Chemical kinetics

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/chemical-kinetics

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the discipline focus?Study of the rates and mechanisms of chemical reactions
2. What is the key theoretical framework?Arrhenius equation, relating rate constant to temperature and activation energy
3. Why do scientists study how fast reactions happen?Scientists study reaction speed to control processes, make better products, and keep things safe.
4. How does temperature affect reaction speed?When it gets hotter, reactions usually happen faster because molecules move more quickly.

Rate Law: An equation that expresses the rate of a reaction as a function of reactant concentrations.
Elementary Step: A single molecular event that constitutes a part of a reaction mechanism.
Transition State Theory: A theoretical model that describes the dynamics of chemical reactions via the formation of a high-energy transition state.