Section

Name Date

Factors Affecting the Rate of Chemical

6.2
Summary
Reactions
Textbook pages 272–281

Before You Read

What do you already know about the speed of chemical reactions? Outline your ideas in
the lines below.
I know that there are various factors that influence the reaction rate of
chemical reactions. This can range from the Surface Area of the reactant,
or even to the temperature the solutant has.

◆
What is rate of reaction and how does it apply to
chemical reactions? ✏ Mark the Text

In a chemical reaction, how quickly or slowly reactants turn Reinforce Your

Understanding
into products is called the rate of reaction. A reaction that
takes a long time has a low reaction rate. A reaction that As you read the section,
highlight the main point of
occurs quickly has a high reaction rate. A rate describes how each paragraph. Then write
quickly or slowly a change occurs. Every chemical reaction out an example that helps
proceeds at a definite rate. However, you can speed up or you explain this main point.
slow down the rate of a chemical reaction.

What factors affect the rate of a chemical reaction?

The four main factors that affect the rate of chemical
reactions are temperature, concentration, surface area, and the
presence of a catalyst.
1. Increasing the temperature causes the particles (atoms
or molecules) of the reactants to move more quickly so that

●
they collide with each other more frequently and with more
energy. Thus, the higher the temperature, the greater the rate ✔ Reading Check
of reaction. If you decrease the temperature, the opposite
How does temperature
effect occurs. The particles move more slowly, colliding affect the rate of a
less frequently and with less energy. In this case, the rate of chemical reaction?
reaction decreases. ●✔

2. Concentration refers to how much solute is dissolved in

a solution.
If a greater concentration of reactant atoms and molecules
is present, there is a greater chance that collisions will occur
among them. More collisions mean a higher reaction rate. Temperature affects the reaction
Thus, increasing the concentration of the reactants usually rate of a chemical reaction since
results in a higher reaction rate. At lower concentrations, more temp fives the particles
more energy, so they collide more
there is less chance for collisions between particles. This with other particles (increases
reaction rate)
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 Section
Name Date
6.2
Summary

continued

means that decreasing the concentrations of the reactants

results in a lower reaction rate.
3. Surface area is the measure of how much area of an
object is exposed.
For the same mass, many small particles have a greater total
surface area than one large particle. For example, steel wool
has a larger surface area than a block of steel of the same
mass. This allows oxygen molecules to collide with many
more iron atoms per unit of time. The more surface contact
between reactants, the higher the rate of reaction. The less
surface contact, the lower the reaction rate.
Surface area can also be important if a reaction occurs
between two liquids that do not mix. In this case, the reaction
occurs only at the boundary where the two liquids meet. It is
also important to note that not all reactions depend on surface
area. If both reactants are gases or liquids that mix together,
then there is no surface, and surface area is not a factor.
4. A catalyst is a substance that speeds up the rate of a
chemical reaction without being used up in the reaction itself.
Catalysts reduce the amount of energy required to break and

●
form bonds during a chemical reaction. When catalysts are
✔ Reading Check used, a reaction can proceed although less energy is added
Is a catalyst used up in a during the reaction. For example, enzymes are catalysts
chemical reaction? that allow chemical reactions to occur at relatively low
temperatures within the body. ●✔

It does speed up the rate

of a chemical reaction,
but it is not used up in
the reaction itself

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 Cloze
Name Date Activity
Section 6.2
Use with textbook pages 272–277.

Rate of chemical reactions

Vocabulary
catalyst energy
catalytic converter heat
collisions rate of reaction
concentration surface area
dilute temperature

Use the terms in the vocabulary box to fill in the blanks. You may use each term
only once.
1. A freshly exposed surface of metallic sodium tarnishes almost instantly if exposed
to air and moisture, while iron will slowly turn to rust under the same conditions.
surface area
In these two situations, the refers to how quickly or
slowly reactants turn into products.
Heat
2. Adding will increase the rate of reaction because
this causes the particles of the reactants to move more quickly, resulting in more
energy
collisions and more .
temperature
3. Removing heat will lower the , causing the particles of
the reactants to slow down, resulting in less frequent collisions.
Concentration
4. refers to how much solute is dissolved in a solution.
If there is a greater concentration of reactant particles present, there is a greater
collisions
chance that among them will occur. More collisions
mean a higher rate of reaction.
5. A concentrated acid solution will react more quickly than a
dilute
acid solution because there are more molecules
present, increasing the chance of collisions.
reaction rate
6. Grains of sugar have a greater than a solid cube of
sugar of the same mass, and therefore will dissolve quicker in water.
catalyst
7. A , for example an enzyme, is used to speed up a
chemical reaction but is not used up in the reaction itself.
catalytic converter
8. A in a car has metallic catalysts where several
reactions occur. Carbon monoxide, which was produced in the combustion of
gasoline, is changed into carbon dioxide and water in the presence of these metallic
catalysts.

