Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
In a chemistry lab, two substances A and B react to form a product. At time minutes the concentration of the product is moles per litre. The rate of the reaction is , where the constant has the unit litres per mole per minute. The starting concentrations of A and B are and , and at minutes. A student separates the variables, so that , with the integral taken to be at . To integrate the right side she writes and finds and by the cover-up rule. She then finds the time at which the product reaches , and the concentration after minutes. Find and . Give the time in minutes and the concentration in moles per litre, each to four decimal places.
Factorise the bottom and write one term for each factor. Find the constants with the cover-up rule, or compare coefficients. Divide first if the top has degree at least that of the bottom.
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Given. with at .
Plan. Split the fraction, integrate, use , then solve for and for .
Step 1. The constants. At : . At : .
Step 2. Integrate. . At the left side is , so . Hence .
Step 3. Time for . The fraction is . So minutes.
Step 4. Concentration at minutes. , so . Solving, mol/L.
Answer: , , minutes and mol/L.
Check. Both values are below , the smaller starting concentration, so the reaction has not run out of B yet.
Log in to join the discussion.
Loading…
With Standard, you also open 12 more problems, 2 Python labs and 1 extra course. Everything you have used here stays free, always.