenth 
of the quantity of the active reagent in the normal solution. 
156 (cen^normad) = Solutions which contain in one liter one hun- 
dredth of the quantity of the active reagent in the normal 
solution. 
N (double normal) = Solutions which contain in one liter twice the 
quantity of the active reagent in the normal solution. 
N 
2 (semi-normal) = Solutions which contain in one liter one-half of 
the quantity of the active reagent in the normal solution. 
413 414 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
An indicator is a substance which is added to the solutions, dur- 
ing titration, for the purpose of showing, by a change of color (or 
other visible change), the exact point at which the reaction is com- 
plete. 
The principal indicators employed are:— 
(1) Solution of Litmus (Test solution, U. S. P.). This turns red 
with acids and blue with alkalies. 
(2) Alcoholic Solution of Phenolphtalein (Test solution U. S. P.). 
—This is colorless with acids and turns deep red with alkali 
hydrates and carbonates; bicarbonates and most other salts do 
not produce this color. It is not reliable when alkaline salts 
of ammonium or phosphoric acid* are present. 
(3) Solution of Methyl- Orange (Test solution U. S. P.).—This solu- 
tion acquires a yellow color in contact with alkali hydrates, car- 
bonates, or bicarbonates. With the inorganic acids the solution 
acquires a crimson color. It is indifferent to carbonic acid and 
should not be used with organic acids. 
(4) Solution of Rosolic Acid in diluted alcohol (Test solution U. 
S. P.).—The solution turns violet with alkalies and yellow with 
acids. 
(5) Decoction of Brazil- TFbod (Test solution U. S. P.).—This is a 
very sensitive indicator, especially adapted in the estimation 
of alkaloids. The solution turns purplish-red with alkalies, 
and yellow with acids. 
(6) Tincture of Cochineal (Test solution U. S. P.).—The solution 
turns violet with alkalies and yellowish-red with acids. It is 
employed as an indicator when ammonia or alkaline earths are 
present. 
(7) Starch Mucilage (Test solution U. S. P.).—The cold solution 
turns blue in the presence of free iodine. 
(8) Solution of Potassium Chromate (Test solution U. S. P.).—The 
solution gives a red color with silver nitrate. When any 
halogen salts are present, the red color does not appear until 
every trace of the halogen has combined with the silver. 
(9) Solution of Potassium Ferricyanide (Test solution U. S. P.).— 
This gives a blue color or precipitate with ferrous, and only a 
clear brown solution with ferric salts. This indicates that all of 
the ferrous salt has been oxidized to ferric, when it ceases to 
impart a blue color to the solution. 
INDICATORS. 
* Excepting in case of an orthophosphate M2HP0<—See Estimation of Phosphoric Acid. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
415 
APPARATUS EMPLOYED. 
Measuring Flasks and Cylinders.—For the preparation of 
volumetric solutions we employ accurately graduated flasks or 
cylinders. The flasks (Fig. 384) are made of various sizes, usually 
of the capacity of 250, 500 and 1000 cubic centimeters (at 15° C. 
or 59° F.), which is indicated by a mark on the neck. Graduated 
cylinders (Fig. 385) are also employed for this purpose. 
Pipettes.—These are instruments (see page 164) graduated to 
deliver definite volumes of fluids. They are constructed to hold, 
Fig. 385. 
Fig. 384. 
Measuring Flasks. 
Measuring Cylinder. 
when the fluid is drawn up to the mark indicated on the stem, 
various volumes, as 1 cubic centimeter or fraction thereof, 5, 10, 
15, 20, 25 or 50 cubic centimeters. 
Burettes.—These are long tubes, usually of a capacity of 25, 
50 or 100 cubic centimeters, and graduated into divisions of 
1 Cc. or fractions thereof (one-fifths or one-tenths). These are 
employed for measuring out standard solutions. They are gradu- 
ated between two points on the cylinder, the upper one (0) begin- 
ning a short distance below the upper extremity, the lower one 
(50 or 100 Cc.) being situated a short distance above the point 
where the tube begins to narrow toward the outlet; the fluid can 
be measured only between these points (0 and 50, Fig. 387). The 416 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
burettes are usually fitted below with a pinch-cock arrangement 
(Fig. 386), or with a glass stop-cock (Fig. 388, a-6); the former, 
when pressed, or the latter when turned, allows the fluid to flow 
out at any speed desired. The pinch-cock arrangement is applied 
to the simpler forms of burettes in which a short heavy piece of 
rubber tube is slipped over the narrow neck (a, Fig. 386) of the 
lower end of the burette, and tied, if necessary (6, Fig. 386). Into 
the other end of the rubber tube is slipped a short piece of glass 
tubing (d, Fig. 386) of small caliber, drawn to a fine orifice; between 
the extremities of the rubber, a pinch-cock* (c, Fig. 386) is placed, 
Fig. 387. 
Fig. 388. 
Burettes with Glass Stop-Cocks. 
Burette Operated 
with Pinch-Cock. 
Device for Dropping 
from Burette. 
and by pressing the two tips it is caused to open and permit the 
flow of liquid from the burette. Fig. 387 illustrates the same form, 
in which the pinch-cock is replaced by a small glass marble, or 
short rounded piece of glass rod of sufficient size so that when it is 
inserted inside the tube, it will retain its position and not permit 
the liquid to pass through. It is operated by pressing the rubber 
tube slightly together at this point, forming a narrow channel, 
which permits the fluid to flow out at any rate desired. 
Beginners find it at first somewhat difficult to read off the 
height of the column of fluid correctly. On holding the burette 
so that the surface of the fluid is on a level with the eye, it 
* See also page 90, Figs. 138, 139. 417 
VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
will present an appearance like unto that shown in Fig. 389, 
this being known as the meniscus. It is a matter of some differ- 
ence, whether the height of the meniscus is read off on a line 
parallel with the upper edge o or the lower one at u. But if we 
begin by reading off from one of these edges, we must use the same 
height in all our other readings. To facilitate the accuracy of read- 
ing, various devices have been proposed; one of the simplest (for 
clear liquids) is that shown in Fig. 390, in which a piece of paper 
half black and half white is held against the back of the burette, 
the upper edge of the black portion being held a few millimeters 
below the level of the liquid; the lower concave curve of the 
meniscus then appears as a sharp black line which enables the 
operator readily to note the height of the fluid. 
Fig. 389. 
Fig. 390. 
Meniscus. 
Reading of Meniscus. 
Some burettes are specially constructed for the purpose of facili- 
tating reading, being provided with white enameled sides and 
dark blue background (Fig. 391); the reflection of the dark line 
in the background with the meniscus produces an appearance 
as shown in Fig. 392. The point of the narrowest portion cor- 
responds to the middle of the meniscus, which can be read off 
with great accuracy. A very convenient instrument for avoid- 
ing the meniscus altogether, and which can be employed with 
accuracy for all kinds of fluids, is the Erdmann float (Fig. 393). 
This consists of a small cylindrical closed tube, sufficiently 
weighted so that it will float upright, around the middle of which 
a line is scratched ; this is placed in the fluid in the burette and 
the height is read off by comparing the ring (scratch) on the 
float with the divisions on the burette. 418 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
In the operation of titrating, the substance to be titrated, if in 
dry or concentrated form, should always be dissolved in, or 
diluted with water. Beakers or flasks, placed on a sheet of white 
paper, or a porcelain dish should be employed for holding the 
solution; the operation should be conducted with as much light 
as possible, in order to distinguish clearly the change of color, 
etc., which denotes the end point of the reaction. In the begin- 
ning of the operation, the standard solution may be added rapidly 
under constant stirring; towards the end it should be added more 
cautiously, and finally only in drops. Thus in 
adding a standard solution of an alkali to an acid 
(diluted), with phenolphtalein as indicator, each 
drop of the alkali solution will produce a red 
color which almost immediately disappears. To- 
Fig. 391. 
Fig. 392. 
Fig. 393. 
Effects produced by 
Meniscus. 
Erdmann Float. 
ward the end of the reaction, however, tliis red 
color disappears less rapidly; then the operator 
should proceed very cautiously. Just sufficient 
of the reagent should be added to produce the 
desired color (not too intense), or to cause decolori- 
zation, as the case may be. With such indicators as phenol- 
phtalein or litmus, which produce marked changes in color, 
little difficulty is experienced in distinguishing the end-point 
of the reaction. Other indicators, however, such as methyl- 
orange, brazil wood, cochineal, etc., cause considerable difficulty 
for the inexperienced, the change of color being often very 
gradual and sometimes indistinct. It is best for the operator to 
take two beakers or test tubes containing the same bulk of water 
as there is fluid for assay, acidulate one with the standard acid 
solution, and render the other alkaline to an equal degree ; then 
add to both an equal amount of the indicator. On placing these 
Burette (Enameled 
Sides). VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
419 
beside the sample to be assayed the change of color can be accur- 
ately noted by comparison. 
Fig. 394. 
Fig. 395. 
Burette Stand. 
Burette in Position. 
PREPARATION OF STANDARD SOLUTIONS, WITH EXERCISES. 
As before stated, these solutions are prepared by dissolving a 
given weight, that is, usually, the molecular weight of the reagent, 
expressed in grammes, in 1000 Cc. of water. Thus in order to 
prepare a standard normal solution of hydrochloric acid, we 
should weigh off (assuming that we had an acid of the exact 
strength required) an amount containing 36.37 Gm. of the 420 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
absolute acid, place it into a flask, and dilute it with water to 
one liter. Then 
if 1000 Cc. of the solution contain 36.37 Gm. of absolute HC1. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ “ 0.03637 “ “ “ “ 
From the equation. 
HCl + NaOH = NaCl + H2O 
Hydrochloric Sodium Sodium Water. 
Acid. Hydrate. Chloride. 
36.37 39.96 
we learn that 
36.37 Gm. Hydrochloric Acid is equivalent to 39.96 Gm. of Sodium Hydrate 
ICc. or 0.03637 Gm. “ “ “ “ “ 0.03996 Gm. of “ 
a; Cc. of “ “ “ “ x X 0.03996 Gm. of “ “ 
If we know the number of cubic centimeters of normal acid 
solution, the amount of alkali is readily calculated. 
The second clause of the definition of Volumetric Solutions 
reads thus, “ and reduced to the valency corresponding to one 
atom of replaceable hydrogen or its equivalent.” 
When we desire to prepare a normal sulphuric acid solution we 
weigh off an amount equivalent to 48.91 Gm. (| of 96.82) of the 
absolute acid, and dilute it to one liter; here we have taken one- 
half of the molecular weight, for sulphuric acid, being bivalent, 
corresponds to two atoms of replaceable hydrogen. 
Thus 
H2SO4 4- 2NaOH = Na,SO4 + 2H2O 
Sulphuric Sodium Sodium Water. 
Acid. Hydrate. Sulphate. 
97.82 2 X 39.96 
One molecule (97.82 p.) of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to two molecules 
(2 X 39.96 p.) of Sodium Hydrate. 
One-half of a molecule (48.96 p.) of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to one molecule 
(39.96 p.) of Sodium Hydrate. 
1000 Cc. (N V. S.) containing 48.91 Gm. Sulphuric Acid = 39.96 Gm. of Sodium 
1 Hydrate. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.04891 Gm. Sulphuric Acid = 0.03996 Gm. of So- 
dium Hydrate. 
x Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid Solution = x X 0.03996 Gm. of Sodium 
Hydrate. 
The estimation of acids or alkalies is known as Acidimetry and 
Alkalimetry. In order to prepare the various standard solutions, 
we must select some substance which can be readily had in pure 
and undiluted form. For this purpose crystallized oxalic acid 
answers best. Its solution must be carefully and accurately 
prepared, for upon this all other normal acid and alkaline stand- 
ard solutions are based ; hence any inaccuracy in this standard 
would be carried over into all others. 
(1) Normal Oxalic Acid Volumetric Solution. 
H2C2O4 4- 2H2O = 125.7 62.85 Gm. in 1 Liter. 
Weigh 62.85 Gm.* of pure oxalic acid ih crystals and transfer 
* “ This is frequently rounded off to 63 Gm. when a delicate balance and exact weights are not at 
hand.” VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
421 
it without loss to a measuring flask or cylinder of one liter capac- 
ity, add enough distilled water to dissolve it, then, maintaining 
the temperature at or near 15° Cc. or 59° F., add water to make 
the volume measure exactly 1000 cubic centimeters. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Normal Oxalic Acid V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Oxalic Acid, crystallized, H2C2O4 + 2H2O 0.06285 
Ammonia Gas, NH30.01701 
Sodium Hydrate, NaOH 0.03996 
Potassium Hydrate, KOH 0.05599 
Potassium Permanganate, KMnO40.03153 
(a) Estimation of Alkali Hydrates. 
Exercise.—In about 30 Cc. of water 0.4 Gm. of Soda were dis- 
solved, with phenolphtalein as indicator; 9 Cc. of normal oxalic 
acid V. S. were required to neutralize it (sufficient to discharge 
the pink color): What was its percentage in pure NaOH ? 
According to the equation. 
H2C2O4 + 2H2O + 2NaOH = Na.2C2O4 + 4H2O 
Oxalic Acid. Sodium Hydrate. Sodium Oxalate. Water. 
125.7 2 X 39.96 
1000 Cc. (— V. S.) containing 62.85 Gm. of Oxalic Acid are equivalent to 39.96 Gm. 
1 of Sodium Hydrate. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.06285 Gm. of Oxalic Acid is equivalent to 
0.03996 Gm. of Sodium Hydrate. 
9 Cc. of the normal Oxalic Acid, V. S. = 9 X 0.03996 = 0.3576 + Gm. of So- 
dium Hydrate. 
That is, 0.4 Gm. of the Soda taken contains 0.3576 Gm. of pure substance, hence 
0.4 : 0.3576 — 100 : x; x — 89.4 per cent. 
(2) Decinormal Oxalic Acid Volumetric Solution. 
H2C2O4 + 2H2O = 125.7. 6.285 Gm* in 1 Liter. 
Dissolve 6.285 Gm.* of pure oxalic acid in enough water to 
make, at or near 15° 0. (59° F.), exactly 1000 Cc. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Oxalic Acid V. S. is the equivalent of:— 
Gramme. 
Oxalic Acid, crystallized, H2C2O4 + 2H2O 0.006285 
Ammonia Gas, NH3 0.001701 
Calcium Hydrate, Ca(OH)2 0.003691 
Potassium Hydrate, KOH 0.005599 
Potassium Permanganate, KMnO4 0.0031534 
Sodium Hydrate, NaOH 0.003996 
The decinormal solution is generally preferred to the normal, 
because the stronger solution has the tendency to crystallize 
at the point of the burette, in consequence of which particles 
of the solid matter are liable to drop into the solution to be 
assayed. 
* “ Generally rounded off to 6.3 Gm., when a delicate balance and exact weights are not available.” 422 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
ALKALIMETRY. 
Any of the normal or decinormal acid solutions may be em- 
ployed for estimating the strength of alkalies or alkaline solutions. 
The substance or fluid is quickly weighed, dissolved or mixed 
with the necessary volume of water, then a few drops of phenol- 
phtalein solution are added, or in presence of carbonates, methyl- 
orange solution, and the standard acid solution then added until 
the red color of the former just disappears or the yellow color of 
the latter changes to red. Great care must be employed not to 
add any more of the reagent than just necessary to produce or 
discharge a given color. 
Exercise.—50 Cc. of Solution of Lime (Lime Water), with phen- 
olphtalein as indicator, required 20 Cc. of decinormal oxalic 
acid V. S., for complete neutralization (sufficient to discharge the 
pink color). What percentage of Calcium Hydrate does the 
solution contain? 
According to the equation :— 
H2C2O4 + 2H2O + Ca(OH)2 = CaC2O4 + 4H2O 
Oxalic Acid. Calcium Hydrate. Calcium Oxalate. Water. 
125.7 73.83 
125.7 parts of Oxalic Acid are equivalent to 73.83 parts of Calcium Hydrate 
62.85 parts of Oxalic Acid are equivalent to 36 91 -j- parts of Calcium Hydrate. 
1000 Cc. (-2L V. S.) containing 6.285 Gm. of Oxalic Acid are equivalent to 
10 3.691 4- Gm. of Calcium Hydrate. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.006285 Gm. of Oxalic Acid is equivalent to 
0.003691 Gm. of Calcium Hydrate. 
20 Cc. of the decinormal Oxalic Acid, V. S. = 20 X 0.003691 + = 0.07382 + 
Gm. of Calcium Hydrate. 
That is, 0.07382 4- Gm. of Calcium Hydrate is contained in 50 Cc. (about 50 Gm.) 
of Solution of Lime, hence 50 : 0.0738 = 100 : x ; x — 0.14 per cent. 
True percentage by weight would require that the specific 
gravity of the solution be taken into consideration. In this 
case, where it is practically identical with that of water, it may 
be neglected. 
Inasmuch as sulphuric acid varies in strength, and the accurate 
weighing of quantities corresponding to definite amounts of 
absolute acid is next to impossible, the strength of a diluted acid 
is adjusted by means of a standard solution of potassium hydrate, 
which in turn owes its accuracy to having been standardized 
by oxalic acid (see Normal Potassium Hydrate V. S., page 426). 
The Pharmacopoeia gives the following directions:— 
(3) Normal Sulphuric Acid. 
H2SO4 = 97.82. 48.91 Gm. in 1 Liter. 
“ Carefully mix 30 Cc. of pure, concentrated sulphuric acid (of 
specific gravity 1.835) with enough water to make about 1050 Cc., 
and allow the liquid to cool to about 15° C. (59° F.). Place 10 
Cc. of this liquid (which is yet too concentrated) into a flask, add VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
423 
a few drops of phenolphtalein T. S., and afterwards, from a burette, 
normal potassium hydrate V. S., shaking after each addition, and 
regulating the flow to drops towards the end of the operation, 
until the red color produced by its influx no longer disappears on 
shaking, but is not deeper than pale pink. Note the number of 
Cc. of potassium hydrate V. S. consumed. Then dilute the sul- 
phuric acid solution so that equal volumes of this and of normal 
potassium hydrate V. S. exactly neutralize each other. 
Example.—Assuming that 10 Cc. of the acid solution first pre- 
pared had required exactly 11.2 Cc. of normal potassium hydrate 
V. S., each 10 Cc. of the former must be diluted to 11.2 Cc., or 
each 1000 Cc. to 1120 Cc. 
After the liquid is thus diluted, a new trial should be made in 
the manner above described, in which 50 Cc. of the acid solution 
should require for neutralization exactly 50 Cc. of potassium 
hydrate V. S. If necessary, a new adjustment should be made to 
render the correspondence perfect.” 
One Cubic Centimeter of Normal Sulphuric Acid is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Sulphuric Acid, absolute, H2SO4 0.04891 
Ammonia Gas, NH3 0.01701 
Ammonium Carbonate, (NH4)2CO3 0.042935 
Ammonium Carbonate [U. S. P.], NH4HCO3.NH4NH2CO2 . . 0.05226 
Lead Acetate, crystallized, Pb(C2H3O2)2 + 3H2O 0.18900 
Lead Subacetate, assumed as Pb2O(C2H3O2)2 0.13662 
Lithium Benzoate, LiC7H5O2 (to be ignited), 0.12772 
Lithium Carbonate, Li2CO3 0.036935 
Lithium Citrate, Li3C6H5O7 (to be ignited), 0.0698566 
Lithium Salicylate, LiC7H5O3 (to be ignited), 0.14368 
Potassium Acetate, KC2H3O2 (to be ignited), 0.09789 
Potassium Bicarbonate, KHCO3 0.09988 
Potassium Bitartrate, KHC4H4OB (to be ignited), 0.18767 
Potassium Carbonate, anhydrous, K2CO3 0.068955 
Potassium Citrate, cryst., K3C6H5O7 + H2O (to be ignited), . 0.10786 
Potassium Hydrate, KOH 0.05599 
Potassium and Sodium Tartrate, KNaC4H4O6 4~ 4H2O (to be 
ignited), 0.14075 
Sodium Acetate, NaC2H3O2 + 3H2O (to be ignited), 0.13574 
Sodium Benzoate, NaC7H5O2 (to be ignited), 0.14371 
Sodium Bicarbonate, NaHCO3 0.08385 
Sodium Borate, crystallized, N’a2B4O7 + 10H2O 0.19046 
Sodium Carbonate, anhydrous, Na2CO3 0.052925 
Sodium Carbonate, crystallized, Na2CO3 + 10H2O 0.142725 
Sodium Hydrate, NaOH 0.03996 
Strontium Lactate, Sr(C3H5O3)2 (to be ignited), 0.13244 
Exercise.—Exactly 1.7 Gm. of Stronger Ammonia Water was 
diluted with water, rosolic acid added as indicator, and normal 
solution of sulphuric acid added until the violet-red color gave 
way to yellow, 28 Cc. of the normal solution having been con- 
sumed. What is the percentage strength in ammonia gas? 
H2SO4 + 2NH3.H2O = (NH4)2SO4 + 2H2O 
Sulphuric Acid. Ammonia Water. Ammonium Water. 
97.82 2 X 17 Sulphate. 424 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
1000 Cc. (N V. S.) containing 48.91 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid are equvialent to 
1 17 Gm. of Ammonia Gas. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.04891 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to 
0.017 Gm. of Ammonia Gas. 
28 Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid V. S. = 28 X 0.017 = 0.476 Gm. Ammonia Gas. 
Since 1.7 Gm. of Ammonia Water has been taken, then 1.7 : 0.476 = 100 : x; 
x = 28 per cent. 
(6) Estimation of Alkali Carbonates. 
Exercise.—Let it be assumed that two samples of sodium bicar- 
bonate, each of 0.85 Gm. are to be assayed, to determine the per- 
centage of pure salt. 
Here it should be stated that two methods are available for 
assaying alkalies in presence of carbonic acid. One is the cold 
method, with methyl-orange as indicator, since this is not sensi- 
tive to carbonic acid. The other is the hot method, with phenol- 
phtalein as indicator, which will not strike a pink color with 
alkalies, until all the carbonic acid has been expelled by heat. 
Let it now also be assumed that we used the cold process, with 
methyl-orange, on one sample, and the hot process, with phenol- 
phtalein on the other, and that, in both cases, 10 Cc. of normal 
sulphuric acid were required to produce neutrality. 
(1) Cb/d Process.—The procedure is the same as in all solutions 
heretofore explained. 
H2SO4 + 2NaHCOs = Na2SO4 + CO2 + H2O 
Sulphuric Acid. Sodium Sodium Carbonic Water. 
97.82 Bicarbonate. Sulphate. Acid Gas. 
2 X 83.85 
1000 Cc. (— V. S.) containing 48.91 Gm of Sulphuric Acid are equivalent to 
1 83.85 Gm. of Sodium Bicarbonate. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.04891 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to 
0.08385 Gm. of Sodium Bicarbonate.. 
10 Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid, V. S. = 10 X 0.08385 = 0.835 + Gm. pure 
Sodium Bicarbonate. 
That is, 0.850 Gm. of the Sodium Bicarbonate taken contains 0.835 Gm. of pure 
substance, hence 0.850 : 0.835 = 100 : x ; x = 98.2 per cent. 
(2) Hot Process.—When phenolphtalein is used as indicator, 
the solution will have to be boiled after the addition of each in- 
stalment of the standard acid solution in order to expel the car- 
bonic acid. The end of the reaction is recognized from the fact 
that the red color produced by the indicator with alkalies ceases 
to reappear after several minutes boiling. 
(c) Estimation of Organic Salts of the Alkalies and Alkaline Earths. 
The organic salts of potassium, sodium, lithium, strontium, etc.; 
are examined by weighing out a small amount in a platinum or 
porcelain crucible, then heating slowly to redness (uncovered) until 
no further gases are given off and a charred mass remains. The 
crucible is allowed to cool, and its contents treated with boiling 
water and filtered into a flask or porcelain dish. The crucible is 
washed out with boiling water, and the washings passed through VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
425 
the filter, until the filtrate ceases to turn red litmus blue. To the 
filtrate, which should be clear, a sufficient amount of the indicator 
is added, and the alkali carbonate present estimated as directed 
above. This method is directed by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia to be 
carried out with Lithium Benzoate, Lithium Citrate, Lithium 
Salicylate, Potassium Acetate, Potassium Bitartrate, Potassium 
Citrate, Potassium et Sodium Tartrate, Sodium Acetate, Sodium 
Benzoate and Strontium Lactate. 
POTASSII BlTARTRAS. 
*2KHC4H4O6 = K2CO3 + 5C + 2CO2 + 5H2O 
Potassium Potassium Carbon. Carbonic Water. 
Bitartrate. Carbonate. Acid Gas. 
2 X 187.67 138 
h2so4 + k2co3 = k2so4 + co2 + h2o 
Sulphuric Potassium Potassium Carbonic Water. 
Acid. Carbonate. Sulphate. Acid Gas. 
97.82 138 
1000 Cc. — V. S. containing 48.91 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to 69 Gm. of 
Potassium Carbonate. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.04891 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to .069 Gm. 
of Potassium Carbonate. 
One molecule (138 parts) of Potassium Carbonate is obtained 
from two molecules (2 X 187.67 parts) of Potassium Bitartrate, 
hence one-half of a molecule (69 parts) of the former is obtained 
from one molecule (187.67 parts) of the latter. Then each 1 Cc. 
of normal Sulphuric Acid V. S. is equivalent to 0.069 Gm. Potas- 
sium Carbonate, which in turn represents 0.187 + Gm. Potassium 
Bitartrate. 
POTASSII ET Soon TARTRAS. 
t2(KNaC4H4O6 + 4H2O) = 2KNaCO3 + 5C + CO2 + 12H2O 
Rochelle Salt. Potassium Carbon. Carbonic Water. 
2 X 281.5 Sodium Acid Gas. 
Carbonate. 
2 X 122 
KNaCO3 + H2SO4 = KNaSO4 + CO2 + H2O 
Potassium Sulphuric Potassium Carbonic Water. 
Sodium Acid. Sodium Acid Gas. 
Carbonate. 97.82 Sulphate. 
122 
1000 Cc. (— V. S.) containing 48.91 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid are equivalent to 
61 Gm. of Potassium Carbonate. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.04891 Gm. of Sulphuric Acid is equivalent to 
0.061 Gm. Potassium Carbonate. 
One molecule (122 parts) of Potassium Sodium Carbonate is 
obtained from one molecule (281.5 parts) of Rochelle Salt. Then 
each 1 Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid V. S. is equivalent to 0.061 
Gm. Potassium Sodium Carbonate, which in turn represents 
0.1407 + Gm. of Rochelle Salts. 
* The reaction may also be written thus: 
2KHC4H406 + 5O2 = K2C03 + 7CO2 + 5H2O. 
f The reaction may also be written thus: 
2KNaC4H4O6.4H2O + 5O2 = 2KNaCO3 + 6CO2 + 12H2O 426 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Sodii Benzoas. 
2NaC7H5O2 + 5O2 = Na2CO3 + 5H2O + 3CO2 + 5C2 
Sodium Oxygen. Sodium Water. Carbonic Carbon. 
Benzoate. Carbonate. Acid Gas. 
2 X 143.71 138 
H2SO4 + Na2CO3 = Na2SO4 + CO2 + H2O 
97.82 138 
One Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid V. S. containing 0.04891 Gm. 
of Acid is equivalent to 0.069 Gm. of Sodium Carbonate. 
One molecule (138 parts) of Sodium Carbonate is obtained from 
two molecules (2 X 143.71 parts) of Sodium Benzoate, or one-half 
of a molecule (69 parts) of the former is equivalent to one mole- 
cule (143.71 parts) of the latter. 
Then 1 Cc. of normal Sulphuric Acid V. S. is equivalent to 
0.069 Gm. of Sodium Carbonate, which in turn represents 0.1437 
+ Gm. of Sodium Benzoate. 
(4) Normal Hydrochloric Acid Solution is made after the 
same principle and is in every respect equivalent, in neutralizing 
power, to normal Sulphuric Acid. It may be employed in all 
instances given under the latter. 