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 Name Date Comprehension
Section 6.2
Use with textbook pages 272–277.

Different rates of reactions

1. Indicate whether each of the following would increase or decrease the rate of
reaction.
increase
(a) adding heat
decrease
(b) removing heat
increase
(c) adding a catalyst
decrease
(d) diluting a solution
decrease
(e) removing an enzyme
decrease
( f ) lowering the temperature
increase
(g) increasing the temperature
decrease
(h) decreasing the surface area
( i ) increasing the concentration of a solution
increase

( j ) breaking a reactant down into smaller pieces

increase

2. Identify which situation would have a higher reaction rate. Then state the factor that
affected the rate of reaction in each situation.

Situation X Situation Y Situation Factor

with a higher affecting
reaction rate the rate of
(X or Y) reaction

(a) 1 g of sugar (cubes) 1 g of sugar (grains)

Y
SURFACE AREA

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 Name Date Comprehension
Section 6.2

(b) 5O ºC O ºC

X TEMPERATURE

(c) low number of particles = high number of particles = more collisions

few collisions

Y CONCENTRATION

(d) enzyme added no enzyme added

CATALYSY (ENZYME)
X

(e) twigs logs

X SURFACE AREA

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 Applying
Name Date Knowledge
Section 6.2
Use with textbook pages 272–277.

Four factors affecting the rate of reactions

Use the following graph to answer question 1.
Rate of reaction and changing conditions

Total amount of product X

Time from start of reaction

1. The graph above shows the differences in the rate of reaction at different
temperatures, concentrations, surface area, and the presence or absence of a
catalyst. A steeper line represents a greater rate of reaction. Indicate which line
(X or Y) each of the following are associated with.
Y X
(a) lower temperature (b) higher temperature
Y X
(c) lower concentration (d) higher concentration
Y X
(e) absence of a catalyst (f) presence of a catalyst
Y
(g) larger pieces (small surface area)
X
(h) smaller pieces (large surface area)
2. Which of the four factors affecting reaction rate is most important in each of the
following examples? Choose from concentration, temperature, surface area, and
catalyst.
SURFACE AREA
(a) Raw carrots are cut into thin slices for cooking.
(b) Protein is broken down in the stomach by the enzyme
CATALYST
pepsin.
(c) A woolly mammoth is found, perfectly preserved, near the
Arctic. SURFACE AREA
(d) More bubbles appear when a concentrated solution of hydrochloric
acid is added to a magnesium strip than when a dilute solution of
the acid is added. CONCENTARTION

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 Assessment
Name Date
Section 6.2

Use with textbook pages 272–277. 8. Which of the following are true about how
temperature affects the rate of reaction?
Factors affecting the
I. heating causes the particles of the reactants
rate of chemical to move more quickly
reactions II. lowering the temperature will raise the energy
Match the Term on the left with the best level of the particles
Descriptor on the right. Each Descriptor may be III. increasing the temperature results in more
used only once. collisions between the particles
Term Descriptor
A. I and II only
1. D catalyst A. a measure of how
C B. I and III only B
2. temperature much area of an object
3. A surface area is exposed C. II and III only
4. B concentration B. the amount of
D. I, II, and III
5. E rate of reaction substance dissolved
F
6. catalytic in a given volume of 9. Increasing which of the following will
converter solution increase the frequency of collisions?
C. a measure of the
average kinetic energy I. temperature
of all the particles in a
sample of matter II. surface area
D. a substance that
speeds up the rate of a III. concentration
chemical reaction
without being used up A. I and II only
itself or changed B. I and III only
E. a measure of how
quickly products form, C. II and III only
or given amounts of D. I, II, and III D
reactants react, in a
chemical reaction 10. Which of the following will lower the rate
F. a stainless steel of reaction?
pollution-control device A. adding an enzyme to the reaction
that converts poisonous
gases from the B. decreasing the temperature from 40˚C to
vehicle’s exhaust into 10˚C B
less harmful C. breaking a chunk of calcium up into
substances smaller pieces
7. When you walk through a crowded hallway D. increasing the amount of solute
at school, you are more likely to bump into dissolved in a solution
another person. To which of the following
factors that affect rate of reaction is this
analogy referring?
A. catalyst C. surface area
B. temperature D. concentration D

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