Chapter 649: Mercury Thermometers

A month ago, His Majesty had given him the task of recreating the Dutch sea bomb and improving it according to his requirements. 

One of the improvements His Majesty suggested was to replace the firing mechanism from a crude design to a flintlock design using mercury fulminate as a primer. However, he did not have much research in mercury, so he had to start from the ground up. 

He started by learning about the properties of mercury—its physical appearance, colour, size, shape, everything. In his search, he came across the peculiar property of mercury, which increases in volume with the increase in temperature. Its thermal expansion property was very unique. 

Then suddenly, an inspiration jolted him. 'Can I use mercury to create a temperature-measuring device?' This idea took root in his mind like an immortal seed and sprouted crazily until he couldn't resist the urge to realize the idea.