H2C2O4 + 2H2O = H2SO4 = 2HC1 
Oxalic Acid. Sulphuric Acid. Hydrochloric Acid. 
125.7 97.83 2 X 36.37 
1 L. of ~ V. S. containing 62.85 Gm. Oxalic Acid = 1 L. containing 48.91 Gm. of 
1 H2SO4. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.06285 Gm. Oxalic Acid = 1 Cc. containing 0.4891 Gm. 
N of H2SO4. 
1 L. of ' Sulphuric Acid = 1 L. containing 36.37 Gm. Hydrochloric Acid. 
lCc. ““ “ “ = 1 Cc. “ 0.03637 Gm. “ “ 
(5) Normal Potassium Hydrate Volumetric Solution. 
KOH — 55.99. 55.99 Gm.* in 1 Liter. 
“Dissolve 75 Gm. of potassium hydrate [Potassa, U. S. P.] in 
enough water to make, at or near 15° C. (59° F.), about 1050 Cc., 
and fill a burette with a portion of this liquid. 
Put 0.6285 Gm.f of pure oxalic acid into a flask of the capacity 
of about 100 Cc., and dissolve it with about 10 Cc. of water. 
Add a few drops of phenolphtalein T. S., and then carefully add, 
from the burette, the potassium hydrate solution, frequently 
agitating the flask, and regulating the flow to drops toward the 
end of the operation, until the red color produced by the influx 
no longer disappears on shaking, but is not deeper than pale pink. 
Note the number of Cc. of the potassium hydrate solution con- 
sumed, and then dilute the remainder of the solution so that 
exactly 10 Cc. of the diluted liquid shall be required to neutralize 
0.6285 Gm.f of oxalic acid. 
Example.—Assuming that 8.0 Cc. of the stronger solution of 
potassium hydrate first prepared had been consumed in the trial, 
* “ This figure is frequently rounded off to 56 Gm.” 
t This figure may be rounded off to 0.63 Gm., if a delicate balance and exact weights are not 
available. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
427 
then each 8.0 Cc. must be diluted to 10 Cc., or the whole of the 
remaining solution in the same proportion. Thus, if 1000 Cc. 
should be still remaining, this must be diluted with water to 
1250 Cc. 
After the liquid is thus diluted, a new trial should be made in the 
manner above described, in which 10 Cc. of the diluted solution 
should exactly neutralize 0.6285 Gm.* of oxalic acid. If necessary, 
a new adjustment should then be made to render the correspond- 
ence perfect. 
Note.—Solutions of caustic alkalies are very prone to absorb 
carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and thereby become liable 
to occasion errors when used witli litmus T. S. or phenolphtalein 
T. S. as indicators (methyl-orange T. S. is not affected by the 
presence of carbonic acid). Hence the volumetric solutions 
should be preserved in small vials provided with well-fitting 
corks or rubber stoppers, or, better still, they should have tubes 
filled with a mixture of soda and lime attached to their stoppers, 
so as to absorb the carbon dioxide and prevent its access to the 
solution. 
In place of potassium hydrate V. S., sodium hydrate V. S. may 
be used, in the same manner and in the same quantity. Potassium 
hydrate V. S., however, is preferable, since it foams less, and 
attacks glass more slowly and less energetically.” 
One Cubic Centimeter of Normal Potassium Hydrate V.S. is the equivalent of : 
Gramme. 
Potassium Hydrate, KOH 0.05599 
Sodium Hydrate, NaOH 0.03996 
Ammonia Gas, NH30.01701 
Ammonium Chloride, NH4C1 0.05338 
Acetic Acid, absolute, HC2HSO2 0.05986 
Citric Acid, crystallized, H3C6H5O7 -p H2O 0.06983 
Hydrobromic Acid, absolute, HBr 0.08076 
Hydrochloric Acid, absolute, HC1 0.03637 
Hydriodic Acid, absolute, HI 0.12753 
Hypophosphorous Acid, HPH2O2 0.06588 
Lactic Acid, absolute, HC3H5O3 0.08979 
Nitric Acid, absolute, HN03 0.06289 
Oxalic Acid, crystallized, H2C2O4 -p 2H2O 0.06285 
Phosphoric Acid, H3PO4 
(to form K2HPO4 ; with phenolphtalein), 0.0489 
Phosphoric Acid, H3PO4 
(to form KH2PO4; with methyl-orange), 0.0978 
Potassium Dichromate, K2Cr2O7 0.14689 
Sulphuric Acid, absolute, H2SO4 0.04891 
Tartaric Acid, crystallized, H2C4H4O6 0.07482 
ACIDIMETRY. 
The necessary amount of fluid (acid) should be weighed off in 
a fared and stoppered weighing flask, in order to avoid injury or 
corrosion of the balances. It is not always advisable to attempt 
♦This figure may be rounded off to 0.63 Gm., if a delicate balance and exact weights are not 
available. 428 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
to weigh off a definite amount of the fluid, as this is attended 
with considerable difficulty. It is better to measure a quantity of 
the fluid, by means of a pipette, into a flask and then weigh the 
amount. The amount of acid selected depends upon its strength. 
For this purpose the Pharmacopoeia tabulates a list of various 
acids, stating the amount to be taken. Any weight approxi- 
mately near that given may be selected. It is best to avoid taking 
large amounts of the acids, as this would result in the useless 
waste of a large volume of the standard alkali solution. 
After weighing off the acid, the contents of the weighing flask 
are carefully rinsed out into a beaker or other flask preparatory to 
titrating. Then a few drops of the indicator are added, and titra- 
tion carried out with normal alkali solution until the fluid turns 
faint rose red (with phenolphtalein), or blue (with litmus), or 
yellow (with methyl-orange), or faint violet red (with rosolic 
acid), etc. 
The following equations will explain the various equivalents of 
the acids. 
(a) KOH 4- HC1 = KC1 + H2O 
55.9 36.37 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.03637 Gm. of absolute 
Hydrochloric Acid. 
(&) KOH + HC2H3O2 = KC2H3O2 + H2O 
55.9 59.86 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.05986 Gm. of absolute 
A A 
(c) 2K0H + H2SO4 = K2SO4 + 2H2O 
2 X 55.9 97.82 
55.9 p. = 48.91 p. 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.04891 Gm. of absolute 
Sulphuric Acid. 
(d) 2K0H + H2C4H4O6 = K2C4H4O6 + 2H2O 
2 X 55.9 149.64 
55.9 p. = 74.82 p. 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.07482 Gm. of crys- 
tallized Tartaric Acid. 
(e) 3KOH + H3C6H5O7 + H2O = K3C6H5O7 + 4H2O 
3 X 55.9 209.5 
55.9 p. = 69.83 p. 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.06983 Gm. of crystal- 
lized Citric Acid. 
(/) 2K0H + H3PO4 = K2HPO4 + 2H2O 
2 X 55.9 97.8 
55.9 = 48.9 
In the case of phosphoric acid, with phenolphtalein as indi- 
cator, neutralization is attained when potassium orthophosphate 
(K2HPO4) is formed, which requires two molecules of alkali. 
0.G559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.0489 Gm. of Phos- 
phoric Acid. 
(y) KOH + H3PO4 = KH2PO4 + H2O 
55.9 97.8 
With methyl-orange as indicator, neutralization is attained VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
429 
when acid potassium phosphate (KH2PO4) is formed, which 
requires one molecule of alkali. 
0.0559 Gm. of Potassium Hydrate (1 Cc.) are equivalent to 0.0978 Gm. of Phos- 
phoric Acid. 
(6) Centinormal Potassium Hydrate V. S. containing 0.5599 
Gm. to the liter, or 0.0005599 Gm. to the cubic centimeter, is 
employed in conjunction with decinormal sulphuric acid V. S. 
(containing 0.004891 Gm. in the cubic centimeter) in the estima- 
tion of total alkaloids in Extract of Nux Vomica. 
N N 
10 Cc. Potassium Hydrate (0.005599 Gm.) is equivalent to ICc. Sulphuric 
Acid (0.004891 Gm.). 
Deci and centinormal solutions are employed for the determina- 
tion of minute quantities of acids or alkalies. Because of their 
great dilution, we are enabled to measure off volumes representing 
exceedingly small quantities of the actual reagent, which under 
ordinary circumstances, would be impossible with a burette of 
the usual graduations. Since the solutions are very dilute, an 
error of a tenth or fifth of a cubic centimeter would not affect the 
result, which would be the case, however, were we to employ a 
normal solution which is 100 times as strong. 
Standard Solution of Silver Nitrate. 
The U. S. Pharmacopoeia gives the following directions :— 
(7) Decinormal Silver Nitrate Volumetric Solution. 
AgNO3 = 169.55. 16.955 Gm.* in 1 Liter. 
Dissolve 16.955 Gm.* of pure silver nitrate in enough water to 
make, at or near 15° C. (59° F.), exactly 1000 Cc. 
Keep the solution in small, dark amber-colored, glass-stoppered 
vials, carefully protected from dust. 
Note.—Titration by decinormal silver nitrate V. S. may be 
managed in various ways, adapted to the special preparation to 
be tested. 
a. In most cases it is directed by the U. S. P. to be used in 
presence of a small quantity of potassium chromate T. S., which 
serves to indicate the end of the reaction by the appearance of the 
red color of silver chromate. 
b. In some cases (potassium cyanide, hydrocyanic acid) it is 
added until the first appearance of a permanent precipitate. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Silver Nitrate V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Silver Nitrate, AgNO3 0.016955 
Ammonium Bromide, NH4Br 0.009777 
Ammonium Chloride, NH4C1 0.005338 
Calcium Bromide, CaBr2 0.0099715 
Ferrous Bromide, FeBr2 0.010770 
Ferrous Iodide, Fel2 0.015447 
* “ Frequently rounded off to 16.96 Gm., when a delicate balance and exact weights are not available.” 430 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Gramme. 
Hydrocyanic Acid, absolute, HCN, with indicator, 0.002698 
Hydrocyanic Acid, absolute, HCN, to first formation of pre- 
cipitate, 0.005396 
Hydriodic Acid, HI 0.012753 
Hydrobromic Acid, HBr 0.008076 
Lithium Bromide, LiBr 0.008677 
Potassium Bromide, KBr0.011879 
Potassium Chloride, KC1 0.007440 
Potassium Cyanide, KCN with indicator, 0.006501 
Potassium Cyanide, KCN, to first formation of precipitate, . 0.013002 
Potassium Iodide, KI 0.016556 
Potassium Sulphocyanate, KSCN 0.009699 
Sodium Bromide, NaBr 0.010276 
Sodium Chloride, NaCl 0.005837 
Sodium Iodide, Nal 0.014953 
Strontium Bromide, SrBr2 (anhydrous), 0.012341 
Strontium Iodide, Sri, (anhydrous),0.017018 
Zinc Bromide, ZnBr2 0.011231 
Zinc Chloride, ZnCl2 0.006792 
Zinc Iodide, Znl2 0.015908 
Exercise.—An unknown quantity of pure sodium chloride was 
dissolved in water in a beaker, a few drops of potassium chromate 
were added to impart a yellow color, then the silver solution was 
slowly run in, under constant stirring, until the last drop caused 
the solution to turn permanently pale reddish (silver chromate); 
30 Cc. of silver solution were required. How much sodium 
chloride was present? 
(a) AgNO3 + NaCl = AgCl -f- NaNO3 
Silver Nitrate. Sodium Chloride. Silver Chloride. Sodium Nitrate. 
169.55 58.37 
1000 Cc. (fs V.S.) containing 16.955 Gm. of Silver Nitrate are equivalent to 
5.837 Gm. of Sodium Chloride. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.016955 “ of Silver Nitrate is equivalent to 
0.005837 Gm. of Sodium Chloride. 
30 Cc. Silver Nitrate = 30 X 0.005837 = 0.175-f- Gm. of Sodium Chloride. 
Potassium Bromide. 
(&) AgNO3 + KBr = AgBr + KN03 
169.55 118.8 
1000 Cc. (N V. S ) containing 16.955 Gm. Silver Nitrate are equivalent to 11.88 
10 Gm. Potassium Bromide. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.01695 Gm. Silver Nitrate is equivalent to 0.0118 
Gm. Potassium Bromide. 
Hence each cubic centimeter of the decinormal silver nitrate V. 
S. is equivalent to 0.01188 Gm. of Potassium Bromide. 
The other halogen salts are estimated in the same manner. 
The halogen acids (HI or HBr) must be first neutralized with an 
alkali (see Syrupus Acidi Hydriodici, page 278). 
Ferrous Iodide cannot be estimated directly like the above 
halogen salts, because the indicator, potassium chromate, reacts 
with the ferrous salt (see Syrupus Ferri lodidi, page 281); hence 
we have recourse to another method, known as Volhard’s, which 
is equally applicable to the estimation of all halogens. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
431 
(7) Volhard’s Method. 
This is applicable where the chromatic indicator cannot be used. 
It may also be used in the presence of nitric acid, thus enabling 
us to estimate chlorides in the presence of phosphoric or other acids 
which precipitate silver in neutral solution. The method depends 
upon entirely precipitating the halogen, in the presence of nitric 
acid, by a known excess of standard solution of silver, then esti- 
mating the excess of silver left uncombined with the halogen, by 
a standard solution of potassium (or ammonium) sulphocyanate,* 
using a drop or so of ferric ammonium sulphate as indicator. As 
soon as the sulphocyanate has precipitated all of the silver excess, 
it strikes a blood-red color with the ferric salt, due to the forma- 
tion of ferric sulphocyanate. The difference between the volume 
of standard silver solution originally added, and that of the 
sulphocyanate used, will give the number of cubic centimeters of 
silver equivalent to the chloride present. 
Estimation of Hydrocyanic Acid. 
(a) To First Formation of a Precipitate. 
The hydrocyanic acid is weighed off, diluted with water, and 
solution of sodium hydrate added until the liquid is strongly 
alkaline, as shown by litmus paper or solution. Then decinormal 
silver nitrate solution is slowly dropped in with constant agitation 
until a faint permanent cloud of silver cyanide (AgCN) is produced. 
If during the operation, the litmus becomes red, more of the so- 
dium hydrate must be added until the indicator shows a blue tint. 
The reaction is as follows:— 
2HCN -p 2NaOH = 2NaCN + 2H2O 
Hydrocyanic Acid. Sodium Hydrate. Sodium Cyanide. Water. 
2 X 26.98 2 X <9 
The sodium hydrate is added, to prevent the liberation of free 
nitric acid which would prevent the silver cyanide from pre- 
cipitating :— 
2NaCN 4- AgNO3 = AgCN.NaCN + NaNOs 
Sodium Cyanide. Silver Nitrate. Double Cyanide of Silver Sodium Nitrate. 
2 X 49 169.55 and Sodium. 
Two molecules of Hydrocyanic Acid (53.96 parts) are equivalent to one molecule of 
Silver Nitrate (169.55 parts). 
Or 5.396 parts of Hydrocyanic Acid are equivalent to 16.955 parts of Silver Nitrate. 
0r0.005396 “ “ “ “ “ “ 0.016955 “ “ “ 
Therefore 1 Cc. of Silver Nitrate V. S. (containing 0.016955 Gm. of the salt) 
is equivalent to 0.005396 Gm. of Hydrocyanic Acid. 
* KSCN + AgNO3 = AgSCN + KNO3 
Potassium Silver Silver Potassium 
Sulphocvanate. Nitrate. Sulphocyanate. Nitrate. 
96.99 169.55 
N 
Potassium Sulphocyanate, 9.699 Gm. = 16.955 Gm. (1000 Cc. — V. S.) Silver Nitrate. 
'* “ 0.009699 Gm. = 0.016955 Gm. (1 Cc. V. S.) “ “ 
Then 1 Cc. of the Sulphocyanate solution (containing 0.009699 Gm. of the salt) is equivalent to 1 Cc. 
of the Silver Nitrate Solution (containing 0.016955 Gm. of the salt). 432 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
(6) Estimation with Indicator. 
The Pharmacopoeia directs that sufficient magnesia paste be 
added to the weighed and diluted acid to impart an opaque milk- 
iness to the liquid. This serves to neutralize the acid as well as 
to afford a better opportunity to distinguish the red color (silver 
chromate) which indicates the end point of the reaction, potassium 
chromate being the indicator. 
The reaction is the same as in the preceding:—* 
2NaCN 4- AgNOs = AgCN.NaCN + NaNO3 
Sodium Cyanide. Silver Nitrate. Double Cyanide of Silver Sodium Nitrate, 
and Sodium. 
AgCN.NaCN 4- AgNO3 = 2AgCN + NaNO3 
2NaCN or 2HCN are then equivalent to 2AgNO3 
2 X 49 2 X 26.98 2 X 169.55 
49 parts of Sodium Cyanide or 26.98 parts of Hydrocyanic acid are equivalent 
to 169.55 parts of Silver Nitrate. 
or 4.9 parts of Sodium Cyanide or 2.698 parts of Hydrocyanic acid are equivalent 
to 16.955 parts of Silver Nitrate. 
AT 
1000 Cc. of — silver solution containing 16.955 Gm. AgNO3 
are equivalent to 4.9 Gm. of sodium cyanide, which is equivalent 
to 2.698 Gm. of hydrocyanic acid. Therefore 1 Cc. of — silver 
solution (0.016955 Gm. of the salt) is equivalent to 0.002698 Gm. 
of hydrocyanic acid. 
Potassium Cyanide is estimated in the same manner and sub- 
jected to the same reactions as given above. 
(8) Decinormal Iodine Volumetric Solution. 
I — 126.53 12.653 Gm.f in 1 Liter. 
Dissolve 12.653 Gm. of pure iodine in a solution of 18 Gm. of 
pure potassium iodide in 300 Cc. of water; then add enough water 
to make the solution measure, at or near 15° C. (59° C.), exactly 
1000 Cc. 
The potassium iodide plays the part of a solvent for the iodine. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Iodine V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Iodine, I 0.012653 
Arsenic Trioxide (arsenous acid), As.2O3 0.004942 
Potassium Sulphite, crystallized, K2SO3 + 2H2O 0.009692 
Sodium Bisulphite, NaHSO30.005193 
Sodium Hyposulphite (Thiosulphite) crystals, Na2S2O3-|- 
5H2O 0.024764 
Sodium sulphite, crystallized, Na2SO3 4- 7H2O 0.012579 
Sulphur Dioxide, SO20.003195 
Antimony and Potassium Tartrate, crystals, 2K(SbO)C4H4O6- 
+ H2O 0.01656. 
*For the sake of uniformity and clearness sodium is retained in the explanatory formula instead 
of magnesium. 
fMay be rounded off to 12.65 Gm. VOL UMETRIC ANA LYSIS. 
433 
(a) Estimation of Arsenous Oxide. 
The arsenous oxide is weighed off and dissolved in boiling 
water with the aid of sodium bicarbonate. The solution is al- 
lowed to cool, some starch paste added, and iodine solution run in 
until a faint, permanently blue color is obtained. The addition 
of iodine to arsenous acid in alkaline solution causes its oxidation 
to arsenic acid, the iodine being thereby converted into hy- 
driodic acid, with disappearance of color. As soon as all of the 
arsenous acid is oxidized to arsenic acid, the next drop of iodine 
(being free) will strike a blue color with the starch. 
The excess of sodium bicarbonate serves the purpose of com- 
bining with the liberated hydriodic acid, which, if present in free 
condition, would interfere with the reaction:— 
As2O3 4- 41 + 4NaHCO3 — As.2O5 + 4NaI + 4CO2 + 2H2O 
Arsenous Iodine. Sodium Arsenic Sodium Carbonic Water. 
Oxide. 4 X 126.5 Bicarbonate. Oxide. Iodide. Acid Gas. 
197.68 
Since four molecules of iodine (4 X 126.5) are necessary to 
oxidize one molecule (197.68) of arsenous to arsenic oxide, hence, 
one atom of iodine is equivalent to one-fourth of a molecule of 
arsenous oxide:— Iodine. Arsenous Oxide. 
126.5 p., 49.42 p. 
1000 Cc. ~ V. S. containing12.65 Gm., 4.942 Gm. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.01265 Gin., 0.004942 Gm. 
Therefore each Cc. of Iodine Solution is equivalent to 0.004942 Gm. Arsenous 
Oxide. 
(6) Estimation of Sulphurous Acid, Free and in Sulphites. 
The acid or sulphite is largely diluted with water, starch paste 
added, then iodine solution added until a faint permanent blue 
appears. The sulphurous oxide or sulphite undergoes oxidation 
to sulphuric acid or to sulphate, and the iodine is thereby con- 
verted into hydriodic acid according to the equation :— 
I2 4- H2O 4- SO2.H2O = H2SO4 4- 2HI 
Iodine. Water. Sulphurous Acid. Sulphuric Hydriodic 
2 X 126.5 63.90 (SO2) Acid. Acid. 
126.5 parts are equivalent to . . 31.95 parts. 
1000 Cc. V. S. containing 12.65 Gm. Iodine are equivalent to 3.195 Gm. of Sul 
ph urous Oxide. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.01265 Gm. Iodine is equivalent to 0.003195 Gm. of 
Sulphurous Oxide. 
(c) Estimation of Hyposulphites {Thiosulphates'). 
The equation is as follows:— 
21 4- 2(Na2S2O3.5H2O) = 2NaI 4- NaAOg 4- 10H2O 
Iodine. Sodium Hyposulphite. Sodium Sodium Water. 
2 X 126.5 2 X 247.64 Iodine. Tetrathionate. 
126.5 parts are 
equivalent to 247.64 parts. 
1000 Cc. ~ V. S. containing 12.65 Gm. Iodine are equivalent to 24.764 Gm. of 
Sodium Hyposulphite. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.01265 Gm. Iodine is equivalent to 0.024764 Gm. 
of Sodium Hyposulphite. 434 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
(9) Decinormal Sodium Hyposulphite Volumetric Solution. 
Na2S2O3 + 5H2O = 247.64. 24.764 Gm. in 1 Liter. 
This solution is standardized by means of decinormal iodine 
V. S. 
“ Dissolve 30 Gm. of selected crystals of sodium hyposulphite 
(sodium thiosulphate) in enough water to make, at or near 15° C. 
(59° F.), 1100 Cc. Of this solution transfer 10 Cc. into a flask, 
add a few drops of starch T. S., and then gradually add, from a 
burette, decinormal iodine V. S., in small portions at a time, 
shaking the flask after each addition, and regulating the flow to 
drops toward the end of the operation. As soon as the color 
produced by the influx of the iodine solution no longer dis- 
appears on shaking, but is not deeper than very pale blue, note 
the number of Cc. of the iodine solution consumed. Then dilute 
the sodium hyposulphite solution so that equal volumes of it and 
of decinormal iodine V. S. will exactly correspond to each other 
under the conditions mentioned above. 
Example.—Assuming that 10 Cc. of the stronger sodium hypo- 
sulphite solution first prepared had required 10.7 Cc. of deci- 
normal iodine V. S. to produce a faint reaction with starch, the 
hyposulphite solution must be diluted in the proportion of 10 Cc. 
to 10.7 Cc., or 1000 Cc. to 1070 Cc. 
After the solution is thus diluted, a new trial should be made 
in the manner above described, in which 50 Cc. of the decinormal 
sodium hyposulphite V. S. should require exactly 50 Cc. of deci- 
normal iodineV. S. to produce a faint reaction with starch. If 
necessary, a new adjustment should then be made to render the 
correspondence perfect. 
Keep the solution in small, dark amber-colored, glass-stoppered 
bottles, carefully protected from dust. 
Note.—When this solution is to be used, fill a burette with it, 
place the liquid to be tested either for the free iodine it already 
contains, or for that which it liberates from an excess of potassium 
iodide added to it, into a flask, and gradually add small portions 
of the solution from the burette, shaking after each addition, and 
regulating the flow to drops towards the end of the operation, 
until the brown color of the iodine has nearly disappeared. Now 
add a few drops of starch T. S., which will produce a blue color, 
and then continue to add the hyposulphite solution in drops 
until the blue tint is exactly discharged.” 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Sodium Hyposulphite V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Sodium Hyposulphite (Thiosulphate), Na2S2O3-|-5H2O . . 0.024764 
Bromine, Br 0.007976 
Chlorine, Cl 0.003537 
Iodine, I 0.012653 
Iron, Fe, in ferric salts, 0.005588 VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
435 
(a) Estimation of Free Iodine. 
A quantity of Iodine is weighed off, and by aid of potassium 
iodide dissolved in water. Then the hyposulphite solution is 
added, under constant stirring, until the solution has paled to a 
yellowish tint. A little starch paste is now added, and the addi- 
tion of the hyposulphite continued in drops until the blue color 
just disappears. 
Then according to the equation:— 
2(Na2S2O3.5H2O) + 21 = 2NaI + Na.2S4O6 + 10H2O 
Sodium Hyposulphite. Iodine. Sodium Sodium Water. 
2 x 247.64 2 X 126.5 Iodide. Tetrathionate. 
247.64 parts are equivalent to 126.5 parts. 
1000 Cc. X V. S. containing 24.764 Gm. Sodium Hyposulphite are equivalent to 
12.65 Gm. Iodine. 
1 Cc. “ “ “ 0.024764 Gm. Sodium Hyposulphite is equivalent to 
0.01265 Gm. Iodine. 
(6) Estimation of Free Chlorine or Bromine. 
This process is adapted to all substances containing free Chlo- 
rine or Bromine. (See also, Aqua Chlori, page 223.) The sub- 
stance is weighed off and added to water containing a slight excess 
of potassium iodide, whereupon either the chlorine or bromine 
liberates an equivalent quantity of iodine from the potassium 
iodide, which in turn is estimated by means of the hyposulphite 
solution as directed above:— 
2C1 + 2KI = 2KC1 -f- 21 
Chlorine. Potassium Potassium Iodine. 
2 X 35.37 Iodide. Chloride. 2 X 126.5 
35.37 parts of Cl are equivalent to126.5 parts of I. 
3.537 “ “ “ “ “ “12.65 “ “ “ 
0 003537 “ “ “ “ “ “ 0.01265 “ “ “ 
Since 1 Cc. of decinormal Sodium Hyposulphite solution 
(0.024764 Gm. of the salt) is equivalent to 0.01265 Gm. of iodine, 
and as this is equivalent to 0.003537 Gm. of Chlorine, hence 1 Cc. 
of decinormal sodium hyposulphite solution is equivalent to 
0.003537 Gm. of Chlorine. 
On this same principle 1 Cc. of decinormal Sodium Hyposul- 
phite solution is equivalent to 0.007976 Gm. of bromine, for— 
2Br -I- 2KI = 2KBr + 21 
Bromine. Potassium Potassium Iodine. 
2 X 79.76 Iodide. Bromide. 2 X 126.5 
79.76 parts of Br. are equivalent to126.5 parts of Iodine. 
0.007976 “ “ “ “ 0.01265 " “ 
(c) Estimation of Iron in Ferric Salts. 
A suitable quantity of the iron salt or solution is weighed off 
and added to water contained in a glass stoppered bottle. To 
this is added some hydrochloric acid and an excess of potassium 
iodide (which must be absolutely free from iodate). The mixture 
is kept for half an hour at a temperature of 40° C., then cooled, 
and mixed with a few drops of starch T. S. Decinormal solution 436 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
of sodium hyposulphite is then run in till the blue color of the 
solution is discharged. 
The ferric chloride causes the liberation of an amount of 
iodine equivalent to the amount of metallic iron present. The 
ferric is reduced to ferrous chloride. The hydrochloric acid added 
serves to prevent the solution of the iodine by the excess of 
potassium iodide present. The reaction is as follows:— 
Fe2Cl6 + 2KI = 2FeCl2 + 2KC1 + 21 
Ferric Potassium Ferrous Potassium Iodine. 
Chloride. Iodide. Chloride. Chloride. 2 X 126.5 
2 X 55-8 (Fe) 
55.8 parts of Metallic Iron are equivalent to126.5 parts of Iodine. 
