On a difficulty in isomorphism and in the received constitution of the oxygen-salts, in a letter to Professor Mitscherlich of the University of Berlin / from Thomas Clark.
- Clark, Thomas
- Date:
- [1836]
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: On a difficulty in isomorphism and in the received constitution of the oxygen-salts, in a letter to Professor Mitscherlich of the University of Berlin / from Thomas Clark. Source: Wellcome Collection.
15/22 page 13
![bination additional oxygen^ and, by a like assumption, Man- ganate of Soda contains, not Manganic acid, but the Oxy- manganic. 3. The Oxymanganate of Soda is assumed to contain, not Oxymanganic acid, but another acid, composed of Manga¬ nese 4 atoms, and Oxygen 15 atoms. Here, again, it may be supposed that material difficulties may be avoided by retaining without alteration the first formula for the Oxymanganate of Soda— • • * So (Mn Mi])2 But this would involve us in the new inconsistency of as¬ suming the Soda-Manganate to have, as a constituent, the same acid as the Oxymanganate either of Soda or of Bary¬ tes, while we admit that the Barytic Manganate is consti¬ tuted by a different acid. I do not know whether you, or other Chemists, may see any way of reconciling with the constitution commonly as¬ signed to the Oxygen-salts, the notion that Sulphate of Soda and Oxymanganate of Barytes are analogous in constitution. I profess I can see none. The difficulties already pointed out, as consequences of admitting that analogy, have occur¬ red while our attention was limited to those two, and four or five other, salts ; but how would such difficulties be multi¬ plied and aggravated, were we resolutely to trace the con¬ sequences of that admission, throughout all the wide and varied field of chemical combination ? Wherefore, all idea of analogy of constitution between the two salts in ques¬ tion, I w^ould renounce as chimerical, did I not believe that such analogy is quite reconcilable with the constitution of Oxygen-salts and Oxygen-acids, according to the other and better view. 1 say better vieiv, and I will give reasons ; but, wishing to be brief, I wdll confine my observations to what may be called internal evidence, arising from a consideration of the constitution of the Oxygen-salts, according to both views, as modified by the knowm results of analysis. A being employed to represent an atom of any metal that may be conceived to be in the basis of any Oxygen-salt, the following formulas will exemplify the constitution of Sul¬ phates, assumed to contain bases oxidized in different de¬ grees, according* to the view commonly taken of such salts—](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b30559066_0015.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
