0:00
Okay.
00:01
So what this question is really asking is what really dictates how fast a chemical reaction goes at? so the main thing to remember here is that kinetics and how fast a reaction goes is actually pretty independent from thermodynamics.
00:22
So you can calculate the gibbs free energy or the enthalpy or entropy of a reaction.
00:32
And it really does not matter to how fast the reaction will actually go.
00:38
So, for example, here, if we are looking at, say, an exothermic reaction, and the starting material is energetically here, and the products are way down here, this actually won't impact how fast the reaction will go.
00:56
What will is kind of how the reaction has to progress to get, in between these two things.
01:04
Okay, so if the potential energy surface of the reaction looks something like this, basically this hump right here is the highest energy point on the route between the starting material and the product.
01:18
So this is where we have to calculate the activation energy, and basically this is where the chemical species of the starting material have to gain some thermal energy either by like moving faster or like colliding with each other to reach this point.
01:35
And then it can kind of relax downhill into the products.
01:43
And basically, this activation energy is entirely what dictates how fast this reaction will go...