naturaly occuring & useful chemicals / substances

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> - diatomite: A fine, powdered diatomaceous earth used in industry as a

> filler, a filtering agent, an absorbent, a clarifier, and an insulator.

> Also called kieselguhr.

>

> - diatomaceous: Consisting of diatoms or their skeletons.

>

> - diatoms: Any of various microscopic one-celled or colonial algae of the

> class Bacillariophyceae, having cell walls of silica consisting of two

> interlocking symmetrical valves. [New Latin diatoma, from Greek diatomos,

> cut in half, from diatemnein, to cut in half.

 

I dredged this one up from my files. Does anyone know the original source of

this substance? It sounds like is related to lime, or like it might come

from coastal regions. Could it be ground up coral or something like that?

Does anyone know where it comes from?

 

I am intrigued to find out where some basic chemical compounds come from.

For instance lye for soapmaking also known as caustic soda in the UK. Hare

Krsna Mataji just now mentioned that she heard it can be made by pouring

boiling water through wood or bamboo ashes. Sometime back Nistula Prabhu

from Bangladesh mentioned that he made bleach by a similar process.

 

Can anyone enlighten me further on this?

 

Are there any other kinds of substances that can be got from simple sources?

For instance wax. Wax can come from bee hives. But what about parrafin wax?

Does that come from mineeral oil, or can it be got from vegetable oil? What

is the process?

 

Another one that comes to mind is plaster of paris. I know that if you burn

shells, coral etc, as often found in heaps on beaches, you can get lime. You

burn these things on a large pan over a fire, and the resulting substance

is lime. When you add water to the cooled powder, a violent chemical

reaction takes place, which produces a lot of heat. This process is called

'slaking'. Then the lime can be used as a mortar for building. (I cant

remember if the lime is in powder form after burning or after slaking, but I

think I remember it is after the slaking, in which case more water is to be

added to the slaked lime to make mortar).

 

Cement is also produced as far as I know by burning limestone and clay in

large furnaces. So I would speculate that plaster of paris is made in a

similar way. Does anyone know? What is the raw material?

 

Finaly does anyone know how creams can be made from oils, which can be used

for moisturising purposes. i.e to treat dry cracked skin. What and how do

you combine oils with other substances to make creams? Oils by themselves

are often not readily absorbable by the skin, and subsequently they attract

dirt and dust, and can stain. The information I need should all be from

ingredients that can be grown or produced entirely by nature. I dont want to

have to buy a quart of vaseline.

 

Theres another one. How do you make vaseline, where does it come from?

 

Thanks

 

Your Servant

Samba das