The Ming Dynasty started with saving the eldest grandson

Chapter 107: Fix color-changing ink again

Chen Jingke didn't know what Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao talked about.

After coming out of Qianqing Palace, he still had lingering fears.

Zhu Yuanzhang may be more patient with himself because of his abilities.

But there will never be unlimited indulgence.

I can't just rely on this to make myself drift too much.

If you don't want to die, you still have to follow some rules.

For an organization like Jinyiwei, he actually wanted to intervene, and he was really in a state of confusion.

You must take this as a warning and never make such a mistake again.

Returning to his residence, it took him a while to calm down.

Then I started thinking about printing money.

The two most important aspects of banknotes are paper and ink.

He was also planning to start from these two aspects.

As half a fan of Fat Brother and half a fan of King Guo, he had watched "Wushuang" in his previous life.

The acting is really good, and the plot has its ups and downs.

However, as a science student, I really can’t complain about the setting of the entire show.

To put it bluntly, the screenwriter is bullying everyone because they don’t understand money.

Is acid-free paper difficult to make?

In fact, the paper that everyone comes into contact with on daily basis is most likely acid-free paper.

To be precise, acid-free paper was first created to print books, not money.

It was only because this paper was superior that it was chosen as the paper for banknotes.

What is acid-free paper?
Then we must first talk about what it means to have sour paper.

In the era of industrial papermaking, people added sizing agents to paper pulp to enhance the affinity between paper fibers.

The earliest sizing agents were rosin and alum. When added in appropriate amounts, the flexibility of the paper produced was significantly enhanced.

It can also effectively prevent surface fluffing and lint loss, and reduce ink absorption.

This method quickly gained popularity.

But decades later library collectors discovered that books self-destructed.

Research has found that the culprit is alum.

Alum's scientific name is aluminum sulfate, which is acidic and will corrode paper.

Over time, it will cause the paper to lose strength and fade.

So the library put forward a request to solve the problem of self-corrosion of paper.

The method is also very simple. Since acid paper will corrode itself, then make acid-free paper.

If the culprit is alum, replace it.

So there are non-acidic sizing agents.

There are many non-acidic sizing agents, such as animal glue.

If you still feel unsafe, just add some calcium carbonate (limestone) to the pulp, and you have acid-free paper.

How this thing is made is public.

Moreover, the raw materials for producing banknote paper are also semi-public, mainly cotton.

Just find someone who knows a little bit about chemistry and they can make it after a while.

There is no need to spend a lot of money to buy it from a specialized agency.

The situation with color-changing ink is actually similar. The core of this thing is photosensitive material.

There are too many types of photosensitive materials.

Silver chloride, for example, was one of the first photosensitive materials discovered.

The reaction between nitric acid and silver produces silver nitrate.

Then react silver nitrate with hydrochloric acid to produce silver chloride.

Three acids and two bases are known as industrial mother liquor.

The threshold for making alkali is much higher, and it was once controlled by developed countries in previous lives.

It wasn't until Master Hou Debang announced his invention that it became popular.

The threshold for making tri-acid is relatively low.

Take sulfuric acid as an example. When bile is distilled, the gas generated is condensed into sulfuric acid.

Our ancestors discovered this stuff a long time ago and gave it a name, green vitriol oil.Then it’s still Chinese medicine.

Yes, sulfuric acid is a traditional Chinese medicine.

With sulfuric acid, it is easier to make nitric acid and hydrochloric acid.

Once you have three acids, you can start making photosensitive materials.

With photosensitive materials, you can have as much color-changing ink as you want.

Using acid-free paper and color-changing ink, Chen Jingke dared to say that no one would be able to imitate it within a hundred years.

You can put aside the matter of acid-free paper for a while and get the discolored ink out first.

First, we designed a process for obtaining photosensitive materials through local methods.

Write down the required materials and give the list to Zhu Biao.

Tell him clearly that this is used to make special ink, so be careful when collecting the materials so as not to be discovered.

Zhu Biao naturally knew how to do it, split the list and find different people to collect it.

The Crown Prince's orders were naturally very efficient, and the materials were delivered not long after.

Chen Jingke experimented many times and finally came up with some photosensitive material, which is a color-changing powder.

Then I made several different colors of ink, took a little of each and mixed it with the color-changing powder.

It becomes color-changing ink.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao were stunned when they saw the color-changing words on the white paper.

They have been thinking about how Chen Jingke can make treasure banknotes that cannot be copied by others and that the common people can tell the authenticity at a glance.

After thinking about it for a long time, I still had no clue.

Now they finally know.

It is true that no one can imitate this thing, and as long as people are not blind, they can tell the authenticity from the fake.

"Okay, okay, great. Chen Jingke, you have made another great contribution, a huge contribution."

Everyone in Zhu Yuanzhang's city was delighted and praised him repeatedly.

Chen Jingke said modestly: "Your Majesty is exaggerating, but he is just inheriting the wisdom of his predecessors."

Then he took out a few pages and handed them over: "Your Majesty, the core material of color-changing ink is color-changing powder."

"It's only when it's added that the ink changes color."

"This is the method of making color-changing powder. I am the only one in the world who knows it. Please keep it, Your Majesty."

Zhu Yuanzhang took it carefully, unfolded the paper and found that he knew the words on it, but he had no idea what they meant.

It's okay if you don't understand it. If you don't understand it, it means it's a secret method and it's not easy for others to steal it.

Then he handed the paper to Zhu Biao: "Biao'er, find someone to produce the color-changing powder alone. Then give the powder to the Baochao Lifting Department and let them prepare the ink."

"Remember not to let them know where the discolored powder comes from."

Zhu Biao took it with both hands and put it away carefully: "Don't worry, dad, I know what to do."

At this time, Chen Jingke said again: "Your Majesty, I think the paper used for the banknotes should also be replaced."

"The paper used for current banknotes is of poor quality and will fluff and fade after a short period of time."

"This is also not conducive to the issuance and circulation of treasure banknotes."

Zhu Yuanzhang said directly: "Leave it to you. The Baochao Lifting Department has a special papermaking workshop. I will ask them to fully cooperate with you."

"Yes." Chen Jingke did not refuse. After agreeing, he said:

"I think that the paper of the treasure banknote is too big and can be reduced. And with the color-changing ink, new patterns can be redesigned."

"There are also denominations. Now there are Guanwen, [-] Wen, [-] Wen, [-] Wen, and [-] Wen. The denominations are too big."

"Most people actually don't have access to it."

"I think we can make the denomination smaller, such as consistent, one hundred, fifty, ten, and five cents."

"For more than five cents, you can use treasure banknotes, and for less than five cents, you can use copper coins."

"In this way, we can better utilize the role of treasure banknotes and solve the problem of money shortage."

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao looked at each other and smiled and said, "Yes, you and Biao'er thought of going together. Biao'er told us a few days ago that the denomination needs to be changed."

Chen Jingke said awkwardly: "Your Highness is wise, it's me who is causing trouble."

Zhu Biao comforted him: "Haha, you can consider these things, which shows that you are dedicated to the country and deserve praise."

"Just now you said that the paper used for the banknotes is too big and the pattern needs to be redesigned. I think it is indeed necessary."

"Do you have any ideas? Let's discuss how to change it together."

(End of this chapter)