Q. Write an essay on factors which affect the rate of reactions and discuss the uses of kinetic studies.
Outlines:
(I) Factors affecting the Rate of Reaction (a) temperature ---- collision of molecules with different velocities and kinetic energies ---- Collision Theory and Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution ---- Arrhenius equation and Activation energy
(b) concentration ---- frequency of collisions and effective collisions
(c) pressure ---- for reaction involving gases only (solids and liquids are not compressible) ---- frequency of collisions and effective collisions
(d) surface area ---- state of subdivision and the area of contact opened to reactant molecules
(e) light ---- e.g. photosynthesis and formation of silver salts on photographic film
(f) catalyst ---- definition of catalyst ---- providing new reaction pathway with lower activation energy ---- effect shown by Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution
(II) Uses of Kinetic Studies --- optimization of industrial production of chemicals (max. yield, min. raw materials, min. fuel and shortest time)
--- strategy of slowing down some undesirable reactions (e.g. rusting, deterioration of food)
--- archaeological investigations (e.g. carbon-14 dating)
--- understanding of reaction mechanisms (e.g. SN2) ~ Sample Essay ~
Chemical kinetics is the studies of the rates of chemical reactions and the factors affect them. Chemical reactions proceed at a rate which is influenced by a number of factors depending on the experimental conditions. In this essay, a brief review on these factors and the applications of kinetic studies will be presented.
Temperature
The most well-known method to make reactions go faster is to heat the reactants. Reactant particles are moving at different velocities, some collision between them