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The rate of a reaction generally increases with temperature - VCE - SSCE Chemistry - Question 4 - 2008 - Paper 1
Question 4
The rate of a reaction generally increases with temperature. The factor that has the biggest effect on the increase in reaction rate is that with increasing temperat... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:The rate of a reaction generally increases with temperature - VCE - SSCE Chemistry - Question 4 - 2008 - Paper 1
Step 1
A. the activation energy of the reaction increases.
Answer
This statement is incorrect. Although increasing temperature can affect the activation energy, it does not increase it effectively. Instead, it usually facilitates more reactions by providing the necessary energy to overcome the existing activation barrier.
Step 2
B. the activation energy of the reaction decreases.
Answer
This statement is also incorrect. The activation energy is a constant for a given reaction at a specific set of conditions and does not simply decrease with temperature. It is the fraction of molecules that can overcome this energy barrier that may increase.
Step 3
C. the number of collisions between particles increases.
Answer
While this statement is partially true, it does not identify the most significant factor. Although increased temperature does lead to more frequent collisions, the greatest impact on the reaction rate comes from the kinetic energy of those molecules.
Step 4
D. the proportion of particles with high kinetic energy increases.
Answer
This statement is correct and identifies the factor with the biggest effect. As temperature rises, a higher proportion of the molecules have sufficient kinetic energy to overcome the activation energy, thereby increasing the reaction rate. This is fundamental to understanding reaction kinetics.