Flow injection study of the Belousov–Zhabotinskii reaction

Abstract

It is shown that the Belousov–Zhabotinskii oscillating reaction can be produced and sustained over long periods in a flow system with high precision and without the usual disturbing features of spatial inhomogeneity and gas evolution. However, the reaction can be perturbed, as measured by the induction time, by the addition of species which react with bromide, a critical intermediate in the reaction. The analytical possibilities for the determination of metals at ppb concentrations are demonstrated.