Abstract
From the experiments described, it appears that neither the bromine method nor the nitric acid method is perfectly satisfactory, for the following reasons. (1) Neither method gives the true free sulfur in rubbers containing sulfur-bearing accelerators, as these cause positive errors of anything up to 0.2–0.3 per cent. (2) The nitric acid method does not give the true free sulfur in rubbers, without sulfur-bearing accelerators, because the result includes some of the sulfur combined with the rubber “resins” the tests do not show definitely whether this applies also to the bromine method. (3) Neither method gives the total sulfur in the acetone extract, since some of the sulfur combined with the “resins” is not included in the result; the presence of certain sulfur-bearing accelerators increases the error. The statement previously referred to (loc. cit.), that the bromine method approximates more nearly to the elementary sulfur content and the nitric acid method more nearly to the total sulfur content of the extract, appears to be a correct generalization. In most cases, however, the difference between the results obtained by the two methods would be less than 0.1 per cent. In respect of simplicity and rapidity of working, the bromine method has the advantage over the nitric acid method, and therefore in all ordinary circumstances is the one to be recommended.
Researches on manufacture of pulp by nitric acid method. (XXXII-XXXIII)