Understanding the Rate of Reaction

The rate of a chemical reaction measures how quickly the concentration of reactants decreases or the concentration of products increases over time. According to the NCERT syllabus, the rate can be expressed as:

Rate of Reaction = - (Change in Concentration of Reactant) / (Change in Time) = (Change in Concentration of Product) / (Change in Time)

For a reaction aA + bB → cC + dD, the rate can be given by:

Rate = - (1/a) (d[A]/dt) = - (1/b) (d[B]/dt) = (1/c) (d[C]/dt) = (1/d) (d[D]/dt)

Here, [A], [B], [C], and [D] are the concentrations of reactants and products, and a, b, c, and d are their stoichiometric coefficients.