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NOTES ON 
 CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
MICHAEL FARADAY 
 
TEXT-BOOKS OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING 
 
 NOTES ON 
 CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF CERTAIN CONDITIONS WHICH 
 APPLY TO ORIGINAL INVESTIGATION 
 
 BY 
 
 W. P. DREAPER, F.I.C., F.C.S., 
 
 
 MEMBER OF COUNCIL OF INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY J MEMBER OF 
 
 COUNCIL (EX OFFICIO) OF SOCIETY OF DYERS AND COLOURISTS ', 
 
 EDITOR Of " THE CHEMICAL WORLD," ETC. 
 
 " Whoever could make two grains of corn, or two blades of grass, to grow upon 
 a spot where only one grew before, would do more essential service to his country 
 than the whole race of politicians put together. " Swift. 
 
 REPRINTED FROM "THE CHEMICAL WORLD ' 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 P. BLAKISTON'S SON & CO. 
 
 1012 WALNUT STREET 
 
 1913 
 
Printed in Great Britain 
 
PREFACE 
 
 MODERN science is based on the record of past 
 investigation. This condition must therefore apply 
 to chemistry, which is essentially an experimental 
 science. 
 
 While original investigation remains an impor- 
 tant factor in further progress, those engaged in any 
 branch of science must have some knowledge of 
 the general conditions under which such work has 
 been undertaken in the past ; and realise that it can 
 only be undertaken by an investigator who has 
 reached a stage in his development, at which he is 
 able to think in terms of his science. He must 
 become one with his work. 
 
 A mere knowledge of facts and principles, how- 
 ever complete in itself, is an insufficient equipment. 
 A student may possess this, and yet occupy an isolated 
 position. Many who seem well qualified by examina- 
 tion, or otherwise, fail in the initiation of such work, 
 for they cannot make practical use of such knowledge 
 and apply it to the further investigation of natural 
 phenomena. 
 
 Other important conditions are involved in work 
 of this nature. They are of little account in the 
 absence of this controlling factor, which brings with 
 it the power of seeing into things and realising the 
 relative importance of observations made under 
 definite conditions, and the correctness, and value, 
 of any deductions arising from the same. 
 
 An attempt has been made to state, in general 
 terms, the conditions which have been regarded as 
 essential to success. The influence and importance 
 
 273648 
 
vi PREFACE 
 
 of the results already obtained by investigation have 
 been generally noticed, and the recent advance in 
 the conditions of training and facilities for research 
 has not been overlooked. 
 
 The student must give special attention to the 
 theoretical side of his science, and train his mind to 
 discover in the recorded work of others, the con- 
 ditions which have led to success ; examining the 
 why and wherefore of each step, as it occurs in its 
 natural, and therefore logical, sequence. 
 
 Such intangible factors as mental outlook and 
 personal qualifications can only be dealt with in a 
 general way, and then chiefly by reference to the 
 experience of past investigators. It is equally difficult 
 to determine, from available data, to what extent 
 these faculties may be developed, or actually created 
 by training. It is certain, however, that when these 
 are present, the battle has yet to be fought out in 
 the laboratory, or works. 
 
 An insight into such matters may be gained by 
 examining the results obtained by others. A 
 general knowledge of the conditions involved must 
 be possessed by those who wish to succeed in the 
 conduct of such work. In some cases, a survey of 
 past investigation may be the simplest way to 
 secure this end. A search of this nature will often 
 suggest the need for further investigation, and 
 supply the investigator with suitable subject matter 
 for research. This end may also be secured by the 
 study of abnormal phenomena, which may from time 
 to time be observed in actual practice, particularly 
 when these occur on an industrial scale. 
 
 A satisfactory knowledge of the conditions which 
 govern such investigation is of importance to the 
 general chemist. It cannot fail to influence the 
 conduct of routine work, and instil into it a new 
 meaning. 
 
 Generally speaking, the laboratories of our lead- 
 
PREFACE vii 
 
 ing colleges and technical institutions offer facilities 
 for the conduct of such work. When these are 
 examined, and considered, in conjunction with those 
 which exist elsewhere, it is evident that still more 
 attention will be paid to investigation of this nature. 
 This must greatly influence, if not determine, the 
 future of our industries, as well as our position in 
 the scientific world. That this fact is being more 
 and more realised is sufficiently obvious. 
 
 It is hoped that the publication of this small 
 work may induce the student to realise at an early 
 stage certain essential conditions which must neces- 
 sarily govern his future work, and emphasise the value 
 of those personal qualifications which can be recog- 
 nised as influencing the work of investigators in 
 the past. 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 LONDON. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER PAGE 
 
 PREFACE v 
 
 I. HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE OF RE- 
 SEARCH ...... i 
 
 Knowledge of Natural Phenomena, p. I ; 
 Experimental Evidence and Speculation, 
 p. 2 ; Induction and Deduction, p. 4 ; Gene- 
 ralised and Empirical Knowledge, p. 4 ; 
 Historical Review of Past Investigation, 
 p. 5 ; Birth of Research, p. 5 ; Robert Boyle 
 and the Royal Society, p. 5 ; Lemery's 
 Work, p. 6 ; The Trained Observer, p. 7 ; 
 Scientific Discovery, p. 8 ; Definition of 
 Research and Discovery, p. 10 ; Investiga- 
 tion and Research, p. n ; Chemical Research, 
 p. ii ; Experiment v. Observation, p. 12 ; 
 Training in Methods of Research, p. 15. 
 
 II. PRELIMINARY SURVEY AND SELECTION OF 
 
 SUBJECT MATTER . . . . .17 
 Choice of Subject Matter, p. 17 ; Conditions 
 of Working, p. 18 ; Facilities, p. 18 ; Pre- 
 liminary Search for Past Records, p. 19 ; 
 
 ; P 
 
 Reference to Journals, etc., p. 19 ; Patent 
 Literature, p. 21 ; Faraday and his Work, 
 p. 23 ; Personal Qualifications, p. 23 ; 
 Manipulative Skill, p. 24 ; Introduction of 
 Instruments of Precision, p. 25 ; Cost of 
 Experimenting, p. 26. 
 
 III. GENERAL PROCEDURE AND SELECTION OF 
 
 METHODS OF INVESTIGATION ... 28 
 Scheme of Procedure, p. 28 ; Working Con- 
 ditions, p. 29 ; Chemical Research, p. 29 ; 
 Methods of Carrying out Research, p. 31 ; 
 Apparatus Required, p. 31 ; Personal In- 
 fluence, p. 32 ; Effect of Training, p. 33 ; 
 Past Experience, p. 34. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 IV. CHEMICAL AND GENERAL SCIENTIFIC INVESTI- 
 GATION ....... 35 
 
 Theory and Practice, p. 35 ; Research and 
 Industry, p. 35 ; Research in Relation to 
 Pure Science, p. 36 ; Value of Theory, p. 37 ; 
 Ultimate Value of Theoretical Speculation, 
 p. 37 ; Relation between Chemical and 
 General Science, p. 38 ; Bio-chemistry, p. 38 ; 
 Text-books, p. 39 ; Proteins, p. 40 ; Physical 
 Chemistry, p. 41 ; Stero-chemistry, p. 41 ; 
 Fischer's Work, p. 42 ; Influence of Chemistry 
 on Arts and Other Sciences, p. 43. 
 
 V. APPLICATION OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH TO 
 
 INDUSTRY 44 
 
 General Scope and Nature of Application, 
 
 L44 ; Ideal Training, p. 46 ; Utility of 
 dustrial Research, p. 46 ; Connection 
 between Theory and Practice, p. 46 ; Ex- 
 amples of the Same, p. 47 ; Scale of Working, 
 p. 48 ; Preparation of Hydrogen, p. 50 ; 
 Treatment of Copper Ores, p. 50 ; Chemistry 
 and Metallurgy, p. 51 ; Catalysis, p. 53 ; 
 Future Developments, p. 53. 
 
 VI. RESEARCH IN RELATION TO ANALYSIS . . 55 
 Influence of Modern Theory, p. 55 ; Work of 
 Gay-Lussac and Berzelius, p. 55 ; Law of Equi- 
 librium, p. 55 ; Analytical Methods and New 
 Processes, p. 56 ; Defective or Rejected Pro- 
 cesses, p. 57 ; Technical Analysis, p. 58 ; 
 Standard Methods, p. 58 ; Processes Suitable 
 for Investigation, p. 59; Personal Factor, 
 p. 60. 
 
 VII. GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 61 
 
 The Field of Research, p. 61 ; Interdepen- 
 dence in Research, p. 61 ; Use of Mathe- 
 matics, p. 62 ; Methods of Recording Results, 
 p. 63 ; Publication of Results, p. 64 ; Protec- 
 tion by Patent, p. 64 ; Facilities for Research, 
 p. 65 ; Industrial Research, p. 67 ; Future of 
 Research, p. 68. 
 
NOTES ON 
 
 CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE OF RESEARCH. 
 
 " The chymists are a strange class of mortals impelled by 
 an almost insane impulse to seek their pleasure among 
 smoke and vapour, soot and flame, poisons and poverty, 
 yet among all these evils I seem to live so sweetly, that 
 may I die if I would change places with the Persian King." 
 
 (Physica Subterrancsa.) 
 
 OUR knowledge of natural phenomena, and 
 therefore of chemistry, and the experimental 
 sciences which have sprung from it in the course 
 of its development, is confined within the range of 
 our senses. In certain cases this natural limit has 
 seemingly been extended by the aid of such instru- 
 ments of precision as the spectroscope or micro- 
 scope. The application of mathematics, when 
 applied to the extension of our knowledge in this 
 direction, may also be said to have served a similar 
 purpose. 
 
 The results recorded from a study of the 
 conditions which control, represent, or indicate 
 in accepted terms, such changes or phenomena 
 as have been observed, have been brought to 
 a state of order, and expressed in terms of 
 so-called laws. In this way certain phenomena 
 C.R. I 
 
<% .^.NOTES' ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 have been symbolised in terms of definite compari- 
 son. A classification of the results obtained has 
 proved of first importance to the investigator in the 
 further extension and study of his science. In this 
 way the work of the past is under continual revision 
 and criticism. 
 
 It may not be possible to determine how far the 
 conclusions arrived at represent the ultimate con- 
 ditions of energy and space; or whether these can 
 be expressed in terms of our system of thought. 
 Facts and phenomena may be so distorted in 
 such expression, or so partial in their nature, that 
 the conclusions arrived at may only represent 
 actual fact as a shadow on the wall represents the 
 substance. 
 
 There is, however, a growing sense of security 
 in the value of the methods employed, and a belief 
 that they in some way indicate the nature of actual 
 conditions, even if they do not represent them in 
 absolute terms. This conviction is based upon the 
 nature of the evidence brought forward by the prac- 
 tical investigator. 
 
 Speculations as to ultimate conditions must 
 have no adverse influence on the value of the ex- 
 perimental method in the student's mind. Rather 
 should the contrary effect be produced. The pro- 
 gramme before the chemist is sufficiently definite. 
 Investigation must be continued from the position 
 it occupies to-day, extended in every possible direc- 
 tion by the direct aid of experiment, and carried to 
 its utmost limit. 
 
 Knowledge obtained by the aid of experiment 
 is said to have been obtained by a process of induc- 
 tion. This may, within certain limits, be utilised 
 to a further extent by the process of deduction. 
 This attempt to extend knowledge on lines of 
 certain theoretical conclusions, by suggesting the 
 nature of results which may reasonably be ex* 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 3 
 
 pected to follow under conditions somewhat equiva- 
 lent to those already dealt with, has a definite 
 value. 
 
 Thus future results may to an extent be antici- 
 pated, and results inferred or foretold by such 
 utilisation of direct knowledge. By this means 
 important conclusions have been obtained. The 
 existence of unknown elements and their properties 
 have been deduced and subsequently verified by 
 experimental evidence. 
 
 In this and other directions such deductions 
 have been fully justified as a means towards pro- 
 gress. Conclusions based upon theory have been 
 of great value as stepping stones to a further 
 advance, and the bridging (in a temporary way) of 
 gaps in the chain of experimental evidence. 
 
 At the same time a sharp line must be drawn 
 between knowledge obtained by these direct and 
 indirect methods, which may be defined as of the 
 first and second order respectively. When an 
 investigation is partly based on theoretical specula- 
 tions, the results arrived at must be of a convincing 
 nature, if they are to be generally accepted. 
 They must be continually subjected to examination 
 in the light of further experimental knowledge, 
 being compared with any new facts which may 
 support or oppose those originally set out. 
 
 In the absence of any definite plan of action a 
 preliminary scaffolding based on theory must 
 sometimes be erected in advance. When the 
 experimental results obtained do not conform to or 
 uphold this, it must be correspondingly modified, 
 or even replaced, by one which agrees with the 
 further facts disclosed by the investigation. 
 
 Such use of theory has been fully recognised. It 
 serves a purpose in indicating new lines of research, 
 which the results obtained by the investigator must 
 subsequently confirm or destroy. 
 
4 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 The relative value of induction and deduction 
 has been much discussed. The successful investi- 
 gator is prepared to make every use of both 
 methods, verifying all deductions by direct experi- 
 ment (where this is possible) as the research opens 
 out and progresses towards its logical conclusion. 
 
 Chemical research is generally confined to the 
 study of changes which matter undergoes under 
 definite conditions of strain, with an examination of 
 the products obtained and the conditions ruling at 
 the time; this is completed by the setting out of 
 the results obtained in terms which suitably express 
 such actions. 
 
 r A record of such facts has been defined as 
 crude knowledge, which in turn is known as the 
 raw material of science. 
 
