Reggie came to the kiln in the north of the city. Like the female workers in the processing factory, the craftsmen here were only doing simple work, grinding.
They ground the white stone into powder and then ground the charcoal into powder. There was only so much they could do because Reggie didn't have the right ratio of the two raw materials yet.
How much sulfur is in this kind of slag called Shiraishi remains to be verified, but the basic chemical principle is very simple. Put iron sulfide in limited oxygen and calcine it with carbon at low temperature. Finally, iron oxide, carbon monoxide and carbon monoxide will be produced.
Elemental sulfur.
Charcoal is not cheap, so you need to calculate the ratio carefully to ensure you get value for money.
Khalaf prepared the equipment for the test in advance, which was actually just a small ceramic calciner. After an afternoon of testing, Reggie finally found the right ratio. The sulfur content of white stone is not high, and is fifteen times its weight.
White stone, with twice the weight of charcoal, can produce almost the same weight of sulfur as the charcoal.
Including labor, the cost of making one pound of sulfur is about forty-five copper coins. Even so, it is much cheaper than buying yellowstone directly.
The kiln was started, and Reggie covered his face with one hand and smiled proudly in the sunset.
"Muha, muhaha, muhahahaha!"
He said in his native language: "Is there anyone more awesome than me in the world?"
One of the craftsmen pricked up his ears. He came to Bachelot and asked in a low voice: "Is the lord reciting the spell again?"
Batchelor glared and said angrily: "Go do your thing and don't tell anyone about this!"
If nothing else happens, you will be able to see the first batch of sulfur coming out of the oven before dawn tomorrow. Reggie told the craftsmen to pay attention to the amount of ventilation and at the same time pay attention to the heat. The air volume and heat must not be too large, otherwise it will cause
Serious losses.
He really wanted to sell the sulfur produced back to those greedy businessmen. One gold coin was two pounds, and the sulfur produced in the first furnace was enough to sell for 500 gold coins.
But now was the time when sulfur was urgently needed. The enemy was coming soon, and there was not much time left for him and Shattering Snow City.
Wait, wait patiently, and when you get through this difficulty, you will be able to earn back the gold coins you spent in multiples.
After leaving the kiln, Reggie went back to the processing plant. He was worried that Calaf would make a risky move.
Sure enough, Khalaf was ordering the female workers to work overtime.
It's already dark, and we need lighting to work overtime, and lighting means an open flame.
Reggie ordered the work to stop immediately, and after the female worker left, he severely reprimanded Khalaf.
Khalaf was a little unconvinced. He believed that without yellowstone, the factory could not produce black powder for the time being, so there was no need to be so cautious.
The angry Reggie established ironclad factory rules. No open flames of any kind should appear in the black powder factory under any circumstances, even when production is suspended.
Under Batchelor's persuasion, Reggie's anger gradually subsided. The ashamed Khalaf apologized and told Reggie good news.
"Our holy medicine is about to mature."
Holy medicine? Penicillin?
Reggie almost forgot about this.
The maturity mentioned by Khalaf means that the first batch of fermentation liquid is successful, but according to Reggie's calculation, it should still take two days.
"I saw it, I took out some holy medicines, and I saw what they looked like," Khalaf was very confident in his judgment. "They were like green stars, very small, but very dazzling. There were so many of them.
It’s beyond description, I saw them growing happily in the jar, and I took out a little bit more today, just a little bit, but I found that they were dying.”
Dying? Is he talking about Penicillium?
How could he see the growth of Penicillium with the naked eye? This is unscientific.
Don't forget that he is an elf, and his abilities are far beyond what ordinary science can understand.
He said that the penicillium was dying, which proved that the pH value had reached a critical range and the fermentation must be stopped immediately.
The excited Reggie trotted towards Bachelot's manor. Although he had not thought of a purification method, he also knew that penicillin containing impurities was of almost no value.
But these are not important. What is important is that Khalaf has accomplished a feat, even a greater feat than black powder.
Under Reggie's guidance, Khalaf extracted all the fermentation broth. The quantity was not large, about more than 700 ml by visual inspection. The culture fluid was very turbid, with a large amount of sugar and impurities mixed in it.
"Have you seen, sir, the green holy medicine?" Kalaf was trembling with excitement. "Some of them are growing and some are dying. Have you seen them?"
Reggie looked at Batchelor and saw that Batchelor was also shaking his head. Reggie felt relieved, at least there were still mostly normal people in this world.
"Can we use them on patients?" Khalaf looked at Reggie excitedly.
"Not yet," Reggie knew this made Calaf sad, but he had to tell the truth.
"As you can see, our holy medicine is very turbid and contains a lot of dirt. Dirty things cannot be used on patients because they will cause more serious illnesses. Do you understand?"
Reggie thought Calaf didn't understand the concept of purity, but he was wrong.
Calaf put down the earthen pot and picked up a wooden stick. The wooden stick was about a foot long and only half a finger thick.
Batchelor smiled and said: "Sir, please witness the magic of the elves."
Magic? What kind of magic?
Use his microscope-level vision to accurately remove every impurity molecule?
It's not feasible even in theory.
Khalaf gently stirred the fermentation liquid with a wooden stick, and the liquid quickly formed a vortex in the clay pot.
An incredible scene appeared. The vortex was spinning at an extremely fast speed, and impurities visible to the naked eye were rapidly precipitating. Karaf brought another exquisite small clay pot, scooped out the clear solution from the vortex, and collected more than three hundred
Milliliters.
"All the elixirs are here," Calaf said. "I can see them. What's left is useless stuff."
Reggie looked at the clear solution and smelled the pungent smell of penicillin.
But he was not sure whether there were other impurities in these solutions. There would be at least some sugar and alcohol, and possibly other fungal spores.
