In a closed vessel at constant temperature, the following elementary reaction occurs in the presence of an inert gas I that does not participate in the reaction.
2 A(g) + B(g) → products
(a) Write the rate law expression for this elementary reaction, including the appropriate proportionality constant.
(b) State the individual reaction order with respect to A and to B, and determine the overall reaction order.
(c) The initial rate is measured under two different sets of starting concentrations:
• Trial 1: [A]₀ = 0.200 M, [B]₀ = 0.100 M
• Trial 2: [A]₀ = 0.400 M, [B]₀ = 0.050 M
Calculate the factor by which the rate in Trial 2 differs from the rate in Trial 1.
(d) Justify whether the concentration of the inert gas I appears in the rate law you wrote in part (a).