← Fortunes in Formulas

Illustrations

The book's only visual content: 3 historical scans from the front matter, plus every laboratory-equipment line drawing from the "Useful Workshop and Laboratory Methods" chapter — redrawn here as clean modern schematics.

Historical plates

Original cover
Original cover
The decorative 1939 dust-jacket design.
Title page
Title page
Gardner D. Hiscox, M.E. & Prof. T. O'Connor Sloane, A.B., A.M.
Thomas A. Edison in his laboratory
Thomas A. Edison in his laboratory
Underwood & Underwood photograph, included as a frontispiece.

Laboratory equipment — then & now

45 figures redrawn from vintage 1939 engravings into modern schematic diagrams.

Crank → Gear → Spin → Separation Sample Sample
Fig. 1modernised

Hand-Operated Centrifuge

Manual crank centrifuge for separating solids from liquids

Water in Water pressure spins rotor → Centrifugal separation
Fig. 2modernised

Water-Powered Centrifuge

Hydraulic centrifuge driven by water pressure

M Basket spins → liquid exits perforations → solids retained Motor drive
Fig. 3modernised

Centrifuge Internal Cross-Section

Perforated basket centrifuge showing liquid expulsion

4000 RPM Start Timer Digital bench-top microcentrifuge
Fig. 4modernised

Bench-top Centrifuge (4000 RPM)

High-speed laboratory microcentrifuge with digital controls

50 100 150 Decant Precipitate settles → Clear liquid poured off
Fig. 5modernised

Decantation Flask

Conical flask for settling and decanting supernatant liquid

Crystalloids diffuse through membrane; colloids retained
Fig. 6modernised

Dialysis Apparatus (Outer Vessel)

Semi-permeable membrane separating crystalloids from colloids

Salt ions pass through membrane; colloids stay in sac Purified colloid remains inside
Fig. 7modernised

Dialysis Sac (Dialyzer)

Membrane sac suspended in water bath for purification

Sealed lid · hinged handle · base tap/valve
Fig. 8modernised

Simple Still Pot

Cylindrical heating vessel (still) with hinged lid, side handle, and a bottom spout fitted with a valve/tap.

water in Heat source Distillate
Fig. 9modernised

Simple Distillation Setup

Boiling flask, condenser, and collection vessel

Cooling coil Product Multiple vaporizations = higher purity
Fig. 10modernised

Fractionating Still (Reflux)

Vertical fractionating column for high-purity distillation

H₂O Still pot Collection
Fig. 11modernised

Distilling Apparatus with Worm Condenser

Complete distillation train with helical coil condenser

Rotation
Fig. 12modernised

Revolving Drum Evaporator

Rotating drum evaporator with scraper and collection pan

Wide shallow dish collects scraped crystals
Fig. 13modernised

Evaporating Dish

Shallow wide-mouthed evaporating dish/pan used to collect crystals scraped from the evaporation drum.

Water/oil bath below provides steady, controlled heat
Fig. 14modernised

Water-Bath Heating Stand

Four-legged laboratory stand holding a round-bottom flask and beaker above a concealed water/oil bath heating coil.

Six burner openings across a long sand-filled bath
Fig. 15modernised

Multi-Burner Sand Bath Table

Large rectangular sand-bath heating table with six circular burner openings and a gas/liquid inlet valve, on a four-legged metal frame.

Hand Crank
Fig. 16modernised

Mechanical Emulsifier

Crank-driven paddles for oil-in-water emulsion

to pump Vacuum side-arm at upper neck accelerates filtration
Fig. 17modernised

Suction Filtration Flask (High Side-Arm)

Funnel fitted via cork into a wide-mouth bottle with a side-arm tube near the neck, connected to an exhaust/vacuum pump.

to pump Vacuum side-arm at lower neck accelerates filtration
Fig. 18modernised

Suction Filtration Flask (Low Side-Arm)

Variant suction-filtration bottle and funnel assembly with the vacuum side-arm positioned lower on the neck.

cotton plug Wad of cotton in the neck gives quick, simple filtration
Fig. 19modernised

Cotton-Plug Filter Funnel

Plain glass funnel with a small wad of absorbent cotton packed into the neck for quick, simple filtration.

clay filter candle aspirator Unglazed clay candle + suction removes bacteria-scale particles
Fig. 20modernised

Berkefeld Clay Filter

Cylindrical unglazed clay filter candle inside a glass casing, connected to a receiving flask and hand-operated suction aspirator, for removing fine particles/bacteria.

Simple cone fold, ready to drop into a funnel
Fig. 21modernised

Cone-Folded Filter Paper

Circular filter paper folded into a simple cone shape, ready to be placed into a laboratory funnel.

fold line Circle → semicircle → quarter-circle, step one of folding
Fig. 22modernised

Filter Paper Fold — Step 1 (Semicircle)

Geometric diagram of a semicircle with a vertical bisecting line showing the first folds (circle to semicircle to quarter-circle) before opening.

