Unit 5: Reactivity 2: How Much, How Fast and How Far?
Topic 5.2: How Fast? The Rate of Chemical Change Questions
Practice 20 exam-style questions for IB Chemistry Topic 5.2. Review the question stems below, then unlock the full Question Bank to access markschemes, model answers, and AI grading.
1State1 mark
2026
State the overall order of this reaction.
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Deduce the units of the rate constant for a reaction with the rate equation rate = k[X][Y]2.
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State what the gradient of a graph of ln k against 1/T represents.
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State the two conditions a collision must meet for a reaction to occur.
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Unlock Question5explain3 marks
State what is meant by a catalyst and explain, with reference to the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution, how it increases the rate of reaction.
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State three factors, other than temperature, that affect the rate of a reaction between a solid and a solution, and for one of them explain the effect in terms of collisions.
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Unlock Question7describe3 marks
Sketch and describe how the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution shows that no particles have zero energy and that there is no maximum energy.
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Define rate of reaction and state two quantities that could be measured over time to follow the rate of a reaction that produces a gas.
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Explain, in terms of collision theory, why increasing the surface area of a solid reactant increases the rate of reaction.
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A student follows the reaction between calcium carbonate and hydrochloric acid by measuring the mass of the flask every 30 s. Explain why the mass decreases, and describe how the rate changes as the reaction proceeds.
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Explain, using the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution, why a small rise in temperature produces a large increase in the rate of reaction.
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Determine the activation energy, in kJ mol-1, of a reaction whose Arrhenius plot of ln k against 1/T has a gradient of -6.50 x 103 K.
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Unlock Question13Calculate2 marks
In an experiment, the concentration of a product increases from 0 to 0.48 mol dm⁻³ in the first 24 s.
Calculate the average rate of reaction over this interval, including its units. [2]
Calculate the average rate of reaction over this interval, including its units. [2]
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Unlock Question14Explain2 marks
Explain how a kinetics experiment can distinguish between an SN1 and an SN2 mechanism for the hydrolysis of a halogenoalkane.
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Deduce the rate equation and the units of the rate constant from the initial rate data below.
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Using collision theory, explain why only a small fraction of collisions between reactant particles lead to a reaction.
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Using collision theory, explain why increasing the concentration of a reactant increases the rate of reaction, and state the two requirements for a collision to be effective. [3]
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Explain, in terms of the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, why increasing the temperature increases the rate of a reaction. [3]
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Unlock Question19Outline2 marks
2026
Outline how increasing the surface area of a solid reactant increases the rate of reaction.
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2026
What does a catalyst do to a Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution?
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