Bad tasting alcohols, containing the majority of the ethers and
impure alcohols.
2. Fine alcohol.
3. Alcohols contaminated by notable proportions of empyreumatic oils.
Industry knows only one means of obtaining an excellent product, and
that is to diminish the quantity of fine alcohol which comes from a same
lot of spirits, and to make a large number of successive distillations.
Hence the large expenses attending rectification, which produce fine
alcohols necessarily at an elevated price. We may remark, in passing,
that the toxic action of commercial alcohols is in great part caused by
the presence of essential oils, amylic alcohol, and ethers, absolutely
pure alcohol, as compared with these, being relatively innocent.
Why is it that our present apparatus cannot produce good results in
rectifying alcohol? Because they are limited by the temperature at which
they must operate. Between 78 deg. and 100 deg. the tension of the vapors
of all the liquids mixed in the spirits is considerable for each of them;
they all pass over, then, in certain proportions during the operation of
rectification.
We have been led, by examining the theoretical question, to ascertain
that the proportion of alcohol which evaporates from a mixture is
maximum at low temperatures; consequently, we should seek to establish
some arrangement which can realize the following conditions: (1) Render
variable, at will, the temperature of the boiling liquid; and (2),
render variable the pressure of the vapors which act on the liquid.
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