Caveman Chemistry: 28 Projects, from the Creation of Fire to the Production of PlasticsUniversal-Publishers, 2003 - 409 pages Half a million years ago our ancestors learned to make fire from scratch. They crafted intricate tools from stone and brewed mind-altering elixirs from honey. Their descendants transformed clay into pottery, wool into clothing, and ashes into cleansers. In ceramic crucibles they won metal from rock, the metals lead to colored glazes and glass. Buildings of brick and mortar enshrined books of parchment and paper. Kings and queens demanded ever more colorful clothing and accessories in order to out-class clod-hoppers and call-girls. Kingdoms rose and fell by the power of saltpeter, sulfur, and charcoal. And the demands of everyday folk for glass and paper and soap stimulated the first round of chemical industrialization. From sulfuric acid to sodium carbonate. From aniline dyes to analgesic drugs. From blasting powder to fertilizers and plastics. In a phrase, From Caveman to Chemist. Your guides on this journey are the four alchemical elements; Fire, Earth, Air and Water. These archetypical characters deliver first-hand accounts of the births of their respective technologies. The spirit of Fire, for example, was born in the first creature to cultivate the flame. This spirit passed from one person to another, from one generation to another, from one millennium to another, arriving at last in the pages of this book. The spirit of Earth taught folks to make tools of stone, the spirit of Air imparted knowledge of units and the spirit of Water began with the invention of spirits. Having traveled the world from age to age, who can say where they will find their next home? Perhaps they will find one in you. |
Table des matières
ix | |
1 | |
18 | |
32 | |
Chapter 4 Samson Mead | 47 |
Chapter 5 Athanor Ceramics | 60 |
Chapter 6 Venus Textiles | 73 |
Chapter 7 Adam Metathesis Reactions | 87 |
Chapter 20 Leblanc Soda | 247 |
Chapter 21 Volta Batteries | 260 |
Chapter 22 Perkin Aniline Dyes | 274 |
Chapter 23 Eastman Photography | 289 |
Chapter 24 Solvay Ammonia | 304 |
Chapter 25 Dow Electrochemicals | 317 |
Chapter 26 Bayer Pharmaceuticals | 331 |
Chapter 27 Badische Fertilizers | 344 |
Chapter 8 Job Alkali | 99 |
Chapter 9 Vulcan Metals | 109 |
Chapter 10 Vitruvius Lime | 121 |
Chapter 11 Pliny Redox Reactions | 131 |
Chapter 12 Marie Dyes | 142 |
Chapter 13 Theophilus Glass | 152 |
Chapter 14 Tsai Lun Paper | 164 |
Chapter 15 alRazi Stoichiometry | 177 |
Chapter 16 Adelard Alcohol | 189 |
Chapter 17 TzuChhun Gunpowder | 205 |
Chapter 18 Spot and Roebuck Acid | 218 |
Chapter 19 Bath Soap | 231 |
Chapter 28 DuPont Plastics | 358 |
Epilogue | 373 |
Appendix A Back Cover | 381 |
Appendix B The Laboratory Notebook | 382 |
Appendix C Measuring and Mixing | 384 |
Appendix D Supplies and Suppliers | 386 |
Appendix E Atomic Weights | 389 |
Inspirations | 390 |
Bibliography | 392 |
Glossary | 399 |
404 | |
Autres éditions - Tout afficher
Caveman Chemistry: 28 Projects, from the Creation of Fire to the Production ... Kevin M. Dunn Aucun aperçu disponible - 2003 |
Expressions et termes fréquents
acetanilide acetic acid alcohol alkali aluminum ammonia ammonium ammonium bicarbonate anhydride aniline anode Athanor atoms balance battery Bayer bejeezus bicarbonate boiling bottle calcium carbon dioxide cathode caustic soda cell cellulose Chapter charcoal chemical chemistry clay color compounds condensation container cool copper crucible crystals dissolve distillation electrons Equation ethanol fermentation fibers fire flake formula furnace glass grams H₂O hazardous properties heat hydrogen I-dea insoluble ISBN kaolinite kiln lime limestone liquid Material Safety mead melting mercury metal mole molecule MSDS NFPA diamond nitrate nitric acid nitrocellulose nitrogen notebook oxide oxygen plaster potash potassium powder produced react reactants reaction redox Research and Development salt saltpeter shown in Figure silica silver soap soda ash sodium carbonate sodium chloride sodium hydroxide solution solvent spindle string substances sulfate sulfide sulfuric acid temperature things toxic tube unit factor washing soda weight yeasts