Ammoniac Definition

Ammoniac Sentence Examples

• Heating spirits of hartshorn, he was able to collect "alkaline air" (gaseous ammonia), again because he was using mercury in his pneumatic trough; then, trying what would happen if he passed electric sparks through the gas, he decomposed it into nitrogen and hydrogen, and "having a notion" that mixed with hydrochloric acid gas it would produce a "neutral air," perhaps much the same as common air, he synthesized sal ammoniac. Dephlogisticated air (oxygen) he prepared in August 1774 by heating red oxide of mercury with a burning-glass, and he found that in it a candle burnt with a remarkably vigorous flame and mice lived well.

• Thus in the Speculum Naturale of Vincent of Beauvais (c. 1250) it is said that there are four spirits - mercury, sulphur, arsenic and sal ammoniac - and six bodies - gold, silver, copper, tin, lead and iron.

• Another oxychloride, PbC1 2.7PbO, known as "Cassel yellow," was prepared by Vauquelin by fusing pure oxide, PbO, with one-tenth of its weight of sal ammoniac. "Turner's yellow" or "patent yellow" is another artificially prepared oxychloride, used as a pigment.

• The general opinion is, that the sal ammoniac of the ancients was the same as that of the moderns; but the imperfect description of Pliny is far from being conclusive.

• Finally, we have no proof whatever that sal ammoniac occurs at present, either near the temple of Jupiter Ammon, or in any part of Cyrenaica.