"Water Gas. — Though anthracite coal cannot be used in
the making of coal gas, it is used in the manufacture
of a gas which, because the hydrogen and oxygen it contains
are derived from water, is known as water gas. Water, in
the condition of superheated steam, and vaporized naphtha
are passed over glowing anthracite. The carbon of the coal
has a grea.t attraction for the oxygen in the water, and in
this heated condition they recombine to form equal volumes
of carbon monoxid and free hydrogen. Water gas, even
when enriched by naphtha, is not a good gas for either
lighting or heating, being inferior to coal gas. The most
serious objection to its use is on the ground of health, as the
carbon monoxid is a deadly poison, ''uniting with the
haemoglobin of the blood to the exclusion of the oxygen.
A small percentage of it has proved fatal." Coal gas suffo-
cates by reducing the amount of oxygen in the room, but it
is not a poison in the sense water gas is.
Mineral oil, or crude petroleum, is a hydrocarbon, similar
in composition to coal oil, which is a crude oil distilled from
coal. Nevertheless, petroleum wells seem to have no direct
THE KITCHEN 45
connection with tlie coal in the earth. Whether it has
passed upward through sand or shale strata during coal dis-
tillation and, hence, is not in direct connection, has not been
satisfactorily proved; but geologists generally agree that
petroleum has been derived from vegetable remains which
existed in past ages. The crude product has been known for
centuries. The sacred fires of the Persians are burning oil
springs. It was not till 1859 that it was discovered in
large quantities in western Pennsylvania.
Petroleum is obtained by boring in the same way artesian
wells are sunk. The dark crude oil flows or is pumped
from the earth and may be used, and is used to some
extent in the arts as fuel, but for household use it is
subjected to fractional distillation called refining. During
refining, gases, liquids, and solids are obtained.
Naphtha is the product which distils between the tempera-
ture of 40°-70" F.
Gasolene between 70°-90°.
Benzine between 90°-150°.
Kerosene between 150°-280°.
Lubricating oils between 280°-400°.
The residue contains vaseline, paraffin, and tarry matters.
Of these gasoline and kerosene are used as household fuels.
Gasolene is largely used as a source of gas in private
houses not connected with a city system. When allowed
to mix with air in its passage from a receptacle to the
burner it forms what is called air gas, used in all forms
of gasolene stoves. If the gasolene and air are mixed
in specially constructed a^iparatus away from the dwelling,
and then conducted in pipes to the place where it is to be
used, a very good fuel may be obtained. Its lighting and
fuel value are below that of coal or natural gas.
Kerosene should never contain hydrocarbons which ignite
at a temperature below 135° F. The better grades should
46 HANDBOOK OF DOMESTIC SCIENCE
Page 25
Presented as published in 1900. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
"Water Gas. — Though anthracite coal cannot be used in the making of coal gas, it is used in the manufacture of a gas which, because the hydrogen and oxygen it contains are derived from water, is known as water gas. Water, in the condition of superheated steam, and vaporized naphtha are passed over glowing anthracite. The carbon of the coal has a great attraction for the oxygen in the water, and in this heated condition they recombine to form equal volumes of carbon monoxid and free hydrogen. Water gas, even when enriched by naphtha, is not a good gas for either lighting or heating, being inferior to coal gas. The most serious objection to its use is on the ground of health, as the carbon monoxid is a deadly poison, ''uniting with the haemoglobin of the blood to the exclusion of the oxygen. A small percentage of it has proved fatal." Coal gas suffocates by reducing the amount of oxygen in the room, but it is not a poison in the sense water gas is.
Mineral oil, or crude petroleum, is a hydrocarbon, similar in composition to coal oil, which is a crude oil distilled from coal. Nevertheless, petroleum wells seem to have no direct
connection with the coal in the earth. Whether it has passed upward through sand or shale strata during coal distillation and, hence, is not in direct connection, has not been satisfactorily proved; but geologists generally agree that petroleum has been derived from vegetable remains which existed in past ages. The crude product has been known for centuries. The sacred fires of the Persians are burning oil springs. It was not till 1859 that it was discovered in large quantities in western Pennsylvania.
Petroleum is obtained by boring in the same way artesian wells are sunk. The dark crude oil flows or is pumped from the earth and may be used, and is used to some extent in the arts as fuel, but for household use it is subjected to fractional distillation called refining. During refining, gases, liquids, and solids are obtained.
Naphtha is the product which distils between the temperature of 40°-70" F.
Gasolene between 70°-90°.
Benzine between 90°-150°.
Kerosene between 150°-280°.
Lubricating oils between 280°-400°.
The residue contains vaseline, paraffin, and tarry matters. Of these gasoline and kerosene are used as household fuels.
Gasolene is largely used as a source of gas in private houses not connected with a city system. When allowed to mix with air in its passage from a receptacle to the burner it forms what is called air gas, used in all forms of gasolene stoves. If the gasolene and air are mixed in specially constructed a^iparatus away from the dwelling, and then conducted in pipes to the place where it is to be used, a very good fuel may be obtained. Its lighting and fuel value are below that of coal or natural gas.
Kerosene should never contain hydrocarbons which ignite at a temperature below 135° F. The better grades should