Nitrosyl fluoride, NO2F(g), can be produced industrially at 600 K and 100 atm by the overall reaction
2 NO2(g) + F2(g) → 2 NO2F(g).
A newly proposed mechanism suggests that the reaction proceeds through the following elementary step occurring *inside the high-pressure reactor*:
NO2(g) + NO2(g) + F2(g) → 2 NO2F(g) (step Y)
Assume ideal-gas behavior throughout.
(a) Discuss qualitatively how raising the total pressure from 1 atm to 100 atm affects the frequency of three-particle collisions in the gas phase. Include reference to concentration changes and collision theory.
(b) Despite the increased pressure, explain why steric orientation factors could still limit the feasibility of step Y compared with a mechanism composed only of bimolecular elementary steps.
(c) Design an experiment—specifying the type of kinetic data you would collect—that could distinguish whether step Y actually occurs as the rate-determining step. Indicate what observable outcome would support or refute the involvement of a termolecular step.
(d) Given typical activation-energy magnitudes for bimolecular versus termolecular processes, analyze whether step Y is likely to dominate the kinetics at 600 K. Justify your conclusion with qualitative energetic reasoning in addition to collision-frequency arguments.