Which of the following is NOT a way to speed up a chemical reaction? (Select all that apply)
a
increasing the temperature of one of the reactants
b
decreasing the surface area of one of the reactants
c
decreasing the temperature of one of the reactants
d
increasing the concentration of one of the reactants
c
The correct answers are:
b) decreasing the surface area of one of the reactants
c) decreasing the temperature of one of the reactants
To determine which of the given options is NOT a way to speed up a chemical reaction, we can go through each option and evaluate its impact on the reaction rate.
Option a: Increasing the temperature of one of the reactants - This is a valid way to speed up a chemical reaction. Higher temperatures provide more energy to the reactant particles, leading to increased collision frequency and greater chances of successful collisions, resulting in a faster reaction rate.
Option b: Decreasing the surface area of one of the reactants - This is also a valid way to speed up a chemical reaction. When the surface area of a reactant is reduced, it decreases the number of exposed particles available for reaction. As a result, the reactant particles have fewer collisions, but each collision is more likely to be successful, leading to a faster reaction rate.
Option c: Decreasing the temperature of one of the reactants - This option is NOT a way to speed up a chemical reaction. Lower temperatures typically slow down reactions because the reactant particles have less energy. This reduces the collision frequency and the likelihood of successful collisions, resulting in a slower reaction rate.
Option d: Increasing the concentration of one of the reactants - This is also a valid way to speed up a chemical reaction. Higher concentrations increase the number of reactant particles in the same volume, which increases the collision frequency. This leads to more frequent successful collisions and a faster reaction rate.
Therefore, the correct answer is option c: decreasing the temperature of one of the reactants, as it is not a way to speed up a chemical reaction.