First segment folded inward toward the center
Fig. 23modernised

Filter Paper Fold — Step 2 (Partial Pleat)

Circular filter paper with one side folded inward toward the center, beginning a multi-segment fluted fold.

Second fold overlaps the first, building the pleats
Fig. 24modernised

Filter Paper Fold — Step 3 (Overlap Pleat)

Filter paper with a second fold overlapping the first, continuing the construction of the fluted/pleated filter.

weak apex Small paper cap reinforces the apex before liquid is poured
Fig. 25modernised

Reinforced Filter Tip Cap

Small reinforcing disc of filter paper used to strengthen the weak apex point of a larger filter cone so it won't tear under liquid weight.

Fan-folded paper allows air passage → faster filtration Each fold creates a channel for liquid flow
Fig. 26modernised

Fluted (Plated) Filter Paper

Filter paper with 32 pleats for rapid filtration

ABC DEF Labeled fold pattern doubles paper thickness at point F
Fig. 27modernised

Filter Paper Fold — Labeled Pattern (A–F)

Geometric semicircle diagram labeled with points A through F illustrating a fold pattern that doubles paper thickness at the weak apex point.

Finished cone with reinforced double-thickness tip
Fig. 28modernised

Finished Reinforced Filter Cone

The completed cone resulting from the A–F fold method of Fig. 27, ready to sit in a funnel with a reinforced tip.

Ribs create air gaps → faster drainage
Fig. 29modernised

Ribbed Funnel

Funnel with internal ridges preventing paper adhesion

Hot water in jacket keeps liquid warm during filtration
Fig. 30modernised

Jacketed Hot Filtration Funnel

Double-walled heated funnel for hot filtration

Tripod-mounted funnel heated directly by a flame offshoot
Fig. 31modernised

Bunsen-Heated Tripod Funnel

Funnel held in a tripod stand with a side offshoot heated directly by a Bunsen burner flame to keep the filtrate hot during filtration.

long column
Fig. 32modernised

Pressure-Column Filtration Apparatus

Funnel connected to a long thin vertical tube terminating in a covered base vessel, using the weight of a tall liquid column to speed filtration under pressure.

wrench Hopper feeds crank-driven internal gears for grinding
Fig. 33modernised

Mechanical Grinding Mill

Hand-operated grinding mill with hopper, internal gears/levers, and a hand crank for reducing hard substances to powder.

Rotating drum with pebbles crushes material by tumbling
Fig. 34modernised

Ball Mill / Revolving Drum Pulverizer

Horizontal cylindrical drum on a sturdy frame, turned by a large hand-crank wheel; pebbles inside crush material as it rotates.

Three-legged bench mill with hopper and side crank
Fig. 35modernised

Bench-top Hand Grinder

Small three-legged bench mill with a top hopper for feeding material and a side hand crank, with a removable grinding plate/lid.

Manual grinding bowl and pestle, oldest method of pulverizing
Fig. 36modernised

Mortar and Pestle

Traditional bowl-shaped mortar with a pestle resting inside, used for manual grinding by hand with a circular motion.

Coarse particles retained on mesh Fine particles pass through openings
Fig. 37modernised

Wire Screen Sieve

Circular mesh sieve for particle size classification

MOTOR Motor-driven stirring speeds dissolution
Fig. 38modernised

Mechanical Agitator

Motor-driven stirring apparatus for dissolution

Packed material + slow solvent drip = percolate at stopcock
Fig. 39modernised

Percolator

Tall cylindrical vessel tapering to a funnel base, with a lid on top and a stopcock at the narrow bottom, for slow solvent percolation through packed material.

Pear-shaped vessel separates two immiscible liquid layers
Fig. 40modernised

Separating Funnel

Pear-shaped glass vessel with a stoppered neck and a stopcock stem, used to shake two immiscible liquids together and drain the denser layer.

Slide Equal-arm balance for precise measurement
Fig. 41modernised

Analytical Balance

Equal-arm beam balance for precision weighing

METRIC WEIGHT SET 100g 50g 20g 10g 5g 2g 1g Gram weight set for laboratory measurement
Fig. 42modernised

Metric Weight Set

Gram weight set in wooden storage tray

Sample Platform scale with graduated beam and poise weight
Fig. 43modernised

Laboratory Platform Scale

Compact platform scale with graduated beam

capillary Precise fixed volume compares sample mass to water mass
Fig. 44modernised

Specific Gravity Bottle (Pycnometer)

Small pear-shaped glass flask with a narrow neck and a ground-glass capillary stopper, used to measure a precise liquid volume for specific gravity determination.

liquid level Floats upright; stem reading at the surface gives specific gravity
Fig. 45modernised

Hydrometer

Weighted floating glass instrument with a graduated stem, buoyant hollow bulb, and a weighted lower bulb, used to read specific gravity directly from immersion depth.