0.00558 “ “ “ “ “ “ 0.01265 
Since, according to the equation c(page 433), 1 Cc. of decinormal 
hyposulphite solution (containing 0.02476 Gm. of the salt) is 
equivalent to 1 Cc. of decinormal iodine solution (0.01265 Gm.), 
and as this is equivalent to 0.00558 Gm. metallic iron, hence 1 
Cc. of the hyposulphite solution is equivalent to 0.00558 Gm. of 
metallic iron. 
(10) Decinormal Potassium Dichromate Volumetric Solu- 
tion. 
K2Cr2O7 = 293.78. 4.896 Gm.* in 1 Liter. 
Dissolve 4.896 Gm.* of pure potassium dichromate (see below) 
in enough water to make, at or near 15° C. (59° F.), exactly 1000 
Cc. 
If the potassium bichromate is pure,f it is directly dissolved as 
above indicated. If not, it may be standardized by making an 
estimation upon 0.5 Gm. of pure iron (piano) wire, dissolved in 
dilute sulphuric acid, as described on page 437 equation a. 
When used with phenolphtalein as indicator, to neutralize 
alkalies, the volumetric solution of potassium dichromate is deci- 
normal when it contains 14.689 Gm. in 1 liter. It is then the 
exact equivalent of any decinormal acid, corresponding to the 
amounts of alkalies quoted, for instance, under Decinormal Oxalic 
Acid V. S. 
The dichromate is equivalent to two molecules of hydrochloric 
acid; thus:— 
K2Cr2O7 + 2HC1 = 2KC1 + 2CrO3 + H2O 
Hence 1 molecule of the acid is equivalent to | molecule of the 
bichromate (K2C2O7 = 146.89). The decinormal solution, there- 
fore, is made to contain but 14.689 Gm. 
When used as an oxidizing agent to convert ferrous into ferric 
salts, or to liberate iodine from potassium iodide, the solution just 
* “ Generally rounded off to 4.9 Gm., when a delicate balance and exact weights are not available.” 
f The Pharmacopoeia specifies that. Pure Potassium Dichromate for use in volumetric analysis, 
besides responding to the tests given in the text of the Pharmacopoeia (under Potassii Bichromas), 
must conform to the following tests. In a solution of 0.5 Gm. of the salt in 10 Cc. of water rendered 
acid by 0.5 Cc. of nitric acid, no visible change should be produced either by barium chloride T. S. 
(absence of sulphate), or by silver nitrate T. S. (absence of chloride). In a mixture of 10 Cc. of the 
aqueous solution (1 in 20) with 1 Cc. of ammonia water, no precipitate should be produced by ammo- 
nium oxalate T. S. (absence of calcium). VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
437 
mentioned (containing 14.689 Gm. in 1 liter) has the effect of a 
— volumetric solution, and a solution of one-third of this strength, 
containing 4.896 Gm. in 1 liter, has the value of a decinormal 
solution. 
Upon heating 1 molecule of the bichromate with an acid 
(H2SO4), three atoms of nascent oxygen are liberated. Thus :— 
K2Cr2O7 + 4H2SO4 = K2SO4 + Cr2(SO4)3 + 4H2O + O3 
These three atoms of oxygen possess the power to convert six 
atoms of iron from the ferrous to the ferric state, according to the 
equation— 
6FeO 4- O3 = 3Fe2O3 
Therefore each molecule of the dichromate, yielding three atoms 
of oxygen, is equivalent to six atoms of hydrogen. Hence, accord- 
ing to the principle expressed on page 413, we take | of the 
molecular weight of a decinormal solution of the bichromate (| 
of 29.378 — 4.896), thereby reducing it to the valency correspond- 
ing to one atom of replaceable hydrogen. 
As a decinormal solution, it is the equivalent of an equal 
volume of decinormal potassium permanganate V. S., or, in the 
case of iodine liberated from potassium iodide, it is the equiva- 
lent of an equal volume of decinormal sodium hyposulphite V. S. 
For titrating iron in ferrous compounds, it is used in the following 
manner: Introduce the aqueous solution of the ferrous salt into 
a flask and, if it is not already acid, render it so with sulphuric 
acid. Now add, gradually, decinormal potassium dichromate 
V. S. from a burette, until a drop taken out upon a white surface 
no longer shows a blue color with a drop of freshly prepared 
potassium ferricyanide T. S. 
Decinormal potassium dichromate V. S. may also be used, in 
conjunction with potassium iodide (from which it liberates iodine) 
and sulphuric acid, for adjustingthe titer of sodium hyposulphite 
(thiosulphate) V. S. and, by its means, that of the iodine V. S. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Potassium Dichromate V. S. is the equivalent of : 
Gramme. 
Potassium Dichromate, K2Cr2O7 0.0048963 
Iron, in ferrous compounds, 0.005588 
Ferrous Carbonate, FeCO3 0.011573 
Ferrous Sulphate, anhydrous, FeSO40.015170 
Ferrous Sulphate, crystallized, FeSO4 + 7H2O 0.027742 
Ferrous Sulphate, dried, 2FeSO4 + 2H2O 0.017864 
Potassium Hydrate, KOH 0.001866 
Sodium Hyposulphite (Thiosulphate), Na2S2O3 + 5H2O . . 0.024764 
Estimation of Metallic Iron and Ferrous Salts. 
(a) Metallic Iron.—Any definite amount of iron (about 0.5 
Gm.) is weighed off (if it is intended for standardizing, piano wire 
should be selected), then dissolved by the aid of heat in dilute sul- 438 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
phuric acid, in a flask with a close fitting cork, through which 
passes a short glass tube, which is fitted into a rubber tube closed at 
the other extremity, and in the side of which an incision is made 
which will allow steam and hydrogen gas to pass out, but will 
prevent the air from passing in. When the iron is dissolved, the 
solution is titrated directly in the flask, or rinsed out into a 
beaker. The titration is carried out as directed in the preceding 
paragraph. The failure of the ferricyanide solution to produce a 
blue color with the resulting mixture indicates that the oxidation 
of the ferrous to the ferric condition is complete. 
The first half of the operation embraces the solution of the 
metallic iron, yielding ferrous sulphate, the operation being per- 
formed under conditions which obviate any possible formation of 
ferric salts resulting from contact with air :— 
6Fe + 6H2SO4 = 6FeSO4 + 3H2 
6 X 55.88 6 X 151.7 
The following reaction illustrates the oxidation of the ferrous 
to ferric salt:— 
6FeSO4 + K2Cr2O7 + 7H2SO4 = 3Fe2(SO4)3 + K2SO4 + 
Ferrous Potassium Sulphuric Ferric Potassium 
Sulphate. Dichromate. Acid. Sulphate. Sulphate. 
910.2 293.78 
Cr2(SO4)3 + 7H2O 
Chromium Sulphate. Water. 
Hence— 
K2Cr2O7 = 6FeSO4 = 6Fe 
293.78 6 X 151.7 6 X 55.88 
48.96 parts = 151.7 parts = 55.88 parts. 
1000 Cc. N V. S. containing 4.896 Gm. dichromate =15.17 Gm. ferrous sulphate = 
10 5.588 Gm. metallic iron. 
lCc. “ “ 0.004896 Gm. dichromate = 0.01517 Gm. ferrous sul- 
phate = 0.005588 metallic iron. 
(6) C'ystallized Ferrous Sulphate. 
The weighed amount of salt is dissolved in water containing 
dilute sulphuric acid and titrated as directed above. 
K2Cr2O7 4- 6 FeSO4.7H2O + 7H2SO4 = 3Fe2(SO4)3 + K2SO4 + Cr2(SO4)3 + 14H2O 
293.78 6 X 277.42 
293.78 parts of K»Cr»O7are necessary for the oxidation of 6 X 277.42 parts of ferrous sulphate. 
48.96 “ “' “ “ “ “ “ 277.42 “ “ “ “ 
1000 Cc. V. S. containing 0.004896 Gm. of K2Cr2O7 are necessary for the oxidation 
of 0.027742 Gm. of crystallized ferrous sulphate. 
(c) Ferri Carbonas Saccharatus. 
K2Cr2O7 + 6FeSO3 + 7H2SO4 = 3Fe.2(SO4)3 + K2SO4 + Cr2(SO4)3 + 7H2O 
293.78 6 X 115.73 
293.78 parts of K2Cr2O8 are necessary for the oxidation of 6 X 115.73 parts of ferrous carbonate. 
48.96 “ ' “ “ “ 115.73 “ “ “ 
Then 1 Cc. of the dichromate solution (or 0.004896 Gm. of the 
salt) is equivalent to 0.011573 Gm. of ferrous carbonate. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
439 
(d) Potassium Iodide and Sodium Hyposulphite. 
K2Cr2O7 + 6KI + 7H2SO4 = 4K2SO4 + Cr2(SO4)3 + 3I2 
293.78 6 X 126.6 
48.96 parts are capable of liberating126.6 parts 
1000 Cc. containing 4.896 Gm. of - Dichromate V. S. are equivalent to 12.66 Gm. of 
10 Iodine. 
1 Cc. “ 0.004896 “ “ “ “ is equivalent to 0.01266Gm. 
of Iodine, or 0.02476 Gm. of Sodium Hyposulphite (1 Cc.). 
(11) Decinormal Potassium Permanganate Volumetric So- 
lution. 
2KMnO4 = 315.34. 3.1534 Gnt* in 1 Liter. 
For the estimation of Iron, this solution is far more satisfac- 
tory than the decinormal dichromate solution, since the end point 
of the reaction is readily distinguished, and does not require the 
use of reagents, as is the case in the latter. 
Two molecules of potassium permanganate (2KMnO4) in oxida- 
tion give off five atoms of oxygen, which oxidizes the ferrous of 
10 atoms of metallic iron to ferric condition, thus:— 
2KMuO4 + lOFeO = 5Fe2O3 + 2MnO + K2O 
Potassium Ferrous Ferric Manganous Potassium 
Permanganate. Oxide. Oxide. Oxide. Oxide. 
315.34 
molecule KMnO4 yield T molecule of oxygen, or molecule 
KMnO4 yields molecule of oxygen. 
But h molecule of oxygen — 1 atom of hydrogen. 
Hence of the molecular weight of KMnO4 or of the mole- 
cular weight of 2KMnO4 is equivalent to one atom of hydrogen ; 
hence the normal solution of potassium permanganate should 
contain (2KMnO4) — 31.534 Gm. of salt. 
If the normal solution contains 31.534 Gm., then the decinormal 
solution must contain of this, or 3.1534 Gm. in the Liter. 
The next step is to prepare the solution. This cannot be done 
directly, by weighing out 3.1534 Gm. of the salt, partly because 
the salt is but rarely absolutely pure, and partly because any 
oxidizable matters in the water used for solution would consume 
some of the salt. The adjustment must, therefore, be made 
indirectly by means of either Oxalic Acid or Iron. In order to 
do this, a solution of approximate strength is first prepared. 
The Pharmacopoeia gives the following directions:— 
“ I. Place 3.5 Gm. of pure, crystallized potassium permanganate 
in a flask, add 1000 Cc. of boiling water, and boil until the crys- 
tals are dissolved. Close the flask, and set it aside for two days, 
so that any suspended matters may deposit. This is the stronger 
solution. Prepare another, weaker solution, in the same manner, 
using 6.6 Gm. of the salt and 2200 Cc. of water, and set this also 
aside for two days. After the lapse of this time, pour off the clear 
* This quantity is never directly weighed, but adjusted either by Oxalic Acid or by Iron ; in cal- 
culations it is often abbreviated. 440 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
portion of each solution into separate vessels provided with glass 
stoppers, and then proceed to test each separately.” 
This solution is standardized by means of oxalic acid, the deci- 
normal volumetric solution being employed. The reaction pro- 
ceeds thus:— 
2KMnO4 + 5(H2C2O4 + 2H2O) + 3H2SO4 = K2SO4 + 2MnSO4 + 10CO2 
Potassium Oxalic Acid. Sulphuric Potassium Manganese Carbonic 
Permanganate. 628.5 Acid. Sulphate. Sulphate. Acid Gas. 
315.3 
+ 8H2O 
Water. 
1000 Cc. of the decinormal V. S. should contain 3.153 Gm. permanganate = 6.285 
Gm. oxalic acid. 
1 Cc. of the decinormal V. S. should contain 0.003153 Gm. permanganate = 
0.006285 Gm. oxalic acid. 
Hence the 10 Cc. of the decinormal acid solution containing 
0.06285 Gm. of oxalic acid will be equivalent to 0.03153 Gm. of 
potassium permanganate. Sulphuric acid is employed in all 
reactions with permanganate, in order to dissolve the separated 
brown manganic hydrate and to convert it into manganic sul- 
phate, which does not impart a color to the liquid. The pres- 
ence of the suspended brown precipitate of manganic hydrate 
would render it next to impossible to recognize the end of the 
reaction. 
“Introduce into a flask 10 Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S., 
add 1 Cc. of pure, concentrated sulphuric acid, and, before this 
mixture cools, gradually add from a burette small quantities of 
the weaker permanganate solution, shaking the flask after each 
addition and reducing the flow to drops toward the end of the 
operation. When the last drop of the permanganate solution 
added is no longer decolorized but imparts a pinkish tint to the 
liquid, note the number of Cc. consumed. In the same manner 
ascertain the titer of the stronger solution, and likewise note 
down the number of Cc. of the latter consumed. Finally mix 
the two solutions in such proportions that 50 Cc. of the mixture 
will exactly correspond to an equal volume of decinormal oxalic 
acid V. S. 
Note.—To obtain the accurate proportions for mixing the two 
solutions, deduct 10 from the number of Cc. of the weaker solu- 
tion required to decompose 10 Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S. 
With this difference multiply the number of Cc. of the stronger 
solution required for the same purpose. The product shows the 
number of Cc. of the stronger solution needed for the mixture. 
Next deduct the number of Cc. of the stronger solution required 
to decompose 10 Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S. from 10, and 
with the difference multiply the number ofCc. of the weaker solu- 
tion required for the same purpose. The product shows the 
number of Cc. of the weaker solution needed for the mixture. 
Or, designating by S the number of Cc. of the stronger solution 
and by W the number of Cc. of the weaker solution required to VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
441 
decompose 10 Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S., the following- 
formula will give the proportions in which the solutions must be 
mixed :— 
Stronger Solution. Weaker Solution. 
(W—10)S + (10—S)W 
Example.—Assuming that 9 Cc. of the stronger (S) and 10.5 of 
the weaker (W) solution had been required, then substituting 
these values in the above given formula, we obtain:— 
Stronger Solution. Weaker Solution. 
(10.5—10)9 + (10—9) 10.5 
or, 4.5. -j- or, 10.5 
making 15 Cc. of final solution. 
The bulk of the two solutions is now mixed in the same pro- 
portion 450 Cc. of the stronger and 1050 Cc. of the weaker, or 
900 Cc. of the stronger and 2100 Cc. of the weaker solution. 
After the mixture is thus prepared, a new trial should be 
made, when 10 Cc. of the solution should exactly decompose 
10 “ Cc. of the decinormal oxalic acid V. S. If necessary, a 
new adjustment should be made to render the correspondence 
perfect. 
This solution should be kept in small, dark amber-colored and 
glass-stoppered bottles (or in bottles provided -with tubes, especially 
designed for the purpose). Thus prepared, this solution will hold 
its titer for months; yet it should be tested occasionally, and, 
when it is found reduced, the liquid should be brought back 
to normal strength by the addition of such an amount of the 
stronger solution as may be determined in the manner above 
described. 
II. When potassium permanganate V. S. is to be prepared for 
immediate use, this may be done in the following manner. Dis- 
solve 3.5 Gm. of pure, crystallized potassium permanganate in 
1000 Cc. of pure water, recently boiled and cooled. Introduce 10 
Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S. into a beaker, add 1 Cc. of 
pure, concentrated sulphuric acid, and proceed as directed above 
for the weaker permanganate solution. Note the number of Cc. of 
the solution consumed, and then dilute the remainder with pure 
water recently boiled and cooled, until 50 Cc. will exactly corres- 
pond to 50 Cc. of decinormal oxalic acid V. S. 
Example.—Assuming that 9.1 Cc. of the Permanganate solu- 
tion first prepared had been required to produce a permanent 
pink tint, then every 9.1 Cc. of the solution must be diluted to 
10 Cc., or the whole of the remaining solution in the same 
proportion. A new trial should then be made to verify the 
agreement. 
Note.—Potassium permanganate V. S. thus prepared is liable to 
deteriorate more readily and quickly than that prepared by the 
method first given (under I.). It cannot be safely trusted without 
verification, each time it is to be used.” 442 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Potassium Permanganate V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Potassium Permanganate, KMnO4 0.0031534 
Barium Dioxide, BaO2 0.008441 
Calcium Hypophosphite, Ca(PH2O2)2 0.0021209 
Ferric Hypophosphite, Fe2(PH2O2)6 0.0020877 
Iron, in ferrous compounds, Fe 0.005588 
Ferrous Carbonate, FeCO30.011573 
Ferrous Oxide, FeO 0.007195 
Ferrous Sulphate, anhydrous, FeSO40.015170 
Ferrous Sulphate, crystals, FeSO4+ 7H2O 0 027742 
Ferrous Sulphate, dried, 2FeSO4 4-3H2O 0.017864 
Hydrogen Dioxide, H2O2 0.001696 
Hypophosphorous Acid, HPH2O20.001647 
Oxalic Acid, crystallized, H2C2O4 + 2H2O6 0.006285 
Oxygen, O 0.000798 
Potassium Hypophosphite, KPH2O2 0.002598 
Sodium Hypophosphite, NaPH2O2 + H2O 0.002646 
(а) Estimation of Hydrogen Dioxide. 
A weighed quantity of the solution, diluted with water, is ren- 
dered decidedly acid with sulphuric acid, and decinormal per- 
manganate solution is run in until the liquid retains a faint pink 
tint after being stirred. 
The reaction proceeds thus:— 
2KMnO4 4 5H2O2 4- 3H2SO4 = 5O2 + 8H2O 4- K2SO4 4- 2MnSO4 
315.2 169.6 
N 
1000 Cc. of r- V. S. containing 3.152 Gm. of permanganate correspond to 1.696 Gm. 
of Hydrogen Peroxide. 
1 Cc. “ “ 0.003152 Gm. of permanganate correspond to 0-001696 
Gm. of Hydrogen Peroxide. 
Barium Dioxide, is estimated in the same manner, its oxygen 
being, however, first converted into hydrogen peroxide by reaction 
with phosphoric acid, thus:— 
3BaO2 4- 2H3PO4 = Bas(PO4)2 + 3H2O2 
Barium Dioxide. Phosphoric Acid. Barium Phosphate. Hydrogen Peroxide. 
3 X 168.8 3 X 33.92 
Each 506.4 parts of Barium Dioxide yield theoretically 101.76 
parts of absolute hydrogen peroxide. 
(б) Estimation of Ferrous Sulphate. 
The reaction proceeds as follows : 
2KMnO4 4- 10FeSO4 4- ?H2O 4- 8H2SO4 = 5(Fe2(SO4)3) 4- 
315.3 2774.2 (558.8 Fe.) 
K2SO4 -I- 2MnSO4 4- 15H2O 
That is, 315.3 parts of 2KMnO4 correspond to 558.8 parts of 
Fe or to 2774.2 parts of FeSO44-7H2O. 
1000 Cc. of the decinormal permanganate (containing 3.153 
Gm. of the salt) correspond to 5.588 Gm. of metallic iron, or to 
27.742 Gm. of crystallized ferrous sulphate. Hence, 1 Cc. of the 
decinormal permanganate (containing 0.003153 Gm. of the salt) 
corresponds to 0.027742 Gm. of crystallized ferrous sulphate. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
443 
(c) Estimation of Metallic Iron. 
The metallic iron is dissolved in a flask containing dilute sul- 
phuric acid under the same precautions, to avoid oxidation, as 
directed under potassium bichromate (page 437, a). The result- 
ing solution contains the iron as ferrous sulphate.:— 
5Fe.2 + 10H2SO4 = 10FeSO4 + 5H2 
558.8 1517 
The decinormal permanganate solution is now run in, until 
the solution, after stirring, retains a faint pink color. 
2KMnOt + lOFeSO, + 8H2SO4 = 5(Fe2(SO4)s) + K2SO4 + 
315.3 1517 (558.8 Fe) 
2MnSO4 + 8H2O 
1 Cc. of the decinormal permanganate (containing 0.003153 
Gm. of the salt) corresponds to 0.01517 Gm. of anhydrous ferrous 
sulphate or to 0.005588 Gm. of metallic iron. 
(d) Estimation of Ferrous Carbonate. 
A weighed amount of ferrous carbonate is dissolved in dilute 
sulphuric acid and titrated as directed in the U. S. P. 
The reaction is as follows:— 
10FeCO3 -f- 10H2SO4 = 10FeSO4 + 10CO2 + 10H2O 
1157.3 (558.8 Fe). 1517 
2KMnO4 + lOFeSO, + 8H2SO4 = 5(Fe2(SO4)3) + 2MnSO4 + 
315.3 1517 (558.8 Fe). 
K2SO4 + 8H2O. 
That is, 315.3 parts of permanganate correspond to 558.8 parts 
of metallic iron, which in turn corresponds to 1157.3 Gm of fer- 
rous carbonate. 1 Cc. of decinormal potassium permanganate solu- 
tion (containing 0.003153 Gm. of the salt) corresponds to 0.005589 
Gm. of metallic iron, or to 0.011573 Gm. of ferrous carbonate. 
(e) Estimation of Hijpophosphorous Acid, Free and in Hypophos- 
phites. 
The reaction occurring in these titrations is as follows:— 
2K2Mn2O8 4- 5HSPO2 4- 6H2SO4 = 2K2SO4 4- 4MnSO4 + 
2 X 315.3 329.4 
6H2O 4- 5H3PO4. 
315.3 parts of Permanganate correspond to 164.7 parts of Hypophosphorous acid. 
1 Cc. of permanganate solution (containing 0.003153 Gm. of 
potassium permanganate) corresponds to 0.001647 Gm. of hypo- 
phosphorous acid or to a corresponding amount of any hypo- 
phosphite. 
(12) Decinormal Bromine Volumetric Solution. 
[Koppeschaak’s Solution.] 
Br = 79.76 7.976 Gm. in 1 Liter. 
(NaBrO3 = 150.64.— NaBr = 102.76.) 
(KBtO3 = 166.67.—KBr = 118.79.) 
“ Dissolve 3 Gm. of sodium bromate and 50 Gm. of sodium 444 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
bromide (or 3.2 Gm. of potassium bromate and 50 Gm. of potas- 
sium bromide) in enough water to make, at or near 15° C. (59° 
F.), 900 Cc. Of this solution transfer 20 Cc., by means of a 
pipette, into a bottle having a capacity of about 250 Cc., provided 
with a glass stopper; add 75 Cc. of water, next 5 Cc. of pure 
hydrochloric acid, and immediately insert the stopper. Shake the 
bottle a few times, then remove the stopper just sufficiently to 
quickly introduce 5 Cc. of potassium iodide T. S., taking care 
that no bromine vapor escape, and immediately stopper the 
bottle. Agitate the bottle thoroughly, remove the stopper and 
rinse it and the neck of the bottle with a little water so that the 
washings flow into the bottle, and then add from a burette deci- 
normal sodium hyposulphite V. S. until the iodine tint is exactly 
discharged, using toward the end a few drops of starch T. S. as 
indicator. Note the number of Cc. of the sodium hyposulphite 
V. S. thus consumed, and then dilute the bromine solution so that 
equal volumes of it and of decinormal sodium hyposulphite V. S. 
will exactly correspond to each other under the conditions men- 
tioned above. 
Example.—Assuming that the 20 Cc. of the bromine solution 
have required 25.2 Cc. of the hyposulphite to completely discharge 
the iodine tint, the bromine solution must be diluted in the pro- 
portion of 20 to 25.2. Thus, if 850 Cc. of it are remaining, they 
must be diluted with water to measure 1071 Cc. 
After the solution is thus diluted, a new trial should be made 
in the manner above described, in which 25 Cc. of the decinormal 
sodium hyposulphite V. S. should exactly discharge the tint of 
the iodine liberated by the bromine set free from the 25 Cc. of 
bromine solution. 
Keep the solution in dark amber-colored,glass-stoppered bottles.” 
One Cubic Centimeter of Decinormal Bromine Solution V. S. is the equivalent of: 
Gramme. 
Bromine, Br 0.007976 
Carbolic Acid, C6H5OH 0.001563 
On mixing potassium or sodium bromate with their respective 
bromides in presence of hydrochloric or sulphuric acid and water, 
bromine is set free according to the following reaction. 
KBrO, + 5KBr + 6HC1 = 6KC1 + 3H2O + 3Br2 
In order to ascertain the normal amount of bromine present, 
for the purpose of standardization, potassium iodide is introduced, 
whereby a quantity of iodine exactly equivalent to the free bro- 
mine present is liberated. Upon estimating the amount of the 
liberated iodine with sodium hyposulphite, the result represents 
the equivalent amount of bromine:— 
Br2 = I2 = 2(Na2S2O3,5H2O) 
2 X 79.76 2 X 126-6 2 X 247.64 
79.76 parts = 126.6 parts = 247.64 parts. VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS. 
445 
That is, 1 Cc. of decinormal hyposulphite solution (containing 
0.024764 Gm. of sodium hyposulphite) corresponds to 0.01266 Gm. 
of Iodine, which in turn represents 0.007976 of Bromine. 
This solution is employed in the valuation of carbolic acid, 
depending, for its action, upon the formation of tribrom-phenol, 
in which an excess of the bromine solution is added to a weighed 
amount of carbolic acid dissolved in water; the excess of bromine 
which has not combined with the phenol, is estimated as explained 
above; that is, the equivalent amount of iodine liberated from 
potassium iodide added is determined by sodium hyposulphite, 
the difference being the amount of combined bromine. The 
reaction proceeds thus:— 
6Br + C6H5OH = C6H2Br3OH + 3HBr 
Bromine. Phenol. Tribrom-phenol. Hydrobromic Acid. 
79.76 parts of bromine correspond to 15.63 parts of phenol. 
Hence 
1 Cc. of the bromine solution (containing 0.007976 Gm. of bromine) corresponds to 
0.001563 Gm. of phenol. APPENDIX. 
TABLE OF ATOMIC WEIGHTS. 
According to L. Meyer and K. Seubert. 
Name. 
Symbol. 
Atomic 
Weight. 
Name. 
Symbol. 
Atomic. 
Weight. 
Aluminum, .... 
Al 
27.04 
Molybdenum. . . 
Mo 
95.9 
Antimony, ... 
Sb 
119.6 
Nickel, 
Ni 
58.6 
Arsenic, 
As 
74.9 
Nitrogen, .... 
N 
14.01 
Barium, 
Ba 
136.9 
Osmium, 
Os 
190.3 
Beryllium,* .... 
Be 
9.03 
Oxygen, 
O 
15.96 
Bismuth, 
Bi 
208.9 
Palladium, .... 
Pd 
106.35 
Boron, 
B 
10.9 
Phosphorus, . . . 
P 
30.96 
Bromine, 
Br 
79.76 
Platinum, .... 
Pt 
194 3 
Cadmium, .... 
Cd 
111.5 
Potassium, .... 
K 
39.03 
Caesium, 
Cs 
132.7 
Rhodium, 
Rh 
102.9 
Calcium, 
Ca 
39.91 
Rubidium, .... 
Rb 
85.2 
Carbon, 
C 
11.97 
Ruthenium, .... 
Ru 
101.4 
Cerium, 
Ce 
139.9 
Samarium, .... 
Srn 
149.62 
Chlorine, 
Cl 
35.37 | 
Scandium, .... 
Sc 
43.97 
Chromium, .... 
Cr 
52.0 
Selenium, .... 
Se 
78.87 
Cobalt, ..... 
Co 
58.6 
Silicon, 
Si 
28.3 
Columbium ,f . . . 
Cb 
93.7 
Silver, 
Ag 
107.66 
Copper, 
Cu 
63.18 
Sodium, . ... 