 Knowledge is regarded as generalised or 
 empirical. In the latter case it has not yet been 
 expressed in terms which can be recognised, or 
 referred to any known cause or law. Facts of 
 this nature are considered useless for the pur- 
 pose of science, although they may have a 
 definite value in the arts and manufactures. 
 Where these exist there is a further call for 
 an investigation of unrecognised conditions. 
 Many investigators pay special attention to 
 these reactions, for they naturally indicate suit- 
 able subject matter for further research. In the 
 industrial world such phenomena are constantly 
 met with, but are in many cases lightly passed 
 over. Thus promising material for research is too 
 often neglected for want of a suitable oppor- 
 tunity for investigation. As this is met with in 
 the works rather than in the laboratory, this 
 undesirable position is still prevalent in many 
 directions. Under the stress of circumstances the 
 connecting link between the passing observation 
 and the means to examine it in detail is often 
 absent. 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 5 
 
 Sufficient attention is not paid to this important 
 source of subject matter. Those who have followed 
 up investigation on such lines, recognise its special 
 value as an aid to industrial advancement and as a 
 suitable training for the student. 
 
 HISTORICAL REVIEW OF PAST INVESTIGATION. 
 Chemistry as an exact science dates back to the 
 middle of the seventeenth century, although it has 
 been practised for thousands of years in a purely 
 empirical manner. 
 
 It may possibly have originated with the manu- 
 facture of alcohol by a process of fermentation, and 
 the natural control of such operations ('- History 
 of Chemistry," Thorpe, 1909). It is said to have 
 been manufactured in China in the year 2220 B.C. 
 Dyeing, the production of leather, the working of 
 metals and alloys are also of great antiquity. 
 There is direct evidence that these operations were 
 conducted with skill by the Egyptians from very 
 early times. 
 
 The speculations of Jean Rey, in France, and 
 of Descartes, foreshadowed the birth of systematic 
 investigation on experimental lines. 
 
 In this country research may be said to date 
 from the formation of the Royal Society, and the 
 immediate results which led up to this important 
 event. In 1661 Robert Boyle published the 
 " Sceptical Chemist." In this he outlined a new 
 philosophy. This investigator, with the help of 
 certain supporters, sought to cultivate the system 
 which was at the base of his suggestion. The 
 Invisible College, based on a conviction " that they 
 were satisfied that there was no certain way of 
 arriving at any knowledge, unless they made a 
 series of experiments upon natural bodies," was 
 founded. Boyle's personal work set a high 
 standard for such investigation. A consideration 
 of his discoveries, experiments and conclusions, is 
 
6 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 of extraordinary interest to the student. His con- 
 ception of an element is that in general use to-day ; 
 but his great service to science and learning 
 generally consisted in the new spirit he infused 
 into chemistry, which at once lifted it into the 
 plane of a great science. It no longer remained 
 the handmaid of medicine, as practised in those 
 days. 
 
 As a result of this advance in method, chemical 
 research was seen to offer great possibilities. The 
 Invisible College became the Royal Society, the 
 charter of which was obtained in 1662. 
 
 Robert Boyle's conclusions were destined to 
 influence the entire scientific world, and to give 
 rise to modern chemistry. To the close ring of 
 mere thinkers the experimental basis of science was 
 definitely proclaimed. 
 
 An examination of Boyle's work brings with it 
 a certain realisation of a power of concentration and 
 determination which are factors in all original work. 
 Its lasting influence emphasises to a degree the im- 
 portance of knowledge based on direct experiment, 
 and indicates the respect which such work must 
 always command. It shone out as a bright star in 
 a firmament of make-believe. It still remains as an 
 example to those who have the advantage of work- 
 ing under modern conditions. Boyle's method has 
 dominated research and become the recognised basis 
 of all scientific knowledge. | 
 
 Lemery followed in Boyle's footsteps, also 
 insisting that chemistry was a science of observa- 
 tion. He suggested the natural division of 
 chemistry into organic and inorganic branches. 
 Boerhaave published his " Elementa Chemia " in 
 1732. This work greatly influenced the thought of 
 the period. The investigations of Priestley and 
 Cavendish, which followed, are too well known to 
 demand more than passing notice. With those 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 7 
 
 of Lavoisier, Dalton, Berzelius, Prout, and Davy, 
 they bring us to the early days of the nineteenth 
 century, when Nicholson and Carlisle first decom- 
 posed water by the aid of the voltaic pile. This 
 observation received great attention, deepening 
 the rising interest in this progressive science, and 
 materially assisted in its general development. 
 
 Thus a rapid advance in chemistry followed 
 the recognition of the unique value of direct investi- 
 gation by experiment. Boyle's suggestion and its 
 definite acceptance as the only source of knowledge 
 of natural phenomena has led up to the present 
 position of modern chemistry and the experimental 
 sciences. 
 
 By an examination of the sequence of develop- 
 ments, which followed as a direct result of the 
 general acceptance of this idea, the student will 
 realise the supreme power and value of research, 
 and measure its direct influence on the progress of 
 civilisation. This suggestion of continual progress 
 must be the underlying thought. It must guide the 
 investigator in all his ways and find expression in 
 any work which has a permanent value. Thus, 
 progress by research has become the hall-mark of 
 science, and is rapidly occupying an equally definite 
 position in the industrial world. 
 
 The historical side of this development may be 
 followed in a recently published work, " The 
 History of Chemistry," by Sir Edward Thorpe 
 (1909). This, with its excellent bibliography, may 
 form a suitable introduction to the subject. For 
 further details the other standard works on this 
 subject may be consulted. The student should 
 also be acquainted with the Alembic Club Reprints 
 and Ostwald's " Klassiker.'^ 
 
 When considering this general position the 
 beginner must guard against the conclusion that 
 startling discoveries result from a casual observa- 
 
8 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 tion on the part of some investigator. This is not 
 so. Many previous investigators had probably 
 overlooked these same phenomena. Only a trained 
 observer can appreciate their value, and take 
 advantage of their occurrence. 
 
 It may be safely assumed, that under modern 
 conditions, successful investigation has its origin 
 in a basis of the closest reasoning, and only when 
 this is accompanied by a careful survey of previous 
 work, and a full consideration of the best con- 
 ditions of working, can a successful issue be 
 anticipated. 
 
 This view was certainly held by Faraday, when 
 he said " that the world little knows how many of 
 the thoughts and theories that have passed through 
 the mind of a scientific investigator have been 
 crushed in silence and secrecy by his own severe 
 criticism and adverse examination, that in the most 
 successful instance not a tenth of the suggestions, 
 the hopes, the wishes, the preliminary conclusions 
 have been realised." 
 
 It has been generally agreed that no scien- 
 tific discovery can with any justice be considered 
 as due to accident ; knowledge and training 
 are essential before results which are worth con- 
 sideration can be obtained, or what is perhaps of 
 more importance, their true significance realised. 
 The young investigator will do well to accept this 
 position without question. Experience can only 
 confirm it. It is important to realise from the first 
 that discoveries are laboriously sought for; that 
 they are the result of a direct and patient search. 
 Having realised this important point false hopes 
 are destroyed, and additional value given to the 
 results obtained. It will act as an incentive to the 
 student to make full use of facts which are 
 already available, and to increase knowledge in 
 every possible way. It points to the only means by 
 which success can be achieved. 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 9 
 
 The recognition of this fact is of great importance 
 to the routine worker, for it indicates that there is 
 always a reasonable chance of securing results by 
 close observation. In standard methods of analy- 
 sis the only safe means of detecting remaining 
 errors, or inherent defects, is by a comparison of 
 the results obtained on constant repetition. This 
 often leads to improvement by modification in de- 
 tail. Such results become immediately useful. 
 They may even bring to light new problems of a 
 comprehensive nature, leading to further investiga- 
 tion on more general lines. Thus each type of 
 worker has special methods for securing an in- 
 crease in knowledge, which may be obtained in this 
 case by applying the methods of experimental 
 investigation to the every-day operations of the 
 laboratory. 
 
 In experimental investigation great attention 
 must be given to detail. Where this is not fully 
 realised, conclusions may be drawn from premises 
 which are either incomplete or incorrect. When 
 these are made use of, confusion and uncertainty 
 will result. 
 
 In industrial operations this may well be dis- 
 astrous. Much time has been lost in attempting to 
 apply such imperfectly worked out conditions on a 
 manufacturing scale. The effect on the actual in- 
 vestigator of such partial success, or failure, is 
 equally unfortunate and may lead to a correspond- 
 ing lack of confidence. 
 
 The natural difficulties which surround an 
 attempt to increase the scale on which an operation 
 is conducted are sufficiently formidable in them- 
 selves. The data obtained in the laboratory under 
 the best conditions are often not sufficiently definite 
 for such an extension to be carried out without 
 subsequent investigation. New difficulties come to 
 the surface. These have to be dealt with by further 
 research. 
 
io NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 All possible care must therefore be exercised 
 in the initial stage, and the laboratory results 
 examined and checked in the smallest detail. In 
 this way the presence of difficulties introduced 
 through want of attention is reduced to a minimum. 
 
 The need of a sound training in research, and 
 the methods of conducting it, is self-evident. It is an 
 essential condition to success. The only point 
 remaining for discussion is how far such training 
 can be imparted to a student under university or 
 college conditions, 
 
 DEFINITION OF RESEARCH. Experience has 
 shown that it is difficult to define the exact nature 
 of such work, and this has led to a good deal of 
 uncertainty in the past. 
 
 Research has been defined as a " wrestling 
 with nature, a striving towards the limit of attain- 
 able knowledge." In putting forward this defini- 
 tion, Gore held that it consisted of observation, 
 study, and experiment, in varied proportions. 
 
 Discovery has generally been defined as " a 
 passing from the known to the unknown." It is 
 considered that this result is achieved in the follow- 
 ing cases* : 
 
 (1) When we perceive a new impression. 
 
 (2) When we observe a new fact. 
 
 (3) When we compare two ideas and observe 
 a new similarity or difference. 
 
 (4) When we compare two propositions, and 
 perceiving a similarity, or difference, 
 infer a new truth. 
 
 (5) When we divide, or analyse, a compound 
 idea, and perceive a new, or more 
 elementary one. 
 
 (6) When we combine two or more ideas 
 
 Gore. 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE n 
 
 together by an act of imagination, 
 and perceive a new combination. 
 (7) When we permutate, or alter, the order 
 of a new series of ideas, and perceive a 
 new order. 
 
 When an attempt is made to define the exact 
 relation between investigation and research it is 
 difficult to arrive at a satisfactory result. The fol- 
 lowing definition recently set up to meet special 
 conditions suggests, by inference, the nature of 
 such difference : 
 
 It is considered necessary that : 
 
 (1) Research as result of observation or ex- 
 periment must result in the collection of 
 new facts. 
 
 (2) It must involve an examination of the 
 facts collected or phenomena observed, 
 and the reduction of them to a form in 
 which they constitute an addition to 
 knowledge. 
 
 It has also been held for practical purposes of 
 definition " that work published by one of the 
 learned societies may be treated as research." 
 
 W. M. Gardner has defined research as "a 
 logical and original investigation inspired by 
 imagination and directed by special knowledge." 
 
 Chemical research has been divided into two 
 distinct branches, which deal respectively with in- 
 vestigation which has a theoretical or practical 
 significance. Sir William Tilden has defined these 
 respective spheres in the following terms : 
 
 (1) The worker watches the operations of 
 nature and puts questions in the form of experi- 
 ments solely with the desire to find out her ways. 
 
 (2) Attention is given only to those laws, facts, 
 and phenomena which can be made serviceable to 
 man. 
 
 In the future this definition may require amending 
 
12 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 in the implied suggestion that the division between 
 these two classes is of a hard-and-fast nature. 
 
 Under modern conditions of industrial research 
 the interests involved in many cases are such, that 
 the conclusions arrived at have often far-reaching 
 theoretical importance. The great advance which 
 has taken place in tinctorial chemistry would not 
 have been possible without the aid of those chemists 
 who have followed up this development from a 
 commercial and industrial standpoint. 
 
 As time goes on, this dividing line will become 
 less marked, and such a definition may possibly 
 lose its present significance. A fusion of 
 interests will follow on a realisation of the ex- 
 tremely complex and increasingly important status 
 and significance of modern industrial research. 
 The connection between the two branches of pure 
 and applied chemical research is already seen in the 
 use made of theoretical knowledge of an advanced 
 nature in industrial research, as in the actual work- 
 ing out of the attempt to fix nitrogen for industrial 
 purposes by Caro and others, and the means thus 
 offered for the establishment of many important 
 theoretical conclusions. 
 
 If it were possible to discard the term research, 
 and divide chemical investigation into the two main 
 divisions of original and applied work, many of the 
 past difficulties in definition and distinction might 
 disappear ; and with this condition a further ad- 
 vance might be observed in the relationship existing 
 between the two branches of pure and applied science. 
 
 EXPERIMENT v. OBSERVATION. The investigator 
 must understand the distinction involved in this 
 expression. Observation is defined as a mere 
 recording of phenomena as they occur in the 
 ordinary course of nature. When this course is 
 changed by the intervention of personal thought, 
 resulting in action, we are said to experiment. 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 13 
 
 These two conditions have been denned by 
 Herschell as " passive " and " active " respectively. 
 
 An experiment differs from an observation in 
 the fact that the specially introduced conditions 
 determine or influence the direction and character 
 of the results obtained. When considering this 
 point the student may refer to " The Study of 
 Chemical Constitution/' by Freund (1904), Cam- 
 bridge Physical Series, where the subject is treated 
 in a manner which enables the influence of experi- 
 mental evidence to be easily realised. 
 
