Chem Lab Vocab. Kinetics

Question 1

transition state or activated complex

Answer 1

an arrangement of two reactant molecules which can either go on to form products or fall apart again into the unchanged reactants

Question 2

steric factor

Answer 2

an empirical factor which takes into account the fact that molecules must collide in a certain orientation in order to react

Question 3

0th order reaction

Answer 3

a reaction in which the reaction rate is independent of reactant concetration

Question 4

activation energy

Answer 4

the energy barrier which must be overcome in order for a reaction to occur

Question 5

initiation

Answer 5

the first step in a chain reaction, where chain carriers are formed from a reactant

Question 6

steady state approximation

Answer 6

the assumption that the rate of change of a reaction intermediate is equal to zer0

Question 7

0th order reaction

Answer 7

a reaction for which a graph of concentration vs. time yields a straight line