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Chapter 60: Problem 14

For a certain chemical reaction \(\Delta G^{\circ}=-200 \mathrm{~kJ} / \mathrm{mol}\). When the reactants are mixed, no chemical reaction is apparent. Is this reaction under thermodynamic or kinetic control?

Short Answer

Expert verified
The reaction is under kinetic control.

Step by step solution

01

Understand Gibbs Free Energy (ΔG°)

The Gibbs free energy change (ΔG°) determines whether or not a reaction is thermodynamically favorable. A negative ΔG° indicates that the reaction is exergonic and thus spontaneous under standard conditions. In this case, ΔG° is -200 kJ/mol, indicating the reaction should be spontaneous.
02

Relate Thermodynamics and Kinetics to Reaction Progress

Even if a reaction is thermodynamically favored, it may not occur visibly due to kinetic factors. Reactions that are thermodynamically favorable could still have high activation energies that prevent the reaction from visibly proceeding. This is the difference between thermodynamics, which tells if a reaction can happen, and kinetics, which tells how fast a reaction will proceed.
03

Analyse the Reaction

In this scenario, even though ΔG° is negative and the reaction is thermodynamically favorable, no visible reaction is occurring. This implies that there's a kinetic barrier to the reaction progress. Thus, this reaction falls under kinetic control, not thermodynamic control.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

What one feature of a reaction coordinate diagram is indicative of kinetic control of a reaction? Explain. a) \(\quad \Delta H^{\circ}<0\) b) \(\quad \Delta H^{\circ}>0\) c) Activation energy is large d) Activation energy is small

For a certain chemical reaction \(\Delta G^{\circ}=200 \mathrm{~kJ} / \mathrm{mol}\). When the reactants are mixed, no chemical reaction is apparent. Is this reaction under thermodynamic or kinetic control?
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