 A final estimate of the relative value of 
 observation and experiment is impossible under 
 present conditions. It varies in different branches 
 of science. It has not the same value in chemistry 
 as in medicine, where observation is seemingly 
 receiving increased attention at the expense of ex- 
 periment. Observation has possibly a greater 
 value in a new industry than an old one. It is still 
 indispensable to the industrial chemist, and is being 
 used with far-reaching results. 
 
 Its specific value is generally recognised. It is 
 often a necessary, if preliminary, step towards 
 investigation of a strictly experimental order. 
 
 Thus, the term empirical, when it is applied to 
 the method of observation, does not always possess 
 the adverse significance which is sometimes 
 ascribed to it. By its aid early observers were able 
 to carry on certain reactions on the industrial scale, 
 long before the question of a scientific control was 
 thought of, or any reasonable explanation of the 
 actions involved could be given. Industry based 
 on such practice was for long ages a determining 
 factor in the advance of civilisation. 
 
 In certain cases where this condition still rules 
 it must be regarded as an indication that the re- 
 actions involved defy the investigator's skill to 
 explain them. 
 
14 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 ThuS it happens that complicated processes are 
 in operation to-day which to a great extent run 
 on empirical lines. The investigator must guard 
 against adversely criticising such methods in cases 
 where it is clear that the conditions of scientific 
 control are not yet fully worked out, and empirical 
 methods are still necessary. Industrialists must 
 not be blamed if they continue the use of such 
 methods against the time when it is clearly proved 
 that alternative ones can be followed. 
 
 The value of observation on empirical lines can 
 be best realised in the industrial world. In many 
 cases it represents the only working method avail- 
 able. The value of the experimental method may 
 be accepted as beyond all question, but the time has 
 not yet come when the empirical method can be 
 dispensed with in the industrial world. 
 
 There is an intermediate stage in the develop- 
 ment of scientific investigation or progress, where, 
 as Faraday has suggested, " ideas which may 
 have a provisional basis on experiment are so 
 often the shades of a speculation impressions 
 on the mind which are allowable for the time 
 as guides to thought and research," although 
 " often their apparent fitness and beauty vanish 
 before the progress and development of real 
 natural truth." The way of the investigator 
 is one of successful application of thought 
 or knowledge. It is not rendered less diffi- 
 cult by any fast definitions or preconceived ideas 
 which may cramp thought and interfere with pro- 
 gress along lines of least resistance. 
 
 The industrialist experiences a certain satis- 
 faction in those processes based upon observation, 
 which have never failed to furnish him with definite 
 results, even if their operation has not yet been 
 explained in terms of modern scientific thought. 
 
 The advance of industry was securely fixed 
 
HISTORICAL REVIEW AND NATURE 15 
 
 on a basis of observation long before the ex- 
 perimental method was brought into action. It 
 ruled supreme for long ages. Possibly its success 
 accounted for a delay in the realisation of the value 
 of the experimental method, which has now been 
 fully demonstrated, and is so self-evident under 
 modern conditions. 
 
 New processes working on an extended manu- 
 facturing scale are undoubtedly springing up on all 
 sides, which owe their existence to the results of 
 modern experimental investigation. These could 
 not have come into existence on a basis of mere 
 observation. They are direct results of an investi- 
 gation conducted on original and definite lines. 
 This method has given results which could never 
 have been realised under the old regime. The new 
 method has supplemented the other, and has carried 
 us further along the road of industrial success. 
 
 It is certain that the future belongs to the ex- 
 perimentalist. It is right to emphasise this in 
 every way ; but the value of observation in the past, 
 as in the future, must be fully recognised by the 
 investigator, who is to understand the past history 
 of industrial progress. Observation rightly carried 
 out will ever illumine the work of the investigator. 
 
 TRAINING IN METHODS OF RESEARCH. The 
 value of the experience gained by those engaged in 
 original work is beyond dispute. In some quarters 
 the advantage which the average student may 
 secure by engaging in such work during his col- 
 lege course is regarded as 1 uncertain. When con- 
 sidering this point it is well to remember that the 
 actual conduct of original work' must not be con- 
 fused with an experimental knowledge of the 
 general methods of conducting investigations in 
 the research laboratory. 
 
 The absence of this knowledge may leave the 
 worker at a disadvantage. The young investigator 
 
16 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 entering the industrial world has to face problems 
 calling for immediate investigation. In order that 
 this position may be dealt with, a knowledge of cer- 
 tain procedure is essential. The training required 
 for this work will be found on examination to be 
 almost identical with that necessary for the conduct 
 of original work. In both cases unknown condi- 
 tions have to be considered. It is not at this stage 
 that the phenomena dealt with are sufficiently de- 
 fined for it to be known whether their investigation 
 will entail the conduct of original research, or only 
 call for the application of data published by previous 
 investigators. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 PRELIMINARY SURVEY AND SELECTION OF 
 SUBJECT MATTER. 
 
 " Zeal without knowledge is like expedition to a man 
 in the dark. " Newton. 
 
 THE choice of subject matter will be influenced 
 by the special qualifications of the investigator. 
 A natural bent on the part of the student may 
 generally be followed. Considerations connected 
 with his future career, which may already be settled 
 in direction, must also play a part in any selection. 
 In the latter case the nature of the research and its 
 object may be more easily determined. In the 
 past, organic chemistry has claimed great attention. 
 Speaking generally, there is a fashion in this as 
 in most things. To-day, the attention of investi- 
 gators is directed to many other branches, such as 
 those dealing with investigations of the abnormal 
 properties of colloids, catalysis, or electro-chemical 
 investigation. 
 
 It is necessary to Start with a definite aim, 
 and to select a problem for investigation which 
 seems to offer advantage in its solution. In- 
 vestigation may take the shape of the study of a 
 known reaction under new conditions, the confirma- 
 tion of some law, or the search for a new one. A 
 mere hunt after new compounds, on a plan equiva- 
 lent to an addition, or subtraction, sum is to be 
 deprecated. For this, coupled with the recog- 
 nition of the substances produced, possibly repre- 
 sents investigation in its lowest terms. At the 
 C.R. 2 
 
i8 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 same time the general usefulness of such work 
 may, in the early stages of research, be accepted, 
 where more important work is not available; and 
 this criticism must not be taken as applying to the 
 definite isolation and analysis of natural products. 
 Research on elementary lines will often open out in 
 unexpected directions, and disclose conditions 
 which in themselves indicate the possibility of 
 more important work. Its value in developing 
 skill and resource is of a higher order than mere 
 text-book reactions, where observation is the only 
 factor involved. 
 
 The beginner need not be discouraged by com- 
 paratively simple conditions of working. These re- 
 present the working conditions of some of the 
 greatest investigations of the past. Those 
 of Griess, dealing with the action of nitrous 
 acid on amines, led to an extraordinary develop- 
 ment in organic chemistry. The study of this re- 
 action, and the compounds produced by coupling, 
 has given rise to theoretical and practical results of 
 the highest order. 
 
 When the extent of the field of modern chemical 
 investigation in its various branches is realised, 
 it should not be a difficult task for the student to 
 select a subject for consideration, and further in- 
 vestigation, and to make sure that any research 
 arising out of the same shall have a definite aim 
 from its inception. Specific instruction cannot be 
 given in this matter. This belongs to the practical 
 side of the question, but the suggestions made in 
 these notes may be generally considered when a 
 choice has not already been made. 
 
 The nature of the research must neces- 
 sarily be considered in relation to the facilities 
 which are available for carrying it out. Circum- 
 stances, and the position of the investigator, may 
 therefore determine to a great extent the nature 
 
SELECTION OF SUBJECT MATTER 19 
 
 of the research undertaken ; and whether it will 
 involve problems in pure or applied chemistry. 
 
 The importance of what has been described as 
 residual phenomena should be carefully remem- 
 bered. Sir W. Crookes has pointed out that these 
 " may lead a man of disciplined mind and finished 
 manipulative skill to the discovery of new elements, 
 or new laws, and even new forces. Upon un- 
 drilled men these possibilities are simply thrown 
 away. They are of the highest moment to the 
 student." 
 
 Care must be taken to distinguish phe- 
 nomena which only seem to point to ap- 
 parent laws. No attempt can be made in 
 these cases to draw general conclusions from 
 them. At the same time a real exception may over- 
 turn the strongest theory; but interfering circum- 
 stances must be searched for very carefully when 
 dealing with observations of this nature. It is often 
 by comparing such exceptions that important dis- 
 coveries are made. The methods of leading in- 
 vestigators should be studied. These at once 
 indicate the extreme care which must be exercised 
 in the conduct of research. 
 
 When it is fully realised that discovery is the 
 result of a definite search, the value of the simplest 
 piece of original work, correctly carried out, will be 
 apparent, especially when it is regarded as a train- 
 ing for more important research. The investigator 
 must realise the progressive nature of his work. 
 
 PRELIMINARY SEARCH FOR PAST RECORDS. This 
 must be undertaken in some detail before the actual 
 research is started. The student must have definite 
 knowledge of any work which has previously been 
 undertaken in a similar direction. The source of 
 available information under present conditions may 
 be divided into four sections : 
 
 (i) Text-books and Dictionaries. 
 
 22 
 
20 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 (2) Journals of Chemical and other Societies. 
 
 (3) Technical and Semi-Technical Journals. 
 
 (4) Patent Literature. 
 
 Text-books are more useful for general work 
 and in the preliminary stage of research. There 
 is a growing tendency for these to be devoted to 
 detail in special directions, and where this is the 
 case, they become of importance to the correspond- 
 ing investigator. Descriptions of a general nature 
 should always be supplemented by a reference to the 
 original communication, whenever this is possible. 
 The details to be found there are often of first 
 importance. They naturally cannot be included 
 in text-books, where the compilers of such works 
 have not, as a rule, the same object before them as 
 the investigator. 
 
 Such works as Beilstein, or Dammer in his 
 Anorganisch Chemie und Chem. Technologie, 
 or Moissan's Chimie Miner ale may be studied with 
 advantage. The growing tendency to give refer- 
 ence to the original papers is a satisfactory 
 one. 
 
 REFERENCE TO JOURNALS. It is always necessary 
 to refer to any journals dealing specially with the 
 subject in hand. Many of these which have come 
 into being in recent years are confined to certain 
 branches or subsections of the original science. 
 
 Thus it would be necessary for an investigator 
 dealing with the chemistry of Colloids to care- 
 fully search theZeitschrift fur Chemie und Industrie 
 der Kolloide, and when dealing with Tannins and 
 their action, it would be necessary to refer to 
 Collegium, the "official-' journal connected with 
 that branch of industrial research. In the case of 
 dyeing, the Revue Generate des Matieres Color- 
 antes, the Farber Zeitung, and the Journal of the 
 Society of Dyers and Colourists might be searched 
 for definite information. 
 
SELECTION OF SUBJECT MATTER 21 
 
 The International Catalogue of Science and the 
 Indexes of the Royal Society's Proceedings should 
 be carefully considered. Reference to a certain 
 paper or communication will often by cross refer- 
 ences open out a wide field for further informa- 
 tion. The student must in this way make a special 
 search for previous work. The leading journals 
 to be consulted may perhaps be taken as those ab- 
 stracted for the Journal of the Chemical Society and 
 for the Society of Chemical Industry, respectively. 
 
 Resume's such as the monographs in Ahren's 
 " Sammlung " are of special significance. 
 
 The preliminary search may also include tHe 
 annual reports issued by the Chemical Society. 
 For instance, the 1910 number contains articled 
 covering the general progress in General and 
 Physical Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, Physio- 
 logical Chemistry, Agricultural Chemistry, 
 Organic Chemistry, Stereochemistry, Analytical 
 Chemistry, Vegetable Physiology, Mineralogical 
 Chemistry, and Radioactivity. The general publi- 
 cations of the German and American Chemical 
 Societies must also be consulted. 
 
 Besides the general papers appearing in the 
 journals, the abstracts should be carefully con- 
 sidered. This search is facilitated when the col- 
 lected index system is adopted, and which from its 
 usefulness is destined to come into general use. 
 The system of abstracting adopted by the leading 
 journals has improved, and is now so complete that 
 it may be used in the preliminary stage of an in- 
 vestigation with increased confidence. According 
 to the latest information no fewer than one hundred 
 and fifty journals are abstracted by the Society of 
 Chemical Industry for their journal. 
 
 PATENT LITERATURE. In some cases an import- 
 ant source of information will be found in the current 
 patent literature as published in this country, Ger- 
 
22, NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 many, France and U.S.A., respectively. Copies 
 of these patents may be seen at the Patent Office 
 Library in Southampton Buildings, Chancery 
 Lane, B.C., which is open from 10 to 10 o'clock 
 daily. Many of the technical journals, such as that 
 of the Society of Chemical Industry, abstract these 
 patents in increasing numbers. 
 
 No likely source of information concerning past 
 literature should be overlooked. This search may 
 be regarded as part of the investigation, and the 
 beginner must pay all attention to this matter, as it 
 is one of first importance. It will reduce the possi 
 bility of an investigation being merely a repetitior 
 of previously published work to a minimum. Tht 
 present advanced state of chemical investigation 
 increases the value, and need of, this preliminary 
 work. 
 
 When once the nature, or direction of, the re- 
 search is determined, any references obtained in 
 this manner should be carefully indexed, and a 
 short abstract prepared dealing with their probable 
 influence on the work under consideration. 
 
 This search, in conjunction with the selection 
 of subject matter, may be regarded as the first step 
 in the normal path of an investigation. These 
 may be secured concurrently in some cases. The 
 importance of method must be fully realised at this 
 early stage, and should never be lost sight of until 
 the research is completed and recorded in detail. 
 
