Chemical Reactions
Chemistry: AQA GCSE Higher, topic 6.1.1
Rates of Chemical Reactions
A chemical reaction's rate tells us how quickly reactants are converted into products. In industry, reaction rates are very important. But, faster reaction rates may not always be better.
Maximum profit
- In industry, making the required amount of product as cheaply as possible maximises all-important profit.
Faster reactions
- Faster reactions are often better as they yield more product in a given amount of time.
Drawbacks
- It may be expensive to generate the conditions for very fast reactions.
- There can be safety concerns associated with very fast reactions.
- So, reaction rates used in industry are the result of a trade-off between speed, cost and safety.
Test yourself on Chemical Reactions
What are the drawbacks of very fast reactions?
What is not a drawback of using very fast reaction rates in industry?
Why does producing the required amount of product as cheaply as possible maximise profit for a company?
Select the correct statement in each pair
What is likely to happen to cost and safety risk if a company makes a reaction much faster?