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List of pre-scientific substances
Alchemical studies produced a number of subtances, which were later classified as particular chemical compounds or mixtures of compounds.
- Aqua Fortis - nitric acid, can be formed by 2 parts saltpetre in 1 part (pure) oil of vitrol. (Historically, this process could not have been used, as 98% oil of vitrol was not available?)
- Aqua Ragia /Spirit of Turpentine /Oil of Turpentine /Gum Turpentine - turpentine, formed by the distillation of pine tree resin.
- Aqua Regia (Latin: "royal water") - a mixture of aqua fortis and spirit of salt.
- Aqua Tofani - arsenious oxide . Extremely poisonous.
- Aqua Vitae /Spirit of Wine - ethanol, formed by distilling wine
- Auric Hydroxide - formed by precipitation by potash from gold dissolved in aqua regis.
- Bismuth/Wismuth
- Blende
- Blue Vitriol/Bluestone - A mineral; copper(II) sulfate pentahydrate.
- Brimstone - sulfur.
- Flowers of sulphur - formed by distilling sulphur.
- Butter of Antimony - antimony trichloride . formed by distilling roasted stibnite with corrosive sublimate, or dissolving stibnite in hot concentrated hydrochloric acid and distilling.
- Cadmia /Tuttia /Tutty - probably zinc carbonate.
- Calamine - zinc carbonate.
- Calomel/horn quicksilver /horn mercury - mercury(I) chloride, a very poisonous purgative formed by subliming a mixture of mercuric chloride and metallic mercury, triturated in a mortar and heated in a iron pot. The crust formed on the lid was ground to powder and boiled with water to remove the calomel.
- Caustic Potash /Caustic Wood Alkali - potassium hydroxide, formed by adding lime to potash.
- Caustic Soda /Caustic Marine Alkali - sodium hydroxide, formed by adding lime to natron.
- Caustic Volatile Alkali - ammonium hydroxide.
- Chalk - a mineral; calcium carbonate.
- Chrome green - chromic oxide and cobalt oxide .
- Chrome orange - chrome yellow and chrome red.
- Chrome red - basic lead chromate - PbCrO4+PbO.
- Chrome yellow /Paris Yellow /Leipzig Yellow - lead chromate - PbCrO4.
- Cinnabar/Vermilion - refers to several substances, among them: mercury (II) sulfide (HgS), or native vermilion (the common ore of mercury).
- Copper glance - cuprous sulphide ore.
- Corrosive sublimate - mercuric chloride, formed by subliming mercury, calcined green vitriol, common salt and nitre.
- Cuprite - cuprous oxide ore.
- Dutch White - a pigment, formed from one part of white lead to three of barium sulphate.
- Flowers of antimony
- Fool's gold - A mineral; iron disulfide or pyrite, can form oil of vitriol on contact with water and air.
- Fulminating silver - silver nitride , formed by dissolving silver oxide in ammonia. Very explosive when dry
- Fulminating gold - gold hydrazide , formed by adding ammonia to the auric hydroxide. When dry, can explode on concussion.
- Galena - plumbic sulphide . Lead ore.
- Glass of Antimony - impure antimony tetroxide , formed by roasting stibnite. A yellow pigment for glass and porcelain.
- Glauber's Salt - sodium sulphate.
- Green Vitriol - A mineral; iron (II) sulfate heptahydrate. (or ferrous sulphate)
- Marcasite - A mineral; iron disulphide . In moist air it turns into green vitriol.
- Rouge/Crocus/Colcothar - ferric oxide, formed by burning green vitriol in air.
- Luna cornea - silver chloride, formed by heating horn silver till it liquifies and then cooling.
- King's Yellow - formed by mixing orpiment with white arsenic.
- Lead fume - lead oxide , found in flues at lead smelters.
- Lime/Quicklime (Burnt Lime)/Calx Viva /Unslaked Lime - calcium oxide, formed by cooking limestone.
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- Lunar caustic/lapis infernalis - silver nitrate, formed by dissolving silver in aqua fortis and evaporating.
- Liver of sulphur - formed by fusing potash and sulphur.
- Lye - potash in a water solution, formed by leaching wood ashes.
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- Massicot - lead monoxide .
- Litharge - lead monoxide , formed by fusing and powdering massicot.
- Minium /Red Lead - triplumbic tetroxide , formed by roasting litharge in air.
- Naples yellow /Cassel yellow - oxychloride of lead , formed by heating litharge with sal ammoniac.
- Milk of Sulphur (lac sulphuris) - formed by adding an acid to thion hudor.
- Mercurius praecipitatus - red mercuric oxide .
- Mosaic Gold - stannic sulphide , formed by heating a mixture of tin filings, sulphur and sal-ammoniac.
- Natron - sodium carbonate.
- Nitrum Flammans - ammonium nitrate.
- Oil of Vitriol/Spirit of Vitriol - sulphuric acid, a weak version can be formed by heating green vitriol and blue vitriol.
- Orpiment - arsenic trisulphide , an ore of arsenic.
- Pearl white - nitrate of bismuth.
- Philosophers' Wool /nix alba (white snow)/Zinc White - zinc oxide, formed by burning zinc in air, used as a pigment.
- Plumbago - a mineral; graphite, not discovered in pure form until 1564.
- Powder of Algaroth - antimonious oxychloride , formed by precipitation when a solution of butter of antimony and spirit of salt is poured into water.
- Purple of Cassius - formed by precipitating a mixture of gold, stannous and stannic chlorides, with alkali. Used for glass coloring.
- Realgar - arsenic disulphide , an ore of arsenic.
- Regulus of antimony
- Resin of copper - copper(I) chloride (cuprous chloride), formed by heating copper with corrosive sublimate.
- Sal Ammoniac - ammonium chloride.
- Sal Petrae (Med. Latin: "stone salt")/Salt of Petra /Saltpetre/Nitrate of potash - potassium nitrate, typically mined from covered dungheaps.
- Salt/Common Salt - A mineral; sodium chloride, formed by evaporating sea-water (impure form).
- Soda/Soda Ash - sodium carbonate.
- Spirit of box /Pyroxylic Spirit - distillation of wood alcohol.
- Spirit of Hartshorn - ammonia, formed by the decomposition of sal-ammoniac by unslaked lime.
- Spirit of Hartshorn /Sal Volatile - ammonium carbonate formed by distilling bones and horns.
- Spirit of salt/Acidum Salis - The liquid form of hydrochloric acid (also called muriatic acid), formed by mixing common salt with oil of vitriol.
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- Spiritus fumans - stannic chloride, formed by distilling tin with corrosive sublimate.
- Tin salt - hydrated stannous chloride .
- Butter of Tin - hydrated stannic chloride.
- Stibnite - antimony or antimony trisulphide , ore of antimony.
- Sugar of Lead - lead acetate , formed by dissolving lead oxide in vinegar.
- Thion Hudor - formed by boiling flowers of sulphur with slaked lime.
- Turpeth mineral - hydrolysed form of mercuric sulphate .
- Verdigris - carbonate of copper or (more recently) copper acetate . The carbonate is formed by weathering copper. The acetate is formed by vinegar acting on copper. One version was used as a green pigment.
- White arsenic - arsenious oxide , formed by subliminating arsenical soot from the roasting ovens.
- White lead - carbonate of lead , a pigment.
- White vitriol - zinc sulphate, formed by lixiviating roasted zinc blende.
- Venetian White - formed from equal parts of white lead and barium sulphate.
- Zaffre - impure cobalt arsenate , formed after roasting cobalt ore.
- Zinc Blende - zinc sulphide.
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