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Rate Constant:
The rate constant (k) is a proportionality constant that relates the rate of a chemical reaction to the concentrations of the reactants.
- It is defined as the rate of reaction when the concentrations of all reactants are 1 M.
- The rate constant depends on the nature of the reaction, the temperature, and the presence of catalysts.
Units of Rate Constant:
The units of the rate constant depend on the order of the reaction.
- For a first-order reaction, the units of k are s-1 (or reciprocal seconds).
- For a second-order reaction, the units of k are M-1s-1 (or inverse molarity seconds).
- For a third-order reaction, the units of k are M-2s-1 (or inverse molarity squared seconds).
The units of k for higher-order reactions can be obtained by generalizing this pattern.
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