Penny le Couteur & Jay Burreson by Napoleon's Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed History Page A
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plastics and was originally used as film for moving pictures. Another cellulose derivative, cellulose acetate, was found to be less flammable than nitrocellulose and quickly replaced it for many uses. The photography business and the movie industry, today enormous commercial enterprises, owe their beginnings to the chemical structure of the versatile cellulose molecule.
Cellulose is insoluble in almost all solvents but does dissolve in an alkaline solution of one organic solvent, carbon disulfide, forming a derivative of cellulose called cellulose xanthate. Cellulose xanthate is in the form of a viscous colloidal dispersion and was given the trade name of viscose. When viscose is forced through tiny holes and the resulting filament is treated with acid, the cellulose is regenerated in the form of fine threads that can be woven into a fabric known commercially as rayon. A similar process, where the viscose is extruded through a narrow slit, produces sheets of cellophane. Rayon and cellophane are usually considered to be synthetic textiles, but they are not totally man-made in the sense that they are just somewhat different forms derived from naturally occurring cellulose.
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Both the α polymer of glucose (starch) and the β polymer (cellulose) are essential components of our diet and as such have had, and always will have, an indispensable function in human society. But it is the non-dietary roles of cellulose and its various derivatives that have created milestones in history. Cellulose, in the form of cotton, was responsible for two of the most influential events of the nineteenth century: the Industrial Revolution and the American Civil War. Cotton was the star of the Industrial Revolution, transforming the face of England through rural depopulation, urbanization, rapid industrialization, innovation and invention, social change, and prosperity. Cotton evoked one of the greatest crises in the history of the United States; slavery was the most important issue in the Civil War between abolitionist North and the southern states, whose economic system was based on slave-grown cotton.
Nitrocellulose (guncotton) was one of the very first explosive organic molecules made by man, and its discovery marked the start of a number of modern industries originally based on nitrated forms of cellulose: explosives, photography, and the movie business. The synthetic textile industry, with its beginnings from rayonâa different form of celluloseâhas played a significant role in shaping the economy over the last century. Without these applications of the cellulose molecule, our world would be a very different place.
5. NITRO COMPOUNDS
S CHÃNBEINâS WIFEâS exploding apron was not the first example of a man-made explosive molecule, nor would it be the last. When chemical reactions are very rapid, they can have an awesome power. Cellulose is only one of the many molecules we have altered to take advantage of the capacity for explosive reaction. Some of these compounds have been of enormous benefit; others have caused widespread destruction. Through their very explosive properties, these molecules have had a marked effect on the world.
Although the structures of explosive molecules vary widely, most often they contain a nitro group. This small combination of atoms, one nitrogen and two oxygens, NO 2 , attached at the right position, has vastly increased our ability to wage war, changed the fate of nations, and literally allowed us to move mountains.
GUNPOWDER-THE FIRST EXPLOSIVE
Gunpowder (or black powder), the first explosive mixture ever invented, was used in ancient times in China, Arabia, and India. Early Chinese texts refer to âfire-chemicalâ or âfire-drug.â Its ingredients were not recorded until early in A.D. 1000, and even then the actual proportions required of the component nitrate salt, sulfur, and carbon were not given. Nitrate salt (called saltpeter or âChinese
Cellulose is insoluble in almost all solvents but does dissolve in an alkaline solution of one organic solvent, carbon disulfide, forming a derivative of cellulose called cellulose xanthate. Cellulose xanthate is in the form of a viscous colloidal dispersion and was given the trade name of viscose. When viscose is forced through tiny holes and the resulting filament is treated with acid, the cellulose is regenerated in the form of fine threads that can be woven into a fabric known commercially as rayon. A similar process, where the viscose is extruded through a narrow slit, produces sheets of cellophane. Rayon and cellophane are usually considered to be synthetic textiles, but they are not totally man-made in the sense that they are just somewhat different forms derived from naturally occurring cellulose.
Â
Â
Both the α polymer of glucose (starch) and the β polymer (cellulose) are essential components of our diet and as such have had, and always will have, an indispensable function in human society. But it is the non-dietary roles of cellulose and its various derivatives that have created milestones in history. Cellulose, in the form of cotton, was responsible for two of the most influential events of the nineteenth century: the Industrial Revolution and the American Civil War. Cotton was the star of the Industrial Revolution, transforming the face of England through rural depopulation, urbanization, rapid industrialization, innovation and invention, social change, and prosperity. Cotton evoked one of the greatest crises in the history of the United States; slavery was the most important issue in the Civil War between abolitionist North and the southern states, whose economic system was based on slave-grown cotton.
Nitrocellulose (guncotton) was one of the very first explosive organic molecules made by man, and its discovery marked the start of a number of modern industries originally based on nitrated forms of cellulose: explosives, photography, and the movie business. The synthetic textile industry, with its beginnings from rayonâa different form of celluloseâhas played a significant role in shaping the economy over the last century. Without these applications of the cellulose molecule, our world would be a very different place.
5. NITRO COMPOUNDS
S CHÃNBEINâS WIFEâS exploding apron was not the first example of a man-made explosive molecule, nor would it be the last. When chemical reactions are very rapid, they can have an awesome power. Cellulose is only one of the many molecules we have altered to take advantage of the capacity for explosive reaction. Some of these compounds have been of enormous benefit; others have caused widespread destruction. Through their very explosive properties, these molecules have had a marked effect on the world.
Although the structures of explosive molecules vary widely, most often they contain a nitro group. This small combination of atoms, one nitrogen and two oxygens, NO 2 , attached at the right position, has vastly increased our ability to wage war, changed the fate of nations, and literally allowed us to move mountains.
GUNPOWDER-THE FIRST EXPLOSIVE
Gunpowder (or black powder), the first explosive mixture ever invented, was used in ancient times in China, Arabia, and India. Early Chinese texts refer to âfire-chemicalâ or âfire-drug.â Its ingredients were not recorded until early in A.D. 1000, and even then the actual proportions required of the component nitrate salt, sulfur, and carbon were not given. Nitrate salt (called saltpeter or âChinese
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