Lucidol

Lucidol (C₁₄H₁₀O₃ - C₆H₅COOOH - C₆H₅), Benzoylsuperoxyd, is obtained by the action of hydrogen peroxide on benzoyl chloride. A white powder, insoluble in water and alcohol, soluble in acetone and pyridine. A strong oxidizing agent. Used as a fixative: a 4-6% solution of L. in acetone or a mixture of 10 parts of 5% solution of trichloroacetic acid in acetone with 12 parts of 8% L. in acetone, with 1 part of 50% formalin in methyl alcohol and with 2 parts of acetone. Fix for 24 hours, wash in acetone, embed in paraffin, passing through intermediate mixtures of acetone and xylene. The use of L. solution for refreshing old blood smears, which have lost the ability to stain normally by Giemsa, has been proposed. The latter method is little developed and deserves further study.