Na 
23.0 
Didymium. J • • • 
Di 
142.0 
Strontium, .... 
Sr 
87.3 
Erbium, 
Er 
166.0 
Sulphur, 
S 
31.98 
Fluorine, 
F 
19.0 
Tantalum, .... 
Ta 
182.0 
Gallium 
Ga 
69.9 
Tellurium, .... 
Te 
125.0 
Germanium, . . . 
Ge 
72.3 
Terbium, 
Th 
159.1 
Gold, 
Au 
196.7 
Thallium, .... 
T1 
203.7 
Hydrogen, 
H 
1.0 
Thorium, .... 
Th 
231.9 
Indium, 
In 
113.6 
Tin, 
Sn 
118.8 
Iodine, 
I 
126.53 
Titanium, .... 
Ti 
48.0 
Iridium, 
Ir 
192.5 
Tungsten, .... 
W 
183.6 
Iron, 
Fe 
55.88 | 
Uranium, 
U 
238.8 
Lanthanum, . . . 
La 
138.2 
Vanadium, .... 
V 
51.1 
Lead 
Pb 
206.4 
Ytterbium, .... 
Yb 
172 6 
Lithium, 
Li 
7.01 1 
Yttrium, 
Yt 
88.9 
Magnesium, .... 
Mg 
24 3 
Zinc, 
Zn 
65.1 
Manganese, .... 
Mu 
54.8 
Zirconium,. .... 
Zr 
90.4 
Mercury, 
Hg 
199.8 
* Also called Glucinum, G1 = 9.03. 
+ Also called Niobium, Nb = 93.7. 
t Composed of Neo- and Praseo-Didymium. 
447 448 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES.* 
IN WATER, ALCOHOL, ETHER, CHLOROFORM AND GLYCERIN, OF MEDICINAL SUB- 
STANCES OFFICIAL IN THE U. S. PHARMACOPOEIA, INCLUDING MANY 
OTHERS OF COMMON OR FREQUENT USE. 
Abbreviations— s., soluble; v. s., very soluble; sp., sparingly; a., all proportions; si., slightly; 
ins., insoluble; n. ins., nearly insoluble; dec., decomposed. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F (15° C.) U. 8. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Acacia, 
2 
ins. 
Acetanilid, 
194 
5 
18 
V. s. 
Acid, Arsenic 
2 
5 
Arsenous, 
80 
141 
5 
Benzoic, 
500 
2 
3 
7 
10 
Boric 
25 
15 
10 
Carbolic, Anhyd, 
15 
a. 
a. 
a. 
a. 
Chromic, ... 
V. s. 
dec. 
dec. 
ins. 
dec. 
Citric 
0.63 
1.61 
18 
50 
2 
Formic, 
V. 8. 
V. s. 
3 
8. 
Gallic, 
100 
5 
40 
12 
Lactic, 
a. 
a. 
a. 
ins. 
Meconic 
sp. 
v. s. 
Oleic, 
ins. 
a. 
a. 
a. 
Oxalic, cryst 
8.17 
6.8 
n. ins. 
ins. 
7.5 
Phosphoric, Glacial, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
ins. 
Picric, 
86 
s. 
s. 
s. 
Pyrogallic, (see Pyrogallol), . 
. . . 
Salicylic, 
450 
2.4 
2 
80 
60 
Stearic, 
ins. 
45 
9 
s. 
Succinic, 
19 
8 
79 
n. ins. 
Tannic, 
1 
0.6 
n. ins. 
n. ins. 
9 
Tartaric, 
0.8 
2.5 
250 
n. ins. 
a. 
Valerianic, 
30 
a. 
2 
3 
s. 
Aconitine, • 
150 
5 
2 
3 
Alcohol, 
a. 
a. 
a. 
a. 
Amylic, 
sp. 
a. 
a. 
Alum, 
9 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
2.5 
Exsiccated, 
20 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
V. 8. 
Aluminum Hydrate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
1.2 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Ammonium Benzoate, 
5 
28 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Bicarbonate, 
8 
ins. 
Borate, 
12 
Bromide 
1.5 
30 
600 
Carbonate, 
4 
dec. 
ins. 
Chloride, 
3 
sp. sol. 
ins. 
5 
Iodide, 
1 
9 
ins. 
Nitrate, 
0.5 
20 
Oxalate, 
3 
Phosphate, 
4 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
1.3 
sp. 
Valerianate 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Amyl Acetate, 
ins. 
a. 
a. 
Nitrite, 
ins. 
a. 
a. 
a. 
Anilin, 
si. 
a. 
a. 
a. 
Antifebrin, (see Acetanilid), . . . 
Antimony Arseniate 
ins. 
ins. 
Oxide, 
n. ins 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphide, 
ins. 
ins. 
and Potassium Tartrate, . . 
17 
ins. 
ins. 
20 
20 
Antipyrin, 
1 
1 
50 
Apocodeine, 
ins. 
s. 
s. 
s. 
Apomorphine Hydrochlorate, . . . 
6.8 
25 
si. 
sl. 
Aristol, 
ins. 
sp. 
s. 
s. 
Arsenic Bromide, 
dec. 
Iodide, 
3.5 
10 
sol. 
Atropine, 
130 
3 
16 
4 
50 
Hydrochlorate, 
V. s. 
V. s. 
sl. 
Sulphate, 
0.4 
6.2 
2270 
694 
3 
Balsam Peru, 
5 
* “ Era” Formulary. TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES. 
449 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES.—Continued. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Balsam Tolu, 
n. ins. 
s. 
s. 
s. 
Barium Acetate, 
2 
100 
Bromide, 
V. s. 
s. 
Carbonate, 
ins. 
n. ins. 
Chloride, 
ins. 
10 
Nitrate, 
8-12 
ins. 
Benzanilide, 
n. ins. 
58 
Benzene, 
ins. 
s. 
s. 
Benzin, 
ins. 
6 
s. 
s. 
Bebeerine, 
6000 
sol. 
13 
s. 
Hvdrochlorate, 
s. 
s. 
Sulphate, 
s. 
V. s. 
Berberine, 
500 
250 
ins. 
Hvdrochlorate, 
600 
sp. 
ins. 
Bismuth Chloride 
ins. 
ins. 
Citrate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Oxide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Oxyiodide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Salicylate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Subcarbonate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Subgallate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Subnitrate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Tannate, 
ins. 
ins. 
and Ammonium Citrate, . . 
v. s. 
sp. 
Bromal Hydrate, 
s. 
s. 
s. 
s. 
s. 
Bromine, 
30 
s. (dec.) 
s. (dec.) 
s. 
Bromoform, 
v. sp. 
s. 
s. 
Brucine 
750 
2 
ins. 
50 
Sulphate, 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Butyl Chloral Hydrate, 
50 
1 
s. 
n. ins. 
1 
Cadmium Acetate, 
V. s. 
Chloride 
0.7 
s. 
Iodide, 
2 
sol. 
Sulphate, 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Caffeine 
80 
33 
555 
y 
Citrate, 
30 
s. 
Phosphate, 
V. s. 
Calcium Acetate, 
s. 
s. 
Benzoate, 
29 
Bromide, 
0.7 
1 
Carbonate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride 
8 
ins. 
Hypophosphite, 
6.8 
ins. 
Hyposulphite, 
1 
Iodide, 
s. 
Lactate, 
9-12 
s. 
ins. 
Phosphate, .... 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
382 
ins. 
Sulphite, 
800 
. . . 
20 
Camphor, 
sp. 
v. s. 
v. s. 
v. s. 
Monobromated 
n. ins. 
6 
v. s. 
v. s. 
sl. 
Cannabine Tannate, 
si. 
sl. 
sl. 
Carbon Disulphide, 
535 
V. s. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Cerium Acetate, 
V, s. 
s. 
Bromide, 
si. 
s. 
Nitrate, 
s. 
s. 
Oxalate, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Chinoidine, 
n. ins. 
sp. 
s. 
s. 
Chloral, 
v. s. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
s. 
Chloroform, 
200 
a. 
a. 
Chrvsarobin, 
n. ins. 
sp. 
s. 
Cinchonine, 
3760 
116 
526 
163 
200 
Hydrochlorate, . . . 
22 
1 
550 
Sulphate, 
66 
10 
ins. 
78 
16 
Cinchonidine, 
2500 
20 
80 
10 
Hvdrochlorate, 
27 
.8. 
n. ins. 
n. ins. 
Sulphate 
70 
66 
ins. 
1316 
Codeine, 
80 
3 
30 
2 
Hydrochlorate 
20 
Sulphate, 
35 
Phosphate, 
4 
sp. 
Cocaine, 
700 
v. s. 
V. s. 
Hydrochlorate, 
0.48 
3.5 
2800 
17 450 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES.—Continued. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Coniine, 
100 
V. s. 
6 
1 
Hydrobromate, 
2 
2 
8. 
8. 
Copper Acetate 
15 
16 
ins. 
10 
Ammoniated, 
ins. 
Chloride, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
Lactate, 
2-6 
8. 
Nitrate, 
8. 
s. 
Sulphate, 
2.6 
n. ins. 
ins. 
3% 
Creosote, 
150 
s. 
a. 
a. 
Delphinine, 
n. ins. 
8 
s. 
8. 
Digitalin, 
1000 
s. 
ins. 
Digitin 
8. 
Diuretin, 
sl. 
sp. 
Duboisine, 
500 
V. s. 
8. 
S. 
Sulphate, 
8. 
8. 
Elaterin, 
4250 
337 
543 
2.4 
Emetine, 
2000 
8. 
sp. 
V. s. 
Ergotinine, 
ins. 
V. 8. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Ether Acetic, 
8 
a. 
a. 
Butyric, 
sl. 
a. 
Formic, 
sp. 
a. 
a. 
Sulphuric, 
12 
a. 
a. 
Ethyl Bromide, 
sp. 
a. 
a. 
Iodide, 
n. ins. 
V. 8. 
V. 8. 
Eucalyptol, 
a. 
Eugenol, 
sp. 
v. s. 
V. s. 
Euphorin, 
sl. 
Europhen, 
ins. 
s. 
Gelseminine, 
n. ins. 
s. 
25 
V. s. 
Tartrate, 
v. s. 
V. 8. 
Glycerin, 
a. 
a. 
ins. 
ins. 
Glvcyrrhizin, Ammoniated, .... 
s. 
s. 
Gold Bromide (mono), 
ins. 
(tri), 
s. 
Chloride (tri), 
s. 
s. 
s. 
Iodide, 
ins. 
ins. 
and Sodium Chloride, .... 
2 
sp. 
Guaiacol, 
200 
a. 
a. 
Benzoate, 
ins. 
s. 
v. s. 
V. s. 
Gutta Percha, 
ins. 
ins. 
8. 
Hydrastinine, 
n. ins. 
V. 8. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Hydrochlorate, 
0.3 
3 
n. ins. 
n. ins. 
Hydroquinone, 
20 
V. 8. 
V. 8. 
. . . 
Hyoscine, 
sl. 
V. S. 
V. s. 
Hydrobromate, 
1.9 
13 
sl. 
sl. 
Hydrochlorate, .... 
s. 
ins. 
ins. 
Hyoscyamine, 
500 
v. s. 
s. 
8. 
Hydrobromate, 
0.3 
2 
3000 
250 
Sulphate 
0.5 
.5 
sl. 
sl. 
Hypnone, 
n. ins. 
V. 8. 
V. 8. 
s. 
Ichthyol, 
8. 
sp. 
sp. 
s. 
s. 
Iodine, 
5000 
10 
3 
s. 
50 
Iodoform., 
n. ins. 
52 
5.2 
V. 8. 
Iodol, 
5000 
3 
1 
Iron Acetate, 
4 
8. 
Albuminate, 
8. 
ins. 
Arsen iate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Bromide, 
s. 
s. 
Carbonate Saccharated, .... 
sp. 
ins. 
Chloride (Ferric), 
V. s. 
v. s. 
sl. 
Citrate, 
s. 
ins. 
ins. 
Hypophosphite, 
n. ins. 
Iodide, 
s. 
s. 
Iodide, Saccharated, 
7 
n. ins. 
Lactate, 
40 
ins. 
ins. 
7 
Nitrate, 
8. 
s. 
Oxalate, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Phosphate (Soluble), 
V. 8. 
ins. 
Pyrophosphate, 
V. 8. 
ins. 
Santonate, 
n. ins. 
V. s. 
sp. 
s. 
Sulphate, 
1.8 
ins. 
ins. 
4 
Valerianate, 
ins. 
V. s. 
and Ammonium Chloride, . . 
ins. TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES. 
451 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES.—Continued. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Iron and Ammonium Citrate, . . . 
s. 
ins. 
Ammonium Sulphate, . . 
3 
ins. 
Ammonium Tartrate, . . 
V. s. 
ins. 
13 
Potassium Tartrate, . . . 
V. s. 
ins. 
Quinine Citrate, 
2-3 
sp. 
Strychnine Citrate, . . . 
s. 
sp. 
Katrine, 
6 
20 
ins. 
Lead Acetate, 
2.3 
21 
ins. 
3 
5 
Carbonate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride, 
140 
200 
Chromate, 
ins. 
Iodide, 
2000 
sp. 
n. ins. 
Nitrate, 
2 
n. ins. 
Oxide, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Lime, 
750 
ins. 
65 
Chlorinated, 
sp. 
sp. 
Sulphuretted 
sl. 
ins. 
20 
Lithium Benzoate, 
4 
12 
Bromide, 
0.6 
V. s. 
s. 
Carbonate, 
80 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride, 
1.7 
V. 8. 
Citrate, 
2. 
n. ins. 
ins. 
s. 
Iodide, 
0.6 
Nitrate, 
2 
Salicylate, 
v. s. 
v. s. 
Magnesia, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Magnesium Acetate, 
s. 
8. 
Benzoate, 
V. 8. 
Bromide, 
V. 8. 
8. 
Carbonate, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Chloride, 
0.6 
Lactate, 
30 
ins. 
Phosphate, 
350 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
1.5 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphite, 
40 
ins. 
ins. 
Tartrate 
122 
Manganese Benzoate, 
20 
sp. 
Carbonate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride 
2% 
s. 
ins. 
Dioxide, 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Hypophosphite, 
V. 8. 
Iodide, 
s. 
Lactate 
12 
8. 
Phosphate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
0 8 
ins. 
ins. 
Mastich, 
ins. 
sp. 
s. 
s. 
Menthol, 
sl. 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
V. s. 
Mercury Bisulphate, 
333 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride, Ammoniated, . . . 
ins. 
ins. 
Corrosive, 
16 
3 
4 
4 
Mild, 
ins. 
ins 
ins. 
Cvanide, 
12.8 
15 
sp. 
4 
Iodide, Green, 
n. ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Red, 
n. ins. 
130 
ins. 
8. 
3’W 
Oxide, Black, 
ins. 
ins. 
Red, 
ins. 
ins. 
Salicylate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, Basic, 
2000 
ins. 
Sulphide, Black, . . . 
ins. 
Red, 
ins. 
ins. 
Morphine, 
4350 
300 
4000 
160 
210 
Acetate, 
2.5 
47.6 
1700 
2100 
5 
Ilydrobromate, . 
25 
20 
Hydrochlorate, 
24 
62 
sl. 
sl. 
8. 
Lactate, 
8 
93 
Meconate, 
25 
V. s. 
Sulphate 
21 
702 
n. ins. 
5 
Tartrate, 
10 
V. s. 
Naphthalin 
ins. 
15 
v. s. 
V. 8. 
Naphthol (Alpha), 
s. 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
(Beta) 
1000 
0.75 
V. 8. 
V. S. 
Narceine, 
1200 
800 
ins. 452 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Narceine, Hydrochlorate, 
s. 
V. 8. 
Narco tine, 
n. ins. 
80 
35 
3 
Nickel Acetate, 
6 
ins. 
Bromide, 
s. 
8. 
8. 
Nitrate, 
2 
8. 
Phosphate, 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
4 
ins. 
ins. 
Nicotine, 
V. s. 
v. s. 
s. 
8. 
Hydrochlorate, 
V. s. 
v. s. 
ins. 
Nitroglycerin, 
n. ins. 
V. s. 
8. 
Orexin, 
8. 
Pancreatin, 
s. 
ins. 
Papaverine, . . 
ins. 
sp. 
8. 
8. 
Paraffin, 
ins. 
ins. 
8. 
S. 
Paraldehyde, 
8.5 
a. 
a. 
Pelletierihe, 
V. s. 
v. s. 
V. 8. 
V. 8. 
Tannate, 
700 
80 
Pepsin, 
100 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Petrolatum, 
ins. 
ins. 
8. 
s. 
Phenacetin, 
sp. 
16 
8. 
Phenocoll Hydrochlorate, 
16 
Phenyl Hydrazine, 
sp. 
V. 8. 
V. s. 
Phosphorus, 
ins. 
8. 
80 
V. s. 
500 
Physostigmine, 
sp. 
V. S. 
V. s. 
8. 
Salicvlate, 
130 
12 
Sulphate, 
s. 
Picrotoxin, 
240 
9 
si. 
sl. 
Pilocarpine, 
s. 
V. 8. 
8. 
8. 
Hydrochlorate, 
V. 8. 
V. S. 
n. ins. 
n. ins. 
Hydrobromate, 
s. 
8. 
s. 
Nitrate, 
9 
40 
8. 
Sulphate, 
8. 
8. 
8. 
8. 
Piperazine, 
V. 8. 
Piperin, 
n. ins. 
30 
si. 
8. 
Podophyllin, 
n. ins. 
8. 
sp. 
Potassa, Sulphurated, 
2 
sp. 
Potassium Acetate, 
0.36 
1.9 
ins. 
Arseniate, 
5.3 
25 
2 
Arsenite, 
V. 8. 
sp. 
Benzoate, 
V. S. 
Bicarbonate, 
3.2 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Bichromate, 
10 
ins. 
ins. 
Bisulphate, 
2 
ins. 
Bisulphite, 
V. s. 
Bi tart rate, 
201 
sp. 
ins. 
Bromide, 
1.6 
200 
ins. 
4 
Carbonate, 
1.1 
ins. 
ins. 
Chlorate, 
16.7 
sp. 
ins. 
30 
Chloride, 
3 
8. 
ins. 
30 
Citrate, 
0.6 
sp. 
Cyanide, 
2 
sp. 
3.5 
Ferricyanide, 
4 
sp. 
Ferrocyanide, 
4 
ins. 
Hydrate, 
0.5 
2 
si. 
Hypophosphite 
0.6 
7.3 
Iodide, 
0.75 
18 
ins. 
2.5 
Nitrate, 
3.8 
sp. 
ins. 
Nitrite, 
V. s. 
Oxalate, 
8. 
Permanganate 
16 
dec. 
ins. 
Phosphate, 
8. 
Salicvlate, 
8. 
8. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
9.5 
ins. 
ins. 
Tartrate, 
1 
ins. 
ins. 
and Sodium Tartrate, .... 
1.4 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Pyoktanin, 
75 
12 
ins. 
8. 
50 
Pyridine, 
a. 
V. s. 
v. s. 
Nitrate, 
V. s. 
sp. 
Sulphate, 
v. s. 
V. s. 
Pyrodine Hydrochlorate, 
sp. 
V. s. 
ins. 
Pyrogallol, 
1.7 
1 
1.2 
Quinidine, 
2000 
20 
30 
Hydrochlorate 
27 
V. 8. 
ins. 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES. 
.—Continued. TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES. 
453 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES. 
.—Continued. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59c F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Glycerin. 
Quinidine Sulphate, 
100 
8 
n. ins. 
14 
Quinine, . . 
1670 
6 
23 
5 
200 
Acetate, 
600 
7 
Arseniate, 
sp. 
Arsenite, 
sp. 
15 
*25 
8 
Benzoate, - . 
350 
Bisulphate, 
10 
32 
ins. 
Hydrobromate 
54 
0.6 
6 
12 
s. 
Hydrochlorate, 
34 
3 
ins. 
9 
Hypophosphite, 
45 
10 
Lactate, 
3 
s. 
Phosphate, . . . 
700 
si. 
Salicylate, 
225 
20 
120 
V. s. 
Sulphate, 
740 
65 
sl. 
680 
40 
Tannate, 
n. ins. 
sl. 
135 
Valerianate, 
100 
5 
s. 
Quinoline Nitrate, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
ins. 
Salicylate, 
100 
Tartrate, 
s. 
Resin, 
ins. 
S. 
s. 
s. 
Resorcin, 
0.6 
0.5 
V. s. 
sl. 
V. s. 
Retinol, 
ins. 
ins. 
sol. 
Saccharin, 
230 
30 
0.3 
s. 
Salicin, 
28 
30 
n. ins. 
n. ins. 
Salol, 
n. ins. 
10 
0.3 
V. s. 
Sanguinarine, 
ins. 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
s. 
Nitrate 
n. ins. 
Sulphate, 
s. 
s. 
Santonin, 
5000 
40 
140 
4 
Scoparine, 
n. ins. 
s. 
Silver Acetate, 
100 
sp. 
Bromide, 
ins. 
Chloride, 
ins. 
Cyanide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Iodide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Nitrate, 
0.6 
26 
Oxide, _ . 
n. ins. 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
200 
Sodium Acetate, 
1.4 
30 
ins. 
Arsenate, 
4 
sp. 
2 
Arsenite, 
s. 
sp. 
. . . 
Benzoate, 
1.8 
45 
ins. 
Bicarbonate, 
11.3 
ins. 
ins. 
13 
Bisulphite, 
4 
72 
Borate, 
16 
ins. 
ins. 
2 
Bromide, 
1.2 
13 
ins. 
Carbonate, 
1.6 
ins. 
ins. 
1.02 
Chlorate, 
1.1 
100 
5 
Chloride, 
2.8 
n. ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
5 
Citrate, 
V. s. 
Formate, 
s. 
s. 
Hydrate, 
1.7 
v. s. 
Hypophosphite, 
1 
30 
ins. 
Hyposulphite, 
0 65 
ins. 
Iodide, 
0.6 
3 
ins. 
Lactate, 
V. s. 
V. s. 
ins. 
Nitrate, 
1.3 
100 
ins. 
Nitrite, 
1.5 
sl. 
Phosphate, 
5.8 
ins. 
ins. 
Pyrophosphate 
12 
ins. 
Salicylate, 
0.9 
6 
ins. 
s. 
Santoninate, 
3 
12 
ins. 
Sulphate, .... 
2.8 
ins. 
ins. 
s. 
Sulphide, 
V. s. 
sl. 
Sulphite, 
4 
sp. 
Sulphocarbolate, 
4.8 
132 
Tartrate, 
5 
ins. 
Valerianate, 
V. s. 
s. 
Solanine, 
ins. 
400 
sl. 
Sozal, 
v. s. 
V. s. 
s. 
Sparteine, 
sp. 
V. s. 
V. s. 
v. s. 
Sulphate, 
V. s. 
V. s. 
Spermaceti, 
ins. 
n. ins. 
s. 
s. 454 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Medicinal Substances. 
One part is soluble in 
[at 59° F. (15° C.) U. S. P. 
Standard Temperature.] 
Parts of 
Glycerin. 
Water. 
Alcohol. 
Ether. 
Chloroform. 
Strontium Bromide, 
1.05 
s. 
Carbonate, 
sl. 
Chloride, 
2 
20 
Iodide, 
0.6 
8. 
sl. 
Lactate, 
4 
S. 
Nitrate, 
5 
ins. 
Sulphate, 
sl. 
ins. 
Strophanthin, 
s. 
8. 
ins. 
Strychnine, 
6700 
110 
ins. 
7 
400 
Acetate, 
75 
15 
Hydrobromate, 
32 
sp. 
Hydrochlorate, 
50 
Nitrate, 
75 
100 
ins. 
30 
Sulphate, 
50 
109 
ins. 
5 
Sugar, Cane, 
0.5 
175 
ins. 
ins. 
s. 
Milk, 
6 
ins. 
ins. 
ins. 
Sulphonal, 
500 
65 
125 
Sulphur Iodide, 
ins. 
sp. 
sp. 
60 
Precipitated, 
ins. 
ins. 
8. 
s. 
Sublimed, 
ins. 
ins. 
S. 
8. 
Washed, 
ins. 
ins. 
s. 
S. 
Terebene, 
sl. 
s. 
Terpin Hydrate, 
250 
10 
10 
200 
Terpinol 
ins. 
8. 
8. 
Tetronal, 
sl. 
V. S. 
S. 
Thalline Sulphate, 
7 
100 
sl. 
sl. 
Tartrate, 
10 
sp. 
n. ins. 
Trimethylamine, 
s. 
s. 
Hydrochlorate, 
s. 
s. 
Trional, 
320 
V. s. 
v. s. 
Thymol, 
1200 
1 
0.8 
6.7 
120 
Uranium Acetate, 
10 
sl. 
Chloride 
s. 
Nitrate, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
4 
Urea, 
1 
ins. 
ins. 
2 
Urethane 
s. 
8. 
8. 
Urexine, 
sp. 
s. 
Vanilla, 
sp. 
8. 
8. 
s. 
Veratrine, 
sl. 
3 
6 
2 
Hydrochlorate, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
Zinc Acetate, 
2.7 
36 
ins. 
Bromide, 
V. s. 
V. 8. 
Carbonate, Precipitated, . . 
ins. 
ins. 
Chloride, 
0.3 
V. 8. 
8. 
2 
Cyanide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Iodide, 
v. s. 
v s. 
v. s. 
2.5 
Lactate, 
60 
ins. 
Nitrate 
V. s. 
8. 
Oxide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Permanganate, 
v. s. 
V. 8. 
explodes. 
Phosphate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Phosphide, 
ins. 
ins. 
Salicylate, 
25 
3.5 
36 
Sulphate, 
0.6 
ins. 
ins. 
3 
Tannate, 
ins. 
ins. 
Valerianate, 
100 
40 
n. ins. 
TABLE OF SOLUBILITIES.—Continued. LIST OF THE PRINCIPAL PHARMACOP(EIAL CHEMICALS 
AND REAGENTS.* 
Acetanilid,C6H5NH.C2H3O134.73 
Acid, Acetic,HC2H3O259.86 
“ Arsenous,As.2O3197.68 
“ Aurochloric,HAuC14 + 2H2O 375.10 
“ Benzoic,HC7H5O2121.71 
“ Boric, H3BO361.78 
“ Carbolic, C6H5OH93.78 
“ Chloroplatinic,H2PtCl6 + 6H2O516.28 
“ Chromic,CrO399.88 
“ Citric, H3C6H5O7 + H2O 209.50 
“ “ dry,H3C6H5O7191.54 
“ Gallic, HC7H5O5 + H2O187.55 
“ “ dry,HC7H5O5169.59 
“ Hydriodic, HI127.53 
“ Hydrobromic,HBr80.76 
“ Hydrochloric,HC136.37 
“ Hydrocyanic,HCN26.98 
“ Hydrosulphuric 
(See Hydrogen Sulphide). 
“ Hypophosphorous,HPH2O265.88 
“ Lactic,HC3H5O389.79 
“ Nitric, HNOS62.89 
“ OleicHC18H33O2281.38 
“ Oxalic,H2C2O4 + 2H2O 125.70 
“ “ dry, . . H2C2O489.78 
“ Phosphoric,H3PO497.80 
“ Picric, C6H2(NO2)3OH 228.57 
“ Pyroboric,H2B4O7 157.32 
“ Pyrogallic 
(See Pyrogallol). 
“ Salicylic,HC7H5O3137.67 
“ Stearic,HC18H35O2 283.38 
“ Sulphuric,H2SO497.82 
“ Sulphurous,H2SO381.86 
“ Tannic,HCj4H9O9321.22 
“ Tartaric, H2C4H4O6 149.64 
“ Tetraboric 
(See Pyroboric). 
Alcohol, ethylic,C2H5OH45.90 
“ methylic,CH3OH31.93 
Aldehyde, ethylic,C2H4O43.90 
Alum 
(See Aluminum and Potassium Sulphate). 