 The beginner will naturally start work on a 
 modest scale. The results to be looked for at this 
 early stage are personal experience, training in 
 actual manipulation, and an insight into the 
 work of others as translated into actual prac- 
 tice. Minute attention to detail will bring 
 with it method. The simplest piece of original 
 investigation successfully carried out will bring 
 with it confidence, which will develop, and give 
 
SELECTION OF SUBJECT MATTER 23 
 
 ever increasing value to such work. The results 
 obtained by an experienced investigator are to no 
 small extent determined by the nature of his pre- 
 vious training. 
 
 Faraday, when reviewing his work up to the 
 year 1832, divided it into good, moderate and bad. 
 He valued the results on a personal basis, " be- 
 cause of the utility they have been to me, and none 
 more than the bad, in pointing out the faults it 
 became me to watch and avoid " (Tyndall, " Fara- 
 day as a Discoverer," page 38). 
 
 The student must never be discouraged by the 
 time required to obtain experience and confidence. 
 Faraday suggested that " it required twenty years 
 of work to make a man in physical science, the 
 previous period being one of infancy. " 
 
 Investigation conducted on proper lines de- 
 velops in a natural way, and with it the experience 
 and power of the investigator. From the simplest 
 research a new line of investigation may open out, 
 and important results may be ultimately obtained. 
 Tyndall considered that the real vocation of an in- 
 vestigator " consists of the incessant marriage of 
 induction and deduction." 
 
 PERSONAL QUALIFICATIONS. These are varied in 
 their nature, and of great importance. They can 
 only be considered in a general way. Curiosity, 
 patience, critical power and industry are among 
 them. How far these can be developed or even 
 created by training is a matter for conjecture; but 
 even where these are possessed, they must still be 
 developed to their maximum. 
 
 The power of taking full advantage of observa- 
 tion, of being able to appreciate the value and 
 significance of abnormal conditions as they arise, 
 can only come with long experience and practice. 
 It has been well said, that " every fact and every 
 discovery casts a light beyond itself, and the ex- 
 
24 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 tent to which this light is perceived depends upon 
 the man. Training can certainly develop this 
 natural faculty of observation and apply it to cer- 
 tain ends, even if it cannot supply it. 
 
 This power of observation should, therefore, be 
 trained to its highest degree. Combined with the 
 faculty of imagination, it is always exhibited by 
 investigators who have made their mark in scien- 
 tific research. 
 
 MANIPULATIVE SKILL. This can only be 
 secured by extended experience in the methods in- 
 volved in such investigations. It is here 
 that the practical training of the college course 
 may be of such importance. Manipulative skill 
 is of more value than elaboration of apparatus. 
 Cavendish in a simple way obtained results in- 
 dicating the proportion of oxygen in the air, 
 which were practically identical with those obtained 
 years afterwards by Bunsen and Regnault, when 
 working with all the elaboration of apparatus then 
 available. 
 
 At the same time there are natural limits to 
 each specific method of working, and neither of 
 these methods led to the isolation of the rarer con- 
 stituents now known to be present in the air, 
 although Cavendish's work clearly pointed to their 
 existence. 
 
 The fact that Cavendish conducted the simplest 
 operations on a quantitative basis may indicate the 
 care required in successful investigation. He 
 never prepared hydrogen without recording the 
 amount of iron, or zinc, taken and the volume of gas 
 generated; even when there was no immediate 
 call for these observations. Faraday was equally 
 careful, always repeating the experiments of others. 
 " I am never able to make a fact my own without 
 seeing it," he said. Also, " that he could trust 
 a fact, but always cross-examine an assertion." 
 
SELECTION OF SUBJECT MATTER 25 
 
 Many investigators find it advantageous to 
 visualise in some way, the reactions involved in a 
 research in its different stages. They are curious 
 enough to form a mental picture, which may repre- 
 sent the nature of the reaction under consideration. 
 Apart from any real significance in the effect pro- 
 duced, the plan is undoubtedly a useful one. It 
 may be observed that this power of picture-making 
 has been carried so far in some branches of re- 
 search, that it seems to be the beginning and end of 
 many investigations. Such endeavours must not be 
 classed with the Kindergarten. They represent 
 the romance of science, and symbolise advance 
 from stage to stage. At the same time, they indi- 
 cate the natural limitations of our methods of 
 investigation. 
 
 In learning a language, it is necessary to think in 
 the same before any real advance can be achieved, so 
 in research a similar condition applies ; the symbols 
 used, crude as they may be, are a direct aid to success. 
 It is often the chief aim of an investigator to secure 
 this result. In its effect it may carry him over many 
 a rough road. There may then be some consolation 
 in a non-successful issue to an investigation ; for 
 when this is represented in its true light, and occurs 
 under satisfactory conditions of working, it does 
 not so much represent personal failure, as the limits 
 of scientific investigation for the time being. 
 
 The use of elaborate apparatus is under some 
 conditions essential. This may be necessary to 
 the success of the investigation. Under ordinary 
 circumstances this condition will not apply. The 
 aim of the investigator should be to work under as 
 simple conditions as are compatible with success. 
 
 EFFECT OF INTRODUCTION OF INSTRUMENTS OF 
 PRECISION. This has brought about far-reaching re- 
 sults. Lavoisier made use of the balance in 1778, 
 and his investigations conducted with its aid ex- 
 
26 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 ploded the philogeston theory, as a natural and in- 
 evitable consequence. The working out of some 
 new apparatus often follows the discovery of some 
 new scientific fact. It represents the practical ap- 
 plication of the same. The invention of an instru- 
 ment like the spectroscope, or the elaboration of 
 the balance to meet the needs of chemical research, 
 may almost be regarded as equivalent to an exten- 
 sion of one of the senses. The worker therefore 
 endeavours to make use of such aids in his re- 
 search. Under modern conditions this can generally 
 be accomplished, as most of the modern colleges 
 possess an adequate supply of these instruments. 
 They are also present in many private laboratories. 
 
 COST OF EXPERIMENTING. In the aggregate this 
 is very large. The compilation by the Royal 
 Society of mere titles and publication of the more 
 important scientific investigations, cost nearly 
 ; 10,000 up to the year 1879. It has been remarked 
 that the cost of the researches themselves would 
 amount to several millions, and that " these were 
 made entirely at the expense of the investigators 
 themselves, nearly all of whom were men of limited 
 means." 
 
 Under modern conditions, very large sums are 
 allocated in some cases by commercial firms, for 
 the conduct of research. The preliminary work 
 connected with the production of artificial indigo 
 is said to have accounted for an expenditure of 
 nearly a million sterling. In many directions large 
 sums have been spent in investigating, on scientific 
 lines, problems which may lead to an industrial 
 application. 
 
 Investigations of this order often entail the use 
 of complicated methods. Past experience has de- 
 monstrated that such operations, when brought 
 to a successful issue, may have a value, which is 
 represented by adequate financial gain. 
 
SELECTION OF SUBJECT MATTER 27 
 
 This result is increasingly influencing the 
 general progress of research. Many of the larger 
 industrial laboratories dealing with such problems 
 equal in their equipment, if they do not excel, those 
 of many of the leading universities. It has been 
 recently stated that a certain business combination 
 in Germany employs no less than seven hundred 
 chemists.; 
 
 Research conducted under such conditions and 
 to such ends, entails details of an exacting nature, 
 and demands manipulative skill and knowledge of 
 a high order. 
 
 The conduct of such investigations offers a 
 promising field to the investigator who has the 
 necessary training, and knowledge of the methods 
 to be employed. He must cultivate a scientific 
 habit of thought, and combine this with a sound 
 business insight into the working of industrial 
 operations, and a practical knowledge of the results 
 obtained, and aimed at, under such a system. 
 
 Generally speaking the investigator must have 
 his mind stored with the chief facts and principles 
 of science, he " must be able to imagine, invent, 
 manipulate, observe, compare, and reason." (Gore.) 
 With such a stock in trade the investigator can hardly 
 fail to meet with success in the ever-widening field 
 of original or applied research. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 GENERAL PROCEDURE AND SELECTION OF METHODS 
 OF INVESTIGATION. 
 
 " No scientific discovery can with any justice be considered 
 as due to accident." Gore. 
 
 SCHEME OF PROCEDURE. It is necessary to con- 
 sider this in detail before actually starting work. 
 As the course of the investigation develops, or 
 takes a new direction, original methods and plans 
 may be modified or altered, or, in extreme cases, 
 rejected in favour of others. Where the investiga- 
 tion is of a definite nature such further treatment 
 may be unnecessary; but this must not be looked 
 for in cases where a research involves complicated 
 conditions. Thus the investigator always has 
 before him the question of possible improvements 
 in manipulation, or alternate methods of working, 
 and the influence these may have on the work in 
 hand. Even in the case of the isolation of an alka- 
 loid, or the preparation of a definite substance, the 
 possibility of improvement in method should be 
 constantly in mind. 
 
 When a point in theory is under consideration ; 
 or an investigation undertaken, entailing a series 
 of changes, or measurements, which cannot be at 
 the time explained or fully understood; or when 
 changes in molecular constitution or complex laws 
 have to be followed up, or investigated, subsequent 
 alterations in procedure will almost always be 
 necessary. 
 
 In industrial research the conditions are hardly 
 less involved, for in that case phenomena which 
 
GENERAL INVESTIGATION 29 
 
 are indefinite in their nature are constantly met 
 with. These have to be constantly investigated, 
 or at least controlled, before any real progress 
 on the line originally determined upon is even 
 possible. 
 
 Thus working conditions have often to be 
 varied during the progress of an investigation, even 
 when its ultimate object is fully disclosed from the 
 commencement. Where this takes the direction of 
 a search for new methods, or conditions, for arriv- 
 ing at a definite result, the research may chiefly 
 consist in the determination of the best conditions 
 to that end. The student may well put on one 
 side such work for his more experienced years. In 
 more or less simple research the beginner may 
 often find himself face to face with conditions which 
 seem to indicate the complete failure of his in- 
 vestigation. Sooner or later some way of dealing 
 with such a position will probably be discovered, 
 or a new method of attack devised. He should do 
 all he can to hasten this result, and bring it within 
 his own experience. 
 
 In dealing with such a position, past experience 
 is the most valuable asset in determining the prob- 
 able line of least resistance, and progress. No 
 advantage can be gained by the beginner rushing 
 into an elaborate research. Such work should be 
 confined to problems which entail easy methods of 
 procedure. This point must receive full considera- 
 tion when the nature of the investigation is being 
 determined in the first instance. 
 
 Chemical research may roughly be defined as 
 belonging to the following types : 
 
 (1) When known or general reactions are 
 
 employed. 
 
 (2) When inventive power must be brought 
 
 into play, and new methods, or condi- 
 tions of working devised. 
 
30 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 Examples of the first class should engage the 
 attention of the young investigator. Their value, 
 from a point of view of ultimate training and 
 experience, may possibly be inferior, but from 
 their nature they may be undertaken with more 
 certainty by the beginner. They are better suited 
 to his immediate requirements. 
 
 In organic chemistry the production of new 
 compounds by known methods may be the chief 
 aim in the investigation, although an examination 
 of the conditions under which the reactions proceed 
 may be of some importance. Research in this 
 direction is sometimes hastened by its connection 
 with commercial aims, as in the aniline dye in- 
 dustry. In organic research dealing with theory, 
 the production of new compounds by familiar re- 
 actions may represent the practical side of the in- 
 vestigation. General reactions in this branch of 
 chemistry are sometimes of great value, and the 
 discovery of a new one may at any time have far- 
 reaching results on the general progress of organic 
 research. 
 
 This branch of chemistry has in the past been 
 in general favour for research purposes. It is 
 easily undertaken in the college laboratory. It is 
 also a convenient introduction to more general in- 
 vestigation, or a suitable subject for continued 
 work. When estimating its value in the former 
 case it will be remembered that many experienced 
 investigators, now working in other directions, 
 obtained their early training in this branch of 
 research. 
 
 The nature of research undertaken during the 
 general period of training may be governed by 
 certain considerations of a more or less personal 
 nature. Subject to certain necessary restrictions, 
 these may receive consideration when choosing a 
 subject for investigation. The ultimate aim should 
 
GENERAL INVESTIGATION 31 
 
 be one of general utility, and the research should 
 involve a distinct advance in actual training and 
 experience. 
 
 METHODS OF CARRYING OUT RESEARCH. Follow- 
 ing the selection of subject matter on such grounds 
 as are indicated, the actual methods of investigation 
 adopted represent the next point for consideration. 
 These are determined and governed by the nature 
 of the special conditions which have to be met. 
 When new methods have to be devised, apparatus 
 designed, or even invented, this preliminary step 
 may in some cases be regarded as the chief feature 
 of the research. The subsequent recording of 
 results by its use may be considered as playing 
 a secondary part. 
 
 It must always be remembered that when the 
 ordinary apparatus of a well-fitted laboratory is 
 sufficient, the use of specially-devised and con- 
 structed apparatus is undesirable. In organic re- 
 search working conditions may generally be met 
 in the ordinary laboratory. In working out new 
 methods of analysis the same conditions may be 
 looked for. When special conditions have to 
 be met, involving more complicated methods of 
 procedure, success will depend upon the necessary 
 conditions being determined with as little delay 
 as possible. 
 
 In advanced research, which in some branch 
 or other should be the ultimate aim of all investi- 
 gators, special apparatus is often necessary. For 
 example, the successful termination of a research 
 which entails a study of reactions occurring at a 
 very high temperature, may depend upon the ex- 
 perimental conditions being met in a satisfactory 
 manner. Special methods must then be employed 
 in the registration of the physical conditions present 
 at the time of the investigation. 
 