Who dares to inject such a solution into patients? Reggie does not have the courage to conduct experiments on living people.
What method can be used to purify this hard-won antibiotic?
The extraction method is the most efficient, but there is currently no pure extract.
The precipitation method is simple and easy, but requires pure acid.
Activated carbon physical adsorption can also be used, but the cycle is too long and the efficiency is too low.
Ion exchange method, microfiltration and ultrafiltration method...don't even think about it, these are simply not possible.
Reggie was thinking when he saw Calaf shouting in panic: "It's not good, the holy medicine is dying again, and they have all turned into water."
Reggie was stunned for a moment, then shouted: "Temperature, there is something wrong with the temperature! Penicillin is hydrolyzing."
"It's twenty-seven degrees," Calaf almost shed tears, "It was your order, twenty-seven degrees."
"That's the temperature during fermentation. It's best to store this thing at low temperature." Reggie asked Khalaf to seal the jar and put it in another large clay pot. Water was poured into the big clay pot.
Some saltpeter was put into the water, and the saltpeter slowly melted, and the water in the clay pot began to freeze slowly.
In late autumn, the temperature in Broken Snow City rarely exceeds ten degrees. Under the protection of ice water, this poor amount of penicillin may be able to be stored for a few more days.
Calaf's tears still flowed down, and he murmured: "The holy medicine is too fragile."
Bachelo comforted him: "Life is inherently fragile."
Looking at the two sad people, Reggie smiled and said: "Lovely craftsman elf, you don't know what a great feat you have accomplished. Select stronger seeds, repeat the previous process, and continue to make the holy medicine. Eventually, you will be able to make holy medicine."
One day, you will save countless lives."
…
The exhausted Reggie returned to the castle. He lay on the bed, still excited about the achievements of penicillin.
You have to find a way to purify this magical potion. Use your brain, Reginald, you can always find a way.
While half asleep, Reggie suddenly thought of a primitive purification method, which could obtain pure penicillin crystals and only required a refrigeration equipment.
Where to find refrigeration equipment? Refrigerant? Generator? It all seems too far away.
"My lord, my lord!"
A rapid knock on the door interrupted Reggie's thoughts. Reggie pushed open the door, looked at Shirley impatiently, and said, "If there's nothing important, go get the whip yourself and let me give you a good beating."
!”
Shirley hurriedly explained: "I'm sorry, sir, I didn't want to wake you up. It's that woman, that rude woman here again!"
It's Imma. Reggie forgot one thing. Today is the day to teach Imma.
He must do what he promised. Reggie stretched his sore shoulders, put on his clothes, and came to the living room.
"You promised to teach me auscultation today," Imma generously opened her clothes, "put your head on the patient's chest like this, I tried it, and I heard the patient's heartbeat."
Reggie closed his eyes and shook his head helplessly: "Put your clothes on quickly, you are a girl, please be more reserved, okay?"
Imma pouted and said, "You said it, doctors have no gender. Have you forgotten, Master Mentor?"
"I haven't forgotten that when I say no gender, I mean when you face the patient." Reggie rubbed his eyes. He was really exhausted, and he didn't intend to teach Imma auscultation. In his previous life, he
He is a medical enthusiast, but he is just an enthusiast. Auscultation is a complex technique, and he does not want to impart his little three-legged cat skills to this crazy girl.
"How's your medical record going?" Reggie changed the subject.
Imma took out a few pieces of parchment and handed them to Reggie. She had to admit that this girl was very smart and had basic reading and writing skills in a few days.
Although her handwriting is ugly and there are many spelling errors, at least she can express herself clearly.
"Let me see, Will Rogers, the body temperature is not too hot, the wound is starting to scab, and he can eat two pounds of bread a day. It seems that this guy is healed and there is no need for penicillin..."
Imma asked excitedly: "What kind of medicine did you just say? Is it the holy medicine that Kalaf mentioned?"
"Yes, holy medicine," Reggie nodded, "I will teach you how to use the holy medicine in the future."
"Why later? Why not teach me now?"
"Because I haven't gotten the real holy medicine yet." Reggie said with a smile after reading the medical records, "Well done, Imma, you didn't forget pasteurization, right?"
"Of course not," Imma replied fluently, "boil the items to be sterilized in boiling water, then use saltpeter to make ice, and then soak the items in ice water..."
"Wait a minute," Reggie frowned, "I never taught you to use saltpeter to make ice."
"But you said that items must be placed in ice and snow to cool down quickly!" Imma said, "It's not the time to freeze yet. If I don't use saltpeter, where can I find ice?"
Reggie looked at Ima in shock. Before this, he had always believed that pasteurization could only be effective if he had refrigeration equipment.
He knew that saltpeter was used to make ice water to refrigerate penicillin, but he did not expect that saltpeter could be used directly to make a natural condensation device.
What a smart girl! What a smart girl!
Reggie couldn't help but kissed Imma on the forehead. Imma blushed and said, "Are you... in love with me?"
Reggie shook his head and said: "Of course not. This is my appreciation and praise for you. You should review the previous lessons first. I have something very important to do."
Reggie took out his quill and started drawing. Halfway through the drawing, Reggie's upper and lower eyelids started to fight.
He wanted to insist on finishing the drawing, but after a few minutes, he was still drooling and fell asleep on the table.
Listening to Reggie's snoring, Emma stood up angrily. She had been waiting for Reggie all night, but she got nothing tonight.
"If it weren't for the fact that you are a lord, I wouldn't even bother to look at you! What's wrong with me? It's your turn to dislike me so much!" Imma turned around and walked to the door, but ran back and leaned down.
, and kissed Reggie on the cheek.
Imma licked her lips, with a satisfied smile, and left the castle triumphantly.
After Imma left, a figure emerged from the wall and slowly walked to Reggie's side.