Aluminum Hydrate, A12(OH)6155.84 
“ and Potassium Sulphate, . . A12K2(SO4)4 + 24H2O 946.46 
“ “ “ dry, . A12K2(SO4)4 515.42 
“ Sulphate,A12(SO4)3 + 16H2O 628.90 
“ “ dry, A12(SO4)3341.54 
Ammonia, NH317.01 
Ammonium Acetate,NH4C2H3O276.87 
*U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 1890. 
455 456 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Ammonium Arsenite (Metarsenite), . . . NH4AsO2124.83 
“ Benzoate,NH4C7H5O2138.72 
“ Bromide,NH4Br97.77 
“ Carbonate (normal), .... (NH4)2CO395.87 
“ “ (U.S.P.), .... NH4HCO3.NH4NH2CO2 .... 156.77 
“ Chloride,NH4C153.38 
“ Citrate,(NH4)3C6H5O7 242.57 
“ Iodide,NH4I 144.54 
“ LactateNH4C3H5O3106.80 
“ Molybdate,(NH4)2MoO4195.76 
“ Nitrate,NH4NO379.90 
“ Oxalate, (NH4)2C2O4 + H2O141.76 
“ “ dry, (NH4)2C2O4123.80 
“ Phosphate, (NH4)2HPO4131.82 
“ Salicylate,NH4C7H5O3154.68 
“ Sulphate,(NH4)2SO4131.84 
“ Sulphhydrate,NH4HS50.99 
“ Sulphide,(NH4)2S68.00 
“ Tartrate, (NH4)2C4H4O6183.66 
“ Valerianate,NH4C5H9O2118.78 
Amyl Nitrite,C5HnNO2116.78 
Antimony Oxide (Trioxide),Sb2O3 287.08 
“ and Potassium Tartrate, . . . 2K(SbO)C4H4O6 + H2O .... 662.42 
“ “ “ “ dry, . K(SbO)C4H4O6 322.23 
“ SulphideSb2S3 335.14 
Apomorphine Hydrochlorate,C17H17NO2HC1 302.79 
Arsenic Iodide,Asl3 454.49 
“ Trioxide 
(See Acid, Arsenous). 
Atropine,C17H23NO3 288.38 
“ Sulphate,(C17H23NO3)2H2SO4 674.58 
Barium Carbonate,BaCO3196.75 
“ Chloride,BaCl2 + 2H2O 243.56 
“ “ dry,BaCl2 207.64 
“ Dioxide,BaO2168.82 
“ Hydrate,Ba(OH)2170.82 
“ Nitrate, Ba(NO3)2 260.68 
Benzol (Benzene),C6H677.82 
Bismuth Citrate,BiC6H5O7 397.44 
“ Subcarbonate (approximately), . (BiO)2CO3 509.57 
“ Subnitrate (approximately), . . BiONO3(OH)2 304.71 
Boron Trioxide,B2O3 69 68 
Brucine,C23H26N2O4 + 4H2O 465.01 
“ dry,C23H2BN2O4 393.17 
Caffeine,C8H10N4O2 + H2O211.68 
“ dry,C8H10N4O2193.72 
Calcium Bromide,CaBr2199.43 
“ Carbonate,CaCO399.76 
“ Chloride,CaCl2 + 6H2O218.41 
“ “ dry,CaCl2110.65 
“ Hydrate,Ca(OH)273.83 
“ Hypophosphite,Ca(PH2O2)2169.67 
“ OxideCaO55.87 
“ Phosphate,Ca3(PO4)2 309.33 
“ Sulphate (Gypsum),CaSO4 + 2H2O171.65 
“ “ dry,CaSO4135.73 
“ Sulphide (Monosulphide), . . . CaS 71.69 
Camphor,C10HlfiO151.66 
‘ ‘ Monobromated, C10H15BrO . 230.42 
Carbon Disulphide, CS275.93 
Cerium Oxalate,Ce2(C2O4)3 + 9H2O 704.78 
“ “ dry, Ce2(C2O4)3 543.14 
Chloral Hydrate,C2HC13O + H2O164.97 
“ anhydrous, C2HC13O147.01 PRINCIPAL PHARMACOPCEIAL CHEMICALS AND REAGENTS. 
457 
Chloroform,CHC13119.08 
Cinchonidine Sulphate,(C19H22N2O)2H.,SO4 -p 3H2O . . 738.50 
“ “ dry,(C19H22N2O)2H2SO4 684.62 
Cinchonine,C]9H22N2O 293.41 
“ Sulphate,(C19H22N2O)2H2SO4 + 2H2O . . 720.54 
“ “ dry,(C19H22N.2O)2H2SO4 684.62 
Cobaltous Nitrate,Co(NO3)2 + 6H2O 290.14 
Cocaine Hydrochlorate,C17H21NO4HC1 338.71 
Codeine,C18H2]NO3 -f- H2O316.31 
Codeine, dry,C18H21NO3 298.35 
Cupric Ammonium Sulphate,Cu(NH3)4SO4 + H2O 245.00 
“ Sulphate, CuSO4 -f- 5H2O 248.80 
“ “ dry,CuSO4159.00 
“ TartrateCuC4H4O6 + 3H2O 264.70 
Diphenylamine,(C6H5)2NH168.65 
Elaterin,C20H28O5 347.20 
Ether, 
(See Ethyl Oxide). 
Ethyl Acetate,C2H5C2H3O287.80 
“ Nitrite,C2H5NO274.87 
“ Oxide (JEther, U.S.P.)(C2H5)2O73.84 
Eucalyptol,Cl0H18O153.66 
Ferric Acetate, Fe2(C2H3O2)6 464.92 
“ Ammonium Sulphate,Fe2(NH4)2(SO4)4 + 24H2O . . . 962.10 
“ “ “ dry, .... Fe2(NH4)2(SO4)4531.06 
“ Chloride,Fe2Cl6 + 12H2O 539.50 
“ “ dry,Fe2Cl6 323.98 
“ Hydrate,Fe2(OH)B213.52 
“ Hypophosphite,Fe2(PH2O2)B501.04 
“ Nitrate, Fe2(NO3)B 483.10 
“ Oxide,Fe2O3159.64 
“ Phosphate (normal, not U.S.P.), . . Fe2(PO4)2301.36 
“ Pyrophosphate (normal, not U.S.P), Fe4(P2O7)3 744.44 
“ Subsulphate (variable) 
“ Sulphate,Fe2(SO4)3 . ' 399.20 
“ Valerianate (variable) 
Ferrous Bromide,FeBr2215.40 
“ CarbonateFeCO3115.73 
“ Iodide,’..... Fel2 . . 308.94 
“ Lactate,Fe(C3H5O3)2 + 3H2O 287.34 
“ Sulphate,FeSO4 + 7H2O 277.42 
“ “ dry,FeSO4151.70 
“ Sulphide,FeS87.86 
Glucose 
(See Sugar, Grape). 
Glycerin,C3H5(OH)391.79 
Glyceryl Trinitrate, . . ‘C3H2(NO3)3 226.58 
Gold Chloride,AuC13 302.81 
Hydrastinine Hydrochlorate,CnHuNO2HCl’224.97 
Hydrogen Dioxide,’H2O233.92 
“ Sulphide,H2S33.98 
Hyoscine Hydrobromate,C17H21NO4HBr + 3H2O .... 436.98 
“ “ dry,C17H21NO4HBr 383.10 
Hyoscyamine Hydrobromate,C17H23NO3HBr 369.14 
“ Sulphate, (C17H23NO3)2H2SO4 674.58 
Iodoform,CHI3 392.56 
Lead Acetate,Pb(C2H3O2l2 + 3H2O 378.00 
“ “ dry,Pb(C2H3O2)2 324.12 
“ Carbonate,(PbCO3)2Pb(OH)2 772.82 
“ Iodide, Pbl2 459.46 
“ Nitrate,Pb(NO3)2 330.18 
“ OxidePbO 222.36 
“ Subacetate (approximately), .... Pb2O(C2H3O2)2 546.48 458 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Lime 
(See Calcium Oxide). 
Lithium Benzoate,LiC7H5O2127.72 
“ Bromide,LiBr86.77 
“ Carbonate,Li2CO373.87 
“ Citrate, Li3C6H5O7 209.57 
“ Salicylate,LiC7H5O3143.68 
Magnesia 
(See Magnesium Oxide). 
Magnesium Carbonate (approximately), . (MgCO3)4Mg(OH)2 + 5H2O . . 484 62 
“ Oxide,MgO40.26 
“ Sulphate, MgSO4 + 7H2O 245.84 
“ dry,MgSO4120.12 
Manganese Dioxide,MnO2 86 72 
Manganous Sulphate, MnSO4 -f- 4H2O 222.46 
“ “ dry,MnSO4150.62 
MentholC10H19OH155.66 
Mercuric Ammonium Chloride,NH2HgCl 251.18 
“ Chloride,HgCl2 270.54 
“ Cyanide,Hg(CN)2251.76 
“ Iodide,Hgl2 452.86 
“ Nitrate,Hg(NO3)2 323.58 
“ OxideHgO215.76 
“ Potassium Iodide,Hgl2 + 2KI 783.98 
“ Subsulphate,Hg(HgO)2SO4 727.14 
Mercurous Chloride,Hg2Cl2 470.34 
“ Iodide,Hg2I2 652.66 
“ Nitrate, Hg2(NO3)2 + 2H2O 559.30 
Methyl Salicylate,CH3C7H5O3151.64 
Morphine, C17H19NO3 + H2O 302.34 
“ dry,CI7H19NO3 284.38 
“ Acetate,C17H19NO3C2H4O2 4- 3H2O . . . 398.12 
“ Hydrochlorate,C17H19NO3HC1 -J- 3H2O .... 374.63 
“ “ dry,C]7H19NO3HC1 320.74 
“ Sulphate,(C,7H]9NO3)2H2SO4 + 5H2O . . .756.38 
“ “ dry,(C17H19NO3)2H2SO4 666.58 
Naphtalin,C10H8127.70 
Naphtol,C10H7(OH)143.66 
Nitrogen Dioxide,NO29.97 
Nitroglycerin 
(See Glyceryl Trinitrate). 
Paraldehyde,C6H12O3131.70 
Phenol 
(See Acid, Carbolic). 
Physostigmine Salicylate,C]5H2IN3O2C7H6O3412.08 
“ Sulphate,(C15H2]N3O2)2H2SO4 934.28 
Picrotoxin,C30H34O13 600.58 
Pilocarpine Hydrochlorate,CnH16N2O2HCl 243.98 
Piperine,C17H19NO3 284.34 
Platinic Chloride,PtCl4 335.78 
Potassa 
(See Potassium Hydrate). 
Potassium Acetate, KC2H3O297.89 
“ Arsenite (Metarsenite), .... KAsO2145.85 
“ Benzoate,KC7H5O2 + 3H2O213.62 
“ “ dry,KC7H5O2159.74 
Bicarbonate,KHCO399.88 
“ Bichromate 
(See Dichromate). 
“ Bitartrate, KHC4H4O6187.67 
“ Bromate,KBrO3166.67 
“ Bromide,KBr118.79 
“ Carbonate, K2CO3137.91 PRINCIPAL PHARMA COPCEIAL CHEMICALS AND REAGENTS. 
459 
Potassium Chlorate,KC1O3122.28 
“ Chloride,KC174.40 
“ Chromate,K2CrO4193.90 
“ Citrate,K3C6H5O7 + H2O 323.59 
“ “ dry,K3C6H5O7 305.63 
“ Cyanide,KCN 65.01 
“ Dichromate, K2Cr2O7 293.78 
“ Ferricyanide,K6Fe(CN)12 657.70 
“ Ferrocyanide,K4Fe(CN)6 4* 3H2O421.76 
“ “ dry,K4Fe(CN)6 367.88 
“ Hydrate,KOH55.99 
“ Hypophosphite,KPH2O2103.91 
“ Iodide,KI 165.56 
“ Lactate,KC3H5O3 127.82 
“ Nitrate,KN03 100.92 
“ Permanganate, KMnO4157.67 
“ Phosphate,K2HPO4173.86 
“ Salicylate, KC7H5O3175.70 
“ and Sodium Tartrate, . . . . KNaC4H4O6 + 4H2O281.51 
“ “ “ “ dry, . . . KNaC4H4O6 209.67 
“ Sulphate,K2SO4173.88 
“ Sulphite,K2SO3 + 2H2O193.84 
“ “ dry,K2SO3157.92 
“ Sulphocyanate, KSCN96.99 
“ Tartrate,2K2C4H4O6 + H2O 469.36 
“ “ dry,K2C4H4O6225.70 
Propenyl Trinitrate 
(See Glyceryl Trinitrate). 
Pyrogallol,C8H3(OH\,125.70 
Quinidine Sulphate,(C20H24N2O2)2H2SO4 + 2H2O . . 780.42 
“ “ dry,(C20H24N2O2)2H2SO4 744.50 
Quinine,C20H24N2O2 + 3H2O 377.22 
“ dry,C20H24N2O2 323.34 
“ Bisulphate,C20H24N2O2H2SO4 + 7H2O . . . 546.88 
“ “ dry,C20H24N2O2H2SO4412.16 
“ Hydrohromate,C20H24N2O2HBr + H.,0 .... 422.06 
“ “ dry, C20H24N2O2HBr 404.10 
“ Hydrochlorate, C20H24N2O2HCl + 2H2O .... 395.63 
“ “ dry, C20H24N2O2HCl 359.71 
“ Sulphate,(C20H24N2O2)2H2SO4 + 7H2O . . 870.22 
“ “ dry, (C20H24N2O2)2HsSO4 744.50 
“ Valerianate,C20H24N2O2C5H)0O2 + H2O . . . 443.07 
Resorcin,C8H4(OH)2109.74 
Salicin,C13HI8O7 285.33 
Salol,C8H5C7H5O3213.49 
Santonin,C15H]8O3 245.43 
Silver Cyanide, . AgCN133.64 
“ Iodide,Agl 234.19 
“ Nitrate,AgNO3169.55 
“ Oxide,Ag2O 231.28 
“ Sulphate,Ag2SO4311.14 
Soda 
(See Sodium Hydrate). 
Sodium Acetate,NaC2H3O2 + 3H2O135.74 
“ “ dry,NaC2H3O281.86 
41 Arsenate,Na2HAsO4 + 7H2O311.46 
“ dryNa2HAsO4185.74 
“ Arsenite (Metarsenite),NaAsO2129.82 
“ Benzoate,NaC7H5O2143.71 
“ Bicarbonate, NaHCO383.85 
“ Bisulphite,NaHSO3103.86 
“ Bitartrate,NaHC4H4O8 + H2O189.60 
“ Borate,Na2B4O7 + 10H2O 380.92 460 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
Sodium Borate, dry,Na2B4O7201.32 
“ Bromate,NaBrO3 150.64 
“ Bromide,NaBr102.76 
“ Carbonate, + 10H2O 285.45 
“ “ dry,Na2CO3105.85 
“ Chlorate,NaC103106.25 
“ Chloride,NaCl58.37 
“ Citrate,2NagC6H5O7 + 11H2O712.64 
“ “ dry,Na.iC(1H5O7 257.54 
“ Cobaltic Nitrite,Co2(NO2)66NaNO2 4~ H2O . . . 824.32 
“ Hydrate,NaOH39.96 
“ Hypophosphite,NaPH2O2105.84 
“ Hyposulphite,Na2S2O3 4~ 5H2O 247.64 
“ “ dry,Na2S2O3157.84 
“ Iodide,Nal149.53 
“ Lactate, NaC3H5O3111.79 
“ Nitrate,NaNO384.89 
“ Nitrite,NaNO268.93 
“ Nitroprusside,Na2Fe(NO)(CN)5 + 2H2O . . . 297.67 
“ Phosphate,Na2HPO4 4- 12H2O 357.32 
“ “ dry,Na2HPO4141.80 
“ Pyrophosphate,Na4P2O7 + 10H2O 445.24 
“ “ dry,Na4P2O7 265.64 
“ Salicylate, NaC7H5O3159.67 
“ Sulphate,Na2SO4 + 10H2O321.42 
“ “ dry,Na2SO4141.82 
“ Sulphite,Na2SO3 4- 7H2O251.58 
“ “ dry,Na.2SO3125.86 
“ Sulphocarbolate,NaSO3C6H4(OH) + 2H2O . . . 231.56 
“ Tartrate,Na2C4H4O6 4~ 2H2O 229.56 
“ Thiosulphate 
(See Hyposulphite). 
Sparteine Sulphate,Ci5H26N2H.2SO4 + 4H2O .... 403.23 
“ “ dry,C15H26N2H2SO4331.39 
Stannous Chloride,SnCl2 4" 2H2O 225.46 
Strontium Bromide,SrBr2 4~ 6H2O 354.58 
“ “ dry,SrBr2 246.82 
“ Iodide,Srl2 4- 6H.2O 448.12 
“ “ dry,Srl2 340.36 
Lactate, Sr(C3H5O3)2 + 3H2O318.76 
“ “ drySr(C3H5O3)2 264.88 
Strychnine,C21H22N20.2 333.31 
Sulphate,(C21H22N2O2)2H2SO4 4* 5H2O . . 854.24 
“ “ dry, (C21H22N2O2)2H2SO4 764.44 
Sugar, Cane, C12H22OU341.20 
“ Grape,C6H12O6179.58 
“ Milk, C12H22On + H2O 359.16 
Sulphur Dioxide,SO263.90 
Terebene,C10H16135.70 
Terpin Hydrate,C10H18(OH)2 + H2O189.58 
Thiosinamiue,CS.N2H3(C3H5)115.88 
Thymol,C10H14O149.66 
Water,H2O17.96 
Zinc Acetate,Zn(C2H8O2)2 + 2H2O218.74 
“ “ dry,Zn(C2H3O2)2182.82 
“ Bromide, ZnBr2 224.62 
“ Carbonate (normal, not U.S.P.), . . . ZnCO3124.95 
“ Chloride,ZnCI2135.84 
“ Iodide, Znl2318.16 
“ Oxide,ZnO81.06 
“ Phosphide,Zn3P2 257.22 
“ Sulphate,ZnSO4 4- 7H2O 286.64 
“ “ dry, ZnSO4160.92 
“ Valerianate,Zn(C5H9O.2)2 4- 2H2O 302.56 TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS.* 
According to the Centigrade and Fahrenheit Scales. 
Given Sought 
Centigrade: Fahrenheit: 
Given 
Fahrenhf 
n° F. 
Sought 
it: Centigrade: 
_ 5 (n°—32) 
9 
n° C. 
2 
c.° 
F.° 
c.° 
F.° 
1 
C.° 
F.° 
c.° 
F.° 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
—40 
—40 
—39.4444 
—39 
—24.4444 
—12 
—9.4444 
15 
0.5556 
33 
—39 
—38.2 
—24 
—11.2 
9 
15.8 
1 
33.8 
—38.8889 
—38 
—23.8889 
—11 
—8.8889 
16 
1.1111 
34 
—38.3333 
—37 
—23.3333 
—10 
! —8.3333 
17 
1.6667 
35 
—38 
—36.4 
—23 
—9.4 
—8 
17.6 
2 
35.6 
—37.7778 
—36 
—22.7778 
—9 
—7.7778 
18 
2.2222 
36 
—37.2222 
—35 
—22.2222 
—8 
—7.2222 
19 
2.7778 
37 
-37 
—34.6 
—22 
—7.6 
7 
19.4 
3 
37.4 
—36.6667 
—34 
—21.6667 
—7 
—6.6667 
20 
3.3333 
38 
—36.1111 
—33 
—21.1111 
—6 
—6.1111 
21 
3.8889 
39 
—36 
—32.8 
— 21 
—5.8 
—6 
21.2 
4 
39.2 
—35.5556 
—32 
—20.5556 
—5 
—5.5556 
22 
4.4444 
40 
—35 
—31 
—20 
—4 
—5 
23 
5 
41 
— 
— 
— 
— 
—34.4444 
—30 
—19.4444 
—3 
—4.4444 
24 
5.5556 
42 
—34 
—29.2 
—19 
—2.2 
—4 
24.8 i 
6 
42.8 
—33.8889 
—29 
—18.8889 
—2 
1 —3.8889 
25 
6.1111 
43 
—33.3333 
—28 
—18.3333 
1 
—3.3333 
26 
6.6667 
44 
—33 
—27.4 
—18 
—0.4 
—3 
26.6 
7 
44.6 
—32.7778 
—27 
—17.7778 
0 
—2.7778 
27 
7.2222 
45 
—32.2222 
—26 
—17.2222 
1 
—2.2222 
28 
7.7778 
46 
—32 
—25.6 
—17 
1.4 
—2 
28.4 I 
8 
46.4 
—31.6667 
—25 
—16.6667 
2 
—1.6667 
29 
8.3333 
47 
—31.1111 
—24 
—16.1111 
3 
—1.1111 
30 
8.8889 
48 
—31 
—23.8 
—16 
3.2 
—1 
30.2 
9 
48.2 
—30.5556 
—23 
—15.5556 
4 
—0.5556 
31 
9.4444 
49 
—30 
—22 
—15 
5 
—0 
32 
10 
50 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
—29.4444 
—21 
—14.4444 
6 
10.5556 
51 
—29 
—20.2 
—14 
6.8 
11 
51.8 
—28.8889 
—20 
—13.8889 
7 
11.1111 
52 
—28.3333 
—19 
—13.3333 
8 
11.6667 
53 
—28 
—18.4 
—13 
8.6 
12 
53.6 
—27.7778 
—18 
—12.7778 
9 
12.2222 
54 
—27.2222 
—17 
—12.2222 
10 
12.7778 
55 
—27 
—16.6 
—12 
10.4 
13 
55.4 
—26.6667 
—16 
—11.6667 
11 
13.3333 
56 
—26.1111 
—15 
—11.1111 
12 
. 13.8889 
57 
—26 
—14.8 
—11 
12.2 
14 
57.2 
—25.5556 
— 14 
—10.5556 
13 
14.4444 
58 
—25 
—13 
—10 
14 
15 
59 
* Taken from U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 1890. 
461 462 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS.—Continued. 
c.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
15.5556 
60 
35.5556 
96 
55.5556 
132 
75.5556 
168 
16 
60.8 
36 
96.8 
56 
132.8 
76 
168.8 
16.1111 
61 
36.1111 
97 
56.1111 
133 
76.1111 
169 
16.6667 
62 
36.6667 
98 
56.6667 
134 
76.6667 
170 
17 
62.6 
37 
98.6 
57 
134.6 
77 
170.6 
17.2222 
63 
37.2222 
99 
57.2222 
135 
77.2222 
171 
17.7778 
64 
37.7778 
100 
57.7778 
136 
77.7778 
172 
18 
64.4 
38 
100.4 
58 
136.4 
75 
172.4 
18.3333 
65 
38.3333 
101 
58.3333 
137 
78.3333 
173 
18.8889 
66 
I 38.8889 
102 
58.8889 
138 
78.8889 
174 
19 
66.2 
39 
102.2 
59 
138.2 
79 
174.2 
19.4444 
67 
39.4444 
103 
59.4444 
139 
79.4444 
175 
20 
68 
40 
104 
60 
140 
80 
176 
20.5556 
69 
40.5556 
105 
60.5556 
141 
80.5556 
177 
21 
69.8 
41 
105.8 
61 
141.8 
81 
177.8 
21.1111 
70 
41.1111 
106 
61.1111 
142 
81.1111 
178 
21.6667 
71 
41.6667 
107 
61.6667 
143 
81.6667 
179 
22 
71.6 
42 
107.6 
62 
143.6 
82 
179.6 
22.2222 
72 
42.2222 
108 
62.2222 
144 
82.2222 
180 
22.7778 
73 
42.7778 
109 
62.7778 
145 
82.7778 
181 
23 
73.4 
43 
109.4 
63 
145.4 
83 
181.4 
23.3333 
74 
43.3333 
110 
63.3333 
146 
83.3333 
182 
23.8889 
75 
1 43.8889 
111 
63.8889 
147 
83.8889 
183 
24 
75.2 
44 
111.2 
64 
147.2 
84 
183.2 
24.4444 
76 
44.4444 
112 
64.4444 
148 
84.4444 
184 
25 
77 
45 
113 
65 
149 
85 
185 
25.5556 
78 
45.5556 
114 
65.5556 
150 
85.5556 
186 
26 
78.8 
45 
114.8 
66 
150.8 
86 
186.8 
26.1111 
79 
46.1111 
115 
66.1111 
151 
86.1111 
187 
26.6667 
80 
46.6667 
116 
66.6667 
152 
86.6667 
188 
27 
80.6 
47 
116.6 
67 
152.6 
87 
188.6 
27.2222 
81 
47.2222 
117 
67.2222 
153 
87.2222 
189 
27.7778 
82 
47.7778 
118 
67.7778 
154 
87.7778 
190 
28 
82.4 
48 
118.4 
68 
154.4 
88 
190.4 
28.3333 
83 
48.3333 
119 
68.3333 
155 
88.3333 
191 
28.8889 
84 
48.8889 
120 
68.8889 
156 
88.8889 
192 
29 
84.2 
49 
120.2 
69 
156.2 
89 
192.2 
29.4444 
85 
49.4444 
121 
69.4444 
157 
89.4444 
193 
30 
86 
50 
122 
70 
158 
90 
194 
30.5556 
87 
50.5556 
123 
70.5556 
159 
90.5556 
195 
31 
87.8 
51 
123.8 
71 
159.8 
91 
195.8 
31.1111 
88 
51.1111 
124 
71.1111 
160 
91.1111 
196 
31.6667 
89 
51.6667 
125 
71.6667 
161 
91.6667 
197 
32 
89.6 
| 52 
125.6 
72 
161.6 
92 
197.6 
32.2222 
90 
1 52.2222 
126 
72.2222 
162 
92.2222 
198 
32.7778 
91 
52.7778 
127 
72.7778 
163 
92.7778 
199 
33 
91.4 
53 
127.4 
73 
163.4 
93 
199.4 
33.3333 
92 
53.3333 
128 
73.3333 
164 
93.3333 
200 
33.8889 
93 
53.8889 
129 
73.8889 
165 
93.8889 
201 
34 
93.2 
54 
129.2 
74 
165.2 
94 
201.2 
34.4444 
94 
I 54.4444 
130 
74.4444 
166 
94.4444 
202 
35 
95 
55 
131 
75 
167 
95 
203 TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS. 
463 
TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS.—Continued. 
