Question detail
What is the effect of temperature on the rate of a gas reaction according to Maxwell-Boltzmann distributions?
Try the question, check the answer, then read the explanation to understand the curriculum point.
At a glance
MCQ
Type
practice
Style
Topic
Kinetics
Question
- A. Higher temperatures decrease the average energy of particles.
- B. Higher temperatures increase the number of particles with energy greater than the activation energy.
- C. Temperature has no effect on reaction rates.
- D. Higher temperatures decrease collision frequency.
Answer
Higher temperatures increase the number of particles with energy greater than the activation energy.
Explanation
As temperature increases, the kinetic energy of gas particles increases, resulting in a greater number of particles having sufficient energy to overcome the activation energy barrier, thus increasing the reaction rate.
Common mistake
Misunderstanding Pressure's Role
Students often think that increasing pressure always increases the reaction rate for gases without considering the volume change.
To explain how pressure affects gas reaction rate, use the formula: Rate ∝ Collision Frequency. When pressure increases, the volume decreases, leading to more frequent collisions. For example, if the pressure is doubled in a fixed volume, the number of gas particles per unit volume increases, thus increasing the collision frequency and the reaction rate. Therefore, if the initial pressure is P1 and the final pressure is P2, the relationship can be expressed as: Rate2 = Rate1 × (P2/P1). This shows that the reaction rate increases with pressure, provided the volume remains constant.
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