Mayer made an assumption the converse of that of Seguin, asserting that the whole of the work done in compressing the air was converted into heat, and neglecting the possibility of heat being consumed in doing work within the air itself or being produced by the transformation of internal potential energy.
The method of compressing tea into tablets 8 or bricks is unfamiliar in western Europe.
A metal vessel was placed in a calorimeter and air forced into it, the amount of energy expended in compressing the air being measured.
Plantation rubber comes into commerce in the form of the crinkled ribbons known as crepe, in sheets or biscuits, and sometimes in large blocks made by compressing the crepe rubber.
An iron tube, having its ends closed by brass caps, was placed inside a compressing vessel into which water was forced until the pressure upon the outer surface of the tube reached 250 atmospheres.