Barium chlorate in some sodium contamination, which is undesirable for pyrotechnic purposes, where the strong yellow of sodium can easily overpower the green of barium. Sodium-free barium chlorate can be produced directly through electrolysis: It can also be produced by the reaction of barium carbonate with boiling ammonium chlorate solution: The reaction initially produces barium chlorate and ammonium carbonate; boiling the solution decomposes the ammonium carbonate and drives off the resulting ammonia and carbon dioxide, leaving only barium chlorate in solution. When exposed to heat, barium chlorate alone will decompose to barium chloride and oxygen: Barium chlorate is used to produce chloric
Sodium chlorate applications, such as in the production of chlorine dioxide biocides and for pulp and paper bleaching. Historian James Watson of Massey University in New Zealand wrote a widely reported article, "The Significance of Mr. Richard Buckley's Exploding Trousers" about accidents with sodium chlorate when used as a herbicide to control ragwort in the 1930s. This later won him an Ig Nobel Prize in 2005, and was the basis for the May 2006 "Exploding Pants" episode of MythBusters. Sodium chlorate Sodium chlorate is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula NaClO. It is a white crystalline powder that is readily soluble