Lavoisier concluded that the solid which had formed in the water was produced by the solvent action of the water on the glass vessel.

He argued that if this conclusion was correct, the weight of the solid must be equal to the loss of weight suffered by the vessel; he therefore separated the solid from the water in which it was suspended, dried, and weighed it.

The solid weighed 4-9/10 grains.

Lavoisier's conclusion seemed to be incorrect; the weight of the solid, which was supposed to be produced by the action of the water on the vessel, was 12-1/2 grains less than the weight of the material removed from the vessel.

But some of the material which was removed from the vessel might have remained dissolved in the water: Lavoisier distilled the water, which he had separated from the solid, in a glass vessel, until only a very little remained in the distilling apparatus; he poured this small quantity into a glass basin, and boiled until the whole of the water had disappeared as steam.