 Without the electrical furnace Moissan could 
 
32 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 not have undertaken his important work on high 
 temperature reactions. Without the vacuum-lined 
 vessel many experiments at low temperatures would 
 have been impossible, or only carried out with ex- 
 treme difficulty. In some cases a piece of ap- 
 paratus, or instrument of precision, may therefore be 
 the determining factor in the investigation. 
 
 Research may therefore involve the use of : 
 
 (1) The ordinary apparatus of the laboratory. 
 
 (2) Special, but already described apparatus 
 
 obtainable in commerce. 
 
 (3) Apparatus which must be specially de- 
 
 vised, or invented by the investigator. 
 
 Extended study and practical experience are 
 necessary qualifications when working under the 
 last conditions. For this reason the student will 
 do well to follow intelligently the published records 
 of such work, with as much care and detail as if 
 he were engaged in the research himself. An 
 opportunity of watching an investigation in actual 
 progress should be always taken advantage of for a 
 similar reason. 
 
 Referring to the first two cases, consideration must 
 be given to the selection of the most suitable ap- 
 paratus available ; and in the order of their classifi- 
 cation the aim should be to work under the simplest 
 conditions. This will at the same time tend to 
 reduce the experimental error to a minimum. 
 
 When the conditions under which an experi- 
 enced investigator works are examined in detail, it 
 will be found that in the majority of cases they 
 conform to this rule. The simplest apparatus 
 which will meet the necessary requirements is used. 
 Even when new apparatus is devised it is often 
 characterised by its apparent simplicity. 
 
 Speaking generally, an attempt should be made 
 to start research, or work under research condi- 
 tions, before leaving college, while a knowledge 
 
GENERAL INVESTIGATION 33 
 
 of theory is still well in hand. If this is not 
 possible, the student should leave with a determina- 
 tion to ultimately engage in such work, but in this 
 case valuable time may be lost when the necessary 
 experience has to be gained in after life. Thus a 
 knowledge of actual working conditions rightly 
 belongs to the college stage. Familiarity with the 
 general conditions which surround such investi- 
 gation and belong to it, is a certain aid to future 
 success. A state of mind is engendered which 
 persists, and is essential to ultimate success. 
 
 Another factor which operates in the same 
 direction is observed in many cases. An enthusiasm 
 has been developed in many institutions by certain 
 teachers who have inspired their students with 
 similar ideals, indicating by actual example the 
 need for the inclusion of such work in the training 
 of students, who must in their turn engage in 
 such investigation in the ordinary course. By 
 imparting their special methods of working, they 
 have generally given to a direction the work of 
 others. This influence has been a determining 
 one in the past. Examples will occur to all. The 
 formation of so-called "schools" is its outward 
 expression. These have always been founded on a 
 basis of original investigation. 
 
 Another influence is frequently present. This 
 is not so generally understood, or discussed. In 
 many ways it is hardly less far-reaching in its 
 effect, but it is of an impersonal nature. It is felt 
 by those who are in constant contact with opera- 
 tions proceeding on an industrial scale, with con- 
 tinuous regularity for long periods. 
 
 Its influence on the investigator is difficult to 
 define, but those who have grasped its meaning 
 are known as having a practical turn of mind. 
 They possess a power of intuition and initiation 
 in industrial research which is not often met 
 C.R. 3 
 
34 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 with in those who have not passed through this 
 experience. 
 
 This training confers the quality of caution, 
 combined with an instinct for working in practical 
 directions. Such an experience frequently enables a 
 man to outclass one with a superior theoretical know- 
 ledge. It brings with it confidence, and some addi- 
 tional qualifications which favourably influence the 
 conduct of original work. 
 
 When this is fully recognised, as it will be one 
 day, the relationship between industrial and pure 
 chemistry will correspondingly improve. These 
 two sections are but branches of the same science : 
 the one is complementary to the other. 
 
 There is no real significance in reactions con- 
 ducted on a ten gramme basis, which is not equally 
 apparent, when they proceed on a scale measured in 
 tons ; nor is there any special magic, beyond that 
 of convenience, in the glass beaker or the platinum 
 boat, which is not equally present in the salt pan 
 or the blast furnace. 
 
 The student should aim at a wide experience, 
 and knowledge of a general nature, so that he may 
 be equally at home in different branches of research. 
 Experience of this order can alone make him a 
 successful investigator under the conditions which 
 must obtain in the future. He must take a wide 
 view of his subject, and be prepared to follow up 
 investigation in whatever direction it may take. 
 This is a task of considerable difficulty, but one 
 which must be met by the modern investigator. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 CHEMICAL AND GENERAL SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION. 
 
 "For the Pseudo-Chymist seeks gold, but the true Philosopher, 
 Science, which is more precious than any gold." 
 
 AT the present day theory is held of little 
 account unless it conforms with such experimental 
 evidence as may be available : past investiga- 
 tion to a great extent determines its natural limits. 
 Under this essential condition the influence of 
 theory on practice has been far reaching and bene- 
 ficial. The value of theory is regarded as of such 
 importance in certain directions, that investigations 
 which do not involve some point in theory are 
 regarded as occupying a lower plane. 
 
 Research which is connected with industry, or 
 some practical application, is then ranked as of a 
 secondary order. Under modern conditions this 
 position may have to be reconsidered. 
 
 The condition that theory must fall into line 
 with practice or be discarded, has limited false pre- 
 tensions on the one hand, and on the other has 
 given it additional value to the practical investigator. 
 A full knowledge of the theory of any subject for 
 the time being should thus be regarded as an essen- 
 tial factor in all investigation ; full allowance being 
 made for any tendency which may exist in certain 
 directions to overload practice with theory. The 
 latter in that case defeats its own end. The normal 
 state must be one in which practice and theory 
 advance hand in hand. 
 
 There can be no doubt as to the value of theory 
 
 3-2 
 
36 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 which is sustained on a substantial basis of fact. 
 This is demonstrated daily. The practical investi- 
 gator will make all use of this important fact in the 
 advancement in his investigations. 
 
 RESEARCH IN RELATION TO PURE SCIENCE. In 
 this case investigation is confined to the consideration 
 of natural phenomena. It does not concern itself 
 with practice, except where it incidentally deals with 
 changes which actually play some part in industry. 
 
 Research of this order deals with the nature of 
 natural phenomena, and an expression of the 
 results observed in terms which cover the special 
 requirements of the branch of science involved. 
 
 It deals with the investigation of phenomena 
 which are only partly understood, examines past re- 
 sults in the light of more recent experience, and 
 extends knowledge in every possible direction, deter- 
 mining for the time being its limits. Its programme 
 is specific and self-contained. Any practical appli- 
 cation of the results obtained is outside its sphere. 
 It aims at a knowledge of the ultimate state and 
 condition of matter, and its attendant phenomena. 
 
 Research of this nature is under modern con- 
 ditions generally subsidised in some shape or form. 
 It may be carried out at the University or College ; 
 it is generally confined to those able to conduct such 
 work without the direct hope of pecuniary reward. 
 
 It is not correct to assume that the results 
 obtained have no practical interest, or that they may 
 not sooner or later have some definite value in the 
 hands of the practical investigator. Thus a general 
 consideration of the theoretical conclusions is of vital 
 interest to the technical investigator, and inci- 
 dentally such applications have an equal interest 
 to the worker in pure science. They often con- 
 firm views on a more widely set area than can pos- 
 sibly be obtained in the laboratory. 
 
 It is therefore necessary for the practical man to 
 
SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION 37 
 
 keep closely in touch with theory, and the worker in 
 pure science to have some knowledge of the results 
 obtained in its practical application, and use, and 
 the way theory may be modified by more general 
 experience. 
 
 Thus the investigator must have a special know- 
 ledge of general facts, so far as they may be ex- 
 pected to influence his results and work, and 
 examine the conclusions which have been arrived 
 at in any branch of science which may seem to be 
 directly, or indirectly involved in his investigation. 
 
 The general question of this practical applica- 
 tion and use of theory is therefore a most important 
 one, as this extension must in many cases ulti- 
 mately determine its actual value. Chemistry is 
 essentially an experimental science, and it must, as 
 in the past, justify its existence on the grounds 
 of general utility, and not of theory. From the 
 point of view of progress, the relationship between 
 the different branches of investigation must therefore 
 be as intimate as possible. 
 
 The value of research in pure science is supreme. 
 It is directly responsible for progress along definite 
 lines. It has set up a constantly changing system 
 which has been followed in its natural development 
 with a certainty of procedure which is based on a 
 belief in the ultimate value of the methods involved. 
 
 In combination with theoretical speculation, it 
 has secured a further advance in knowledge, which 
 may be defined as of a less definite order. In effect 
 this has secured a position for chemistry which has 
 hardly been equalled in any other branch of science. 
 No other branch of experimental work can be said 
 to have escaped its influence. Its importance to 
 industry is beyond all question. 
 
 It is impossible to judge the approximate value 
 of theory as it exists under present conditions. At 
 some time in the future, the benzene ring may have 
 
38 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 less significance than a daisy chain, but it has 
 made for progress. Speculations on space formulae 
 and the attendant models may be an equally ineffi- 
 cient application from an ultimate standpoint. 
 They may belong to the childhood of science, but 
 in spite of all that can be said in this direction, the 
 value of such speculations is seen in the practical 
 advancement which has followed in their train. 
 Thus theory forms one of the most interesting 
 branches of any experimental science. It plays a 
 definite and essential part in the general scheme of 
 progress. 
 
 RELATION BETWEEN CHEMICAL AND GENERAL 
 SCIENCE. This is increasingly intimate under modern 
 conditions. Any advance in a special subject neces- 
 sarily becomes of interest to many branches other 
 than the one under which it receives classification. 
 It may often throw unexpected light on investiga- 
 tions in seemingly quite other directions. 
 
 The development in experimental chemistry has 
 been so widely spread, that the ever increasing 
 volume of recorded data brings with it a natural 
 tendency to specialisation on the part of the investi- 
 gator. Thus the true relationship between the 
 different branches of experimental science may be 
 overlooked. The student will do well to remem- 
 ber that this tendency to specialise is not to be 
 encouraged before it is forced upon the investi- 
 gator. The effect of too early a specialisation is 
 continually brought to mind by a study of some of 
 the records of modern investigation. 
 
 This position maybe regarded as the opportunity of 
 the young investigator. The results obtained in com- 
 paratively new branches, like those of bio-chemistry, 
 electro-chemistry, and others which might be men- 
 tioned, are demanding an ever-increasing recogni- 
 tion from investigators working in other directions. 
 These inter-developments are setting up new con- 
 
SCIENTIFICBINVESTIGATION 3g 
 
 ditions, and increasing the available knowledge 
 which may be brought to bear on any specific 
 research, by establishing a more definite relation- 
 ship between the physicist and chemist. 
 
 In this respect, the investigator will welcome 
 the ever-growing list of text- books devoted to 
 special subjects. In many cases, these afford a 
 ready means for reference to the salient points 
 in theory and practice connected with special 
 branches of modern investigation. This new factor 
 widens out the horizon for the worker by increasing 
 the facility with which general information may be 
 obtained. 
 
 A few examples may be considered here, which 
 suggest themselves, in passing, as having reference 
 to this special development. 
 
 The first one chosen is that of bio-chemistry. 
 Meldola has pointed out, (Chemical Synthesis of 
 Vital Products, 1904) that even if we have in the 
 field of carbon chemistry produced thousands of 
 compounds which do not, and probably never will 
 be found to, exist in living organisms, there is no 
 justification in assuming that we have reached a 
 stage where it is unimportant whether an organic 
 compound is producible by vital chemistry, or that 
 the known laboratory methods are equivalents of 
 the unknown vital ones. 
 
 A simple case will illustrate this. " The funda- 
 mental synthesis par excellence, in which carbon 
 dioxide is absorbed by an organised compound and 
 the product, or products, decomposed with the 
 liberation of oxygen, is as yet without a laboratory 
 parallel." In a similar way it may be claimed that 
 although such actions as those due to enzymes may 
 be imitated by laboratory methods, yet no hydro- 
 lysing agent of the nature of an enzyme has ever 
 been synthesised. 
 
 It is therefore essential, that the chemist and 
 
40 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 physiologist should work together. Their relative 
 dependence is the watchword of modern investiga- 
 tion in this direction. Only in this way can the 
 future of bio-chemistry be assured, and this science 
 established on a firm basis. The subject is a fas- 
 cinating one, and of great importance to the student 
 in search of matter for further investigation. 
 
 In a similar way the proteins offer an ever widen- 
 ing field for research, as a reference to the Chemistry 
 of the Proteins by Mann (1906) will readily indi- 
 cate. Here the conditions are exceedingly com- 
 plex, and an almost unexplored region is yet to be 
 covered. Future developments in this direction 
 cannot fail to be of a startling nature, and of equal 
 importance to the physiologist as the chemist. 
 
 The subject of the alkaloids offers another field 
 which may be expected to yield results of great 
 practical and theoretical importance. A reference 
 to vegetable alkaloids by Pictet and Biddle (1904), 
 or to a series of volumes published in 1900, 1905, 
 and 1908 respectively, under the title Die Alkaloid- 
 chemie, will give the investigator some indication 
 of the scope of this branch of chemistry, and its 
 present position. 
 
