Editing Oxygen (section)

===Early experiments===
One of the first known experiments on the relationship between [[combustion]] and air was conducted by the 2nd-century&nbsp;BCE Greek writer on mechanics, [[Philo of Byzantium]]. In his work ''{{tlit|grc|Pneumatica}}'', Philo observed that inverting a vessel over a burning candle and surrounding the vessel's neck with water resulted in some water rising into the neck.<ref>{{cite book|title = Story of Human Error|first = Joseph|last = Jastrow|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=tRUO45YfCHwC&pg=PA171|page = 171|date = 1936|publisher = Ayer |isbn = 978-0-8369-0568-7|access-date = August 23, 2020|archive-date = October 1, 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211001032137/https://books.google.com/books?id=tRUO45YfCHwC&pg=PA171|url-status = live}}</ref> Philo incorrectly surmised that parts of the air in the vessel were converted into the [[Fire (classical element)|classical element fire]] and thus were able to escape through pores in the glass. Many centuries later [[Leonardo da Vinci]] built on Philo's work by observing that a portion of air is consumed during combustion and [[respiration (physiology)|respiration]].<ref name="ECE499">[[#Reference-idCook1968|Cook & Lauer 1968]], p. 499.</ref>

In the late 17th&nbsp;century, [[Robert Boyle]] proved that air is necessary for combustion. English chemist [[John Mayow]] (1641–1679) refined this work by showing that fire requires only a part of air that he called {{lang|la|spiritus nitroaereus}}.<ref name="EB1911">{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Mayow, John|volume=17|pages=938–939}}</ref> In one experiment, he found that placing either a mouse or a lit candle in a closed container over water caused the water to rise and replace one-fourteenth of the air's volume before extinguishing the subjects.<ref name="WoC">{{cite book|title=World of Chemistry|chapter=John Mayow|date=2005|publisher=Thomson Gale|chapter-url=http://www.bookrags.com/John_Mayow|access-date=December 16, 2007|isbn=978-0-669-32727-4|archive-date=April 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417002720/http://www.bookrags.com/John_Mayow/|url-status=live}}</ref> From this, he surmised that {{lang|la|nitroaereus}} is consumed in both respiration and combustion.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lagerkvist |first=Ulf |title=The Enigma of Ferment |publisher=World Scientific |date=2005 |isbn=978-981-256-421-4 |page=58}}</ref>


Mayow observed that [[antimony]] increased in weight when heated, and inferred that the {{lang|la|nitroaereus}} must have combined with it.<ref name="EB1911" /> He also thought that the lungs separate {{lang|la|nitroaereus}} from air and pass it into the blood and that animal heat and muscle movement result from the reaction of {{lang|la|nitroaereus}} with certain substances in the body.<ref name="EB1911" /> Accounts of these and other experiments and ideas were published in 1668 in his work ''{{lang|la|Tractatus duo}}'' in the tract "{{langr|la|De respiratione}}".<ref name="WoC" />