New Experimental and Mechanistic Investigation on the KSCN‐H2O2‐NaOH‐Cu(II)‐Catalyzed Oscillating System (Orbàn–Epstein Reaction): Inhibitory Effects by Diphenols

The KSCN‐H₂O₂‐NaOH‐Cu(II)‐catalyzed system is one of the few reactions in which chemical oscillations can be observed in batch conditions. In the present paper, this oscillating reaction was revisited in a wide range of initial concentrations of all components in batch. A mixture with a long lasting oscillation time (1 h 34 min) and a great number of oscillations (24) was found and used to investigate the effect of temperature. An Arrhenius‐type temperature dependence was observed from which an apparent “average activation energy” E_av = 76 ± 5 kJ for the overall oscillatory reaction was observed. A mechanistic study based on a modified model analyzed by the stoichiometric network analysis approach gave a satisfactory agreement between calculated and experimental oscillating behaviors and temperature dependence. The addition of the three diphenols (catechol, resorcinol, and hydroquinone) causes perturbations similar to those observed in the Briggs‐Rauscher oscillating system, i.e., an inhibition of the oscillatory regime. These inhibitory effects were described in detail, and a reasonable qualitative interpretation is given.