Brin process
Encyclopedia
Brin process is a now obsolete industrial scale production process for oxygen
. In this process the barium oxide
reacts at 500–600°C with air to form barium peroxide
which decomposes at above 800°C by releasing oxygen.
The reaction was discovered by Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac and Louis-Jacques Thenard in 1811 and Jean-Baptiste Boussingault tried to use this reaction to establish a process to produce oxygen in 1852. The process worked only for a few cycles and then became inefficient. Two students of Boussingault, Quentin and Arthur Leon Brin, discovered that traces of carbon dioxide
formed barium carbonate
. Removing the carbon dioxide with sodium hydroxide solved this problem. In 1884 they opened a factory producing oxygen by their improved process. One major application of the oxygen was the use for limelight
. Before the end of the 19th century electrolysis of water
and fractionally distill
liquefied air became economically cheaper methods to produce oxygen and the process slowly fades out.
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
. In this process the barium oxide
Barium oxide
Barium oxide, BaO, is a white hygroscopic compound formed by the burning of barium in oxygen, although it is often formed through the decomposition of other barium salts.It reacts with water to form barium hydroxide.-Uses:...
reacts at 500–600°C with air to form barium peroxide
Barium peroxide
Barium peroxide is the chemical compound with the formula BaO2. This grey-white solid is one of the most common inorganic peroxides. Barium peroxide is an oxidizing agent, which is used for bleaching...
which decomposes at above 800°C by releasing oxygen.
- 2 BaO + O2 ⇌ 2 BaO2
The reaction was discovered by Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac and Louis-Jacques Thenard in 1811 and Jean-Baptiste Boussingault tried to use this reaction to establish a process to produce oxygen in 1852. The process worked only for a few cycles and then became inefficient. Two students of Boussingault, Quentin and Arthur Leon Brin, discovered that traces of carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
formed barium carbonate
Barium carbonate
Barium carbonate , also known as witherite, is a chemical compound used in rat poison, bricks, ceramic glazes and cement.Witherite crystallizes in the orthorhombic system...
. Removing the carbon dioxide with sodium hydroxide solved this problem. In 1884 they opened a factory producing oxygen by their improved process. One major application of the oxygen was the use for limelight
Limelight
Limelight is a type of stage lighting once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illumination is created when an oxyhydrogen flame is directed at a cylinder of quicklime , which can be heated to 2572 °C before melting. The light is produced by a combination of incandescence and...
. Before the end of the 19th century electrolysis of water
Electrolysis of water
Electrolysis of water is the decomposition of water into oxygen and hydrogen gas due to an electric current being passed through the water.-Principle:...
and fractionally distill
Fractional distillation
Fractional distillation is the separation of a mixture into its component parts, or fractions, such as in separating chemical compounds by their boiling point by heating them to a temperature at which several fractions of the compound will evaporate. It is a special type of distillation...
liquefied air became economically cheaper methods to produce oxygen and the process slowly fades out.