There are so many problems that need to be dealt with urgently in Muxi Town recently that Todd feels a little overwhelmed.
He sorted out the information at hand and summarized the three most urgent things.
First, find a way to improve the relationship with the Valkyrie and gain access to investigate the truth behind the transformation of alien species into ordinary people.
Second, find ways to find new ways to make saltpeter and restore the explosive production line.
Third, find solutions as soon as possible to the possible food crisis.
After thinking about and comparing the above three items, Todd decided to give priority to the second matter - the production of saltpeter.
The reason is:
First, if you want to improve your relationship with the Valkyrie in order to enter, it is not something that can be accomplished overnight. You can only advance this matter step by step.
Second, the development of Muxi Town, whether it is municipal roads or large-scale construction projects, requires a large amount of funds. Where does this money come from? Tax collection and investment income cannot fill these holes. The only way is through constant war.
To plunder the property of the surrounding noble fiefdoms to supplement the development needs of the town. To deal with the towering castles and thick city walls of the nobles, explosives are indeed an indispensable helper. Therefore, looking for new ways to make saltpeter should be placed on
primary position.
Third, as for the food crisis, Todd has some ideas. The North Island fleet goes south to sell seafood. When returning, entrust it to purchase food from the south and sell it to Muxi Town to solve the food crisis; as for purchasing food,
Money, war plunder and trade income can completely cover expenses.
Now that we have decided to prioritize making saltpeter, the question now is, how to obtain saltpeter?
Todd recalled the time-travel novels and movies he had seen in his previous life. There were many works describing the flow of technology, and there were some introductions to the acquisition of saltpeter.
First, the time traveler explores and mines natural saltpeter ores. After thinking for a moment, Todd defines this method as nonsense. Natural soda saltpeter ores and potassium saltpeter ores are very rare in nature. Traveling with Todd
Take the country as an example. In this vast country, there is only one region called Turpan, Xinjiang, which has sodium saltpeter mines. There is no trace of saltpeter mines in other areas.
Secondly, soil nitrate is obtained by collecting soil from earthen walls, saline-alkali land, latrines and other places. This method is also the main way to obtain nitrate soil in areas with backward technology. However, this method has many problems: First, this kind of collection
The method has regional restrictions and is generally more suitable for dry areas or cold areas; secondly, after collecting it once, it takes a long time to generate soil nitrate again; thirdly, the obtained nitrate soil has many impurities and the nitrate content is very low, which affects
The effectiveness of gunpowder.
Having rejected the above two methods, as a teacher of biochemistry, Todd finally planned to use microbial methods to produce saltpeter.
There is a type of bacteria in nature called nitrifying bacteria, which are a kind of aerobic bacteria and include two completely different genera: Nitrobacter and Nitrobacter.
Nitrite bacteria are generally called because the only food source they live on is ammonium. What is ammonium? Ammonium is a cation generated when ammonia gas is dissolved in water. It is mainly produced by decaying organic matter because it is present in
Chemically, it behaves like a metal ion, hence its name. In some cases
In the presence of air, ammonium can be absorbed and utilized by nitrite bacteria. They oxidize its hydrogen atoms into water and replace them with oxygen, so ammonium becomes water and nitrogen oxide dissolved in water. The latter is called nitrogen oxide, and its reaction formula is as follows:
2nh3＋3o2→2hno2＋2h2o＋158kcal
Nitrobacteria are generally called nitrate bacteria because their main food source is nitrite and the nitric acid they produce is the end product of the nitrogen cycle. The reaction formula is as follows: hno2+1/2o2=hno3,-⊿g=18kcal
To put it simply, the decayed matter produces ammonium, which is oxidized by nitrite bacteria into nitrous acid. The subsequently generated nitrite is oxidized into nitric acid by nitrobacteria. This reaction is called ammonium. This reaction is caused by two different bacteria.
carried out.
After talking about the principles of microorganisms and chemical reactions, the next thing Todd needs to do is to formulate the specific process of microbial nitrate production.
The first step is to prepare a test field as a petri dish to propagate nitrite bacteria and nitrate bacteria.
The second step is to prepare the raw materials for microbial nitrate production, and prepare a large amount of human and animal excrement or rotten fish and shrimp rich in nitrogen. The standing reaction will generate a large amount of ammonium.
The third step is to build a nitrate tank, and the bottom layer is sealed with cement. The inside of the tank is paved with a mixture of loose clay and fine sand, and some weakly alkaline ash is appropriately mixed. Then the bacterial culture soil in the test field is moved
Plant it and loosen the soil regularly to ensure the soil is breathable.
The fourth step is to build a ceiling that cannot transmit light. Nitrous bacteria are very sensitive to visible light from ultraviolet rays, and ultraviolet rays in the sun can cause fatal damage to the bacteria.
The fifth step is to adjust the temperature in the pool in a timely manner according to the temperature of the external environment to ensure that the normal temperature is about 25 degrees. Because the temperature is too high or too low, it will affect the cell division and reproduction of the nitrifying bacteria population.
The sixth step is to dilute the raw materials with water and spray them into the loose clay sand through a special pipeline.
The seventh step is to regularly sprinkle some plant ash on the loose soil, so that potassium nitrate can be obtained directly after scraping the nitrate soil.
The potassium nitrate finally obtained uses the difference in solubility of various salts, and then controls the temperature and concentration to crystallize potassium nitrate from the mixed solution, thus obtaining high-quality saltpeter for making gunpowder.
After nearly a month of busy work, the first batch of products produced by microbial nitrate production was delivered to Rachel's biochemical factory. The explosives production line was restarted, and a steady stream of explosive packets was delivered to Cumberland's troops.
Armed with explosives and alien species, the Muxi Knights swept across the entire eastern region of the Silver Ring Kingdom. The castles of more than 70 nobles, large and small, were bombed to pieces. The defenders and mercenaries were like monsters in front of the alien soldiers.
As weak as a child, countless treasures were transported into Muxi Town.
The Church of Heavenly Father, Holy Acropolis, Silver Ring City and the Barbarians, these four forces, gradually turned their attention to this newly rising knighthood.
One day in early July of the Christian calendar 1171, Tristan walked into the Knights' headquarters and knocked on the door of Todd's room with a letter.
"General Commander, I am here to say goodbye. I will rush back to the capital of the Papal State tomorrow."
Todd raised his head from the pile of paperwork, looked at the church deacon who had lived in Muxi for more than half a year, and asked: "Tomorrow? Why is it so urgent?"
Tristan Surong said: "There are two things. First, the First Inquisition just announced the verdict a week ago. The teachers and students of the Royal Academy were found guilty. Starting next month, they will be sent to the hospital in batches.
Sent to the stake. Second, the church sent an official document to the Muxi Knights..."
The deacon put the letter in his hand on Todd's desk. The latter opened it and looked at it again and again, his brows getting tighter and tighter.
In the official document, the church requires the Muxi Knights to capture the North Quarry, a heavily guarded military site in the Silver Ring Kingdom, before the end of September. If the task is completed, in return, the church will recognize Todd's ownership of the captured land and
Agree with the Muxi Knights to establish a secular kingdom..