Producer Gas:
Producer gas, or blow gas, is obtained by blowing air and steam through incandescent coke. The composition is 75% nitrogen, 14% carbon dioxide, 10% carbon monoxide, and 1% argon. It is dangerous to health since it acts as a powerful asphyxiant. It was used in the manufacture of ammonia and as a source of nitrogen.
Neurasthenia was a common diagnosis prior to 1900. It is possible that the leakage of lighting/heating gases, such as those listed above, into living quarters was responsible for the bulk of the cases. The longterm effects of chronic CO poisonings reported today are very similar to the syndrome of complaints reported then for neurasthenia. The correlation noted between the number of gas plants in operation and the number of published papers on neurasthenia strengthen the possibility of a relationship.