The rate of reaction is the speed at which reactants are converted to products

The rate of a chemical reaction can be expressed in terms of the rate of removal of
reactants or the rate of formation of products
Factors that affect the rate of reaction are
nature of the reactants
concentration or pressure of the reactants
surface area of the reactants
temperature of the system
presence of a catalyst
The collision theory of reaction rates is based on the idea that particles collide in order to
react. For a collision the bring about a change from reactants to products it must have
sufficient energy to disrupt the bonds in the reactant molecules
and orientation that is suitable for the breaking of some bonds and the formation
of new bonds
Activation energy is the minimum energy that must be supplied by the reactant particles
in a chemical reaction if they are to react to form products
An energy profile diagram represents the energy changes that occur in a chemical
reaction
The transition state or activated complex is the highest energy state in a chemical
reaction. The difference between the reactants and the transition state is the activation
energy for the reaction
A successful collision is a collision between reactant particles that leads to the formation
of products
A reversible reaction is one in which the formation of products from reactants and the
formation of reactants from products are both significant
The nature of the reactants affects the rate of tractions because different reactions have
different activation energy. Reactions that involve the breaking of many bonds then to
have higher activation energies and slower rates
Increasing the concentrations or gas pressures of reactants increases the rate of
collisions and hence rate of reaction
Increasing the surface area of solids and liquids in heterogenous systems increases the
rate of collisions between reactants and hce the rate of reaction
Increasing the temperature increases the fraction of molecular collisions with sufficient
energy to overcome the activation energy barrier
A catalyst increase the rate of reaction by providing an alternative reaction pathway with
a lower activation energy
Catalysts have important roles in the following
industrial manufacture of many chemical substances
removal of pollutants from combustion processes
life-sustaining processes in plants and animals
Explosive chemical reactions are those that result in a rapid increase in pressure, often
in a confined space