A certain gas-phase reaction has an activation energy of
CHEMISTRY · Single correct · A Level · Chemistry · Kinetics · Kinetics
Problem
A certain gas-phase reaction has an activation energy of 55kJmol−1. How will its rate change when the temperature is raised from 300K to 320K, all else being equal?
(a) The rate will approximately double, because the 20\,K rise nearly doubles the collision frequency.
(b) The rate will decrease because the higher temperature causes more ineffective, high-energy collisions.
(c) The rate will increase by several-fold, because a larger proportion of molecules have energies ≥Ea at 320K.
(d) The rate will remain essentially unchanged, since activation energy is temperature-independent.