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Oxidation of Sucrose with Potassium Chlorate

A pile of sucrose is mixed with potassium chlorate and a drop of concentrated sulfuric acid is added.

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Narrative
A pile of sucrose is mixed with potassium chlorate and a drop of concentrated sulfuric acid. A highly exothermic oxidation occurs that ignites the sucrose.

Discussion
The details of the chemistry of this reaction are not known, but the explosive nature of this process stresses the importance of avoiding contact between chlorates and oxidizable organic compounds.