出典:米国ジョンズ・ホプキンス大学(米国メリーランド州)のSmaa Koraym
この実験では、生徒がペアで作業することをお勧めします。機器の制御は異なる場合があります。
このラボでは、1 つの化合物が 2 つ以上の単純な生成物に分解する分解反応を行います。過酸化水素が水と酸素に分解される様子を観察します。この分解は非常にゆっくりと起こるため、活性化エネルギーを下げるための触媒として硝酸鉄(III)を使用します。
このプロセスでは、鉄は酸化還元反応を起こし、その後、最初の酸化状態に戻ります。これは、反応中の溶液の色の変化として見ることができます。同じ反応を 4 つの異なる温度で行い、フラスコ内の圧力を記録することで反応速度を追跡します。このようにして、各実験で酸素がどれだけ速く生成されたかを測定できます。これを使用して、反応の活性化エネルギーを計算します。
テーブル 1.過酸化水素の分解のための見かけの活性化エネルギーの推定
| 裁判 | 温度 (°C) | ΔP (kPa/s) | 1 / T | ln (ΔP) |
| 1 | ||||
| 2 | ||||
| 3 | ||||
| 4 |
過酸化水素と鉄の分解は、1つの方程式では簡単に説明できない複雑な多段階のプロセスです。しかし、酸素の生成速度から見かけの活性化エネルギーを推定し、それを触媒なしプロセスの見かけの活性化エネルギーと比較することはできます。
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Q1: Why is iron (III) nitrate used as a catalyst in the hydrogen peroxide decomposition experiment?
Iron (III) nitrate lowers the activation energy of the decomposition reaction, allowing hydrogen peroxide to break down into water and oxygen much faster than it would naturally. The iron undergoes a redox reaction during the process and returns to its original oxidation state, which you can observe as a color change in the solution.
Q2: How does temperature affect the rate of hydrogen peroxide decomposition?
Higher temperatures increase the reaction rate, producing oxygen gas more quickly. By performing the decomposition at four different temperatures and measuring pressure changes, you can quantify this relationship and calculate the apparent activation energy using the Arrhenius equation to determine how temperature influences reaction kinetics.
Q3: What does the pressure change inside the flask indicate during the experiment?
The pressure increase is directly proportional to the rate of oxygen production from hydrogen peroxide decomposition. By recording pressure changes over time using a gas pressure sensor, you can determine the reaction rate at each temperature and track how quickly the decomposition occurs.
Q4: How do you calculate apparent activation energy from experimental data?
Plot the natural log of the pressure change rate against the reciprocal of absolute temperature to create an Arrhenius plot. The slope of this line equals negative activation energy divided by the universal gas constant. Multiply the slope by the negative gas constant to obtain the apparent activation energy value.
Q5: Why is it important to evacuate the flask to 10 kPa before each trial?
Evacuating the flask removes air and creates a sealed system where pressure changes accurately reflect only the oxygen produced from the reaction. This ensures that your pressure measurements are reliable and not affected by atmospheric air or leaks in the apparatus.
Q6: What is the expected range for the apparent activation energy of the catalyzed decomposition?
The iron-catalyzed decomposition of hydrogen peroxide yields an apparent activation energy between 35 and 60 kJ/mol, significantly lower than the uncatalyzed reaction at 78–88 kJ/mol. This difference demonstrates how effectively the iron catalyst reduces the energy barrier for the reaction.