Experimental Techniques

[Kate Zeile 2D]

What are some experimental techniques to measure the rate of the reaction? How would one monitor the concentration at precise instances after the reaction has initiated?

[Lourick Bustamante 1B]

To measure the rate of a reaction, you can use the differential rate law which is k[Reactancts]ⁿ with n being the amount of moles; the differential rate law is rate as a function of concentration of reactants. On the other hand, you can also use the integrated rate law which is [A]_t = -kt + [A]₀ for zero order, ln[A]_t = -kt + ln[A]₀ for first order, and 1/[A]_t = kt + 1/[A]₀ for second order; the integrated rate law is rate as a function of time.

[Cassandra Mullen 1E]

Reaction rates can be measured through a spectrometric method, where a spectrophotometer measures light absorbance. A conductometric titration can also be used, which measures the voltage change over time as reactant is added. Titrations work well for slow reactions.

[ZoeHahn1J]

One could use spectrometry to measure the rate of very fast reactions since it tells us the absorption of a solution at very precise time units (ex: in stopped-flow technique), which can in turn be used to find the concentration of reactants/products at that time.