Tangent line

[Vanessa Romero-Campos 2B]

When we're trying to determine the rate of a reaction and want to draw a line tangent to the curve would it matter where we take the tangent line from (at the beginning, end or middle of the curve)?

[Mia Navarro 1D]

Yes, as taking the tangent at the beginning would mean the reaction is misrepresented as going faster than it is at the end, and the reverse would be true for taking the tangent at the end.

[Nathan Tu 2C]

It does matter where we draw the tangent line because in most reactions, the rate decreases as the reaction proceeds. This means that the initial rate is higher than the rate near the end of the reaction which also means that the slope of the tangent line will be greater as well near the beginning of the reaction than the end of the reaction.

[Vanessa Romero-Campos 2B]

What is the ideal place to take the tangent line from then? How do you decide where to take the tangent line from?

[AnuPanneerselvam1H]

Yes the reaction rate will change as the reaction proceeds. We will always take the instantaneous rate closest to t=0 since this is the maximum rate.