Principle of Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 1102 LAB)

Department of Chemistry
-1-

CHEMICAL KINETICS
Torres Dan Paul Aaron B., Patungan, Joeffrey U., Santos, Rikki Rose A., Astudillo, Danielle Abish G., Lugtu,
Jerliza Mae M., and Santiago, Rose Angelyn G.

Abstract: The constant k in the rate law is called the rate constant; the exponents m, n, and so forth are called reaction orders
for the reactants. The sum of the reaction orders gives the overall reaction order. Reaction orders must be determined
experimentally. The units of the rate constant depend on the overall reaction order. For a reaction in which the overall
reaction order is 1, k has units of; for one in which the overall reaction order is 2, k has units of. The first one included three
experimental set-ups. The first set-up included 1 mL of 0.8 M potassium iodide (KI) and 5 mL of 0.05 M potassium
persulfate (K2S2O8) which were separated into two flasks. The two were then mixed and immediately started the stopwatch.
The second set-up included 2 mL of 0.16 M KI and 5 mL of 0.05 M K 2S2O8. The third set-up included 2 mL of 0.16 M KI
and 2.5 mL of 0.05 M K2S2O8.

Keywords: chemical kinetics, reaction, rate of reaction

Introduction chemical kinetics is concerned. There are many possible

Modern chemical (reaction) kinetics is a science
describing and explaining the chemical reaction as we
understand it in the present day. It can be defined as the
study of rate of chemical process or transformations of
reactants into the products, which occurs according to the
certain mechanism, i.e., the reaction mechanism. The rate of
chemical reaction is expressed as the change in
concentration of some species in time. It can also be pointed
that chemical reactions are also the subject of study of many
other chemical and physicochemical disciplines, such as
analytical chemistry, chemical thermodynamics, technology,
and so on (Ptáček, 2017).
processes that proceed too slowly to be studied
experimentally, but sometimes they can be accelerated,
often by the addition of a substance known as a catalyst.
Some reactions are even faster than the hydrogen-oxygen
explosion—for example, the combination of atoms or
molecular fragments (called free radicals) where all that
occurs is the formation of a chemical bond (Laidler, 2013).
Some modern kinetic investigations are concerned
with even faster processes, such as the breakdown of highly
energetic and therefore transient molecules, where times of
the order of femtoseconds (fs; 1 fs = 10 –15 second) are
involved (Laidler, 2013).

The rate of a reaction is defined in terms of the rates Materials and Methods

with which the products are formed and the reactants (the
reacting substances) are consumed. For chemical systems it
is usual to deal with the concentrations of substances, which
is defined as the amount of substance per unit volume. The
rate can then be defined as the concentration of a substance
that is consumed or produced in unit time. Sometimes it is
more convenient to express rates as numbers of molecules
formed or consumed in unit time (Laidler, 2013).
Material and Reagent
The glass wares and the reagents used in this
experiment were gathered from the chemistry laboratory in
Central Luzon State University.
Determining the effect of concentration on a reaction

A useful rate measure is the half-life of a reactant,
which is defined as the time that it takes for half of the
initial amount to undergo reaction. For a special type of
kinetic behavior, the half-life is independent of the initial
amount. A common and straightforward example of a half-
life independent of the initial amount is radioactive
substances (Ptáček, 2017).
However, reaction does occur, with a half-life that is
estimated to be more than 12 billion years, which is roughly
the age of the universe. If a spark is passed through the
system, the reaction occurs with explosive violence, with a
half-life of less than one-millionth of a second. This is a
striking example of the great range of rates with which
Twenty ml (20 ml) of 0.8M potassium iodide was
placed on the first Erlenmeyer flask, 20 ml of 0.05 M
sodium thiosulfate (Na2S2O3) and 0.6 M potassium nitrate
(KNO3) were added to the Erlenmeyer, and 1% (w/v)
dropped of starch was used as an indicator to determined if
the reaction has used up all of the S2O3-. After mixing, 1 mL
of 0.8 potassium iodide (KI) were placed. Five (5) mL of
0.05 M potassium persulfate (K 2S2O8) were placed on the
second flask. The contents of the two flasks where mixed,
and immediately started the stopwatch to measure the time
taken for the solution to change color.
For the second set of experiment, 2 mL of 0.8 M KI
 Principle of Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 1102 LAB)
Department of Chemistry
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( ) ( )
were placed in a separate flask. Five (5) mL of 0.05 M R2 M2
x
K2S2O8 were placed on the second flask. The contents of the =
two flasks were mixed, and immediately started the R1 M1

( )(
stopwatch to measure the time taken for the solution to M
x
−4
change color. 5.56 ×1 0
In the third set of experiment, 2 mL of 0.8 M KI were
2.78 ×1 0−4
s
M
=
0.16 M
0.8 M )
placed in a separate flask. The concentration of K 2S2O8 in s
this experiment were doubled by pouring 2.5 mL of the
substance in the second flask. The contents of the two flasks ( 2 ) x =( 2 )
were mixed, and immediately started the stopwatch to log 2 2=1
measure the time taken for the solution to change color.
x=1
Data gathering
The order of reaction with respect to KI were
calculated by selecting the appropriate experimental set-up.
The chemical reaction was determined as:
Since the order reaction for KI is asked, Experiment 2 and
2−¿+ I ¿
2 Experiment 1 will be used, for the concentration of K2S2O8
−¿+S2 O82−¿→ 2S O ¿
¿
(Reaction 1)
4

