The chlorate-iodine-nitrous acid clock reaction

Abstract

A new clock reaction based on chlorate, iodine and nitrous acid is presented. The induction period of this new clock reaction decreases when the initial concentrations of chlorate, nitrous acid and perchloric acid increase, but it is independent on the initial iodine concentration. The proposed mechanism is based on the LLKE autocatalytic mechanism for the chlorite-iodide reaction and the initial reaction between chlorate and nitrous acid to produce nitrate and chlorite. This new clock reaction opens the possibility for a new family of oscillating reactions containing chlorate or nitrous acid, which in both cases has not been observed until now.