Concentration of Reactants

Concentration of Reactants is the measure of amount of one substance dissolve into another, is not
uniform inside a catalyst particle. The reactant concentration is highest at the external surface and lowest
at the center, forming a decaying profile from the outside to the inside. Product concentration has a
reversed distribution.
Reactants are converted into products. It is expressed in terms of concentration (amount per unit time) of
the product. It means the concentration of the reactant is consumed in a unit of time. Rate= change in
concentration/change in time.
The increase in the concentration of reactants, the rate of reaction increases. Ions and molecules interact
to form a new compound on increasing the concentration. The decrease in the concentration of reactants,
fewer molecules and ions are present and the rate of reaction decreases.
How do the Concentration of Reactants affect the Rate of Reaction?

Increasing the concentration means there are more reactant particle in a given space (volume). This
increases the chance that reactant particles will collide. The increased frequency of collisions results in a
faster rate of reaction.

Increasing the concentration of reactants generally increases the rate of reaction because more of the
reacting molecules or ions are present to form the reaction products. This is especially true when
concentrations are low and few molecules or ions are reacting. When concentrations are already high, a
limit is often reached where increasing the concentration has little effect on the rate of reaction. When
several reactants are involved, increasing the concentration of one of them may not affect the rate of
reaction if not enough of the other reactants is available. Overall, concentration is only one factor
influencing the rate of reaction, and the relationship is usually not simple or linear.

Concentration Affect the Rate of Reaction

Reaction involving two particles

According to the collision theory, the reaction is the same whether the collision between two different
particles or collisions between the same particles. Particles first collide in any reaction, whether both
particles are in solution or one in solution or other one is solid. On the higher concentration, higher will
be the collision.
Reaction involving one particle
The orientation of the collision of the molecules is irrelevant. Suppose that at any one time 2 in a million
particles have enough energy to equal or exceed the activation energy. If you have 300 million particles
then 300 of them would react. By doubling the concentration, double will be the rate of reaction.

Effect of concentration on reaction rate

As per the law of mass action, the chemical reaction rate is directly proportional to the concentration of
reactants. This implies that the chemical reaction rate increases with the increase in concentration and
decreases with the decrease in the concentration of reactants.

Example increasing the concentration of reactants also changes reaction rate: Two antacid tablets will
neutralize a given amount of acid faster than one tablet will. Higher concentrations of acid in rain erode
marble faster than lower concentrations.
What happens to concentration of reactants if high and low temperature?
When concentration is high the particles are close to each other which increases how often the reactants
collide and react more quickly.
At higher concentrations there are more reacting particles in the same amount of space so it's much more
crowded. There are red particles on the right side than the left side this leads to more collisions which
leads to more reactions. More products will form on the right side in the same amount of time. More
collisions lead to a faster overall reaction. The higher the temperature, the faster the rate of reaction and
the higher the concentration of reactants, the faster the rate of reaction. This is because when more
collision occur more reaction happen and if you think about it technically you are not just seeing one
reaction he really seeing million of individual reactions.

What is the relationship of the Concentration of Reactant to the Rate of Reaction?

Relationship between the Rate of Reaction and Concentration of Reactants

There is a mathematical relationship between the rate of reaction and the concentration of reactants. The
rate of reaction is directly proportional to the number of collisions per second between the reactant
molecules. If the concentration decreases with time the number of collisions also decreases. It depends
upon the frequency of the total number of collisions. If the frequency increases then the rate of reaction
also increases. The composition of this reaction is known as chemical kinetics.
Higher concentration = More collisions

What happens to the concentration of reactants if there is catalyst?

Sometimes a reaction depends on catalysts to proceed. In that case, changing the concentration of the
catalyst can speed up or slow down the reaction. For example, enzymes speed up biological reactions, and
their concentration affects the rate of reaction. On the other hand, if the enzyme is already fully used,
changing the concentration of the other materials will have no effect.
What happens to the concentration of reactants if there is no catalyst?
When there is no catalyst, catalyst would also result in reaction, producing energy; i.e. the addition and its
reverse process, removal, would both produce energy. Thus, a catalyst that could change the equilibrium
would be a perpetual motion machine, a contradiction to the laws of thermodynamics.
In general, increasing the concentration of a reactant in solution, increasing the surface area of a solid
reactant, and increasing the temperature of the reaction system will all increase the rate of a reaction. A
reaction can also be sped up by adding a catalyst to the reaction mixture.