le on next page.

In this series of trials the sample 'A' was used in the condition of
pulp, viz. as reduced by the process of wet-beating in a Hollander. A
similar series was carried out with the guncotton in the condition in
which it was directly obtained from the ester reaction. The results were
similar to above, fully confirming the progressive character of the
stabilisation with increasing proportions of acetone. These results
prove that washing with the diluted acetone not only rendered the
nitrate perfectly stable, but that the product was more stable than that
obtained by the ordinary process of purification, viz. long-continued
boiling and washing in water. We shall revert to this point after
briefly dealing with the associated phenomenon of structural
disintegration. This begins to be well marked when the proportion of
acetone exceeds 80 p.ct. The optimum effect is obtained with mixtures of
90 to 93 acetone and 10 to 7 water (by volume). In a slightly diluted
acetone of such composition, the guncotton is instantly attacked, the
action being quite different from the gelatinisation which precedes
solution in the undiluted solvent. The fibrous character disappears, and
the product assumes the form of a free, bulky, still opaque mass, which
rapidly sinks to the bottom of the containing vessel. The disintegration
of the bulk of the nitrate is associated with

__________________________________________________________________________
| | | | | |
| | Proportions by volume | | | |
| |________________________| Temperature | Heat | Heat |
| | | | of | Test | Test |
| | Acetone | Water | Explosion | 80 deg. | 134 deg. |
|___________________|______________|_________|_____________|_______|_______|
| | | | | | |
| __| | | Deg. | Mins. | Mins. |
| | 20 | 80 | 137 | 3 | 4 |
| | 30 | 70 | 160 | 3 | 4 |
| | 40 | 60 | 180 | 7 | 18 |
| | | | | | No |
| | | | | |