A Simple Chemical Oscillator: The “Educator”

A slightly modified version of Lotka’s mechanism that gives rise to sustained oscillations is shown to mimic observations of electrochemical oscillations reported during the dissolution of iron from iron electrodes in acidic media. The presentation of the modified mechanism includes only familiar chemical species and, in comparison to other mechanisms of chemical oscillators, is analyzed in a simple manner. Therefore, this new mechanism is particularly well-suited to present to students during introductory discussions on the topic of oscillating chemical reactions.