c.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
95.5556 
204 
115.5556 
240 
135.5556 
276 
155.5556 
312 
96 
204.8 
116 
240.8 
136 
276.8 
156 
312.8 
96.1111 
205 
! 116.1111 
241 
136.1111 
277 
156.1111 
313 
96.6667 
206 
116.6667 
242 
136.6667 
278 
156.6667 
314 
97 
206.6 
117 
242.6 
137 
278.6 
157 
314.6 
97.2222 
207 
1 117.2222 
243 
137.2222 
279 
157.2222 
315 
97.7778 
208 
117.7778 
244 
137.7778 
280 
157.7778 
316 
98 
208.4 
118 
244.4 
138 
280.4 
158 
316.4 
98.3333 
209 
118.3333 
245 
138.3333 
281 
158.3333 
317 
98.8889 
210 
118.8889 
246 
138.8889 
282 
158.8889 
318 
99 
210.2 
119 
246.2 
139 
282.2 
159 
318.2 
99.4444 
211 
119.4444 
247 
139.4444 
283 
159.4444 
319 
100 
212 
120 
248 
140 
284 
160 
320 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
100.5556 
213 
120.5556 
249 
140.5556 
285 
160.5556 
321 
101 
213.8 
121 
249.8 
141 
285.8 
161 
321.8 
101.1111 
214 
121.1111 
250 
141.1111 
286 
161.1111 
322 
101.6667 
215 
121.6667 
251 
141.6667 
287 
161.6667 
323 
102 
215.6 
122 
251.6 
142 
287.6 
162 
323.6 
102.2222 
216 
122.2222 
252 
142.2222 
288 
162.2222 
324 
102.7778 
217 
122.7778 
253 
142.7778 
289 
162.7778 
325 
103 
217.4 
123 
253.4 
143 
289.4 
163 
325.4 
103.3333 
218 
123.3333 
254 
143.3333 
290 
163.3333 
326 
103.8889 
219 
123.8889 
255 
143.8889 
291 
163.8889 
327 
104 
219.2 
124 
255.2 
144 
291.2 
164 
327.2 
104.4444 
220 
124.4444 
256 
144.4444 
292 
164.4444 
328 
105 
221 
125 
257 
145 
293 
165 
329 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
105.5556 
222 
125.5556 
258 
145.5556 
294 
165.5556 
330 
106 
222.8 
126 
258.8 
146 
294.8 
166 
330.8 
106.1111 
223 
126.1111 
259 
146.1111 
295 
166.1111 
331 
106.6667 
224 
126.6667 
260 
146.6667 
296 
166.6667 
332 
107 
224.6 
127 
260.6 
147 
296.6 
167 
332.6 
107.2222 
225 
127.2222 
261 
147.2222 
297 
167.2222 
333 
107.7778 
226 
127.7778 
262 
147.7778 
298 
167.7778 
334 
108 
226.4 
128 
262.4 
148 
298.4 
168 
334.4 
108.3333 
227 
128.3333 
263 
148.3333 
299 
168.3333 
335 
108.8889 
228 
128.8889 
264 
148.8889 
300 
168.8889 
336 
109 
228.2 
129 
264.2 
149 
300.2 
169 
336.2 
109.4444 
229 
129.4444 
265 
149.4444 
301 
169.4444 
337 
110 
230 
130 
266 
150 
302 
170 
338 
— 
1 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
— 
110.5556 
231 
130.5556 
267 
150.5556 
303 
170.5556 
339 
111 
231.8 
131 
267.8 
151 
303.8 
171 
339.8 
111.1111 
232 
131.1111 
268 
151.1111 
304 
171.1111 
340 
111.6667 
233 
131.6667 
269 
151.6667 
305 
171.6667 
341 
112 
233.6 ' 
132 
269.6 
152 
305.6 
172 
341.6 
112.2222 
234 
132.2222 
270 
152.2222 
306 
172.2222 
342 
112.7778 
235 
132.7778 
271 
152.7778 
307 
172.7778 
343 
113 
235.4 
133 
271.4 
153 
307.4 
173 
343.4 
113.3333 
236 
133.3333 
272 
153.3333 
308 
173.3333 
344 
113.8889 
237 
133.8889 
273 
153.8889 
309 
173.8889 
345 
114 
237.2 
134 
273.2 
154 
309.2 
174 
345.2 
114.4444 
238 
134.4444 
274 
154.4444 
310 
174.4444 
346 
115 
239 
135 
275 
155 
311 
175 
347 464 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS.—Continued. 
c.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
175.5556 
348 
195.5556 
384 
' 215.5556 
420 
235.5556 
456 
176 
348.8 
196 
384.8 
216 
420.8 
236 
456.8 
176.1111 
349 
196.1111 
385 
216.1111 
421 
236.1111 
457 
176.6667 
350 
196.6667 
386 
216.6667 
422 
236.6667 
458 
177 
350.6 
197 
386.6 
217 
422.6 
237 
458.6 
177.2222 
351 
197.2222 
387 
, 217.2222 
423 
237.2222 
459 
177.7778 
352 
197.7778 
388 
217.7778 
424 
237.7778 
460 
178 
352.4 
198 
388.4 
218 
424.4 
238 
460.4 
178.3333 
353 
198.3333 
389 
218.3333 
425 
238.3333 
461 
178.8889 
354 
198.8889 
390 
218.8889 
426 
238.8889 
462 
179 
354.2 
199 
390.2 
219 
426.2 
239 
462.2 
179.4444 
355 
199.4444 
391 
219.4444 
427 
239.4444 
463 
180 
356 
200 
392 
220 
428 
240 
464 
— 
1 
— 
— 
— 
180.5556 
357 
200.5556 
393 
220.5556 
429 
240.5556 
465 
181 
357.8 
201 
393.8 
221 
429.8 
241 
465.8 
181.1111 
358 
201.1111 
394 
221.1111 
430 
241.1111 
466 
181.6667 
359 
201.6667 
395 
221.6667 
431 
241.6667 
467 
182 
359.6 
202 
395.6 
222 
431.6 
242 
467.6 
182.2222 
360 
202.2222 
396 
222.2222 
432 
242.2222 
468 
182.7778 
361 
202.7778 
397 
222.7778 
433 
242.7778 
469 
183 
361.4 
203 
397.4 1 
223 
433.4 
243 
469.4 
183.3333 
362 
203.3333 
398 
223.3333 
434 
243.3333 
470 
183.8889 
363 
203.8889 
399 
223.8889 
435 
243.8889 
471 
184 
363.2 
204 
399.2 | 
224 
435.2 
244 
471.2 
184.4444 
364 
204.4444 
400 
224.4444 
436 
244.4444 
472 
185 
365 
205 
401 
225 
437 
245 
473 
— 
— 
: 
— 
— 
— 
185.5556 
366 
205.5556 
402 
225.5556 
438 
245.5556 
474 
186 
366.8 
206 
402.8 
226 
438.8 
246 
474.8 
186.1111 
367 
206.1111 
403 
226.1111 
439 
246.1111 
475 
186.6667 
368 
206.6667 
404 
226.6667 
440 
246.6667 
476 
187 
368.6 
207 
404.6 
227 
440.6 
247 
476.6 
187.2222 
369 
207.2222 
405 
227.2222 
441 
247.2222 
477 
187.7778 
370 
207.7778 
406 
227.7778 
442 
247.7778 
478 
188 
370.4 
208 
406.4 
228 
442.4 
248 
478.4 
188.3333 
371 
208.3333 
407 
228.3333 
443 
248.3333 
479 
188.8889 
372 
208.8889 
408 
228.8889 
444 
248.8889 
480 
189 
372.2 
209 
408.2 
229 
444.2 
249 
480.2 
189.4444 
373 
209.4444 
409 
229.4444 
445 
249.4444 
481 
190 
374 
210 
410 
230 
446 
250 
482 
— 
— 
— 
1 
— 
— 
190.5556 
375 
210.5556 
411 
230.5556 
447 
250.5556 
483 
191 
375.8 
211 
411.8 
231 
447.8 
251 
483.8 
191.1111 
376 
211.1111 
412 
231.1111 
448 
251.1111 
484 
191.6667 
377 
211.6667 
413 
231.6667 
449 
251.6667 
485 
192 
377.6 
212 
413.6 
232 
449.6 
252 
485.6 
192.2222 
378 
212.2222 
414 
| 232.2222 
450 
252.2222 
486 
192.7778 
379 
212.7778 
415 
, 232.7778 
451 
252.7778 
487 
193 
379.4 
213 
415.4 
233 
451.4 
253 
487.4 
193.3333 
380 
213.3333 
416 
233.3333 
452 
253.3333 
488 
193.8889 
381 
213.8889 
417 
233.8889 
453 
253.8889 
489 
194 
381.2 
214 
417.2 
j 234 
453.2 
254 
489.2 
194.4444 
382 
214.4444 
418 
234.4444 
454 
254.4444 
490 
195 
383 
215 
419 
235 
455 
255 
491 465 
TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS. 
TABLE OF THERMOMETRIC EQUIVALENTS.—Continued. 
c.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
C.° 
F.° 
255.5556 
492 
275.5556 
528 
295.5556 
564 
315.5556 
600 
256 
492.8 
276 
528.8 
296 
564.8 
316 
600.8 
256.1111 
493 
276.1111 
529 
296.1111 
565 
316.1111 
601 
256.6667 
494 
276.6667 
530 
296.6667 
566 
316.6667 
602 
257 
494.6 
277 
530.6 
297 
566.6 
317 
602.6 
257.2222 
495 
277.2222 
531 
297.2222 
567 
317.2222 
603 
257.7778 
496 
277.7778 
532 
297.7778 
568 
317.7778 
604 
258 
496.4 
278 
532.4 
298 
568.4 
318 
604.4 
258.3333 
497 
278.3333 
533 
298.3333 
569 
318.3333 
605 
258.8889 
498 
278.8889 
534 
298.8889 
570 ’ 
318.8889 
606 
259 
498.2 
279 
534.2 
299 
570.2 
319 
606.2 
259.4444 
499 
279.4444 
535 
i 299.4444 
571 
319.4444 
607 
260 
500 
280 
536 
300 
572 
320 
608 
260.5556 
501 
280.5556 
537 
300.5556 
573 
320.5556 
609 
261 
501.8 
281 
537.8 
301 
573.8 
321 
609.8 
261.1111 
502 
281.1111 
538 
301.1111 
574 l 
321.1111 
610 
261.6667 
503 
i 281.6667 
539 
1 301.6667 
575 
321.6667 
611 
262 
503.6 
282 
539.6 
302 
575.6 
322 
611.6 
262.2222 
504 
| 282.2222 
540 
302.2222 
576 
322.2222 
612 
262.7778 
505 
282.7778 
541 
302.7778 
577 
322.7778 
613 
263 
505.4 
283 
541.4 
303 
577.4 
323 
613.4 
263.3333 
506 
283.3333 
542 
303.3333 
578 
323.3333 
614 
263.8889 
507 
283.8889 
543 
303.8889 
579 
323.8889 
615 
264 
507.2 
284 
543.2 
304 
579.2 
324 
615.2 
264.4444 
508 
284.4444 
544 
304.4444 
580 
I 324.4444 
616 
265 
509 
285 
545 
305 
581 
325 
617 
265.5556 
510 
285.5556 
546 
305.5556 
582 
325.5556 
618 
266 
510.8 
286 
546.8 
306 
582.8 
326 
618.8 
266.1111 
511 
286.1111 
547 
306.1111 
583 
326.1111 
619 
266.6667 
512 
286.6667 
548 
306.6667 
584 
326.6667 
620 
267 
512.6 
287 
548.6 
307 
584.6 
327 
620.6 
267.2222 
513 
287.2222 
549 
307.2222 
585 
327.2222 
621 
267.7778 
514 
287.7778 
550 
307.7778 
586 
327.7778 
622 
263 
514.4 
288 
550.4 
308 
586.4 
328 
622.4 
268.3333 
515 
288.3333 
551 
308.3333 
587 
| 328.3333 
623 
268.8889 
516 
288.8889 
552 
308.8889 
588 
328.8889 
624 
269 
516.2 
289 
552.2 
309 
588.2 
329 
624.2 
269.4444 
517 
289.4444 
553 
309.4444 
589 
329.4444 
625 
270 
518 
290 
554 
310 
590 
330 
626 
270.5556 
519 
290.5556 
555 
310.5556 
591 
330.5556 
627 
271 
519.8 
291 
555.8 
311 
591.8 
331 
627.8 
271.1111 
520 
291.1111 
556 
311.1111 
592 
331.1111 
628 
271.6667 
521 
291.6667 
557 
311.6667 
593 
331.6667 
629 
272 
521.6 
292 
557.6 
312 
593.6 
332 
629.6 
272.2222 
522 
292.2222 
558 
312.2222 
594 
332.2222 
630 
272.7778 
523 
292.7778 
559 
312.7778 
595 
332.7778 
631 
273 
523.4 
293 
559.4 
313 
595.4 
333 
631.4 
273.3333 
524 
293.3333 
560 1 
313.3333 
596 
333.3333 
632 
273.8889 
525 
293.8889 
561 
313.8889 
597 
333.8889 
633 
274 
525.2 
294 
561.2 
314 
597.2 
334 
633.2 
274.4444 
526 
294.4444 
562 
314.4444 
598 
334.4444 
634 
275 
527 
295 
563 
315 
599 
335 
635 EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES,* 
Customary and Metric. 
Note.—The values given for the relation of weight to measure are for Water at the temperature of 
4° C. (39.2° F.) in vacuo. For ordinary, practical purposes, these values may be used, without cor- 
rection. 
Weights, Customary. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Cc. 
Measures, Customary. 
Grains. 
oz. 
Troy- 
grains. 
lbs 
Avoirdupois 
Fluid 
ounces, minims. 
Fluid- 
ounces and 
fractions. 
. oz. 
grains. 
15432.4 
32 
72.4 
2 
3 
119.9 
1000 
33 
390.6 
33.814 
15360 
32 
2 
3 
47.5 
995.312 
33 
314.5 
33.655 
15U60.9 
31 
180.9 
2 
2 
185.9 
975.932 
33 
33 
15046.6 
31 
166.6 
2 
2 
171.6 
975 
32 
464.9 
32.968 
14880 
31 
2 
2 
5 
964.208 
32 
289.7 
32.604 
14660.7 
30 
260.7 
2 
1 
223.2 
950 
32 
59.1 
32.123 
14604.5 
30 
204.5 
2 
1 
167 
946.358 
32 
32 
14400 
30 
2 
... 
400 
933.105 
31 
264.9 
31.552 
14274.9 
29 
354.9 
2 
274.9 
925 
31 
133.3 
31.278 
14148.2 
29 
228.2 
« 
148.2 
916.785 
31 
31 
14000 
29 
80 
2 
907.185 
30 
324.2 
30.676 
13920 
29 
1 
15 
357.5 
902.000 
30 
240 
30.500 
13889.1 
28 
449.1 
1 
15 
326.6 
900 
30 
207.6 
30.432 
13691.8 
28 
251.8 
1 
15 
129.3 
887.211 
30 
30 
13562.5 
28 
122.5 
1 
15 
878.635 
29 
344.1 
29.717 
13503.3 
28 
63.3 
1 
14 
378.3 
875 
29 
281.8 
29.587 
13440 
28 
1 
14 
315 
870.898 
29 
215.2 
29.448 
13235.4 
27 
275.4 
1 
14 
110.4 
857.637 
29 
29 
13125 
27 
165 
1 
14 
850.486 
28 
363.9 
28.759 
13117.5 
27 
157.5 
1 
13 
430 
850 
28 
356 
28.742 
12960 
27 
1 
13 
272.5 
839.794 
28 
190.4 
28.397 
12779 
26 
299 
1 
13 
91.5 
828.064 
28 
28 
12731.7 
26 
251.7 
1 
13 
44.2 
825 
27 
430.3 
27.896 
12687.5 
26 
207.5 
1 
13 
822.136 
27 
383.8 
27.800 
12480 
26 
1 
12 
230 
808.691 
27 
165.6 
27.345 
12345.9 
25 
345.9 
1 
12 
95.9 
800 
27 
24.5 
27.051 
12322.6 
25 
322.6 
1 
12 
72.6 
798.490 
27 
27 
12250 
25 
250 
1 
12 
793.787 
26 
403.7 
26.841 
12000 
25 
1 
11 
187.5 
777.587 
26 
140.7 
26.293 
11960.1 
24 
440.1 
1 
11 
147.6 
775 
26 
98.7 
26.206 
11866.2 
24 
346.2 
1 
11 
53.7 
768.916 
26 
26 
11812.5 
24 
292.5 
1 
11 
765.437 
25 
423.6 
25.883 
11574.3 
24 
54.3 
1 
10 
199.3 
750 
25 
173 
25.360 
11520 
24 
1 
10 
145 
746.484 
25 
115.9 
25.241 
11409.8 
23 
369.8 
1 
10 
34.8 
739.343 
25 
25 
11375 
23 
335 
1 
10 
737.087 
24 
443.4 
24.924 
11188.5 
23 
148.5 
1 
9 
251 
725 
24 
247.2 
24.515 
11040 
23 
1 
9 
102.5 
715.380 
24 
91.1 
24.190 
10953.4 
22 
393.4 
1 
9 
15.9 
709.769 
24 
24 
10937.5 
22 
377.5 
1 
9 
708.738 
23 
463.3 
23.966 
* Taken from U. S. Pharmacopoeia, 1890. 
466 EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
467 
Weights, Customary. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Co. 
Measures, Customary. 
Grains. 
oz. 
Troy 
grains. 
Avoirdupois 
Fluid 
ounces, minims. 
Fluid- 
ounces and 
fractions. 
lbs. oz. 
grains. 
10802.6 
22 
242.6 
1 
8 
302.6 
700 
23 
321.4 
23.670 
10560 
22 
1 
8 
60 
684.277 
23 
66.2 
23.138 
10500 
21 
420 
1 
8 
680.388 
23 
3.1 
23.007 
10497.0 
21 
417 
1 
7 
434.5 
680.195 
23 
23 
10416.8 
21 
336.8 
1 
7 
354.3 
675 
22 
395.7 
22.824 
10080 
21 
1 
7 
17.5 
653.173 
22 
41.4 
22.086 
10062.5 
20 
462.5 
1 
7 
652.039 
22 
23.0 
22.048 
10040.6 
20 
440.6 
1 
6 
415.6 
650.621 
22 
22 
10031.0 
20 
431 
1 
6 
406 
650 
21 
469.9 
21.979 
9645.2 
20 
45.2 
1 
6 
20.2 
625 
21 
64.1 
21.134 
9625 
20 
25 
1 
6 
623.689 
21 
42.9 
21.09 
9600 
20 
1 
5 
412.5 
622.070 
21 
16.6 
21.035 
9584.2 
19 
464.2 
1 
5 
396.7 
621.048 
21 
21 
9259.4 
19 
139.4 
1 
5 
71.9 
600 
20 
138.4 
20.288 
9187.5 
19 
67.5 
1 
5 
595.340 
20 
62.7 
20.131 
9127.8 
19 
7.8 
1 
4 
377.8 
591.474 
20 
20 
9120 
19 
1 
4 
370 
590.966 
19 
471.8 
19.983 
8873.6 
18 
233.6 
1 
4 
123.6 
575 
19 
212.6 
19.443 
8750 
18 
110 
1 
4 
566.990 
19 
82.6 
19.172 
8671.4 
18 
31.4 
1 
3 
358.9 
561.900 
19 
19 
8640 
18 
1 
3 
327.5 
559.863 
18 
447 
18.931 
8487.8 
17 
327.8 
1 
3 
175.3 
550 
18 
286.8 
18.598 
8312.5 
17 
152.5 
1 
3 
538.641 
18 
102.5 
18.214 
8215.1 
17 
55.1 
1 
2 
340.1 
532.327 
18 
18 
8160 
17 
1 
2 
285 
528.759 
17 
422.1 
17.880 
8102 
16 
422 
1 
2 
227 
525 
17 
361.1 
17.752 
7875 
16 
195 
1 
2 
510.291 
17 
122.4 
17.255 
7758.7 
16 
78.7 
1 
1 
321.2 
502.753 
17 
17 
7716.2 
16 
36.2 
1 
1 
278.7 
500 
16 
435.3 
16.907 
7680 
16 
1 
1 
242.5 
497.656 
16 
397.2 
16.828 
7437.5 
15 
237.5 
1 
1 
481.942 
16 
142.2 
16.297 
7330.4 
15 
130.4 
1 
330.4 
475 
16 
29.6 
16.062 
7302.3 
15 
102.3 
1 
302.3 
473.179 
16 
16 
7200 
15 
1 
200 
466.552 
15 
372.4 
15.776 
7000 
14 
280 
1 
453.592 
15 
162.1 
15.338 
6944.6 
14 
224.6 
15 
382.1 I 
450 
15 
103.8 
15.216 
6845.9 
14 
125.9 
15 
283.4 
443.606 
15 
15 
6720 
14 
15 
157.5 
435.449 
14 
347.6 
14.724 
6562.5 
13 
322.5 
15 
425.243 
14 
182 
14.379 
6558.8 
13 
318.8 
14 
433.8 
425 
14 
178.0 
14.371 
6389.5 
13 
149.5 
14 
264.5 
414.032 
14 
14 
6240 
13 
14 
115 
404.345 
13 
322.8 
13.672 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.—Continued. 468 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES-—Continued. 
Weights, Customary. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Cc. 
Measures, Customary. 
Grains. 
oz. 
Troy 
grains. 
Avoirdupois 
Fluid 
ounces, minims. 
Fluid- 
ounces and 
fractions. 
lbs. 
oz. 
grains. 
6172.9 
12 
412.9 
14 
47.9 
400 
13 
252.3 
13.526 
6125 
12 
365 
14 
396.893 
13 
201.8 
13.421 
5933.1 
12 
173.1 
13 
245.6 
384.458 
13 
13 
5787.1 
12 
27.1 
13 
99.6 
375 
12 
326.5 
12.680 
5760 
12 
13 
72.5 
373.242 
12 
298 
12.621 
5687.5 
11 
407.5 
13 
368.544 
12 
221.7 
12.462 
5476.7 
11 
196.7 
12 
226.7 
354.884 
12 
12 
5401.3 
11 
121.3 
12 
151.3 
350 
11 
400.7 
11.835 
5280 
11 
12 
30 
342.138 
11 
273.1 
11.570 
5250 
10 
450 
12 
340.194 
11 
241.6 
11.503 
5020.3 
10 
220.3 
11 
207.8 
325.311 
11 
11 
5015.5 
10 
215.5 
... 
11 
203 
325 
10 
475 
10.989 
4812.5 
10 
12.5 
... 
11 
311.845 
10 
261.4 
10.545 
4800 
10 
10 
425 
311.035 
10 
248.3 
10.517 
4629.7 
9 
309.7 
10 
254.7 
300 
10 
69.2 
10.144 
4563.9 
9 
243.9 
10 
188.9 
295.737 
10 
10 
4375 
9 
55 
10 
283.495 
9 
281.3 
9.586 
4320 
9 
9 
382.5 
279.930 
9 
223.5 
9.466 
4244 
8 
404 
9 
306.5 
275 
9 
143.4 
9.299 
4107.5 
8 
267.5 
9 
170 
266.163 
9 
9 
3937.5 
8 
97.5 
9 
255.146 
8 
301.2 
8.628 
3858.1 
8 
18.1 
8 
358.1 
250 
8 
217.7 
8.453 
3840 
8 
8 
340 
248.828 
8 
198.6 
8.414 
3651.1 
7 
291.1 
8 
151.1 
236.590 
8 
8 
3500 
7 
140 
8 
226.796 
7 
321.0 
7.669 
3472.3 
7 
112.3 
7 
409.8 
225 
7 
291.9 
7.608 
3360 
7 
7 
297.5 
217.724 
7 
173.8 
7.362 
3194.7 
6 
314.7 
7 
132.2 
207.016 
7 
7 
3086.5 
6 
206.5 
? 
24 
200 
6 
366.1 
6.763 
3062.5 
6 
182.5 
7 
198.447 
6 
340.9 
6.710 
2880 
6 
6 
255 
186.621 
6 
149 
6.310 
2738.4 
5 
338.4 
6 
113.4 
177.442 
6 
6 
2700.7 
5 
300.7 
6 
75.7 
175 
5 
440.4 
5.917 
2625 
5 
225 
6 
170.097 
5 
360.8 
5.752 
2400 
5 
5 
212.5 
155.517 
5 
124.1 
5.259 
2314.9 
4 
394.9 
5 
127.4 
150 
5 
34.6 
5.072 
2282 
4 
362 
5 
94.5 
147.869 
5 
5 
2187.5 
4 
267.5 
5 
141.748 
4 
380.7 
4.793 
1929 
4 
9 
4 
179 
125 
4 
108.8 
4.227 
1920 
4 
4 
170 
124.414 
4 
99.3 
4.207 
1825.6 
3 
385.6 
4 
75.6 
118.295 
4 
4 
1750 
3 
310 
4 
113.398 
3 
400.5 
3.834 EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
469 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.—Continued. 
Weights, Customaey. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm] [Co. 
Measuees, Customaey. 
Grains. 
oz. 
Troy. 
grains. 
lbs. 
Avoirdupois 
Fluid 
| ounces, minims. 
Fluid- 
ounces and 
fractions. 
OZ. 
grains. 
1543.2 
3 
103.2 
3 
230.7 
100 
3 
183.1 
3.381 
1440 
3 
3 
127.5 
93.310 
3 
74.5 
3.155 
1388.9 
2 
428.9 
3 
76.4 
90 
3 
20.8 
3.043 
1369.2 
2 
409.2 
3 
56.7 
88.721 
3 
3 
1312.5 
2 
352.5 
3 
85.049 
2 
420.4 
2.876 
1234.6 
2 
274.6 
2 
359.6 
80 
2 
338.5 
2.705 
1157.4 
2 
197.4 
2 
282.4 
75 
2 
257.3 
2.536 
1080.3 
2 
120.3 
2 
205.3 
70 
2 
176.1 
2.367 
960 
2 
2 
85 
62.207 
2 
49.7 
2.103 
925.9 
1. 
445.9 
2 
50.9 
60 
2 
13.8 
2.029 
912.8 
1 
432.8 
2 
37.8 
59.147 
2 
2 
875 
1 
395 
2 
59.699 
1 
440.3 
1.917 
771.6 
1 
291.6 
1 
334.1 
50 
1 
331.5 
1.691 
617.3 
1 
137.3 
1 
179.8 
40 
1 
169.2 
1.353 
480 
1 
1 
42.5 
31.1035 
1 
24.8 
1.052 
463 
1 
25.4 
30 
1 
6.9 
1.014 
456.392 
1 
18.89 
29.574 
1 
1 
437.5 
1 
28.350 
460.1307 
0.959 
385.8 
... 
25 
405.8 
0.845 
308.6 
20 
324.61 
0.676 
154.3 
10 
162.31 
0.338 
15.4324 
1 
16.23 
0.034 
1 
0.06479 
1.0517 
0.0022 
0.9508 
... 
0.06161 
1 
0.0021 470 
HANDBOOK OF PHARMACY. 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.—Continued. 
From 1 Troy Ounce down. 
Grains. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Cc. 
Minims 
(of Water 
at 4° C.). 
Grains. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Cc. 
Minims 
(of Water 
at 4° C.). 
480 
[1 5 
31.103 
504.8 
240 [4 3 
15.551 
252.4 
478.4 
31 
503.1 
231.5 
15 
243.4 
475.4 
30.805 
500 
228.2 
14.786 
240 
463.0 
30 
486.9 
218.75 [lav. 
14.175 
230.1 
456.4 
29.573 
480 
216.1 oz’ 
14 
227.2 
450 
29.159 
473.3 
210 
13.607 
220.9 
447.5 
29 
470.7 
200.6 
13 
211 
437.5 
28.350 
460.1 
199.7 
12.938 
210 
432.1 
427.9 
oz. 
28 
27.724 
454.4 
450 
185.2 
12 
194.8 
420 
n s 
27.214 
441.7 
180 [3 3 
11.663 
189.3 
416.7 
27 
438.2 
171.1 
11.090 
180 
401.2 
26 
422 
169.8 
11 
178.5 
399.3 
25.876 
420 
154.3 
10 
162.3 
390 
25.271 
410.2 
150 
9.719 
157.8 
385.8 
25 
405.7 
142.6 
9.241 
150 
380.3 
24.644 
400 
138.9 
9 
146.1 
370.8 
370.4 
24.028 
24 
390 
389.5 
123.5 
8 
129.8 
360 
[6 3 
23.327 
378.6 
120 [2 3 
7.775 
126.2 
354.9 
23 
373.3 
114.1 
7.393 
120 
342.3 
22.180 
360 
109.37 |-|av. 
7.088 
115.9 
339.5 
22 
357.1 
108.0 oz- 
7 
113.6 
330 
21.383 
347.1 
100 
6.480 
105.2 
324.1 
21 
340.8 
95.1 
6.161 
100 
313.8 
20.331 
330 
92.6 
6 
97.4 
308.6 
20 
324.6 
80 
77.2 
76.1 
61.7 
5.184 
5 
4.928 
4 
84.1 
81.1 
80 
64.9 
300 
[5 3 
19.440 
315.5 
60 [1 3 
3.888 
63.1 
293.2 
19 
308.4 
57.0 
3.696 
60 
285.2 
18.483 
300 
54.69 av. 
