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The Order of a Reaction

The order of a reaction with respect to a reactant is the power to which the concentration of the reactant is raised in the rate equation.If the order is zero with respect to a reactant then the rate is unaffected by a change in the concentration of that reactant.
rate α [A]0
If the order is one with respect to a reactant then the rate is directly proportional to the concentration of that reactant and the rate doubles when the concentration doubles.
rate α [A]1
If the order is two with respect to a reactant then the rate is directly proportional to the square of the concentration of that reactant and the rate quadruples when the concentration doubles.
rate α [A]2

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Specification: OCR Chemistry A (H432), A-level, 5.1.1 How fast?. Topic: Rate of Reaction.

Key terms in this lesson

rate equation
An equation that shows how the rate of a reaction depends on the concentration of each reactant, each raised to a power called its order.

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