Kinetics of the hydrogen/oxygen reaction II. The explosion region in salt- and alkali-coated vessels

Abstract

The first, second and third explosion limits for the hydrogen/oxygen reaction have been examined over a wide range of temperature, mixture composition, vessel size and wall coating. An expression has been derived from general chain theory which can account for the observed features of the complete explosion region. It includes and relates previously given expressions for the individual limits. The reactions found to be necessary and apparently sufficient to account for the hydrogen/oxygen spontaneous ignition peninsula are those of chain destruction in triple collisions, destruction at the wall of three different chain carriers, first-order branching, second-order branching, the regeneration of ‘dead’ chains and a chain-initiating process.