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Catalysis
The Key Equation
k = Ae-Ea/RT
k = A exp[-Ea/RT]
lnk = lnA -Ea/RT
1
Kinetics 4 - Aims
How catalysts work
Catalysis in biology, in the atmosphere
and in industry
Catalysis
A catalyst is a substance that changes the
speed (rate) of a chemical reaction without
undergoing any permanent change itself
Catalysts are very common; most reactions in
the human body, the atmosphere, the oceans
Catalysis
Catalysts are not used up during a
reaction but may be changed physically
eg solid catalysts sometimes crumble
Only small amounts are needed
Catalysts do not affect the amount of
product formed; only the rate of
formation
Examples of catalysts
1.
2.
3.
Eas
7
Uncatalysed rxn
8
7
6
Catalysed rxn
5
4
3
2
1
0
0
10
15
20
Reaction Pathway
Semantic argument?
Does a catalyst really work by decreasing
the activation energy of the reaction?
OR
Does a catalyst work by providing a new
Biological Catalysts
All the systems in the human body must occur at
carefully controlled rates in order to maintain
human life
Biological Catalysts
Decomposition of H2O2 is an important biological process
H2O2 is strongly oxidising and can be very harmful
Biological Catalysts
The overall reaction is
2H2O2(aq) 2H2O(l) + O2(g)
Biological Catalysts
Catalase is another enzyme that will speed
up the decomposition of H2O2
The enzyme is a large molecule but the
reaction is catalysed at a very specific
region/ location in the enzyme called the
active site
The substances that undergo reaction at
14
Biological Catalysts
Combination of the
enzyme and the substrate
is called the
enzyme-substrate
complex
15
Biological Catalysts
The substrate weakly interacts with the active
site. A product is formed. The initial weak
bond formed is easily broken and the enzyme
is regenerated
Enzymes are sensitive to both pH and
Atmospheric catalysts
O3 in our upper atmosphere is very important as
it helps to filter out harmful UV radiation
Chlorofluorcarbons (CFCs) are inert compounds
which can rise to the upper atmosphere where
Atmospheric catalysts
1.
2.
18
Atmospheric catalysts
The rate at which ozone is destroyed
increases as the quantity of Cl atoms
increase
The greater amount of CFCs that
diffuse in to the stratosphere, the faster
the destruction of the ozone layer
19
Industrial catalysts
Often HETEROGENEOUS in nature
The octane number (ON) of a gasoline is a
measure of its resistance to knocking: high
ON burn more smoothly and more effective
fuels
20
Industrial catalysts
Pentane has an octane number, ON = 62,
whereas 2-methyl butane has ON = 93
CH3CH2CH2CH2CH3 CH3C(H)CH2CH3
CH3