Vitriol Vitriol Ye Jianying Category="Alchemy"Vitriol is the name that alchemists gave to Sulfuric acid. The name was also used for various Sulfate salts, such as Copper(II) sulfate (blue vitriol, or rarely Roman vitriol), Zinc sulfate (white vitriol), Iron(II) sulfate (green vitriol), iron(III) sulfate (vitriol of Mars), or cobalt(II) sulfate (red vitriol).

Oil of vitriol is concentrated sulfuric acid so named due to its oily appearance.

Vitriol is also a quality of abusive or malicious forms of speech or feelings.

Extraction

In antiquity, the vitriol salts were extracted from the runoff that collected inside mines of Sulfide ores; the sulfates were formed naturally by the action of air on the wet sulfide minerals, and washed down by percolating water.

Uses

Vitriol was the most important alchemical substance, intended to be used as a Philosopher's stone. Highly purified vitriol was used as a medium to react substances in. This was largely because the acid does not react with Gold, often the final aim of alchemical processes. The word Vitriol is formed from the initial letters of the alchemical motto VISITA� INTERIORA� TERRA� RECTIFICANDO� INVENIES� OCCULTUM� LAPIDEM (Visit the interior of the earth and rectifying (i.e. purifying) you will find the hidden/secret stone -- the reference is evidently to the legendary philosopher's stone).

Manufacture of sulfuric acid

The famous Persian alchemist al-Razi (864-930) discovered Sulfuric acid by the Dry distillation of vitriol salts, thus setting in motion a chain of discoveries that would form the foundation of modern Chemistry and Chemical engineering. (Nowadays the reverse process is generally used, namely the metal sulfates are made by reacting oxide or other metal compound with the acid, which is obtained by other means).

Agriculture

Blue (copper) and, to a lesser extent, white (zinc) vitriol are still occasionally used as chemical defensives in agriculture. In typical applications, a solution of the vitriol is mixed with Lime (calcium hydroxide) to produce a fine copper hydroxide suspension, which is sprayed on the plant.

Iron-gall ink

Green (iron(II)) vitriol was much used in the middle ages to make writing Iron-gall nut ink.

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