3.544 
57.5 
277.8 
18 
292.1 
47.5 oz- 
3.080 
50 
270 
17.495 
284.0 
50 
3.240 
52.6 
262.3 
17 
275.9 
46.3 
3 
48.7 
256.7 
16.635 
270 
42.8 
2.772 
45 
246.9 
16 
259.7 
40 
38.0 
33.3 
30.9 
2.592 
2.464 
2.156 
2 
42.1 
40 
35 
32.5 471 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. 
EQUIVALENTS OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.—Continued. 
Continuation of Table of Equiva- 
lents from 1 Troy Ounce down. 
Equivalents of Weights from 5 
Grains down. 
Grains. 
Metric 
Weight 
and 
Measure. 
Gm.] [Cc. 
Minims 
(of Water 
at 4° C.). 
Grammes. 
Grains 
in 
decimal 
fractions. 
in common 
fractions 
(approximate) 
30 [J 3 
1.944 
31.6 
0.324 
5 
5 
28.5 
1.848 
30 
0.291 
4.5 
4i 
23.8 
1.540 
25 
0.259 
4 
4 
20 
1.296 
21.0 
0.226 
3.5 
34 
19.0 
1.232 
20 
0.194 
3 
3 
15.4324 
1 
16.23 
0.162 
2.5 
24 
0.130 
2 
2 
0.097 
1.5 
14 
15 
0.972 
15.9 
0.065 
1 
1 
14.3 
0.924 
15 
14 
0.907 
14.7 
13.3 
0.862 
14 
0.061 
0.94 
H 
13 
0.842 
13.7 
0.060 
0.93 
12.4 
0.801 
13 
0.057 
0.88 
12 
0.775 
12.6 
0.053 
0.82 
11.4 
0.739 
12 
0.050 
0.77 
11 
0.713 
11.6 
0.049 
0.76 
% 
10.5 
0.678 
11 
0.045 
0.69 
H 
0.040 
0.62 
0.036 
0.56 
A 
10 
0.648 
10.5 
0.032 
0.5 
V 
9.5 
0.616 
10 
9 
0.583 
9.5 
8.6 
0.554 
9 
0.028 
0.43 
TF 
8 
0.518 
8.4 
0.025 
0.39 
7.7 
0.5 
8.1 
0.024 
0.37 
■1 
7.6 
0.493 
8 
0.020 
0.31 
f¥ 
7 
0.454 
7.4 
0.016 
0.24 
X 
6.7 
0.431 
7 
0.012 
0.18 
A 
6 
0.389 
6.3 
0.008 
0.12 
% 
5.7 
0.370 
6 
0.004 
0.06 
A 
0.0032 
0.05 
1 
T7T 
0.0027 
0.04 
To 
5 
0.324 
5.3 
0.0022 
0.033 
TO 
4.8 
0.308 
5 
0.0018 
0.028 
A 
4 
0.259 
4.2 
0.0016 
0.025 
A 
3.8 
0.246 
4 
0.0013 
0.02 
A 
3 
0.194 
3.2 
0.0011 
0.017 
TT 
2.9 
0.185 
3 
0.001 
0.015 
TT 
2 
0.130 
2.1 
0.0006 
0.01 
TTT 
1.9 
0.123 
2 
0.0005 
0.008 
TTK 
1 
0.065 
1.0517 
0.0004 
0.0065 
0.9508 
0.06161 
1 
0.0003 
0.005 
Af 
0.0002 
0.003 
FFF 
0.0001 
0.0015 
FTF EQUIVALENTS OF MEASURES OF LENGTH. 
Centi- 
meters. 
Inches. 
Centi- 
meters. 
Inches. 
Milli- 
meters. 
Inches 
in decimal 
fractions. 
in 32ds. 
150 
59.06 
55 
21.65 
25.4 
1. 
tt 
145 
57.09 
53.3 
21 
25 
0.98 
140 
55.12 
50.8 
20 
24 
0.94 
139.7 
55 
50 
19.69 
23.8 
0.94 
it 
135 
53.15 
48.3 
19 
23 
0.90 
H 
130 
51.18 
45.7 
18 
22.2 
0.87 
H 
127.0 
50 
45 
17.72 
22 
0.87 
125 
49.21 
43.2 
17 
21 
0.83 
120 
47.24 
40.6 
16 
20.6 
0.81 
H 
115 
45.28 
40 
15.75 
20 
| 0.79 
114.3 
45 
38.1 
15 
19.1 
0.75 
110 
43.31 
35.6 
14 
19 
0.75 
105 
41.34 
35 
13.78 
18 
0.71 
101.6 
40 
33.0 
13 
17.5 
0.69 
ft 
100 
39.37 
30.5 
12 
17 
0.67 
99.0 
39 
30 
11.81 
16 
0.63 
96.5 
38 
27.9 
11 
15.9 
0.62 
H 
95 
37.40 
25.4 
10 
15 
0.59 
93.9 
37 
25 
9.84 
14.3 
0.56 
ii 
91.4 
36 
22.9 
9 
14 
0.55 
90 
35.43 
20.3 
8 
13 
0.51 
88.9 
35 
20 
7.87 
12.7 
0.50 
86.4 
34 
17.8 
7 
12 
0.47 
85 
33.46 
15.2 
6 
11.1 
0.44 
H 
83.8 
33 
15 
5.91 
11 
0.43 
81.3 
32 
12.7 
5 
10 
0.39 
80 
31.50 
10.2 
4 
9.5 
0.37 
78.7 
31 
10 
3.94 
9 
0.35 
... 
76.2 
30 
9 
3.54 
8.7 
0.34 
75 
29.53 
8 
3.15 
8 
0.31 
73.6 
29 
7.6 
3 
7.9 
0.31 
71.1 
28 
7 
2.76 
7.1 
0.28 
9 
70 
27.56 
6 
2.36 
7 
0.28 
68.6 
27 
5.1 
2 
6.4 
0.25 
A 
66.0 
26 
5 
1.97 
6 
0.24 
65 
25.59 
4 
1.57 
5.6 
0.22 
63.5 
25 
3 
1.18 
5 
0.20 
61.0 
24 
2.54 
1 
4.8 
0.19 
6 
60 
23.62 
2 
0.78 
4 
0.16 
58.4 
23 
1 
0.39 
3.2 
0.13 
55.9 
22 
3 
0.12 
2.4 
0.09 
A 
2 
0.08 
1.6 
0.06 
•A 
1 
0.04 
0.8 
0.03 
if 
0.1 
0.0039 
... 
Customary and Metric. 
472 INDEX. 
A. 
Abbreviations, metric, 17 
misleading, 378 
used in prescriptions, 380 
Abstracta, 349 
Abstracts, 349 
Acetic acid, titration of, 428 
Aceta, 248 
Acicular, 146 
Acetum plumbicum, 236 
saturninum, 236 
Acid, acetic, titration of, 428 
arsenous, assay of, 239,433 
carbolic, estimation of, 444 
citric, titration of, 428 
hydrochloric, normal, 420 
hydrocyanic, assay of, 431, 
432 
hypophosphorous, estima- 
tion of, 443 
oxalic, decinormal, 421 
oxalic, normal, 420 
phosphoric, titration of, 428 
sulphuric, normal, 420, 422 
sulphurous, assay of, 433 
tartaric, titration of, 428 
Acids, Altering, 178 
solvent properties, 129 
volumetric estimation, 427 
Acidimetry, 427 
Adapters, 88, 91, 92 
Agents, emulsifying, 297 
Air bath, 84 
Air, effect of exposure of chemi- 
cals, 154 
Alcohol, contraction of, when 
mixed with water, 133 
minims to fluidrachm, 13 
solvent properties, 129 
Alkali carbonates, assay of, 424 
hydrates, assay of, 421 
Alkalies, organic salts, assay 
of, 424 
Alkalimetry, 422 
Alligation, 139, 140 
Alums, crystallizing, 146 
Amorphous, 143 
Amorphous precipitates, 157,158 
Analysis, volumetric, 413 
Angle of crystal, 143 
Animal charcoal, use of, 180 
Apothecary, 1 
Apothecaries’ measure, 12 
weight, 10 
Apparatus, Currier’s extrac- 
tion, 208 
for generating gases, 131 
for upward filtration, 178, 
179 
Lewin’s extraction, 207 
percolating, 193, 196, 199 
siphon, 163, 188 
Soxhlet’s extraction, 291 
Approximate measures, 14 
Aqua ammoniae, 222 
ammoniae fortior. 222 
amygdalae amarie, 221 
amygdalarum amararum, 
221 
chlori, 223 
chloroformi, 222 
Aqua creosoti, 222 
destillatie, 217 
explanatory text, 221 
preservation of, 220 
hydrogenii dioxidi, 224 
laurocerasi, 222 
phimbica, 237 
saturnina, 237 
Aquae, 217 
medicatee, 217 
table of, 225,226 
preservation erf, 220 
Araeometer, 40-44 
weighing, 41 
Arsenous oxide, assay of, 239, 
433 
Assay, alkali carbonates, 424 
alkali hydrates, 421 
aqua ammonia, 223 
aqua calcis, 422 
aqua chlori, 223 
arsenous oxide, 239, 433 
extract nux vomica, 346 
ferri carbonas saccharatus, 
438, 443 
ferric salts, 435 
ferrous carbonate, 443 
ferrous salts,437, 442 
ferrous sulphate, 438, 442 
Fowler’s Solution, 239 
hydrocyanic acid, 431, 432 
hydrogen dioxide, 442 
hypopliosphites, 443 
hypophosphorous acid, 443 
hyposulphites, 433, 439 
iodine, 435 
Labarraque’s Solution, 241, 
435 
liquor ferri chloridi, 231, 
436 
liquor plumbi subacetatis, 
236 
Lugol’s Solution, 235 
metallic iron, 437, 443 
organic salts of alkalies, 424 
phenol, 445 
potassii bitart ras, 425 
potassii et sodii tartras, 425 
potassium cyanide, 432 
potassium iodide, 439 
soda, 240 
sodii benzoas, 426 
solution of ferric acetate, 
229 
solution of ferric citrate, 232 
solution of hydrogen per- 
oxide, 225 
solution of potassa, 238 
solution tersulphate of iron, 
234 
spirit of nitrous ether, 253 
sulphites, 433 
sulphurous acid, 433 
syrupus acidi hydriodici, 
278 
syrupus ferri iodidi, 281 
thiosulphates, 433 
tincture of iodine, 263 
tincture of iron, 262 
tincture opium, 263 
Asymmetric system. 146 
Atomic weights, table of, 447 
Attenuations, homoeopathic,388 
Automatic washing of precip- 
itates, 165 
Auxiliary, the, 376 
Avoirdupois, term, 10 
weight, 10 
Axes, crystallographic, 143-146 
B. 
Bacilli, 316 
Bag, straining, 168 
Balance, analytical, 23 
arms of, 22 
army, 25 
beam of, 22 
care of, 24 
counter, 25 
delicacy of, 23 
dispensing, 23, 26, 29 
hydrostatic, 35 
loading, 24 
maxims for handling, 34 
prescription, 23 
the, 21 
torsion, 29 
for weighing solutions, 27 
Balances, proscription, 23, 28, 29 
Balsam Peru, emulsion of, 301 
Barium sulphate, solubility, 128 
Barthel’s lamp, 53 
Basham’s Mixture, 233 
Basis, the, 376 
Bath, air, 84 
oil, 83 
sand, 82, 83 
Baths, 81-84 
saline, 83 
water, 81, 82 
Baurad degrees, table of, 43 
hydrometers, 43 
Beads, Lovi’s specific gravity, 
48 
Beaker glasses, 159 
Beam, triple graduated, 29 
Beck’s still, 99 
Black wash, 228 
Blackmann’s suppository 
mould, 367 
Blast lamp, 57 
Blowpipe, 67 
flame, 68 
Blue mass, 313 
Bodies, explosive, 390 
Boiling, 62 
point, 62 
at different pressures, 
74 
Bolus, 318 
Bottle, specific gravity,38, 39, 40 
spritz, 165 
wash, 165 
weighing, 134 
Bougie press, 370 
Bougies, 370 
cacao-butter, 370 
gelatin, 370 
Bromine, estimation of, 435 
volumetric solution deci- 
normal, 445 
Bumping, 97 
Bunsen burners, 54, 55 
473 474 
INDEX. 
Bunsen flame, 55 
sectional view, 66 
Burettes, 415 
Burner, Erlenmeyer’s, 55 
solid flame heating, 56 
C. 
Cachet wetter, 306 
Cachets, 305 
sealing and filling, 306 
Calcination, 70 
Caloric, 52 
Camphor, emulsion of, 300 
Capillary tubes for melting- 
point determination, 64 
Capsule filler, Acme, 309 
Davenport’s, 308 
Haymond’s, 309 
moulds, 307 
Capsules, gelatin, 307 
suppository, 371 
Carbonization, 70 
Casein emulsion, 299 
preparation of, 299 
Celsius’ thermometer, 58, 59 
Centigrade thermometer, 58,59 
Centigramme, 17 
Centiliter, 17 
Centinormal potassium hy- 
drate V. S.,429 
volumetric solutions, 413, 
429 
Centimeter, 17 
Centrifugal machine, 213 
uses of, 213, 215 
Centrifuge, 213 
uses of, 213, 215 
Cerata, 357 
Cerates, 357 
preservation, 357 
table of, 357 
Chambers draught, 80 
Charcoal, aluminized, 186 
animal, use of, 186 
Charta potassii nitratis, 362 
sinapis, 362 
Chart®, 362 
Chemicals, effects of exposure 
on,155 
Chemists’ cover, 176 
Chlorine, estimation of, 435 
water, preparation of, 132 
Chloroform, minims to fluid- 
rachm, 13 
solvent properties, 129 
Circulatory displacement, 131 
solution, 130 
Citric acid, titration of, 428 
Clarification, 184 
by albumen, 184 
by alcohol, 185 
by fermentation, 185 
by gelatin, 184 
by heat, 184 
by insoluble bodies, 184 
Classification of pharmaceutical 
preparations, 216 
Closet, drying, 109 
Coating pills, 326 
Coefficient. 130 
Colation, 168 
Collodia, 292 
Collodions, 292 
table of, 292 
Colloids, 141 
Column apparatus, 96, 97 
Combustion, 52 
Comminution, 115 
Compressed suppositories, 368 
tablets, 335 
tablet moulds, 339 
Condenser, air, 89 
inverted, 94 
Liebig’s, 88 
Mitscherlich’s, 102 
Condenser, reflux, 94 
spherical, 94 
worm, 88 
Condensers, 85, 87, 88, 89 
Cone, perforated platinum, 182 
Confectio rosie, 312 
senna?, 312 
Confectiones, 312 
Confections, 312 
Congealing point of fats and 
waxes, 65, 66 
Conserve, 312 
Constitution, water of, 151 
Construction, grammatical, 376 
Continuous filtration, 166,178 
Contusion. 116 
Cork borer, 92, 93 
file, 93 
presses, 94 
Corrective, the, 376 
Counter balance, 25 
Cover, chemist’s, 176 
Crucibles, 68 
Crystalline, 143 
fracture, 143 
Crystallizable, 143 
Crystallization, 143 
by chemical interaction, 
149 
by cooling of fused masses, 
"147 
by cooling of vapors, 147 
by spontaneous evapora- 
tion, 147 
conditions of, 147 
effect of solvent on, 151 
fractional, 149 
from hot solutions, 147, 148 
intermediate, 149 
through deposition, 147 
water of, 151 
Crystalline precipitates, 157 
Crystallizing, 143 
proper precautions in, 147- 
148 
vessel, 150 
Crystallographic axes, 143-146 
Crystallography, systems of, 
143-146 
Crystalloids, 141 
Crystals, 143 
' draining, 150 
growing, 149 
Cubic centimeter, drops to, 13 
Cubic decimeter, 8 
Cubic inch of water, weight, 
8,10 
Curdy precipitates, 157 
Curran’s still, 101 
Currier’s extraction appara- 
tus, 208 
Curtman’s still, 98 
Cutting tubing, 89, 90 
Cylinders, measuring, 415 
D. 
Decantation, 161 
Decigramme, 17 
Deciliter, 17 
Decimeter, 17 
Decimal system, 15 
Decocta, 247 
Decoction, 189 
Decoctions, 247 
table of, 247 
Decoloration, 186 
Decant ing on filter, 175 
Decantation with siphon, 163 
with washing, 161 
Decinormal bromine V. S., 443 
iodine V. S., 432 
oxalic acid V. S., 421 
potassium dichromate V.S., 
436 
Decinormal potassium perman- 
ganate V. S.,439 
silver nitrate V. S., 429 
sodium hyposulphite V. S., 
434 
volumetric solutions, 413, 
429 
Decrepitation, 151 
Definition, pharmacopoeia!, 5 
Deflagration, 70 
Dekagramme, 17 
Dekaliter, 17 
Dekameter, 17 
Deliquescence, 154 
Deliquescent salts, 154 
Dense precipitates, 157, 158 
Densimeter, Rousseau’s, 42 
Density, 34 
of solutions, 133 
Description, pharmacopoeial, 5 
Desiccation, 71, 108, 114 
Desiccator, Hempel’s, 112 
vacuum, 112 
Desiccators, 111, 112 
Dessertspoonful, 14 
Destructive distillation, 97 
Determination of boiling point, 
62 
of melting point, 63 
of solubility, 134-136 
of specific gravity, 34 
of specific volume, 49 
Diagram, metric, 18 
Dialysates, 142 
Dialysed iron, 142 
Dialyser, 141, 142 
Dialysis, 141 
Diffusate, 141 
Diffusion, 141 
Digestion, 189 
Dilution, rules for, 138-140 
Dimetric system, 144 
Dimorphous, 146 
Disc, perforated porcelain, 182 
Dispensatory, 1 
Dispensing,"homoeopathic, 388 
the art of, 375 
general instructions, 397 
Displacement, 191 
circulatory, 131 
Distillation, 71, 85-104 
with current of steam, 95 
destructive, 97 
under diminished pressure, 
76 
fractional, 95 
Doses, 379 
Double normal volumetric so- 
lutions, 413 
Drachm, 10 
Draining crystals, 150 
Draught chambers, 80 
Drop, 13 
Dropping fluids, methods of, 13, 
14 
Drops in fluidrachm, 15 
Drug, degree of fineness for 
percolating, 196 
Drug-mill, Enterprise, 116 
Hance’s, 117,118 
Drug-mills, handling of, 118 
Drugs,storage and preservation, 
110 
Drying closet, 109 
drugs, 108, 109, 110 
gases, 113 
liquids, 112 
loss of drugs in, 108,109 
ovens, 110, 111 
E. 
Edel’s still, 99,100 
Edge, of crystal, 143 
Efflorescence, 154 INDEX. 
475 
Efflorescent salts, 154 
Elaeometer, 44 
Elieosacchara, 311 
Electuary, 312 
Elixiria, 285 
Elixirs, 285 
Elixir phosphori, 285 
Elutriation, 126 
Emplastra, 358 
table of, 361 
Emplastrum plumbi, 361 
Emulsa, 295 
table of, 302 
Emulsification of special drugs, 
300 
Emulsifying agents, 297 
Emulsion, casein, 299 
extract of malt, 299 
gelatin, 300 
Irish moss, 298 
pancreatin, 300 
quillaja bark, 299 
tragacanth,297 
yolk of egg, 298 
Emulsiones, 295 
Emulsions, 295 
artificial, 295 
continental method, 296 
English method, 296 
gum-resin, 295 
natural, 295 
notes on, 301 
oil, 295 
seed, 295 
Enterprise drug-mill, 117 
press, 212 
Equivalents of Imperial in U. 
S. fluid measure, 12 
metric and U. S., 18, 19 
Erdmann float, 418 
Estimation of alkali hydrates, 
421 
Ether, nitrous, spirit, 251 
solvent properties, 129 
Evaporating flame, 76 
inflammable liquids, 79 
kettle, 82 
vessels, 75, 76 
Evaporation, 71-84 
conditions governing, 71 
rapidity of, 71 
rapid, 78, 79 
spontaneous, 80 
Evaporator, cascade, 73 
Hempel’s, 79 
Excipients, pill, 322-324 
Exercise, alkali hydrates, 
assay, 421 
ammonium acetate, 227 
aqua ammonite fortior, 
assay, 223 
aqua ealcis, assay, 422 
assaying extract nux vom- 
ica, 347 
bromides, assay, 435 
chlorides, assay, 435 
oleates, 289 
liquor ferri acetatis, 229 
chloridi, 231 
citratis, 233 
tersulphatis, 234 
plumbi subacetatis, 236 
potassie, 238 
potassii arsenitis, 239 
citratis, 240 
sodie ehloratie, 242 
zinei chloridi, 243 
spiritus letheris nitrosi, 
254 
standardizing extract nux 
vomica, 344 
syrupus acidi hydriodici, 
279 
syrupus ferri iodidi, 282 
Exercises in alligation, 139, 
140 
Exercises in dilution and forti- 
fication, 138, 140 
in solubility, 136 
in specific gravity, 36, 37, 
38, 50 
in specific volume, 50 
volumetric solutions, 419 
Exhaustion of drug, 199 
Explosive bodies, 390 
mixtures, 390 
prescriptions, 392 
Expression, 210 
Exsiccation, 71,153 
Extracta, 341 
causes of precipitation in, 
273 
fluida, 269 
menstruum, 269 
preservation of, 273 
valuation of, 274 
Extract, Goulard’s, 236 
malt, emulsion, 299 
mix vomica, 344 
nux vomica, assay, 346 
Extraction, 189 
apparatus, 291, 207, 208 
hot, 207 
with hot solvents, 207 
Extracts, 341 
explanatory text, 344 
physical characters, 343 
preservation of, 343 
table of, 343,344 
yield of, 341 
Extractum nucis vomicie, 344 
nucis vomicie, assay, 346 
F. 
Faces of crystal, 143 
Fahrenheit’s thermometer, 58, 
59 
Fairbank’s druggists’ scale, 27 
Fats, determination of melting 
and congealing point, 65, 
66 
specific gravity, 48, 49 
Ferri carbonas saccharatus, 
estimation, 438, 443 
Ferrous carbonate, estimation 
of, 443 
sulphate, estimation of, 438, 
442 
Filter, folded, 172 
paper, 170 
hardened, 171 
toughened, 171 
plain, 171 
plaited, 172 
Squibb’s, 179 
Filtering apparatus, automatic, 
166 
caustic fluids, 178 
cone, 179 
dense liquids, 179 
maxims, 174 
plates, 182 
stands, 175 
Filtrate, 170 
Filtration, 170, 178 
continuous, 166, 178 
hot, 179 
large quantities of fluids, 
178,179 
pressure, 180 
rapid, 180 
upward, 178 
Flame, 52 
blowpipe, 68 
Bunsen, 55, 67 
Flask, separating, 187 
Spritz, 165 
suction for rapid filtration, 
182 
wash, 165 
Flasks, measuring, 415 
Float, Erdmann’s, 418 
Flocculent precipitates, 157 
Fluids, filtering large quanti- 
ties, 179 
Fluid extract, cinchona, 271 
extracts, 269 
causes of precipitation 
in, 273 
menstruum, 269 
preservation of, 273 
valuation of, 274 
Fluidounce, Imperial, 11, 12 
U. S., 12 
Fluid pint, 12 
Imperial, 11 
Fluidrachm, 12 
drops in, 15 
Imperial, 12 
minims to, 13 
Folded filter, 172 
Foreign prescriptions, 383 
Formula, symbolic, 4 
Fortification, rules for, 138-140 
Fowler’s Solution, 238 
Fractional crystallization, 149 
distillation, 95, 96 
percolation, 270 
precipitation, 159 
Fractionat ing apparatus, 63 
flask, 83, 86 
Fracture, crystalline, 143 
Frame, strainer, 168 
Freezing mixtures, 133 
Fuels, valuation of, 52, 53 
Fulcrum, 21, 22 
Funnel, coil jacket, 180 
cover, 176 
Dieterich’s, 180 
fluted, 177 
parts of, 176 
proper shape, 177 
ribbed, 177 
steam coil jacket, 180 
Funnels, 176 
separating, 187 
jacketed, 180 
various kinds, 176,177 
Fusion, 69 
G. 
Gallon, ale, 11 
corn,11 
Imperial, 11, 12 
wine, 10, 12 
wine measure, 12 
Gas stoves, 56 
Gases, drying, 113 
generating, 131 
solubility of, 132 
solution of, 131, 132 
washing, 113, 114 
Gay-Lussac's automatic filter- 
ing apparatus, 166 
Gelatin capsules, 307 
empty, 308 
emulsion, 300 
hard, 307 
soft, 307, 308 
suppository capsules, 371 
Gelatinous precipitates, 157 
Glass, soluble, 242 
Glycerin, solvent properties, 129 
suppositories, 364, 373 
Glycerita, 286 
table of, 286 
Gorham’s dispensing balance, 26 
Goulard’s extract, 236 
Graduates, 32, 33 
testing accuracy of, 33 
Grain, 8, 9, 10, 11 
origin of, 10 
Gramme, 16, 17 
drops to, 13 476 
INDEX. 
Granular effervescent salts, 152 
precipitates, 157 
Granulation, 152, 335 
Granules, 318 
Grinding, 116 
Growing crystals, 149 
Guiding-rod, 161 
H. 
Hance’s, drug mill, 117,118 
Hand scales, 24 
Heat, 52 
measurement, 57 
Heater, water, 56 
Hectogramme, 17 
Hectoliter, 17 
Hectometer, 17 
Hexagonal system, 143, 144 
Homoeopathic dispensing, 388 
Honeys, 284 
Hot extraction, 207 
filtration, 179 
Hunter’s filter and mixer, 120 
Hydraulic press; 212 
Hydrocyanic acid assay, 431,432 
Hydrogen dioxide, estimation 
of, 442 
Hydrometer, 40-44 
Baume’s, 42, 43 
Nicholson’s, 41 
Sykes’, 43 
Tralles’, 43 
Twaddell’s, 43 
weighing, 41 
Hydrometers, scale, 41, 42 
Hydrostatic balance, 35 
press, 212 
Hypodermic injections, 226 
Hypophosphites, estimation of, 
443 
Hypophosphorous acid, estima- 
tion of, 443 
Hyposulphites, assay of, 433 
I. 
Ignition, 69 
Imperial fluidounce, 11 
gallon, 11, 12 
measure, 12 
minim, 12 
ounce, 12 
pint, 11 
pound, 11 
standards, 10 
system, 11, 12 
Incompatibility, 394 
chemical, 394 
in prescriptions, 404 
mechanical, 396 
pharmaceutical, 396 
in prescriptions, 402 
prescription, general con- 
sideration of, 397 
therapeutic, 397 
Incompatibles, 394 
acacia, 394 
alkalies, 394 
alkaloids, 394, 396 
antipyrin, 394 
aqu® ammoni®, 222 
aqua chlori, 223 
arsenous acid, 394 
bismuth, 394 
bromides, 394 
calomel, 395 
chloral, 395 
chlorates, 391 
chlorides, 395 
chlorine water, 395 
corrosive sublimate, 395 
Donovan’s solution, 228 
emulsions, 301 
hydrogen peroxide, 395 
Incompatibles, iodides, 395 
iodine, 395 
iron, reduced, 395 
iron salts, 395 
lead acetate, 395 
lead subacetate, 395 
lime water, 395 
liquor fern chloridi, 231 
liquor iodi comp., 235 
liquor plumbi subaceta- 
tis, 236 
liquor potass®, 238 
liquor potassii arsenitis, 
238 
liquor sod® chlorat®, 241 
pepsin, 395 
potassium permanganate, 
392-396 
quinine salts, 396 
salicylic acid, 396 
silver nitrate, 396 
strychnine, 396 
syrupus acidi hydriodici, 
278 
syrupus ferri iodidi, 281 
tannin, 396 
tartar emetic, 396 
tinctura ferri chloridi, 262 
Indicator, 414 
Indicators, 414 
Infusa, 244 
Infusion, 188 
mugs, 245 
Infusions, 244 
from fluid extracts, 245 
preservation, 245 
table of, 246 
Injectiones hypodermic®, 226 
Injections, hypodermic, 226 
Inscription, the, 375, 376 
Insolubility, 128 
Intermediate crystallization, 
149 
Interstitial water, 151 
Iodine, assay of, 435 
decinormal solution, 432 
Irish moss emulsion, 298 
Iron dialysed, 142 
ferric, estimation of, 435 
ferrous, estimation of, 437, 
442 
metallic, estimation of, 437, 
443 
Isometric system, 144 
Isomorphous, 146 
J. 
