Open AccessThe non-luminous oxidation of phosphorus in an oxygen atmosphere
Publication year - 1924
Publication title -
proceedings of the royal society of london. series a, containing papers of a mathematical and physical character
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2053-9150
pISSN - 0950-1207
DOI - 10.1098/rspa.1924.0049
Subject(s) - vapours , oxygen , phosphorus , combustion , atmosphere (unit) , limiting , chemistry , afterglow , nitrous oxide , environmental chemistry , inorganic chemistry , photochemistry , thermodynamics , organic chemistry , physics , mechanical engineering , neuroscience , engineering , biology , gamma ray burst , astronomy
In connection with the glow of phosphorus, two outstanding facts are that it is inhibited by the presence of small quantities of vapours like turpentine, camphor, and ammonia, and, what has often been considered stranger still, by an excess of the oxygen necessary for combustion. I have examined both these cases in former papers. It was shown that the failure of combustion as indicated by the visual glow is a limiting case of slow propagation. The rate of propagation of a luminous pulse through a mixture of oxygen and phosphorus vapour becomes slower and slower as the conditions of total extinction are approached.