The Reversible A.C. Polarographic Wave at Larger Amplitudes of the Alternating Voltage

Abstract

An earlier treatment of the reversible a.c. polarographic wave has been extended within the same framework of assumptions, particularly that of sinusoidal variations of concentration and current. The treatment and its results are compared with a more rigorous attack on the problem, in which sinusoidal variations are not assumed. The limitations of the simple treatment arise from this difference, and it is suggested that these limitations also apply to treatments of the frequency-dependence of the a.c. polarographic wave at small amplitudes of the superposed alternating voltage. It is pointed out that, in experimental tests of the low-frequency equations at larger amplitudes of the voltage, the contribution of higher harmonics to the total alternating current must be taken into account.