18.

2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions >

Reaction Rates and Equilibrium

Rates of Reaction

The Progress of Chemical

Reactions

REACTION MECHANISM

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > CHEMISTRY & YOU

How is a bicycle race like a

chemical reaction?

Riders in the Tour

de France bicycle
race must cross
steep mountains
with heights of
1900 meters or
more.
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

Reaction Mechanisms
How do most reactions progress
from start to finish?

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

A balanced equation does not tell you

how a reaction occurred.
• Plants use photosynthesis to capture and
store light energy.
• The process can be summarized by stating
that carbon dioxide and water yield simple
sugars and oxygen.
• However, the process of photosynthesis is
not as simple as this summary implies.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

One-Step and Multistep Reactions

An elementary reaction is a reaction in
which reactants are converted to products
in a single step.
• This type of reaction has only one activation-
energy peak and one activated complex.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

One-Step and Multistep Reactions

Most chemical reactions consist of
two or more elementary reactions.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

One-Step and Multistep Reactions

Most chemical reactions consist of
two or more elementary reactions.
• The series of elementary reactions or steps
that take place during the course of a
complex reaction is called a reaction
mechanism.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

One-Step and Multistep Reactions

An intermediate is a product of one step
in a reaction mechanism and a reactant in
the next step.
• An intermediate has a more stable structure
and longer lifetime than an activated
complex.
• Intermediates do not appear in the overall
chemical equation for a reaction.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Interpret Graphs

The figure below shows a reaction

progress curve for a complex chemical
reaction.
• A reaction progress
curve shows all the
energy changes that
occur as reactants
are converted to
products.
• The graph has a peak
for each activated
complex and a valley
for each intermediate.
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > CHEMISTRY & YOU

In the mountain stage of the Tour de

France, a rider encounters a series of
peaks and valleys. In terms of energy, how
does the trip through the mountains
compare to what happens during a
multistep reaction?

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > CHEMISTRY & YOU

In the mountain stage of the Tour de France,

a rider encounters a series of peaks and
valleys. In terms of energy, how does the
trip through the mountains compare to what
happens during a multistep reaction?
Riders need extra energy each time they must
climb a peak. This extra energy compares to
the activation energy needed in a chemical
reaction. Each time they ride down into a
valley, they are in an intermediate state.
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

Rate-Determining Steps
In a multistep chemical reaction, the steps
do not all progress at the same rate.
• One step will be slower than the others.
• The slowest step will determine, or limit, the
rate of the overall reaction.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

Rate-Determining Steps
Consider the reaction mechanism for the
decomposition of nitrous oxide (N2O).
Experiments have shown that the mechanism
consists of the two steps shown below.

N2O(g) N2(g) +O(g)

N2O(g) + O(g) N2(g) + O2(g)
2N2O (g) 2N2(g) + O2(g)
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

Rate-Determining Steps
N2O(g) N2(g) +O(g)
N2O(g) + O(g) N2(g) + O2(g)
2N2O (g) 2N2(g) + O2(g)

In the first step, nitrous oxide decomposes into

nitrogen gas and oxygen atoms.
• The oxygen atoms are an intermediate.

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Reaction Mechanisms

Rate-Determining Steps
N2O(g) N2(g) +O(g)
N2O(g) + O(g) N2(g) + O2(g)
2N2O (g) 2N2(g) + O2(g)

For the decomposition of nitrous oxide, the first

step is the rate-determining step.
• To increase the rate of the overall reaction, you
would need to increase the rate of the first step.
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions >

In the following reaction mechanism,

which is an intermediate?
A2 2A
2A + B2 2AB
A2 + B2 2AB

A. A2 C. A
B. B2 D. AB

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions >

In the following reaction mechanism,

which is an intermediate?
A2 2A
2A + B2 2AB
A2 + B2 2AB

A. A2 C. A
B. B2 D. AB

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > Glossary Terms

• elementary reaction: a reaction in which

reactants are converted to products in a
single step
• reaction mechanism: a series of elementary
reactions that take place during the course of
a complex reaction
• intermediate: a product of one of the steps
in a reaction mechanism; it becomes a
reactant in the next step

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > exercise

Suppose that a chemical reaction takes

place in a two-step mechanism,
Step 1 (fast) A+B→C
Step 2 (slow) C + D→ E
Which step in the reaction mechanism is
the rate-determining step?

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > exercise

In the reaction, what are steps1 and 2

called? What is substance C called?

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions >

ANSWERS:

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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions > exercise

A TWO-STEP MECHANISM HAS BEEN

PROPOSED FOR THE
DECOMPOSITION OF NITRYL
CHLORIDE,NO2Cl,a nitrating and
chlorinating agent in organic
compounds.
Step 1: NO2Cl →NO2 + Cl
Step 2: NO2Cl + Cl→ NO2 + Cl2
Identify any intermediates in the reaction
sequence.
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18.2 The Progress of Chemical Reactions >

END OF
REACTION
MECHANISM

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