Bimolecular Elementary Reactions

The collision and combination of two molecules or atoms to form an activated complex in an elementary reaction is called a bimolecular reaction. There are two types of bimolecular elementary reactions:

\(\begin{array}{c}A+B\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}⟶\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\text{products}\\ \text{and}\\ 2A\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}⟶\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\text{products}\end{array}\)

For the first type, in which the two reactant molecules are different, the rate law is first-order in A and first order in B:

\(\text{rate}=k\left[A\right]\left[B\right]\)

For the second type, in which two identical molecules collide and react, the rate law is second order in A:

\(\text{rate}=k\left[A\right]\left[A\right]=k\left[A\right]^{2}\)

Some chemical reactions have mechanisms that consist of a single bimolecular elementary reaction. One example is the reaction of nitrogen dioxide with carbon monoxide:

\({\text{NO}}_{2}\left(g\right)+\text{CO}\left(g\right)\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}⟶\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}\text{NO}\left(g\right)+{\text{CO}}_{2}\left(g\right)\)

(see the figure below)

This figure provides an illustration of a reaction between two H I molecules using space filling models. H atoms are shown as white spheres, and I atoms are shown as purple spheres. On the left, two H I molecules are shownwith a small white sphere bonded to a much larger purple sphere. The label, “Two H I molecules,” appears below. An arrow points right to a similar structure in which the two molecules appear pushed together, so that the purple spheres of the two molecules are touching. Below appears the label, “Transition state.” Following another arrow, two white spheres are shown vertically oriented and bonded together with the label, “H subscript 2” above. The H subscript 2 molecule is followed by a plus sign and two purple spheres bonded together with the label, “I subscript 2” above. Below these structures is the label, “Hydrogen iodide molecules decompose to produce hydrogen H subscript 2 and iodine I subscript 2.”

The probable mechanism for the reaction between NO₂ and CO to yield NO and CO₂.

Bimolecular elementary reactions may also be involved as steps in a multistep reaction mechanism. The reaction of atomic oxygen with ozone is one example:

\(\text{O}\left(g\right)+{\text{O}}_{3}\left(g\right)\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}⟶\phantom{\rule{0.2em}{0ex}}{\text{2O}}_{2}\left(g\right)\)

This lesson is part of:

Chemical Kinetics

View Full Tutorial

Track Your Learning Progress

Sign in to unlock unlimited practice exams, tutorial practice quizzes, personalized weak area practice, AI study assistance with Lexi, and detailed performance analytics.