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Influence of Metal Ions on Oscillatory Behavior of Zinc Anode in Nitric Acid-Potassium Dichromate Media

F. Crisan^a,* and E. Sallo^b

^aCounty Lab for Pesticides Quality Control, Bodrogului Str., No. 3, 310059, Arad, Romania 
^bChemistry Institute of Romanian Academy, Mihai Viteazul Bv., No. 24, 300223, Timisoara, Romania

A zinc anode in acidic media is a new oscillatory electrochemical system which manifests interesting behaviors, from steady states to simple oscillations and chaos. This paper presents an experimental study of the influence of metal ions on the shape, amplitude and duration of the cell potential oscillations, and gives a qualitative explanation of the system's behavior. A small quantity of Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺ or Fe³⁺ ions added to the system change dramatically the potential oscillations from chaotic behavior to simple oscillations. The method may be used for chaos attenuation.

Keywords: Zinc, Nitric acid, Dichromate, Oscillations, Chaos, Metal ions