 In the same way, it is difficult to over-estimate 
 the interest which catalysis, and the general re- 
 actions which are classified under this heading, 
 offers to the investigator, especially when the recent 
 developments in this direction are remembered. In 
 its modern phrase it has been extended to organic 
 chemistry. As practised at high temperatures by 
 Sabatier and Sanderens and others, it can be prac- 
 tically utilised in many ways, as in processes in- 
 volving reduction, hydration, oxidation, and elim- 
 ination of halogen hydride, etc. On the industrial 
 side, Ostwald has made practical use of this action 
 in the manufacture of nitric acid. Its use in the 
 manufacture of sulphuric acid is common know- 
 
SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION 41 
 
 ledge. These interesting processes are being ex- 
 tended industrially. The possibilities have not 
 been exhausted, in fact, developments of an in- 
 creasingly important nature must continually be 
 expected. 
 
 As the successful application of these methods 
 generally turns upon attention to minute detail, 
 systematic research is the only instrument which 
 can advance our knowledge in this direction, espe- 
 cially as many of these changes are under certain 
 conditions reversible ones. The theory is unde- 
 veloped, and the practical position may be regarded 
 as almost virgin ground. The influence of third 
 substances in minute quantity may alter the normal 
 direction of the reaction, or may determine by their 
 presence, or absence, the success of such processes 
 from a commercial point of view. 
 
 In recent annual reports of the Chemical Society 
 a general summary of results obtained in the 
 domain of organic chemistry will be found. 
 
 " Unsaturation " offers a wide field for re- 
 search. Also the relation between colour and con- 
 stitution, which may throw light upon many other 
 reactions, and help to explain the mechanism of 
 chemical change, are matters of first importance. 
 
 Physical chemistry, in its different branches 
 dealing with such subjects as the solution state, 
 molecular weight, thermodynamics, chemical dyna- 
 mics of homogeneous and heterogeneous systems, 
 chemical equilibrium, and many other subjects has 
 under modern enquiry developed to an amazing 
 extent, but such investigation demands exact 
 knowledge and the use of special apparatus before 
 research can be undertaken with any advantage. 
 
 Stereo-chemistry, dealing as it does with space 
 as distinct from structural formulas has given 
 rise to speculations of an advanced character. Some 
 idea of its present scope may be gained by reference 
 
42 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 to Stereo-chemistry, by A. W. Stewart (1907) in 
 the Text Books of Physical Chemistry Series, 
 where the phenomena of steric hindrance, relation 
 between space formulae and chemical properties, 
 substitution and stability, and other equally im- 
 portant questions are dealt with. 
 
 The present position of organic chemistry is 
 complex to a degree. In Die Synthetisch organ- 
 is cheChemieder Neuzeit (1908) Schmidt deals with 
 the advance in synthetic organic chemistry. If the 
 student will refer to Cohn's Algemeine Gesicht- 
 spunkte der organischen Chemie, he will find many 
 hints which will be invaluable in the conduct of 
 research in this direction. Beilstein's Handburch 
 der organischen Chemie and Richter's Lexicon der 
 Kohenstoffverbindungen are indispensable reference 
 books for all points of detail. 
 
 Fischer's work has been reprinted in a series of 
 publications dealing with the sugars, purines, and 
 polypeptides respectively, and a study of his work 
 and methods is particularly interesting to the student. 
 
 Enough has perhaps been said as to the import- 
 ance of research in connection with theory and the 
 practical results which have followed investigation 
 on such lines. Whether by this means we shall 
 ever arrive at the ultimate goal, which has been 
 defined by Freer (Introduction to Laehmann's 
 Spirit of Organic Chemistry) as a " perfect human 
 knowledge by which from any given premiss the 
 logical conclusion may be drawn with unerring 
 accuracy," is impossible to surmise from the data 
 available. 
 
 The student may regard with a sense of awe the 
 increase in the number of important sub-sections 
 of chemical research within the last decade. He 
 may trace the rise of stereo-chemistry to the re- 
 corded results connected with optical activity, and 
 a determined and definite search for an optically 
 
SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION 43 
 
 active compound owing its asymmetry to the mole- 
 cule alone, and not to an asymmetric carbon 
 atom. As indicating the inter-relation between dif- 
 ferent branches of science, the relation of stereo- 
 chemistry to physiology is a matter of first im- 
 portance. 
 
 The whole question of the action of enzymes is 
 also one which can hardly fail to offer the investi- 
 gator a fruitful harvest to his labour. A study of 
 recently published work will give an idea as to the 
 aims and objects of this special work. 
 
 Recent developments are but the promise of a 
 richer and far-reaching harvest in the future. 
 This certain fact cannot fail to create within the 
 young investigator's mind a deep enthusiasm, when 
 the vast extent of yet unexplored ground to be 
 covered, and the results which may be expected are 
 realised. 
 
 There is hardly a science, or an art, which can 
 reasonably expect to escape the attention of the 
 chemist, or the influence of chemistry. This 
 is seen in the fact, that physical science is 
 but a latter day development of this science; 
 and recently Prof. Rutherford has claimed that 
 in electrical engineering the pioneers were the 
 physical men. (Eng. Sup. Times, 20 Oct., 1910). 
 New sciences spring up, and seemingly develop on 
 original lines, only to be subsequently inter-related 
 and closely woven into the general fabric, which, 
 erected on a sure basis of research, is determining 
 the future physical destiny of man. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 APPLICATION OF CHEMICAL RESEARCH TO INDUSTRY. 
 
 " He that will not apply new remedies must expect new 
 evils. They that reverence too much old things are but a 
 scorn to the new." Francis Bacon. 
 
 THE effect of the development of chemical re- 
 search in its application to industry is seen in the 
 fact that the virtual control of certain industrial 
 operations has passed to science. This is a charac- 
 teristic feature of the age. It is hardly too much to 
 claim that this condition must in time become a 
 general one. It is difficult to call to mind any 
 manufacture which would not benefit from such a 
 change ; for the preparation of raw materials and 
 every subsequent stage of manufacture may cer- 
 tainly be influenced by such means. This is so 
 evident, that it only calls for passing notice. 
 
 In some cases this influence may be directly 
 observed in the product itself, as in high speed 
 steel, artificial indigo, etc. In others, where the 
 changes are connected with the details of works 
 manipulation, and often kept secret from the 
 knowledge of rival operators, the influence is not 
 so evident to the public eye. 
 
 Some idea as to the scope of modern chemical 
 research in its relation to industry may be gathered 
 from the following sectional headings adopted by 
 the Society of Chemical Industry for abstracting 
 purposes. General Plant, Machinery, Fuel, Gas ; 
 Mineral Oils ; Waxes ; Destructive Distillation ; 
 
RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY. 45 
 
 Heating, Lighting ; Tar and Tar Products ; Colour- 
 ing Matters and Dyes ; Fibres, Textiles, Cellulose, 
 Paper ; Bleaching, Dyeing, Printing, Finishing ; 
 Acids, Alkalis, Salts ; Non-Metallic Elements ; 
 Glass, Ceramics ; Building Materials ; Metals, 
 Metallurgy ; Electro-Metallurgy ; Electro-Chem- 
 istry ; Fats, Oils, Waxes ; Paints, Pigments, 
 Varnishes, Resins ; India-Rubber, Gutta-percha ; 
 Leather, Bone, Glue ; Soils, Fertilisers ; Sugars, 
 Starches, Germs, Fermentation ; Foods ; Water 
 Purification, Sanitation ; Organic Products ; Medi- 
 cinal Substances, Essential Oils ; Photographic 
 Materials and Processes ; Explosives, Matches. 
 These divisions indicate the main branches of in- 
 dustry which already entail chemical research, and 
 investigation, in their development. 
 
 In addition to this direct influence on established 
 industries, many new ones have been called into 
 existence, as the result of chemical research in its 
 widest sense. Some of these are already firmly 
 established, and of great importance. The industry 
 dealing with the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen 
 bids fair to supply the world with cheap nitric acid, 
 ammonia, nitrates and cyanides, urea, etc. The 
 artificial silk industry has already supplied the 
 markets with a cheap and efficient substitute for real 
 silk. The artificial alizarin and indigo industries 
 have reached a stage of fearless activity, and have 
 profoundly modified the position of the correspond- 
 ing natural products, having to an extent replaced 
 them. 
 
 In all such cases the conditions of investigation 
 and development are of an essentially different kind 
 from those which are confined " to constant speculation 
 on the lines of a more rational theory," but the 
 general principles underlying the two branches of 
 research are identical in their widest terms and con- 
 ditions. The differences which exist are confined 
 
46 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 to detail, and are in many cases chiefly due to the 
 relative scale of working. 
 
 An ideal training is one which enables the 
 investigator to work in both pure and applied 
 chemistry. This can evidently be best secured 
 when it deals with the underlying principles and 
 practice, of research. 
 
 UTILITY OF INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH. Financial 
 advantage, and a correct solution to certain investi- 
 gations, represents the ultimate aim in this case. 
 The industrial advantage of a correct solution to 
 these investigations must in some way be evident. 
 The probable result of a successful issue may some- 
 times be estimated before the research is undertaken. 
 Thus, the utility of a process for producing a reliable 
 synthetic rubber at a cheap rate is self-evident. 
 Such problems have therefore an interest to the 
 capitalist. They are often considered from this 
 definite standpoint by associations, individuals, or 
 private firms. 
 
 Under modern conditions the success met with 
 in many directions has been substantial. In the 
 much advertised case of the aniline dye industry it 
 has been found possible to establish laboratories in 
 which a large staff of chemists are employed on re- 
 search, from which important developments have 
 resulted. Scientific investigation is in this, as in 
 other cases, an essential factor to industrial success. 
 
 CONNECTION BETWEEN THEORY AND PRACTICE. 
 An industrial application may follow naturally on 
 an investigation which in its inception and character- 
 istics is only of theoretical importance. The de- 
 velopment of the Mond nickel process from the 
 original investigation of carbonyls is a case in 
 point. The systematic study of the general pro- 
 perties of colloids, and their reactions, is known to 
 have exercised a profound influence on certain 
 industries. Another example which might be men- 
 
RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY 47 
 
 tioned is the influence of the metallographic study 
 of alloys and metals on the metal industry 
 generally : Auer von Welsbach's work on rare 
 earths in connection with the incandescent mantle 
 industry may also be cited. 
 
 The development of the Mond process to its 
 present commanding position in the industrial ex- 
 traction of nickel is known to have presented 
 immense difficulties which were at one time looked 
 upon as almost insurmountable. Its successful 
 manipulation on the large scale is one of the 
 triumphs of chemical engineering. 
 
 The connection between investigation under- 
 taken in connection with theory, and that of in- 
 dustrial investigation conducted on scientific lines 
 is too evident to require further comment. The 
 former occupies a definite and commanding posi- 
 tion ; the more so, as it has no immediate connection 
 with direct gain of a financial nature. 
 
 The ultimate fusion of the relative interests of 
 theory and practice, which must follow as a direct 
 result of a closer relationship between the two sec- 
 tions, naturally leads to further developments. With 
 this comes a further advance in the influence which 
 science exercises over industry. Its influence in 
 this direction is to-day self-evident. All that re- 
 mains is to develop its latent-power to the greatest 
 extent. 
 
 The present development of the gold industry 
 of the Transvaal has been only possible through 
 investigations conducted on the action of cyanides 
 on metallic gold. Equally important developments 
 in the textile industry have followed the study of 
 the action of caustic soda on cellulose under varying 
 conditions of strain. 
 
 In both cases, however, the working out of 
 detail was the important factor. The solubility of 
 gold in cyanide solution, and the action of 
 
48 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 caustic soda on cotton were both known for 
 years before any important practical application 
 resulted. The extreme importance of an investiga- 
 tion being carried out scientifically, and to its 
 natural limit, is thus demonstrated. 
 
 The object before the practical investigator (so 
 far as the utilisation of the results of theory is con- 
 cerned) is to reduce the period between discovery 
 and its industrial application to a minimum. 
 
 The aim of the chemist is to achieve this in the 
 shortest possible time, and secure the full advantage 
 of such investigation. Many cases might be 
 quoted where the direct influence of theory has 
 alone given a clue to the solution of important 
 problems in industry. 
 
 The general statement that all scientific know- 
 ledge will at some time be utilised, and have an 
 influence on industrial developments, may be re- 
 garded as correct in its widest sense, especially 
 when it is remembered that evidence of a negative 
 character is sometimes almost as valuable as posi- 
 tive information. In industrial research it is often 
 as useful to know what not to do, as the reverse. 
 
 It is obviously impossible to predict how soon 
 knowledge may be usefully applied, and therefore 
 any natural division between theoretical and indus- 
 trial research should be reduced to its narrowest 
 limit. This condition may best be met by the 
 
 Eractical investigator having a sound working know- 
 idge of theory. 
 
 When such a problem has to be undertaken, this 
 influence must be considered in all directions 
 possible : this condition applies equally in the case 
 of industrial investigation, as in that of investi- 
 gation in theory. 
 
 SCALE OF WORKING. It is sometimes very dim- 
 cult to decide the scale upon which the investigation 
 shall be conducted. This is an important point 
 
RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY 49 
 
 and one which will largely depend upon possible 
 aims, and developments which may be looked for. 
 It is generally found that processes worked out in 
 the laboratory, with a view to their ultimate use on 
 an industrial scale, have to be subsequently modified 
 in many details. In industrial research other con- 
 ditions apply to those observed when working in 
 a laboratory, where results are obtained which are 
 complete in themselves. In the face of this con- 
 dition, the past experience and working conditions 
 of the investigator will probably determine the 
 actual scale on which the research is conducted. 
 
 The industrial chemist must have some know- 
 ledge of the general conditions involved, when 
 laboratory investigation has to be extended to 
 practice on the larger scale. Subsequent difficulties 
 may often be obviated by working under correct 
 conditions in the laboratory in the first place ; and 
 it is here that practical experience plays such an 
 important part. 
 
