Pulse waves under an electric field in the Belousov–Zhabotinsky reaction with pyrogallol as substrate

Abstract

An experimental investigation of the effects of imposed dc electric fields on pseudo-one-dimensional pulse waves in the Belousov–Zhabotinsky (BZ) system with pyrogallol as substrate and ferroin as catalyst is reported for the first time. The global tendencies of the investigated electric field effects, accounting for acceleration, deceleration and annihilation of waves, correspond to those found in the classical BZ reaction with malonic acid as substrate. Unlike the classical BZ system, a saturation-type relationship in the propagation velocity dependence on electric field intensity has been found. Upon switching the polarity of the applied electric field from negative to positive, reversal of the propagation direction of the waves in the pyrogallol system was observed.