Chemical Oscillators

An oscillating chemical reaction may have chemical concentrations changing with time in a more or less periodic fashion. From these periods we may find some mathematical relations. If we are able to graph these oscillations in a suitable manner we may be able to observe stable features in this more or less periodic behavior. In the Figure the spikes represent chaotic concentration spikes that have a somewhat repeatable feature. At the top of the Figure the graphical representation shows the presence of a strange attractor. Exploring Chaos, Nina Hall, Norton 1991, page 97 facing.

If the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction is carried out in a shallow dish the unusual occurrence of outwardly propagating concentric circular waves are observed. As the figure shows, if the dish is tilted these waves become a complicated set of spirals of chemical reactivity.From Clocks to Chaos. The Rhythms of Life, by L. Glass and M. C. Mackey, Princeton, 1988, page 15 To see Rubin R. Aliev's movie click here

Time Dependence of NAHD and Oxygen Concentrations

The following graph of NADH (dashed line) and oxygen levels (solid line) as a function of time show the oscillating behavior. .

Mechanisms of Some Chemical Oscillators, R. M. Noyes,J. Phys. Chem., 94, 4404 (1990)

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