SUBERIC ACID 2 H0f. An organic acid produced by treating rasped cork with diluted nitric acid; the cork is slowly dis solved, and a fatty substance is formed, which floats on the surface of the fluid. The solution is slowly evaporated till it thickens, and the residue is treated with about eight times its weight of water, by which an additional quantity of fatty matter separates. When the solution is filtered, suberic and oxalic acids separate, the former in the state of a white powder ; this is to be saturated with ammonia, and the suberate of ammonia formed being decomposed by an acid, the suberic acid precipitates in the state of a white powder, which is to be washed with cold water. Suberie acid may also he obtained by treating margaric, oleic, or stearic acid with nitric acid. The properties of this substance are, that its acid powers are hut feeble ; it is very soluble in boiling water, and the greater part of it is deposited from the solution on cooling in the form of a white powder ; it is soluble also in anhydrous alcohol ; fuses at about 300'; and sublimes in acicular crystals.
The suberates are not an important class of salts; we shall therefore mention them briefly. Suberate of ammonia is soluble in water ; the suberates of potash and soda are deliquescent, and fusible without decomposition : those of lime, baryta, strontia, magnesia, alumina, aud manganese are more or less soluble; protosuberate of iron is a white precipitate ; the persuberate is a brown one : the suberates of tin, zinc, mercury, and silver are white insoluble substances : that of cobalt is red, of copper blue-green, and uranium yellow.
By the distillation of suberic acid with excess of quicklime, a body termed subcrone or hydride of suberyl is produced. The following bodies are also derived from suberic acid :—