Work through the list without notes. If you cannot do a statement, follow its link, then come back. For the first Skills statement, mark your drawing against the guide’s “Drawing a profile” list. Guide = study guide; Practice = practice questions.
Understanding
- I can describe an elementary step as some bonds breaking while new bonds form. (Guide: “Bonds break, bonds form”; Practice Q7)
- I can explain what the reaction coordinate shows, and why it is not time. (Guide: “Bonds break, bonds form”)
- I can describe the transition state: the highest-energy arrangement, with partial bonds, which cannot be isolated. (Guide: “The transition state”; Practice Q3, Q7)
- I can explain why the energy profile does not change when the temperature changes. (Practice Q4, Q6)
Skills
- I can draw a fully labelled energy profile for one elementary step from Eₐ and ΔH data. (Guide: Figure 1, Worked example 2; Practice Q5)
- I can read Eₐ(forward), Eₐ(reverse) and ΔH from a profile as differences between levels. (Guide: Worked example 1; Practice Q1)
- I can calculate any one of Eₐ(forward), Eₐ(reverse) and ΔH from the other two. (Practice Q2, Q5, Q7)
- I can decide from a profile whether a step is exothermic or endothermic. (Practice Q2)
Reasoning
- I can use the Arrhenius equation, without calculating, to explain why rate rises with temperature. (Guide: “Temperature and the Arrhenius equation”; Practice Q4)
- I can explain why a step with a larger Eₐ is slower and more sensitive to temperature. (Guide: Worked example 3; Practice Q6)
- I can explain why the reverse of a strongly exothermic step is much slower. (Practice Q5, Q7)
All ticked? Move on to Topic 5.7, Introduction to Reaction Mechanisms, or return to the course roadmap.