2.7.4

Factors Affecting the Rate of Reaction

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Rate of Reaction - Key Factors

The main factors that affect the rate of chemical reactions are:

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Concentration of dissolved reactants

  • Increasing the concentration increases the collision frequency. This increases the rate of reaction.
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Pressure of gas reactants

  • Increasing pressure is like increasing the concentration.
  • It has the same outcome of increasing the collision frequency, which increases the rate of reaction.
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Temperature

  • Increasing the temperature increases the rate at which collisions happen.
  • Increasing the temperature increases the energy of reactant particles. This means that a greater proportion of the particles will have more energy than the activation energy that is needed.
  • Together, these lead to more successful collisions. This increases the rate of reaction.
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Surface area of solid reactants

  • Increasing the surface area increases the collision frequency. This increases the rate of reaction.
  • This is often done by breaking up solids into smaller lumps (e.g. powders).
  • This increase in surface area to volume ratio makes sure that more particles are exposed to attack.
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Catalysts

  • Substances that increase a chemical reaction's rate without reducing in quantity during the reaction are called catalysts.

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1Biology

1.1Cells, Tissues & Organs

1.2Reproduction & Variation

1.3Ecological Relationships & Classification

1.4Digestion & Nutrition

1.5Plants & Photosynthesis

1.6Biological Systems & Processes

2Chemistry

2.1Particles

2.2Chemical Reactions

2.3Atoms, Elements, Compounds

2.4The Periodic Table

2.5Materials & the Earth

2.6Reactivity

2.7Energetics

2.8Properties of Materials

3Physics

3.1Energy

3.2Forces & Motion

3.3Waves

3.4Electricity & Magnetism

3.5Matter

3.6Space Physics

4Thinking Scientifically

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