Question

For a reaction X + Y → Z, in which both X and Y follow first order kinetics; if the concentration of X is increased 2 times and concentration of Y is increased 3 times, how does it affect the rate of reaction?

Hint:

In reactions with first-order kinetics for each reactant, changes in concentration directly affect the rate. Multiply the change factors for each reactant.

Answer 1

For a reaction where the rate law is:
Rate = k[X][Y],
if the concentration of X is increased by 2 times and Y by 3 times, the rate will change as follows:
\[ \text{New Rate} = k(2[X])(3[Y]) = 6 \times \text{original rate} \] Thus, the rate of reaction will increase 6 times.