How to Calculate Reaction Rate
What is Reaction Rate?
Reaction rate measures how quickly reactants are converted to products over time: rate = −Δ[Reactant]/Δt = +Δ[Product]/Δt. Factors affecting rate include concentration, temperature, catalysts, surface area, and state of reactants.
Step-by-Step Guide
- 1Rate = Δ[concentration] / Δtime
- 2Rate law: rate = k[A]^m[B]^n (m,n are reaction orders)
- 3Rate constant k increases with temperature (Arrhenius)
- 4Doubling temperature roughly doubles reaction rate for each 10°C increase (rule of thumb)
Worked Examples
Input
[A] drops from 0.5M to 0.3M in 20 seconds
Result
Rate = 0.2M/20s = 0.01 mol/L/s
−Δ[A]/Δt = 0.2/20
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