Jacketed funnels, 180 
Jar, receiving, 196 
Joints, fitting, 90 
Jolly’s specific gravity balance, 
47 
Juices, 262 
K. 
Karat, 8 
Keratin coating, pills, 329, 330 
Keratin, preparation of, 330 
Kilogramme, 8, 17 
standard, 16 
Kiloliter, 17 
Kilometer, 17 
Koppeschaar’s Solution, 443 
L. 
Labarraque’s Solution, 241 
Lactometer, 44 
Lamp, alcohol, 52 
blast, 57 
Latin, valueof, in pharmacy, 3, 
375 
Lead plaster, 361 
water, 237 
Length, units of, 6 
Levigation, 125 
Lewin’s extraction apparatus, 
207 
Liebig’s condenser, 88 
Light, action of, on chemicals, 
154 
precipitates, 157, 158 
Lime water, 228 
Linimenta, 293 
Liniments, 293 
table of, 293 
Liquid, supernatant, 156 
Liquids, alcoholic, minims to 
fluidrachm, 13 
caustic, filtering, 178 
drying, 112 
ethereal, minims to the 
fluidrachm, 13 
immiscible, separation of, 
187 
specific gravity of, 38 
weighing, 24 
Liquor acidi arsenosi, 227 
ammonii acetatis, 227 
arseui chloridi, 227 
arseniet hydrargyri iodidi, 
227 
calcis, 228 
calcis saccharatus, 280 
ferri acetatis, 228 
chloridi, 230 
citratis, 231 
et ammonii acetatis, 
233 
nitratis, 233 
perchloridi, 230 
sesquichloridi, 230 
subsulphatis, 233 
tersulphatis, 234 
hydrargyri nitratis, 234 
iodi compositus, 235 
magnesii citratis, 235 
plumbi subacetatis, 236 
subacetatis dilutus, 237 
potass®, 237 
potassii arsenitis, 238 
citratis, 240 
sod®, 240 
chlorat®, 241 
sodii arsenitis, 242 
silicatis, 242 
trinitrini, 255 
zinci chloridi, 242 
Liquores, 227 
Liter, 17 
standard, 16 
Lixiviation, 190 
Lotio flava, 228 
nigra, 228 
Lovi’s specific gravity beads, 48 
Lozenge-cutter, 316 
board, 315 
Lozenges, 314 
Lugol’s Solution, 235 
Lupulin, emulsion of, 301 
Lycopodium, emulsion of, 301 
Lysimeter, tne, 135, 136 
M. 
Maceration, 189 
Machine, centrifugal, 213 
uses of, 213, 215 
Magma, 157 
Magnesia, heavy, 158 
light, 158 
Mass, 6 
blue, 313 
Vallet’s, 313 
Massa copaib®, 312 
ferri carbonatis, 313 
hydrargyri, 313 INDEX. 
477 
Massse, 312 
Masses, 312 
Massing inorganic salts, 324 
organic salts, 325 
Maxims, in filtering, 174 
Measure, cubic centimeter, 33 
Imperial, 12 
U. 8. liquid, 12 
wine, 12 
Measures, 32, 33 
approximate, 14 
equivalents of, table, 466 
minim, 33 
Measuring cylinders, 415 
flasks, 415 
Mediation, pulverization by, 
119 
Medicated papers, 362 
pencils, 371 
waters, 217 
explanatory text, 221 
preservation, 220 
wines, 256 
table of, 257 
Mel despumatum, 284 
Mell it a, 284 
Melting point, 63 
determination, appara- 
tus, 65, 66 
of fats and waxes, 
65, 66 
Meniscus, 417 
Menstruum, 190, 198 
Meter, 7, 16, 17 
Meter, standard, 16 
Metric abbreviations, 17 
diagram, 18 
measures of capacity, 17 
of length, 17 
prefixes, 17 
prescriptions, 385 
system, 15 
units, equivalents of, 18, 19 
weights, 17 
Micromillimeter, 17 
Mill, drug, Enterprise, 116 
Hance’s, 117, 118 
Milligramme, 17 
Milliliter, 17 
Millimeter, 17 
Mills, drug, 116, 119 
handling of, 118 
Mina, Greek, 8 
Minim, 12, 13 
Imperial, 12 
Misturse, 294 
Mitscherlich’s condenser, 102 
Mixture, Basham’s, 233 
Mixtures, 294 
explosive, 390 
freezing, 133 
table of, 294 
Mohr’s cork borer, 93 
specific gravity balance, 46 
Moistening and packing, 197 
Molecular weights, table of, 
455 
Monoclinic system, 145 
Monometric system, 144 
Monosymmetric system, 145 
Monsei’s Solution, 233 
Mortar, levigating, 125 
Mortars, 121, 123 
agate, 123 
cleansing, 123 
glass, 122 
iron, 122 
porcelain, 122, 123 
wedgwood, 122, 123 
Mother-liquor, 148 
Mould, tablet triturate, 331 
Moulds, compressed tablet, 
339 
Mucilages, 248 
table of, 248 
Muller, 125 
N. 
Nitrometer, 253 
Nomenclature, pharmacopceial, 
3, 4, 5 
Normal hydrochloric acid, 426 
oxalic acid, 420 
potassium hydrate, 426 
sulphuric acid, 422 
volumetric solutions, 413 
Nux vomica, pulverization of, 
120 
O. 
Oblique system, 145 
Oil bath, 83 
Oils, filtration of, 178, 179 
fixed, minims to fluid- 
rachm, 13 
volatile, minims to fluid- 
rachm, 13 
solvent properties, 129 
Ointment bases, 352 
citrine, 355 
mercurial, 355 
mercury, nitrate, 355 
pad, 353 
spatula, 353 
Ointments, 352 
dispensing, 354 
explanatory text, 355 
incorporation of various 
substances, 353 
masking odor of, 354 
methods of preparation, 
352 
preservation, 354 
table of, 354 
Oleata, 287 
Oleates, 287 
dry, 287 
Oleopalmitates, 288 
Oleoresime, 290 
Oleoresins, 290 
table of, 291 
Oleosacchara, 311 
Oleosaccharates, 311 
Orthorhombic system, 144 
Ounce, 8, 9, 10,13 
apothecaries’, 10 
avoirdupois, 10 
fluid, Imperial, 13 
U. 8., 12, 13 
Imperial, 12 
Troy, 10 
Ounces, various, 10, 13 
Ovens, drying, 110, 111 
Ovoids, 316 
Oxymellita, 284 
P. 
Packing and moistening, 197 
Pancreatin emulsion, 300 
Paper, filter, 170 
Paper, mustard, 362 
Usego, 306 
Papers, medicated, 362 
Pastilli, 314 
Pellicle, 148 
Pencils, medicated, 371 
Pennyweight, 8, 9 
Percentage solutions, 137 
tables, 138 
Percolate, 191 
Percolation, 191 
apparatus for, 193, 196, 199 
fractional, 270 
history of, 191 
in vacuo, 273 
menstruum for, 198 
official, 192, 196 
pressure, 204 
vacuum, 206 
versus maceration, 190 
Percolation with expression, 
272 
with hot solvent, 207 
Percolator .Christ- Dieterich ,200 
conical, 193, 194 
cylindrical, 193, 194 
for volatile solvents, 290 
packing, 194, 195 
pressure, Lentz’s, 205 
Real’s, 191 
shape of, 194 
Squibbs’ siphon, 201-203 
well-tube, 201-203 
with air-pump, 206 
Percolators, 193, 199, 200, 201, 
203 
dimensions of, 194 
pressure, 204 
Perfection suppository ma- 
chine, 369 
Pestles, 121-123 
Pharmaceutical incompatibili- 
ty, 396 
Pharmaceutical stills, 98 
Pharmacopoeia, 1 
Pharmacopoeia! Latin, 3 
nomenclature, 3, 4, 5 
Pharmacopoeias, 2, 3 
history of, 1 
table of, 2 
Pharmacy, 1 
Phenol, estimation of, 445 
Phosphoric acid, titration of, 
428 
Pill, blue, 313 
coater, Maynard’s, 329 
Patch’s, 329 
excipients, 322, 323, 324 
finishers, 322 
machine, 321 
mortar, 320 
pestle, 320 
press, 321 
roller, 320 
rolling, 320 
rounders, 322 
silverer, 327 
spatula, 320 
tiles, 320 
Pills, 318 
coating, 326 
gelatin coating, 328 
general observations on 
making, 318, 319 
gilding, 327 
inorganic salts, 324 
keratin coating, 329, 330 
organic salts, 325 
organic substances, 325 
pearl coating, 328 
salol coating, 329, 330 
silvering, 327 
sugar-coating, 327 
varnishing, 327 
Pihite, 318 
Pinch-cocks, 89, 90 
Pint, Imperial, 11 
U. 8., 12 
Pipette, 33, 164 
capillary, 188 
Pipettes, 164, 188 
Plain filters, 171 
Plaited filter, 172 
Planes, of crystal, 143 
Plaster block, 359 
forms, 359 
iron, 359 
lead, 361 
perforator, 360 
press, 321 
spatula, 358 
Plasters, 358 
explanatory text, 361 
perforation of, 360 
spreading, 358 
table of, 361 478 
INDEX. 
Plates, porous, for filtering,182 
Polymorphous, 146 
Porphyrizatiou, 125 
Potassii bitartras, assay of, 425 
et sodii tartras, assay of, 425 
Potassium cyanide, assay of, 432 
dichromate, volumetric so- 
lution, decinormal, 436 
hydrate, volumetric solu- 
tion, centinormal., 429 
hydrate, volumetric solu- 
tion, normal, 426 
iodide, assay of, 439 
permanganate, volumetric 
solution, decinormal, 439 
Pound, ancient and modern 
standards, 9 
apothecaries’, 8, 10 
avoirdupois. 10 
British standard, 8 
commercial, 8 
Imperial, 11 
monetary, 8 
Saxon, 8 
Troy, 9, 10, 11 
Powder dividers, 304 
folders, 305 
moistening of, 195 
Powders, 303 
degrees of fineness, 121 
dividing, 304 
external use, 303 
folding, 304 
granulating, 335 
internal use, 303 
liquefying, 303 
percolating, 192, 195,196 
specific gravity of, 36 
triturating, 303 
weighing, 24 
Precipitant, 156 
Precipitate, 154-161 
Precipitates, amorphous, 157, 
158 
continuous washing of, 165 
crystalline, 157, 158 
curdy, 157 
dense, 157, 158 
flocculent, 157 
gelatinous, 157 
granular, 157 
light, 156-158 
rinsing out, 164 
washing, 164-165 
Precipitating jar, 160 
Precipitation, 156 
causes of, 156 
fractional, 159 
from cold solution, 158 
from hot solution, 158 
objects of, 157 
order of mixing the solu- 
tions, 158 
Prentiss’ still, 99, 100 
Preparations, galenical, classifi- 
cation of, 216 
Prescription, Latin construc- 
tion of, 376 
parts of, 375 
phrases, foreign, 385 
scales, 23, 28, 29 
the, 375 
Prescriptions, abbreviations 
used in, 380 
explosive, 392 
foreign, 383 
German, 383 
homoeopathic, 389 
measures used in, 379 
metric, 385 
obsolete terms used in, 384 
signs sometimes employed, 
384 
typical, 399 
weights used in, 379 
Press-cloth, 210 
Press, cork, 94 
differential-arm, 211 
Enterprise screw, 212 
hydraulic, 212 
hydrostatic, 212 
knee lever, 212 
tincture, 211 
Witts’ pharmaceutical, 211 
Presses, screw, 210-212 
Pressure filtration, 180 
percolation, 204 
pumps, 181 
Prismatic, 146 
system, 144 
Pulveres, 303 
table of, 310 
Pulverization, 119 
by mediation, 119 
precautions in, 119 
Pulverizing nux vomica, 120 
works, Poulain’s, 115 
zinc, 120 
Pump-pressure, 181 
water, 181 
Pycnometer, 38, 39, 40 
Squibb’s, 40 
Pyramidal system, 144 
Q. 
Quadratic system, 144 
Quillaja bark emulsion, 299 
Quinine oleate, 289 
R. 
Rapid evaporation, 78, 79 
filtration, 180 
improvised apparatus, 
183 
Real's press percolator, 191 
Rdaumur thermometer, 58, 59 
Receiver, 88, 91 
Receiving jar, 196 
Recipe, 375 
Recrystallization, 149 
Rectification, 96 
Regular system, 143, 144 
Remington’s still, 100 
Repercolation, 270 
Resinas, 350 
Resinoids, 350 
table of, 351 
Resins, 350 
emulsion of, 300 
table of, 350 
Retort stand, 140 
Retorts, 87, 97 
with adapters, 92 
Rhombic system, 144 
Rhombohedric system, 144 
Rice’s still, 102, 103 
Rod-guiding, 161 
Rousseau’s densimeter, 42 
Rule, specific gravity, 35 
specific volume, 49 
Rules for converting thermo- 
metric degrees, 59 
for dilution and fortifica- 
tion, 138-140 
for fixing strength of ex- 
tract nux vomica, 346 
S. 
Saccharometer, 44 
Saline baths, 83 
Salol coating for pills, 329, 330 
emulsion of, 300 
Salts, deliquescent, 154 
efflorescent, 154 
granular effervescent, 152 
Sand bath, 82, 83 
Saturated solution, 128 
Scale, army, 25 
Scale, vest-pocket, 27 
salts, 149 
Scales, analytical, 23 
care of, 30 
counter, 25, 26, 28, 29 
hand, 24 
prescription, 25 
torsion, 29 
Screw presses, 210-212 
Scruple, 10 
Sediment, 161 
See’s suppository mould, 367 
i Semi-normal volumetric solu- 
tions, 413 
I Separating funnels, 187 
Separation of immiscible 
liquids, 187 
' Separator, 187 
, Sifter, Hunter’s, 120 
, Sifting, 120 
I Signature, the, 375, 380 
Signs, apothecaries’ weight, 10 
avoirdupois weight, 10 
cabalistic, 384 
liquid measure, 12 
Troy weight, 9 
Silver bromide, solubility, 128 
nitrate volumetric solution, 
decinormal, 429 
Siphon, 162 
apparatus, 163, 188 
percolator, 201-203 
! Slightly soluble, 128 
Soaps, insoluble, 361 
soluble, 361 
Sodii benzoas, assay of, 426 
Sodium hyposulphite, volu- 
metric solution, decinor- 
mal, 434 
Solids, specific gravity, 35, 41 
! Soluble, “ slightly,” 128 
“ very,” 128 ’ 
Solubilities, Attfield’s table of, 
390 
table of, 448 
Solubility, 128 
barium sulphate, 128 
coefficient of, 130 
conditions of, 128 
of contact of body and 
solvent, 130 
determination of, 134 
effect of presence of dis- 
solved bodies, 130 
effect of temperature on, 129 
exercise in determination, 
135 
of gases, 132 
of silver bromide, 128 
table of curves, 130 
Solution, 128 
acetate of iron, 228 
ammonium acetate, 227 
arsenous acid, 227 
Burnett’s disinfecting, 242 
change in volume by, 133 
of temperature bv, 133, 
134 
chlorinated soda, 241 
circulatory, 130 
citrate of iron, 231 
direct, 128 
Donovan’s, 227 
ferric chloride, 230 
ferric nitrate, 233 
Fowler’s, 238 
gases, 131, 132 
iodide of arsenic and mer- 
cury, 227 
iodine compound, 235 
iron and ammonium ace- 
tate, 233 
Koppeschaar’s, 443 
Labarraque’s, 241 
lime, 228 
I Lugol’s, 235 INDEX. 
479 
Solution, magnesium citrate, 
235 
mercuric nitrate, 234 
Monsel’s, 233 
potassium citrate, 240 
saturated, 128 
simple, 128 
sodium silicate, 242 
sodium arsenate, 242 
sodium hydrate, 240 
subacetate of lead, 236 
subacetate of lead,dilute,237 
subsulphate of iron, 233 
tersulphate of iron, 234 
unsaturated,128 
Valangin’s, 227 
Volhard’s, 431 
of zinc chloride, 242 
Solutions, 227 
aqueous, 217 
aqueous, minims to flui- 
drachm, 13 
balance for weighing, 27 
density of, 133 
homoeopathic, 388 
percentage, 137 
standard, 413 
supersaturated, 131 
table of, 243 
volumetric, 413 
Solvent, 128 
effects of, on crystallization, 
151 
for crystallizing, 148 
nature of, 129 
Solvents, pharmaceutical, 129 
used in pharmacy, 129 
Soxhlet’s extraction apparatus, 
291 
Spatula, horn, 124 
ointment, 124 
pill, 124 
plaster, 358 
powder, 124 
Spatulas, 124 
Specific gravity, 34 
balance (Jolly’s), 47 
Mohr’s, 47 
Westphals’, 45 
beads, 48 
bottle, 38-40 
by displacement, 36 
exercises, 36-38, 50 
of fats, 48, 49 
of liquids, 38 
of powders, 36 
separation of different 
bodies by means of, 
36 
of solids, 35-38 
of solids (light), 37 
of solids (soluble), 38 
table, 51 
tube, Sprengel’s, 47 
by weighing volumes, 
48 
rule, 35 
Specific volume, 49 
exercises, 50 
Spirit lamp, Barthel’s, 53 
nitrous ether, 251 
nitroglycerin, 255 
Spirits, 250 
explanatory text, 251 
table of, 250, 251 
Spiritus, 250 
setheris nitrosi, 251 
glonoini, 255 
Mindereri, 227 
Spontaneous evaporation, 80 
Spreading plasters, 358 
Sprengel’s specific gravity tube, 
Spritz bottle, 165 
Squibb’s pycnometer, 40 
siphon percolator, 201, 203 
Squibb’s urinometer, 44 
Stand, retort, 91 
Stands, filtering, 175 
Standard solutions, 413 
volumetric solutions, pre- 
paration of, 419 
Standards, ancient and mod- 
ern, 9 
of Henry III, 8 
Steatins, 357 
Still, automatic, 101 
Beck’s, 99 
Curran’s, 101 
Curtman’s, 98 
Edel’s, 99, 100 
Prentiss’, 90,100 
Remington’s, 100 
Rice's, 102, 103 
Stills, laboratory, 98-104 
pharmaceutical, 98 
Stirring apparatus, 72 
Storage of drugs, 110 
Stoves, gas, 56 
Strainers, 168 
Straining, 168, 169, 178 
bag, 168 
frame, 168 
Sublimation, 71, 105-107 
Subscription, the, 375, 379 
Succi, 262 
Succussion, 355 
Sulphites, assay of, 433 
Supernatant liquid, 156 
Supersaturated solutions, 131 
Superscription, the, 375 
Suppositoria, 363 
Suppositories, 363 
cacao butter, 364 
compressed, 368 
dispensing, 372 
gelatin, 363 
general remarks on, 372 
glycerin, 364, 373 
hand-rolled, 365 
hollow cacao butter, 372 
moulded, 365 
various forms, 363 
Suppository bases, 363 
capsules, 371 
machine, the Perfection,369 
W.,T. & Co., 369 
machines, 368, 369 
mould, Blackmann’s, 367 
See’s, 367 
Suppository moulds.366,367,369 
the Wellcome, 363 
Sweet spirit of nitre, 251 
Syke’s hydrometer, 43 
Syllabus of tinctures, 267, 268 
Synonym, the, 4 
Syrup of almonds, 279 
bulk resulting from solution 
in water, 275 
ferrous iodide, 280 
garlic, 279 
hydriodic acid, 278 
iodide of iron, 280 
lime, 280 
Syrupi, 275 
Syrups, 275 
classification of, 277 
preparation of, 275 
preservation of, 277 
simple proportions for pre- 
paring, 274 
table of, 283 
Syrupus acidi hydriodici, 278 
allii, 279 
amygdalae, 279 
calcis, 280 
ferri iodidi, 280 
System, asymmetric, 146 
decimal, 15 
dimetric, 144 
hexagonal, 143, 144 
isometric, 144 
System, metric, 15 
monoclinic, 145 
monometric, 144 
monosymmetric, 145 
oblique, 145 
orthorhombic, 144 
prismatic, 144 
pyramidal, 144 
quadratic, 141 
regular, 143, 144 
rhombic, 144 
rhombohedric, 144 
tesseral, 144 
tetragonal, 143, 144 
triclinic, 146 
trimetric, 144 
Systems of crystallography, 143, 
146 
Tabellse, 314 
Table of abbreviations, Latin, 
380 
atomic weights, 447 
cabalistic signs, 384 
cerates, 357 
collodions, 292 
curves of solubility, 130 
decoctions, 247 
degrees, Baume, 43 
drops in fluidrachm, 15 
emulsa, 302 
extracts, 343, 344 
foreign prescription 
phrases, 385 
glycerites, 286 
infusions, 246 
liniments, 293 
liquores, 243 
loss in drying drugs, 108,109 
medicated waters, 225 
medicated wines, 256 
mixtures, 294 
molecular weights, 455 
mucilages, 248 
obsolete terms, 384 
ointments, 354 
■ oleoresins, 291 
percentage, 138 
plasters, 361 
powders, 310 
resinoids, 351 
resins, 350 
solubilities, Attfleld’s, 390 
solubilities, 448 
specific gravities, 51 
spirits, 250, 251 
syrups, 283 
thermometric equivalents, 
461 
tinctures, 259, 267-8 
troches, 317 
vinegars, 249 
weights and measures, 20, 
466 
Tablet, compressed, moulds, 339 
triturates, 331 
Tablets, compressed, 335 
Tablett®, 331, 335 
Tablespoonful, 141 
Tabular, 146 
Talent, Greek, 8 
Tartaric acid, titration of, 
Teacupful, 14 
Teaspoonful, 14 
Temperattire, change in, by 
solution, 133, 134 
effect on solubility, 129 
lowering of, by solution, 133 
rise in, by solution, 134 
Terms, foreign, in prescrip- 
tions, 385 
Latin, used in prescrip- 
tions, 380 
obselete, used in prescrip- 
tions, 384 480 
INDEX. 
Tesseral system, 144 
Test solution, Brazil wood, 414 
cochineal, 414 
litmus, 414 
methyl-orange, 414 
phenolphtalein, 414 
potassium chromate,414 
ferricyanide, 414 
rosolic acid, 414 
starch, mucilage, 414 
Tetragonal system, 143,144 
Therapeutic incompatibility, 
397 
Thermometer, 57 
alcohol, 57, 60 
calibration of, 61 
Celsius’, 58, 59 
Centigrade, 58, 59 
Fahrenheit’s, 58 
Reaumur’s, 58, 59 
toluol, 60 
Thermometers, 57-59 
causes of variation, 60 
conditions of delicacy, 60 
graduating, 60, 61 
normal, 60 
testing accuracy of, 61 
variation of, 60 
Thermometric equivalents, 
table of, 461 
Thiosulphates, assay of, 433 
Time, unit of, 6 
Tinctura ferri chloridi, 262 
iodi, 262 
iodi decolorata, 262 
opii, 263 
tincturae, 258 
Tinctura; herbarum recentium, 
261 
Tincture chloride of iron, 262 
iodine, 262 
iodine, decolorized, 262 
opium, 263 
opium, assay, 263 
opium, various strengths, 
266 
triturations, 389 
Tinctures, 258 
explanatory text, 262 
fresh herbs, 261 
homoeopathic, 388 
menstruum, 258 
preservation of, 261 
preparation, 259 
strength, 258 
syllabus of, 267, 268 
table of, 259, 267, 268 
Titer, 413 
Title, English, the, 3, 4 
Latin, the, 3 
Titration, 413 
Tor refaction, 70 
Torsion balances, 29 
Tralles’ hydrometer, 43 
Triclinic system, 146 
Trimetric system, 144 
Trimorphous, 146 
Tripod, 83 
Trituration, 121 
Triturations, 310 
homoeopathic, 388 
Triturationes, 310 
Troche-board, 315 
-cutter, 315 
Troches, 314 
compressed, 314 
Troches, moulded, 314 
table of, 317 
Trochiscation, 127 
Trochisci, 314 
Troy, term, derivation of, 8 
weight, 9 
Tubes for melting-point deter- 
mination, 64, 66 
Tubing, bending, 90, 92 
breaking off, 92 
cutting, 89, 90 
drawing out, 64, 90 
properly and poorly bent, 
92 
Tumblerful, 14 
Twaddell’s areometer, 43 
Typical prescriptions, 399 
U. 
Unguenta, 352 
Unguentum hydrargyri, 355 
hydrargyri nitratis, 355 
Units, metric equivalents, 18, 
19 
Unsaturated solution, 128 
Upward filtration, 178 
Urinometer, 44 
U. S. apothecaries’ or wine mea- 
sure, 12 
fluid measure, 12 
law relating to weights and 
measures, 12 
V. 
Vacuum apparatus, 76-78 
percolation, 206 
Vallet’s mass, 313 
Vaporization, 71, 84 
Vehicle, the, 376 
Very soluble, 123 
Vessel, crystallizing, 150 
Vials, for producing drops, 
14 
Vinegars, 248 
table of, 249 
Vina medicata, 256 
Volhard’s solution, 
Volume, change in, by solution, 
133 
Volumetric analysis, 413 
solution, bromine, decinor- 
mal, 445 
hydrochloric acid, nor- 
mal, 420 
iodine, decinormal, 432 
oxalic acid,decinormal, 
421 
oxalic acid, normal, 
420 
potassium dichromate, 
decinormal, 436 
potassium hydrate, 
centinormal, 429 
potassium hydrate, 
normal, 426 
potassium permangan- 
ate, dccinormal, 439 
silver nitrate, deeinor- 
mal, 429 
sodium hyposulphite, 
decinormal. 434 
sulphuric acid, normal, 
422 
Volumetric solutions, 413 
Volumetric standard solutions, 
preparation of, 419 
W. 
Wafers, 305 
Wash-bottle, 165 
Wash, black, 228 
yellow, 228 
Washing by decantation, 161 
of gases, 113, 114 
of precipitates, 164,165 
Watch glass, 111 
Water, ammonia, 222 
stronger, 222 
baths, 81, 82 
bitter almond, 221 
cherry laurel, 222 
chlorine, 223 
chlorine, preparation, 132 
chloroform, 222 
of constitution, 151 
creosote, 222 
of crystallization, 151 
heater, 56 
hydrogen dioxide, 224 
interstitial, 151 
lead, 237 
lime, 228 
solvent properties, 129 
weight of cubic inch, 10 
Waters, distilled, 217 
preservation, 220 
medicated, 217 
explanatory text, 221 
preservation, 220 
Waxes, emulsion of, 301 
Weighing bottle, 134 
Weight, 6, 8 
ancient standards, 8, 9, 
apothecaries’, 10 
apparent, 8 
avoirdupois, 10 
in vacuo, 8 
troy,9 
true, 8 
unit of, 8, 9 
Weights and measures, 6 
Weights 21, 30, 31 
aluminum, 31 
analytical, 21,30 
avoirdupois, iron, 30 
block, 30 
brass, metric, 31 
coin, 31 
cup, troy, 30 
equivalents of, table, 466 
handling, 24 
metric, iron, 30 
prescription, 30 
Well-tube percolator, 201, 203 
Westphal’s specific gravity bal- 
ance. 45 
Wineglasstul, 14 
Wine measure, 12 
Wines, medicated, 256 
Witt’s pharmaceutical press, 
212 
Yard, standard, 6,11 
Yellow wash, 228 
Yolk of egg emulsion, 298 
Z. 
Zinc, pulverization of, 120