I are the same and different for the KI. The first step includes
dividing the initial rate of Experiment 1 from Experiment 2
2−¿ ¿
−¿+ S 4 O8 ¿
2−¿+I 2 → 2 I ¿
2 S 2 O3 (Reaction 2)
and the quotient is raised to x, which is the reaction order
for KI. The result was equated to the quotient of the
The temperature was measured using thermometer, concentration of KI in Experiment 2 divided by
and the rate law of the reaction were calculated using the concentration of KI in Experiment 1. Then, the value for x
formula: were calculated using simple logarithm. Thus, the reaction
order with respect to KI were reported to be as a first order
Rate=k ¿ ¿ z reaction. After calculating for the reaction order of KI, the
reaction order with respect to K2S2O8 were then calculated.
Where: k = rate constant
[I-] = concentration of KI With respect to K2S2O8:
[S2O82-] = concentration of K2S2O8

( ) ( )
x = reaction order of KI R3 y M 3
y = reaction order of K2S2O8 =
Rate = rate of reaction R2 M2
z = overall reaction order

( )
y
−4 M
Results and Discussion 2.78 ×1 0
Table 1. Determining the effect of concentration on a
reaction 5.56 ×1 0−4
s
M
=( 0.025
0.5 M )
M

s
Expt. [I-] [S2O82-] Initial Rate (R) Temp.
1 0.8 0.05 2.78×10-4 M/s 290 K
2 0.16 0.05 5.56×10-4 M/s 290 K ( 0.5 ) y =( 0.5 )
3 0.16 0.025 2.78×10-4 M/s 290 K log 0.5 0.5=1
In Table 1, observations showed that when the y=1
concentration of KI were doubled, the rate doubled as well.
And when the concentration of the K2S2O8 were halved, the The order of reaction with respect to K2S2O8 were
rate of the reaction was also halved. From the given set of calculated by selecting the appropriate experimental set-up.
information, the rate law of the reaction was calculated. Since the order reaction for K2S2O8 is asked, Experiment 3
and Experiment 2 will be used, for the concentrations of KI
Rate=k ¿ ¿ are the same and different for the K 2S2O8. The first step
includes dividing the initial rate of Experiment 3 from
With respect to KI: Experiment 2 and the quotient is raised to y, which is the
reaction order for K2S2O8. The result was equated to the
 Principle of Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 1102 LAB)
Department of Chemistry
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quotient of the concentration of K2S2O8 in Experiment 3
divided by concentration of K2S2O8 in Experiment 2. Then,
the value for y were calculated using simple logarithm.
Thus, the reaction order with respect to K2S2O8 were
reported to be as a first order reaction.
Rate=k ¿
Since the reaction order of KI and K2S2O8 are both in
first order, the exponent 1 can be omitted. The rate law of
the reaction was reported to as the one above. The overall
order of the reaction was calculated by adding the values of
the individual order of KI and K2S2O8. Hence, the value for
x and y were added. The overall order of the reaction was
reported to be as a second order overall. After determining
the overall order of the reaction, the value of the rate
constant was calculated.
After establishing the rate law of the reaction, the
value for the rate constant were calculated.
number of collisions also increase. As a result, the speed of
the reaction becomes faster.
Conclusion
Reaction rate are usually expressed as changes in
concentration per unit time: Typically, for reactions in
solution, rates are given in units of molarity per second. For
most reactions, a plot of molarity versus time shows that the
rate slows down as the reaction proceeds. The instantaneous
rate is the slope of a line drawn tangent to the concentration-
versus-time curve at a specific time. Rates can be written in
terms of the appearance of products or the disappearance of
reactants; the stoichiometry of the reaction dictates the
relationship between rates of appearance and disappearance.
Bibliography

M
2.78 ×1 0−4 =k ( 0.8 M ) (0.05 M )
s

−4 M
2.78 ×1 0 =k ( 0.8 M ) (0.05 M )
s

M
2.78 ×1 0−4
s
k=
( 0.8 M ) (0.05 M )

k =6.95 ×1 0−3 M −1 s−1

The value of the rate constant can be calculated by
selecting any experimental set-up and using its information,
perform direct substitution and isolate the rate constant in
the left side. In this case, Experiment 1 were used to
compute for the rate constant. Thus, the rate constant of the
reaction was reported to be as 6.95×10-3. Since it is a second
order overall, the proper unit for rate constant will be
6.95×10-3 M-1 s-1.

Table 2. Determining the effect of temperature on a reaction

Experiment [I-] [S2O82-] Initial Rate (R)
1 (cold) 0.8 0.05 2.53×10-4 M/s
2 (hot) 0.8 0.05 2.94×10-3 M/s

In Table 2, observations showed that when a reaction

takes place in a lower temperature condition, the initial rate
of the reaction is slow. While when a reaction proceeds
under a higher temperature condition, the rate of the
reaction is very fast. This is because that in higher
temperatures, the collision frequency increases since the
kinetic energy of the molecules increases and thus the
 Principle of Chemistry Laboratory (CHEM 1102 LAB)
Department of Chemistry
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Laidler, P. (2013). Chemical Kinetics. Britannica: Encycolpedia .

Ptáček, P. e. (2017). A Brief Introduction to the History of Chemical Kinetics. Czech Republic.