The rate constant of a reaction at temperature 200 is 10 times less than the rate constant at 400 K. What is the activation energy (Ea) of the reaction? (R = gas constant):
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is option 2. 921.2 R
To determine the activation energy \((E_a)\) of the reaction, we can use the Arrhenius equation:
\( k = Ae^{-\frac{E_a}{RT}} \)
where:
\(k\) is the rate constant,
\(A\) is the pre-exponential factor,
\(E_a\) is the activation energy,
\(R\) is the gas constant, and
\(T\) is the temperature in Kelvin.
We are given that the rate constant at 200 K is 10 times less than the rate constant at 400 K. Mathematically, we can write this as:
\( k_{200} = \frac{1}{10} k_{400} \)
Now, we can substitute these values into the Arrhenius equation and solve for Ea.
For 200 K:
\(k_{200} = Ae^{-\frac{E_a}{RT_{200}}}\)
For 400 K:
\(k_{400} = Ae^{-\frac{E_a}{RT_{400}}}\)
Taking the ratio of these two equations:
\(\frac{k_{200}}{k_{400}} = \frac{Ae^{-\frac{E_a}{RT_{200}}}}{Ae^{-\frac{E_a}{RT_{400}}}} \)
Simplifying:
\(\frac{k_{200}}{k_{400}} = e^{-\frac{E_a}{R}\left(\frac{1}{T_{200}} - \frac{1}{T_{400}}\right)} \)
Given that \( k_{200} = \frac{1}{10} k_{400} \), we can substitute this into the equation:
\(\frac{1}{10} = e^{-\frac{E_a}{R}\left(\frac{1}{T_{200}} - \frac{1}{T_{400}}\right)} \)
Taking the natural logarithm of both sides:
\(\ln\left(\frac{1}{10}\right) = -\frac{E_a}{R}\left(\frac{1}{T_{200}} - \frac{1}{T_{400}}\right) \)
Simplifying further:
\(\frac{E_a}{R} = -\frac{\ln\left(\frac{1}{10}\right)}{\frac{1}{T_{200}} - \frac{1}{T_{400}}} \)
Now, we can substitute the values for \( T_{200} = 200 \) K and \( T_{400} = 400 \) K, as well as the value of the gas constant R, to calculate Ea:
\(\frac{E_a}{R} = -\frac{\ln\left(\frac{1}{10}\right)}{\frac{1}{200} - \frac{1}{400}}\)
Calculating this expression:
\(\frac{E_a}{R} \approx 921.2 \)
Hence, the activation energy (Ea) of the reaction is approximately 921.2 times the gas constant (R).
Therefore, the correct answer is (2) 921.2 R.