 The natural difficulties met with in this transi- 
 tion stage have been lessened in some cases by the 
 establishment of experimental work, operating on 
 an intermediate scale, which may be considered as 
 the equivalent of full-scale conditions. In this way 
 the ultimate cost of production, and methods of 
 procedure, may be accurately ascertained. 
 
 Experimental works dealing with processes con- 
 nected with the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen 
 may be seen in Norway. A similar one exists at 
 Spandau for the purpose of establishing the value 
 of processes, which have for their object the manu- 
 facture of the industrial scale of nitrogen products 
 from cyanamide. Many other cases may be 
 brought to mind of a similar nature. 
 
 Where the industrial position cannot be accu- 
 rately estimated, this procedure is one which 
 should be followed. Under modern conditions of 
 
 C.R. 4 
 
50 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 manufacture, new reactions are generally dealt with 
 on an intermediate scale, especially when the con- 
 ditions are exceptional or novel in their nature. 
 This course is always a safe one to follow under any 
 circumstances, and is to be generally recommended. 
 
 It is not possible on the present occasion to con- 
 sider such matters in detail ; or to more than touch 
 upon examples in such procedure ; but a few cases 
 may be conveniently selected to give the student 
 some indication as to their general nature. 
 
 A satisfactory example is perhaps that of the 
 manufacture of hydrogen for commercial purposes. 
 Preparation by the action of zinc has no longer any 
 special interest. During a recent war it is said that 
 this gas was prepared for balloon purposes from 
 the action of concentrated caustic soda on 
 aluminium shavings. Another process which has 
 possibilities, and has been made use of, is the 
 decomposition of calcium hydride. Hydrogen gas 
 is passed into molten calcium in its preparation. 
 Frank has proposed the method of passing water 
 gas over calcium carbide with subsequent removal 
 of oxides of carbon. The general method of pre- 
 paration seems to be at present an electric one, but 
 the action of steam on iron filings is said to have 
 a future before it, especially when the resulting 
 oxide is subsequently reduced by means of water 
 gas, etc., and the process made a continuous one. 
 
 The difficulties of working these processes on a 
 large scale cannot always be overcome in practice, 
 and it is in such work that modern chemical 
 engineering plays such an important part. 
 
 This example illustrates in a simple way the 
 position a problem of this character may occupy at 
 any intermediate stage in its development, and also 
 when the investigation is finally completed in a 
 satisfactory manner. 
 
 The work done at Mansfeld, in Germany, in 
 
RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY 51 
 
 the direction of the treatment of copper ores may 
 also be taken as a typical example. Augustin, 
 working some sixty years ago, found that when 
 finely crushed copper mattes were leached with 
 sodium chloride the silver present was converted 
 into chloride, and that this could be removed by 
 solution in hot brine. Ziervogel subsequently 
 found that by careful washing, coupled with a con- 
 trol of the temperature of the furnace, the silver 
 could be converted into silver sulphate, which could 
 then be washed out and recovered by precipitation 
 on copper by the Augustin process. This process 
 met with great success in Colorado, 2,770 tons of 
 silver sulphate being recovered by this means at 
 Argo alone. Another recent introduction at Mans- 
 feld is the successful production of sulphuric acid 
 from the converter gases produced in smelting the 
 copper ore. 
 
 Again, in America, the Tenessee Copper Com- 
 pany are making 200,000 tons of tower acid per 
 annum from the waste sulphur, while the Washoe 
 Works of the Anaconda Company still discharges 
 enough sulphur into the air to make 1,400,000 tons 
 of acid per annum. 
 
 It has been claimed that with the exception of 
 the apparatus used, metallurgical operations are 
 essentially chemical in their nature. Many of the 
 most important operations have to be conducted 
 under supervision of trained chemists. It may be 
 taken for granted, however, that in most cases of the 
 treatment of ores, where any special difficulty is met 
 with, that a very active co-operation of the chemist, 
 miner, and metallurgist, is essential to success. 
 Under such conditions ores can be worked, and 
 give satisfactory profit, which would be " impos- 
 sibles" in the absence of this mutual understanding 
 and support. 
 
 In the past, many of the most promising pro- 
 
 4-2 
 
52 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 cesses connected with metallurgy were invented by 
 the " practical men," and subsequently chemists 
 were occupied in determining their nature and 
 control. The chemist has now, however, estab- 
 lished a more definite position, and from the com- 
 mencement assumed the direction of affairs in such 
 investigations. Thus we see the gradual supplant- 
 ing of the empirical method by that of experiment. 
 This is probably an inevitable result in the case of a 
 long continued development in any industry work- 
 ing under modern conditions. 
 
 The part played by chemistry in connection with 
 metallurgy is certainly a determining one. The 
 processes of reduction and oxidation, selective solu- 
 tion, and many others of equal importance, all de- 
 mand a definite knowledge of chemical procedure. 
 In fact, the processes themselves are strictly chemi- 
 cal ones. The results sometimes obtained are 
 astonishing. In the case of the extraction of gold 
 from its ores by cyanide solution, a saving of a 
 penny per Ib. in the price of cyanide means a 
 further reduction in working expenses of 70,000 
 in the Johannesburg district alone. 
 
 The treatment of silver ores by this process also 
 offers the greatest possibilities. The bi-sulphite 
 treatment for zinc ores also suggests very import- 
 ant developments. Many other examples will 
 occur to the student. Among these, the results ob- 
 tained from the study of the properties of metals 
 and alloys suggest that, in certain directions, 
 improvements which can hardly be guessed at will 
 be made in industrial practice as a result of extended 
 work in this direction. 
 
 The financial gain offered for successful investi- 
 gation is often great. The commercial treatment of 
 arsenic-colbalt-nickel ores, for instance, holds out 
 great possibilities. 
 
 In electro-chemistry the advance has been 
 
RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY 53 
 
 phenomenal, and entirely new industries are being 
 evolved. The original manufacture of calcium 
 carbide has in its turn led to the production of 
 cyanamides, which apart from their great value 
 as fertilisers have, in their turn, given rise to the 
 manufacture of ammonia, nitric acid and cyanides 
 on an industrial scale. Developments in other 
 directions have led to the direct fixation of nitric 
 acid from the atmosphere. The production of 
 calcium and sodium in large quantities, and 
 many other substances also, has resulted from a 
 study of the conditions of the electrical furnace as 
 a means of inducing chemical action. This, in its 
 turn, has led to the reduction, on a commercial 
 scale, of metals like iron from its ores. 
 
 A definite study of the action of catalysis has 
 led to results which are also destined to revolution- 
 ise many industries. Examples of this are already 
 seen in the Deacon process of manufacturing nitric 
 acid, and the Raschig method of making sulphuric 
 acid. The field opened here is a wide one, and 
 covers inorganic reactions as well as organic ones. 
 The oxidation of naphthalene into phthalic acid, 
 which has played so large a part in the manufac- 
 ture of artificial indigo, is a case in point. Ostwald 
 has pointed out (as quoted by Kennedy Duncan) 
 that " if one considers that the acceleration of re- 
 actions by catalytic means, occurs without the 
 expenditure of energy, and that in all technical 
 work, including chemical, time is money, it is 
 evident that the systematic use of catalysis may lead 
 to far-reaching changes in technology." It is quite 
 impossible, from our present knowledge, to sug- 
 gest that any bounds can be set to future develop- 
 ment in this direction, any more than in the case 
 of electro-chemistry, or many others which might 
 have been mentioned. 
 
 These few examples must serve to indicate the 
 
54 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 part which chemical investigation is playing in 
 modern industry. It is remodelling procedure in 
 industries of old standing ; and, what is more 
 important, supplying the necessary data for the 
 establishment of a series of new ones. These owe 
 their existence to experimental investigation, which 
 is, in many cases, introducing into commerce new 
 products, and processes, of great utility. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 RESEARCH IN RELATION TO ANALYSIS. 
 
 " Every fact and every discovery casts a light beyond itself, and the 
 extent to which this light is perceived depends upon the man." Gore. 
 
 THE influence of the application of modern theory 
 to the methods of analysis has been of great import- 
 ance. Until this was directly brought to bear on 
 analysis the latter was incomplete, and to an extent 
 empirical in its actual procedure. 
 
 Analysis was first placed upon a definite basis by 
 Gay-Lussac and Berzelius. In the early develop- 
 ment of chemistry, it played an important part. 
 Regarded in latter years as an art rather than a 
 science it ran a more or less isolated course, having 
 little in common with the general development of 
 theory. Rivot, Fresenius, and Rose practically 
 limited themselves to detail in manipulation and the 
 general conditions of working. 
 
 During more recent years this position has 
 altogether changed. A detailed knowledge of the 
 underlying principles of precipitation, etc., has 
 modified the entire position, and analysis from its 
 very nature has once more occupied an important 
 place in its relation to the general theory. This 
 change has been definitely described by Ostwald in 
 " Die Wissenschaftlichen Grundlagen der Analy- 
 tischen Chemie," Leipzig, 1908 (translated into 
 English as " The Foundations of Analytical 
 Chemistry," 1908). 
 
 By an application of the law of equilibrium to the 
 
56 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 reactions involved, the conditions under which pre- 
 cipitation may be complete or incomplete were made 
 evident, and the methods to be pursued in order to 
 bring this operation to practical completion in the 
 desired direction were indicated. This review of 
 the question of analysis in the light of modern theory 
 has caused analysis in its many reactions to take to 
 itself an altogether new significance, and play a more 
 important part in the science of chemistry, supplying 
 an efficient method of confirmation for theory on a 
 satisfactory scale, in a way which is brought to the 
 notice of all workers in science. 
 
 No more satisfactory example of the advantage 
 of the application of theory to practice could be 
 found. It indicates in the most definite manner the 
 advantage of examining processes, whether they be 
 industrial or analytical, from a standpoint of theory. 
 
 More general information may be gained on this 
 point by studying the " Theoretical Principles of the 
 Methods of Analytical Chemistry " by Chesnau 
 (translated into English by Lincoln and Carnham, 
 1910). In this work will be found indications of 
 further research which is still necessary. It deals 
 with such important matters as the influence of the 
 physical state of precipitates, upon their purification 
 by washing, irreversible reactions, double decom- 
 position of salts, and the general study of the 
 reactions which are met with when regarded from 
 the " ionic " standpoint. 
 
 Thus in its modern aspect analytical chemistry 
 occupies an increasingly important position in the 
 general scheme of chemistry; and influences, by 
 confirmation or otherwise, theory, and many of the 
 conclusions arrived at in the domain of pure 
 chemistry. 
 
 ANALYTICAL METHODS AND NEW PROCESSES. 
 The results obtained by this application of theory 
 may be regarded as perhaps a simple form of 
 
RESEARCH IN RELATION TO ANALYSIS 57 
 
 research, and offer additional inducement to the 
 young investigator, for his college training in theory 
 may be of immediate value and importance. The 
 scope of the literature on this subject is very 
 voluminous, and a search will soon disclose some 
 process in need of further investigation, or subject- 
 matter for more or less original work. 
 
 A direct comparison of standard processes with 
 others which are comparatively unknown, may 
 naturally lead to an improvement in the latter in 
 detail, and a confirmation of its limitations. Such 
 work from its very nature is especially suitable for 
 research under comparatively simple conditions, and 
 for the general consideration of the young investi- 
 gator. 
 
 A general view of the future position of analysis 
 may be obtained by reference to the above-named 
 books. Analysis, either volumetric or gravametric, 
 offers a satisfactory field for research. A search for 
 subject-matter, especially when the modern views 
 are considered, will soon disclose directions in which 
 further work is needed. 
 
 Many of the most important processes of to-day 
 have been altered and modified for certain specific 
 uses. The Kjeldahl process of estimating nitrogen 
 may be instanced as an example. 
 
 The young analyst should always be on the look- 
 out for possible improvements in methods. This 
 search in itself cannot fail to make him a better 
 worker, and give increased zest to his everyday 
 work. The main object of such early investigation 
 must be regarded as an educational one. The 
 question of publication of results should not be con- 
 sidered by the beginner, except under expert advice. 
 At the same time the results obtained should be 
 assembled with the same care as if this was the 
 object in view. 
 
 Obviously, defective or rejected, processes of 
 
58 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 analysis, form a likely field for research. In 
 these cases it may happen that the factors neces- 
 sary to the successful working have not yet been 
 appreciated. Such work which entails a careful 
 search for the defects in the process may be regarded 
 as altogether satisfactory for the student, especially 
 if it is more or less simple in its nature and not 
 obviously beyond the beginner's capacity. 
 
 Volumetric analysis, in particular, offers a suitable 
 field for such attention. Much work remains to 
 be done in connection with the indicators in simple 
 acidemetry, as their actions are not yet fully under- 
 stood. The presence of third substances may have a 
 disturbing effect, the reason for which is not fully 
 known. 
 
 This subject is worthy of the most careful study 
 and consideration. So much depends upon the 
 process of analysis resting on an unassailable basis. 
 The experience gained is equally satisfactory in its 
 nature and always useful. The results obtained may 
 have a value outside that section of chemistry to 
 which they often owe their origin. 
 
 TECHNICAL ANALYSIS. This is often of an 
 empirical nature, and the investigation still to be 
 undertaken in this direction possibly outweighs that 
 already recorded. It is often of so involved a nature 
 (owing to the conditions under which the processes 
 have to be applied) that it offers special and specific 
 difficulties. So great are these, that in certain cases, 
 such as that of the analysis of tannins, purely 
 empirical processes have the preference when they 
 approach in their nature the working conditions of 
 the industry itself. Thus we see in the case mentioned 
 official sanction given to a process which is practi- 
 cally a reproduction of the working conditions on a 
 small and easily manipulated scale. Hide, in a 
 powdered form, is used as an absorbent, the tannin 
 being taken up from an aqueous solution and 
 
RESEARCH IN RELATION TO ANALYSIS 59 
 
 estimated by direct weighing. The conditions of 
 analysis under circumstances such as these are very 
 circumscribed, and the procedure is very complicated. 
 The details in working which have been adopted to 
 regulate the action of the processes involved are set 
 out in a series of more, or less, arbitrary rules which 
 are carried out by most analysts who have to deal 
 with the valuation of tannins and tannin solutions. 
 
