Historic Mercuric Chloride Preparation

[lugh]

From Thorpe's Dictionary of Applied Chemistry:

This compound, under the title of corrosive sublimate, is probably one of the best known compounds of mercury. It has long been manufactured by dissolving mercury in an excess of sulphuric acid in iron vessels, which are heated until sulphur dioxide ceases to be evolved, and allowed to cool. A portion of the product is usually tested to ascertain that mercurous salts are absent, and the mass is then mixed with salt and placed in glass flasks. A little manganese dioxide is added to ensure oxidising conditions, and the flasks are buried up to the top of the necks in sand and heated. When water ceases to be evolved the open tops are lightly closed with thin glass funnels, the sand raked away from the necks and the heat increased to sublime the chloride. When the process is complete, the necks are broken off and the coarsely crystalline sublimate collected  

[hCiLdOdUeDn]

Hehe thats funny.

Just think if they had to break the flasks everytime to get the chemical out  

[DrBumpz]

Wow! That used to be REAL chemistry?

[callen]

Just a question? H2SO4 and MgO2. Where's the Cl2 come in?

[lugh]

Salt is sodiuim chloride