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    Maxwell Boltzmann Chem CW (Edited)

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    Marbel
    James Clerk Maxwell first introduced the idea of the distribution of velocities among gas molecules in 1859, which was later generalized and expanded on by Ludwig Boltzmann in the 1870s to consider energy distributions, known today as the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This distribution calculates the probability of molecules having different velocities or energies based on temperature, and shows that increasing the temperature increases the average kinetic energy and number of molecules with enough energy to react, increasing the reaction rate. Adding a catalyst also increases the reaction rate by lowering the activation energy needed for molecules to react.

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    Maxwell Boltzmann Chem CW (Edited)

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    Marbel
    27 views3 pages
    James Clerk Maxwell first introduced the idea of the distribution of velocities among gas molecules in 1859, which was later generalized and expanded on by Ludwig Boltzmann in the 1870s to consider energy distributions, known today as the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This distribution calculates the probability of molecules having different velocities or energies based on temperature, and shows that increasing the temperature increases the average kinetic energy and number of molecules with enough energy to react, increasing the reaction rate. Adding a catalyst also increases the reaction rate by lowering the activation energy needed for molecules to react.

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    James Clerk Maxwell first introduced the idea of the distribution of velocities among gas molecules in 1859, which was later generalized and expanded on by Ludwig Boltzmann in the 1870s to consider energy distributions, known today as the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This distribution calculates the probability of molecules having different velocities or energies based on temperature, and shows that increasing the temperature increases the average kinetic energy and number of molecules with enough energy to react, increasing the reaction rate. Adding a catalyst also increases the reaction rate by lowering the activation energy needed for molecules to react.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    27 views3 pages

    Maxwell Boltzmann Chem CW (Edited)

    Uploaded by

    Marbel
    James Clerk Maxwell first introduced the idea of the distribution of velocities among gas molecules in 1859, which was later generalized and expanded on by Ludwig Boltzmann in the 1870s to consider energy distributions, known today as the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This distribution calculates the probability of molecules having different velocities or energies based on temperature, and shows that increasing the temperature increases the average kinetic energy and number of molecules with enough energy to react, increasing the reaction rate. Adding a catalyst also increases the reaction rate by lowering the activation energy needed for molecules to react.

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    MAXWELL-BOLTZMANN

    James Clerk Maxwell, a Scottish physicist, introduced the idea of the distribution of velocities
    among the molecules of a gas in 1859. His idea and findings were later generalized by Ludwig
    Boltzmann, a German physicist, as the distribution of energies among molecules in the early
    1870’s. Both physicists are accredited for their findings commonly known as the Maxwell-
    Boltzmann Distribution.

    MAXWELL-BOLTZMANN DISTRIBUTION
    Maxwell and Boltzmann calculated the distribution of the velocities i.e. energies amongst
    molecules of gases using the basis of probability laws. The graph shown below further explains
    the distribution:

     The vertical line on the diagram shows the activation energy. This is the minimum energy
    required to ‘activate’ the particles in an atom or compound in order to result in a chemical
    reaction.

    From the diagram, the following can be inferred:


     Some molecules of a gas have low energies (these are those with insufficient energy to
    react) and some have high energies (those with sufficient energy to react).
     The majority of molecules of a gas have an average energy represented by the rise in the
    graph at the left.
     Only molecules with energy greater than the activation energy will react.

    To alter the rate of reaction, a change in temperature or addition of catalyst can be considered.\
    TEMPERATURE
    As the temperature of the gas increases, the kinetic energy of the gas molecules increase.
    Therefore, the energies of the gas molecules with low energy will increase, as well as those with
    high energy; this produces a shift in the graph as shown below:

    T1 – represents the energies of the gas molecules before a change in temperature.


    T2 – represents the energies of the gas molecules after the temperature increases.

    N.B. The number of molecules in the system being considered does not change

    From the shift in the graph, the following can be inferred:


     With an increase in temperature, the gas molecules gain more kinetic energy, hence the
    number of molecules with energy equal to or greater than the activation energy increases.
    (This is shown by the flattening of the curve).

     The gas molecules collide more frequently and effectively due to the increase in kinetic
    energy hence showing that with an increase in temperature, the rate will increase.

    *From experimental data, for every 10℃ increase in temperature the rate of reaction doubles.
    Hence a decrease in temperature will slow down the rate of a reaction.

    CATALYST
    A catalyst is a substance that alters the rate of a reaction, usually increasing the rate, by creating
    an alternate pathway to do so.
    On the addition of a catalyst, the activation energy is lowered i.e. the amount of energy required
    for molecules to react is reduced so more molecules in the system can readily react. The graph
    below shows the distribution when a catalyst is added:

    N.B. The number of molecules in the system being considered does not change

    From the graph shown, the following can be inferred:


     The pathway provided on addition of the catalyst lowers the required activation energy.

     A greater proportion of molecules in the system now have enough or greater than the
    required activation energy and thus more molecules can readily react.

     Since more molecules can readily react, the rate of reaction increases on addition of a
    catalyst.

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