An essay on burns, principally upon those which happen to workmen in mines from the explosions of inflammable air ... from which an attempt is made to rescue this part of the healing art from empiricism / [Edward Kentish].

  • Kentish, Edward, -1832
Date:
[1797]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An essay on burns, principally upon those which happen to workmen in mines from the explosions of inflammable air ... from which an attempt is made to rescue this part of the healing art from empiricism / [Edward Kentish]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    [2] dow of a doubt of its being a compound maf¢. It is capable of taking up various matters in folu- tion; but its moft common compofition, or what may be called its healthy ftate, confilts of two elaftic fluids, the one highly conducive to all the purpofes of life and of flame, and the other equal- ly noxious to both. ‘This is fully illuftrated by the following experiment by M. Lavoifier :— Having placed a certain quantity of pure mercury in a retort, adapted to a bell-glafs which inclofed 100 cubic inches of common air, he kept up in his furnace a conftant fire, of fuch a force as to keep the mercury almoft always at the boiling point. On the fecond day, fmall red particles be- gan to appear upon the furface of the mercury, which gradually increafed in fize and number for four or five days. Convinced that the calcination of the mercury after that time did.not go on, he extinguifhed his fire, and when the veflel was cool he found in his bell-glafs, inftead of 100 cubic inches of air, only 86—confequently a lofs of 14 cubic inches of air. Fourteen inches of air weigh _7 grains, and the red particles of the calx of mer- cury being carefully collected, thefe had an increafe of weight of 7 grains, the exact weight of air which feemed loft. The 86 cubic inches of air, remaining in the glafs after the calcination, were examined, and found to poflefs the following properties :— ) , An =