FIRE (part one)
The Circumnavigation of the Sulphur:
This chapter is called "The Circumnavigation of the Sulphur", it is all about sulphur. Sulphur is often described in the Bible as brimstone, it represents punishment and destruction. It burns with a low blue flame and is very bland. When it undergoes combustion sulphur dioxide is yielded. The reduction of sulphur yields a poisonous gas, hydrogen sulphide. Sulphur also releases compounds that give off some really nasty odors. This chapter also describes the journey of the HMS Sulphur in 1835 when it began its seven year circumnavigation of the world.
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| Picture Work Cited: Sulphur, Jolyon Ralph and Ida Chau, http://www.mindat.org/min-3826.html, Mindat, org, 1993-2014 |
Pee is for Phosphorus:
The next chapter in my book was titled "Pee is for Phosphorus" which is all about phosphorus. Phosphorus glows in the dark due to the combustion of oxides on its surface when it is exposed to air. Hennig Brand was an alchemist who believed that gold and urine were connected. So within the walls of his lab he did what any logical person would do, he evaporated a large quantity of urine and distilled the residue. In the residue he discovered a waxy white substance that had an eerie glow. It also burst into flames when it came into contact with the air. All of these qualities seemed to be attributes of the substance itself. It was found that one bucket of urine produced four grams of phosphorus. To produce the phosphorus scientists boiled the urine and than created a crust with it. It was than added to water and boiled until it became a salt. The salt was than burned and put into a container to be preserved. The newly discovered phosphorus was featured in many paintings and was even used in a bombing by the British! Fires devastated German towns and killed many by asphyxiation. Even today military forces use phosphorus as a weapon.
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| Picture Work Cited: Phosphorus, http://images-of-elements.com/phosphorus.php, Creative Commons, March 29, 2013 |
"As Under a Green Sea":
This chapter was titled "As Under a Green Sea" and it is about chlorine. In World War One this gas was used to destroy the enemy by choking the air out of their lungs. It even bleached the grass and flowers around it! In order to get the Chlorine gas to enemy lines the military allowed the winds to push the heavy Chlorine along the ground like a choking fog. The gas ripped through blood vessels and drowns the body in its own fluids. In 1977 Carl Scheele was the first to isolate Chlorine. It was a green color with a choking and bleaching power. Dangerous compounds were also derived from the combination of chlorine and other elements. These compounds have become hazardous pollutants in today's world and some have originated from as early as World War One. Chlorine was not all bad though. It is used in the medical field for various reasons and to disinfect your pool and other household objects. Chlorine saves more lives per year than its war toll.
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| Picture Work Cited: Chlorine, http://www.amazingrust.com/Experiments/how_to/Cl2.html, Amazing Rust. com, January 2, 2011 |
Work Cited:
Hugh Aldersey- Williams, Periodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements from Arsenic to Zinc, 2011, HarperCollins Publishers
Wow! I love how you divided these sections. They all sound really interesting. First, I like how you described sulfur. I didn't know that is means destruction and punishment. I also think it's crazy that Hennig evaporated urine and found a waxy substance that had an eerie glow...that's creepy. Also I didn't know that chlorine was used in WW1. That method was very gruesome and inhumane.
ReplyDeleteWow that's crazy chlorine is used to help sanitize but was once used to kill the enemies during WWll that's very ironic
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting. I had no idea that one bucket of urine contains four grams of phosphorus. I also had no idea that chlorine was used in wars as a gas agent to kill so many people. I thought this post was pretty informational.
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