http://www.ck12.org Chapter 18. Kinetics
CHAPTER
(^18) Kinetics
Chapter Outline
18.1 Rates of Reactions
18.2 RATELAWS
18.3 REACTIONMECHANISMS
18.4 REFERENCES
Chemical reactions are constantly occurring all around us. However, many substances that are capable of reacting
will not do so under normal conditions. For example, gasoline and other flammable organic fuels can be safely
stored at room temperature with little risk of a reaction. However, as seen in the image above, if heated to a high
enough temperature, hydrocarbon fuels will react rapidly and explosively. Chemical kinetics is the study of the rates
of chemical reactions. Reaction rates vary widely from one reaction to another. In addition, the rate of a reaction can
be influenced by changes in the reaction conditions, such as the concentrations of the reactants and the temperature.
Knowledge of reaction rates helps chemists better understand and control the reactions they study both in and out of
the laboratory.
Image co pyright Anna Baburkina, 2014 .www.shutterstock.com.U sed under license f rom Shutterstock.com.