is a great increase in the total furfural, and with the 40 p.ct. acid it
reaches nearly the maximum obtainable with HCl of 1.06 s.g. (Tollens),
in this case 12.4 p.ct. The volatile acid increases, but in less ratio;
it is also produced concurrently. With 50 p.ct. H_{2}SO_{4} the
conditions are changed. The total furfural is rapidly formed, whereas
the volatile acid continues to be formed long after the aldehyde ceases
to come over. Moreover, whereas in the previous cases it was mainly
acetic acid, it is now mainly formic acid. The method was then extended
to a typical series of celluloses, heated with the more concentrated
acid (40-50 p.ct. H_{2}SO_{4}), with the following results:

__________________________________________________
| | | |
| | | Volatile acid |
| | |_________________|
| | | | |
| | | Acetic | Formic |
|________________________|_______|________|________|
| | | | |
| Swedish filter-paper | 0.3 | 2.7 | 17.2 |
| Esparto cellulose | 12.4 | 3.2 | 16.6 |
| Bleached cotton | trace | 3.1 | 13.2 |
| Raw cotton (American) | -- | 5.0 | 9.4 |
| Jute cellulose | 5.2 | 4.9 | 22.7 |
| Beech (wood) cellulose | 6.4 | 3.5 14.6 |
|________________________|_______|________|________|

The tendency in the hexoses and their polyanhydrides to split off one
carbon atom in the oxidised form, throws some light on the furfurane
type of condensation, which is represented in the lignocelluloses. We
are still without any evidence as to the possible transition of the
hexoses to benzenoid compounds. Such transitions would be more easily
explained on the assumption that the celluloses are composed in part of
polyanhydrides of the ketoses.

SPIRITUS AUS CELLULOSE UND HOLZ.

E. SIMONSEN (Ztschr. angew. Chem., 1898, 3).

~PRODUCTION OF ALCOHOL FROM CELLULOSE AND WOOD.~

(pp. 50, 209) This investigation was undertaken with one main object--to
determine the optimum conditions of treatment of wood-cellulose and of
wood itself for conversion into 'fermentable sugar.' The process of
'inversion' or hydrolysis, by digestion with dilute acid at high
temperature, involves the four main factors: pressure (i.e.
temperature), concentration of acid, ratio of