 In most cases the position is studied from the 
 point of view of certain definite results, rather than 
 absolute values. Modern science has much to say 
 on the question of the elaboration of these details, 
 and to the more advanced worker this work offers a 
 varied and promising field for research. 
 
 These processes are capable of revision and 
 improvement by systematic examination of detail, 
 and this is constantly in progress under international 
 agreement, or otherwise. As in the case of the 
 estimation of tannins mentioned, the process as it 
 stands is open to considerable objection by the 
 chemist, but the trade still refuses to abandon it by 
 substitution of other methods which give results not 
 so easily calculated in terms of their trade signifi- 
 cance. 
 
 Thus, when the beginner selects such processes 
 for investigation, he must endeavour to determine 
 the nature of these incidental effects, and seek to 
 either eliminate, or control them. They may possibly 
 be traced to errors caused by solubility, incomplete 
 precipitation, the presence of third substances, etc., 
 and the investigator must determine the nature of 
 such defects by direct observation. In this respect 
 the latest available knowledge on the general 
 behaviour of third substances, the causes of incom- 
 plete precipitation, or the probable solution state of 
 the reacting bodies, must be fully considered, and 
 wherever possible, applied to the case under investiga- 
 tion. 
 
60 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 The careful analyst makes discoveries of general 
 importance, including that of new elements, and finds 
 a source of inspiration in such materials as flue dust, 
 residuals, and other seemingly impossible, or unlikely 
 products. 
 
 Power of concentration, and a training of no 
 mean order is required in such investigation ; and the 
 results obtained under satisfactory conditions are of 
 such definite value, that they receive increasing 
 attention from all chemists. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 GENERAL CONCLUSIONS. 
 
 " I know not what the world may think of my labours, but to myself I 
 seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting 
 himself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell 
 than ordinary, while the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before 
 me." Newton. 
 
 IT is evident that the field of research is an ever- 
 widening one. Each discovery is but a stepping- 
 stone to others. Single observations may, as in 
 the past, give rise to new sciences, called into exist- 
 ence to meet the new conditions, which have to be 
 examined and recorded. As there is no finality to 
 research, this condition will prevail equally in the 
 future as in the past. 
 
 This natural development in the field of inves- 
 tigation is of great importance to the student. 
 The increased tendency to sub-division, and the 
 dividing up of science into a number of more or less 
 water-tight compartments, for which there is 
 obviously no counterpart in nature, is a defect 
 which cannot be removed under present conditions. 
 An examination of the results arrived at in one 
 section, in comparison with those obtained in 
 another, will hardly fail to indicate new lines for 
 further investigation, and the young investigator 
 should pay special attention to this point. 
 
 Knowledge is increased in this way. The 
 application of the latest developments in colloidal 
 chemistry to the theory and practice of dyeing, 
 brewing, filtration, and the study of solutions and 
 
62 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 their properties, are examples of this class of work. 
 The student need only remember the importance 
 of this application to the theory of photographic 
 emulsions to immediately appreciate this point. 
 
 In the different branches of physical chemistry 
 this interdependence is equally obvious and necessary. 
 
 The student who is trained to realise the 
 inwardness of things rather than to act as a mere 
 recorder of endless phenomena, in terms of certain 
 methods of expression, will recognise this position by 
 choosing a direction for investigation which holds 
 out a reasonable promise of success. 
 
 USE OF MATHEMATICS. This examination, when 
 it involves a mathematical treatment, is a source of 
 inspiration to many, if it is a corresponding 
 trial to others. The conditions of research have 
 been so modified of late years, that it is almost 
 impossible for the investigator to carry on his 
 work in a satisfactory manner without a working 
 knowledge of mathematics. This has not been 
 sufficiently recognised in the past. The methods 
 of teaching this subject have also been in many 
 cases so academic, that the student has generally 
 failed to appreciate the importance of its practical 
 application. 
 
 The far-reaching effect of the application of 
 mathematics to experimental science is obvious. 
 It is impossible to consider certain branches of 
 chemistry without it. Its extended use in the 
 science of engineering, or in physics, will be a 
 constant reminder to the chemist of its practical 
 value. 
 
 The statement has been generally made, that 
 from his method of thought, the chemist can never 
 be a transcendental mathematician. This may 
 or may not be so, but the general investigator 
 has no such need before him. He must be content 
 with a sufficient working knowledge of the practical 
 
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 63 
 
 side of mathematics. The worker who has not this 
 knowledge may be referenced in the first instance 
 to a Course of Practical Mathematics by Saxelby, 
 or to Higher Mathematics for Chemical Students 
 by Partington. Either of these will at once indicate 
 that, within certain limits, the subject can be treated 
 in a manner which is well within the grasp of any 
 chemist, and also that one cannot fail to gain 
 advantage from a working knowledge of this subject. 
 
 A certain want of understanding which exists 
 between the workers in chemistry and physics 
 may be to an extent due to the fact that they often, 
 in the absence of a common use of mathematics, 
 employ different methods to express results. 
 
 METHODS OF RECORDING RESULTS. Great 
 importance should be attached to the registration of 
 all references to the work in hand. Nothing is more 
 annoying than the search for material, which is 
 only generally remembered as being in print. This 
 record should cover as extensive a field as possible, 
 on both the theoretical and practical sides. All 
 such references must be conveniently classified, 
 preferably by card index, rather than by note-book 
 system. They must be kept in a convenient form 
 for future reference. In a few years this source 
 of information becomes one of great value. A note- 
 book for immediate use, and such a system of 
 registration as some form of alphabetically-arranged 
 record, or card index, is a necessary condition to 
 systematic investigation. 
 
 It is essential that all observations, and any 
 provisional conclusions based upon them, should 
 be immediately registered. At certain stated inter- 
 vals in the progress of the investigations these must 
 be closely examined, notes written up, and the 
 influence of any further results obtained on the 
 direction of the research carefully observed, and 
 any possible developments arising out of them 
 
64 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 considered. This procedure saves much time and 
 secures a systematic registration of results. This 
 is a matter of importance, and an absolutely necessary 
 condition to systematic work. 
 
 It is interesting to note that Faraday, who is 
 recognised ^ as probably the most precise investigator 
 of the nineteenth century, had (according to 
 Tyndall), as his most prominent characteristic, a 
 sense of order which " ran like a luminous beam 
 through all the transactions of life/' His notes 
 on this subject were found, on examination, to be 
 numbered, the last paragraph being registered as 
 No. 16,041. 
 
 PUBLICATION OF RESULTS. This subject raises 
 considerations of great moment to the investigator. 
 When research work is conducted to a successful 
 issue in a college, or university, it is nearly always 
 published. In other cases publication may defeat 
 the whole object of the research unless, at the same 
 time, protection by patent is obtained. 
 
 Publication may take place through the medium 
 of the recognised societies, in which case the com- 
 munication is submitted to the Secretary for con- 
 sideration by the Publication Committee. One obvious 
 advantage of this method is that the communication 
 may be read before the members and discussed. 
 
 The third method of direct publication is in the 
 form of a monograph, treatise, book, or pamphlet. 
 This is the method least often adopted in this 
 country, owing to the question of personal expense 
 and distribution. 
 
 PROTECTION BY PATENT. Closely connected with 
 the question of publication is that of protection by 
 letters patent. This only applies to a matter which 
 has an industrial application, as an abstract idea 
 cannot be protected. The only recognition for 
 work of a theoretical nature is by publication. 
 
 The question of publication by patent under 
 
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS 65 
 
 which the State grants a monopoly of user under 
 certain denned conditions is one which must be 
 decided in consultation with a patent agent. A 
 provisional protection may be granted for six or 
 seven months in this country for a nominal sum, 
 and this does not entail publication, if the patent 
 is not completed. 
 
 It may be advisable in certain cases to apply in 
 the first instance for the German patent. It will 
 be remembered that a special technical commission 
 in that country examines all patents for novelty 
 and previous publication. In this country the 
 search is confined to English patents for the last 
 fifty years. 
 
 The stage at which a patent should be taken out 
 is a matter which demands close attention. If pro- 
 tection is obtained before the details have been 
 worked out sufficiently for the process to be a work- 
 able one, its value is correspondingly small. In this 
 respect the English Patent Office offers certain advan- 
 tages by granting provisional protection. During 
 the subsequent period of six months, the detail of 
 the invention may be embodied by a final specifi- 
 cation. 
 
 In modern practice it may happen that only part 
 of the invention is actually patented and certain 
 details remain secret. This is a matter which 
 naturally demands special knowledge and involves 
 questions of general policy. 
 
 The value of such rights to the investigator is 
 difficult to determine. This may depend upon 
 other considerations than that of the importance 
 of the research. Utility is a matter of chief con- 
 cern, and is a necessary qualification from the legal 
 standpoint. 
 
 FACILITIES FOR RESEARCH IN THIS COUNTRY. It 
 has been held in the past, that these have not been 
 generally available, and it may be argued that this has 
 C.R. 5 
 
66 NOTES ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 been a correct assumption. Many of the provincial 
 universities, however, now advertise facilities for 
 research, and the Royal Society and the Chemical 
 Society have at their disposal limited funds which 
 they disburse by way of grants, prizes, scholarships, 
 etc. Research is also conducted at such institutions 
 as the National Physical Laboratory, the Royal 
 Institution, and certain other research stations. 
 
 Some of the scientific and technical societies 
 form committees to determine certain points by 
 investigation. For instance, the Institute of Gas 
 Engineers has appointed a Gas Heating Committee, 
 which reports from time to time (see /. Gas Lighting, 
 10,10, 2, 810), and the Institute of Metals is dealing 
 with the corrosion of metals in a similar way. 
 
 The Government offices also from time to time 
 appoint committees to deal with points which more 
 or less involve chemical investigation (see Times 
 Eng. Sup., September 2ist, 1910). The publications 
 of the Bureau of Mines at Washington, U.S.A., deal- 
 ing with technical researches and progress are also 
 of considerable importance. 
 
 Some of the more modern universities, as, for 
 example, that of Sheffield (Times Eng. Sup 7 October 
 26th, 1910) deal in a similar manner with investiga- 
 tion of more or less technical importance. Thus 
 in the case mentioned the Applied Science Committee 
 has arranged that any new processes brought for- 
 ward may be tested in the University on a manu- 
 facturing scale before any number of manufacturers 
 adopt it. When, therefore, the general question is 
 asked, whether it is advisable for the student or 
 general chemist to engage in research, the answer 
 must depend upon certain conditions which cover 
 his training and knowledge of chemistry, natural 
 adaptability, and facility for engaging in such 
 work. The opportunity and time for conducting or 
 engaging in such investigation may generally be 
 
GENERAL CONCLUSION^ i : 'O R4& 
 
 met even when the operator is engaged in practical 
 work. 
 
 The beginner must determine how far he is able 
 to conform to certain necessary conditions before 
 attempting such work. Given favourable conditions, 
 much will depend upon the nature of the proposed 
 investigation. In some cases the chances of success 
 are possibly more satisfactory when carried out in 
 one of the recognised colleges, but (according to 
 Gore) only if the professor is an initiator, and can 
 carry on such work, and if he actually engages in 
 the same with the student. 
 
 On the other hand, it is certain that there are 
 many successful investigators who have not worked 
 under these conditions, and evidence can be advanced 
 which indicates that in the majority of cases, indus- 
 trial research can hardly be expected to originate in 
 the college itself. It so often happens, that it owes 
 its origin to observation made under practical work- 
 ing conditions. 
 
 In many cases, as in the electro-chemical and 
 several other modern industries which owe their 
 existence to research, investigation has been carried 
 on^by certain industrial organisations on a scale 
 which could not have been undertaken under our 
 present college system. The results obtained have 
 been of the greatest possible advantage to theory, 
 as well as practice. Such laboratories are said to 
 be in every way equal, and in some cases even 
 superior, to those of the colleges and universities. 
 
 This relative value of research conducted under 
 such different conditions is difficult to decide. This 
 can only be settled by a more thorough investiga- 
 tion into the subject than can be undertaken on 
 the present occasion. Conditions are rapidly 
 changing in our colleges, and to this extent the 
 position is being correspondingly modified. 
 
 Considering the amount of research that is 
 
$&l NOTES -'ON CHEMICAL RESEARCH 
 
 carried out by independent investigators, the con- 
 dition that it must be carried out in the college or 
 university has not been proved to be essential. At 
 the same time there is much research which requires 
 the aid of complicated apparatus. For this, and 
 other reasons, it may be best carried out at such 
 institutions, but a certain section of it must 
 remain outside the range of the college require- 
 ments or programme and altogether beyond their 
 financial means. It may, therefore, be necessary 
 at some future time to reconsider the available 
 facilities offered for such research work in the 
 institutions of this country, and to determine 
 their natural limitations and scope, and possibly 
 to secure conditions of working which will facilitate 
 a further advance in the required direction. It 
 is possible that the time has not yet arrived when 
 such a step can be taken with any degree of 
 certainty. That this time will come in the 
 natural development of scientific investigation is 
 fairly certain. In the meantime it may be remem- 
 bered that an extraordinary advance has taken 
 place during the last decade in this country in the 
 facilities for research. 
 
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