The works of the highly experienced and famous chymist, John Rudolph Glauber

by Johann Rudolf Glauber

Another Preparation of Salt for the making of Salt-peter.

Take Common Salt one part, and of a sulphureous Oar, which the Germans call Schewelkies, two or three parts, if they contain less Sulphur: But if they have Vitriol in them too, then must you take equal parts of both. Grind the sulphureous Mineral in a Mill, mix it with the Salt, and heat it red-hot by well torrifying or calcining them for two hours (in Furnaces serving for such a work,) either upon a Grate, or else without a Grate, upon Hearths; that so, during this Candefaction, the Sulphur may have ingress into the Salt, and may alter it. This Salt being washt out of the sulphureous Minera with water, and boiled till a skin gathers at top of the water, it shoots into long Stria’s or Crystals, like Salt-peter, and tasts like it, but falls into Powder in a warmish Air. If it be burnt and prepared by putting Calx-vive thereto, after the way afore going, it is convertible into good Salt-peter, but sooner and in a shorter time. If the Minera’s you use have Copper in them, or any other Metal, yet nevertheless may they be gotten out thence by fusion, for there will be nothing lost in this operation but the Sulphur; and this must have been driven away by burning it, however, if you would have any of the Metal out of the Minera.

N. B. The Caput mortuum out of which the Spirit of Salt by the addition of the Vitriol is extracted, yields such a like Salt, and very fit to make Salt-peter withall. There are also several other ways, which yield no small plenty of such Salts, and that in a manner without any costs, especially if the help of Stone-coals be thereto used. Besides too; this you are to be advised of, that (seeing the Salt is to be burnt with the Calx-vive) one Calx is better than another, for some Lime stones are more apt for the making of Salt-peter, but primarily those, which when you touch your tongue with, doe yield a fiery tast; with which sort, the Lime made of Sea-shells doth not compare as to goodness.

By what means the Root of Salt-peter is to be implanted in acid Salts, so as to be thereby augmented, like at the Root of a Vegetable, being transplanted, gets an increase from the saltness of the Earth.

Even as we have demonstrated in the foregoing discourse, that the acid Spirit of Nitre is the seed of Salt-peter, and doth encrease it self out of Alkali Salts like as an Herb doth out of the Earth: Even so by the same reason, fix Salt-peter, which is the root of Salt-peter, admits of transplantation, yet not by fixed Salts, like as the sharp Spirit does, but by sharp Salts, whereto it is to be united by implantation: For, two Acidities, and two Alkalies, cannot produce any new Essence, but two Contraries doe always produce a third. The acid Salt, which is of the meanest acidity, and which doth easiliest admit of being transmuted into Salt-peter, is the common Kitchin-Salt, which we taught the way but even now of inverting by the Minera’s of Sulphur. And if that such provision cannot be had to prepare it by, the very Kitchin-salt it self being taken both in the moist and in the dry way, would perform the same, as I have already shown in other places of my Writings. And as for the making of fix Nitre, you may meet with the way of doing that too and agen in my other Writings, and especially in that place where I have treated of the dry separation of washing of Metals, viz. when sulphureous and Antimonial Metals are washed by Nitre.

The way of preparing Spirit of Salt, necessary for the Extracting of Gold and Copper out of their Oars; as likewise of making good Salt-peter of the matter left after the distillation is finished.

Mix with two parts of Vitriol or Allum, one part of Kitchin-salt, and throw in this mixture upon hot burning Coals, the Spirits of which are to be taken in great Leaden Cisterns instead of Receivers. This operation (besides the salt Spirit it gives) yields also sharp Flores. If any shall provide himself with double Leaden Cisterns, and shall make the Outer one to hold in it the lesser Cistern, and so fill this outer one with cold water, he shall obtain more plenty of Spirits by reason of this better refrigeration. But such Cisterns requires a great deal of Lead; for verily even those three alone which I had in my Laboratory contained a thousand and forty pounds of sheet Lead.

There may be other kinds of Receivers applied to this use, which, to reckon up, would be too tedious in this Book.

The matter remaining after the Distillation may be ground in a Mill, and one part thereof mixt with two parts of Calx-vive; and so balls are to be made thereof, and to be put upon wood and burnt, as we shewed afore, that so they may be transmuted into Salt-peter.

But besides all these, there hath been a far better and more compendious incineration, and bettering of the lesser and more perfect Metals shown and demonstrated to my friends, in my Laboratory, which requires not so many Circumstances and Labours, as the foregoing more prolix operation, which is performed by throwing Common Salt upon the Coals, does: For it is to be done in a peculiar Furnace, and with purer Salts; and being wrought about a greater work, yields very considerable profit: so that it impregnates Silver and Lead with Gold, with twenty four hours easie labour, and renders them worth the labour of separation.