An examples course in reaction kinetics, an international case studies

An examples course in reaction kinetics, an international case studies approach. Norman C. Peterson. J. Chem. Educ. , 1982, 59 (6), p A204...
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ROOH REVIEW

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magnitude greater government research funding, EOR technology will lead to an estimated 4 million BPD production by 1985190. The report also claims that at $21/bbl, EOR processes are economical. It might be mentioned here that m d e has been selling at prices considerably higher than that for more than six wars. and current activities in EOR do not seem to support the author's (Yocum) prediction. I t is claimed that an estimated 1.3 trillion barrels of oil are locked in tar sands. A very large amount of it is located in ecologically delicate Athahasca vallev of Canada where most of the activities on &traction of crude from tar sands are taking place. Even after years of exploratory work, current experimental production goals are 45,000 BPD by Suncor and 130,000 BPD by Syncrude. The land that is ruined and the water that is wasted during extraction of crude from tar sands are truly incredible amounts; this is obvious from the data presented in the paper, but the author (Thomas) is totally silent on this ..... issne. .. Thr paper onsynthetic furls (gas and 11q. uid) from coal is a comprehensive summary of all major technologies of cual gssifiratim and coal liquefaction, and the current status of experimental plants under DOE'S encouragements. Several of these technologies obviouslv have ereat notentiel as enerw ... BOU~CPS. hut again theassault on erology wdl. no duubt, he Peverr. The two paprrs on the utilization of KOmass, the paper on photovoltaic conversion of solar energy, and the paper on wind energy are all very informative. Even from the initial experimental work on the technologies reoorted in these naoers the tremendous oot r n t ~ a uf l ~rhew trvhndorip~are quitr obviwm. This revitwrr feel* that it i%qustr unfurrtlnnte that the preamt Federal adminw tration has nearly eliminated research funding for these technologies when they are on the threshold of breakthroughs. The papers on fission and fusion power are detailed and hiehlv .. . technical. However. the intiernmation is nor nrw. Thr pnprron fisrion power has tdkrd about rh? w w e diipui;ll oprim~at~cnlly ulrh whirh this reviewer diiagrees. There is no discussion on the economics of fission and fusion power. The reviewer agrees with the thesis that the developing countries should place greater emphasis on unconventional energy sources and technologies. However, the reviewer disagrees with the corollary that the developed countries need not place emphasis on these technologies. As indicated by the titles and the contents of the paper, the Symposium was concerned with the technological aspects of energy production by various technologies. A reader interested only in the technological aspects of energy production may find this two-volume monoeraoh informative. Enerev orob,. I~mswrglmaIi n theirrsope, and inseparable front ghhd envirunntental, socirtal, pd~tiiol. and economic issurs. 1):scussiun uf merry rrchnolugws lusrs it* meaning unirai i t 1s dvnr in rhc p mpective of t h c v l s t r ~ iwws. r in rhls re5pect. the Symp~,iiumand thp pa-

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A204

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Journal of Chemical Education

~ e r lose s much of their simificance. Buddhadev S e n Louisiana State University Baton Rouge. LA 70803 An Examples Course In Reaction Kinetics, An International C a s e Studies Approach Ian M. Campbell, International Textbook 163 pp. Figs. Co., Glasgow. 1980. vii and tables. 14.5 X 21.5 cm. L6.75.

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"The aim of this book is to present a progressive course of worked and exercise examples in reaction kinetics.'' The examples and problem exercises in this book were selected from papers from the chemical literature available in the English language. A wide variety of topics were chosen. The scope of topics includes rate laws, kinetic order, relaxation kinetics, flow and stopped-flow methods, kinetic chain and non-chain mechanisms, collision theory, transition state theory, homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, photochemistry, radiolysis, and electrochemistry. Topics which are absent are molecular beam techniques, non-thermal equilibrium reactions, reactions in solvent mixtures, modulation techniques, chemical activation, RRKM theory, and outer-sphere electron transfer theory. The author has devised examples based on 43 papers selected from the literature of a wide range of subjects of chemical kinetics. An additional 90 papers were used as the basis of exercises for the student. The range of chemistry represented here should interest students representing specialties ranging from organic chemistry to polymer chemistry. Students having difficultv with a nroblem would be encouraged to ;cad theAoriginal paper for a definitive discussion. Those students actually looking a t the original publications might discover some surprises, such as when gas kinetieists use number density for units of concentration and kcal/mole for activation energies. The author has chosen to remove the experimental noise from the numbers quoted. The ready availability of small computers to chemistry students seems unrecognized by the author. Unfortunately, topics such as least squares and the iterative solution of equations are not admitted to the discussion. Formal integration of the rate equations is shown in the examples, but numerical solutions of rate equations are altogether absent. Equilibrium constants have no units, because activities are dimensionless. In this hook units are attached to the equilibrium constants. Example 21 on the 0 0 2 reaction discusses a subject of current interest in stmospheric research. Recent work finds considerably different rates and activation energies. [See Klais, Anderson, and Kurylo, Int. J. Chemical Kinetics, 12,469 (1980) and Huie, Herron, and Davis, J.Phys. Chem., 76, 2653 (1972)l. This reviewer would have welcomed some problems in which interpretation of a research paper was asked for so as to convey a skeptical attitude about the chemical literature. A collection of problems based on the literature is a very attractive idea. I t brings to mind a pictureof the overworked professor

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sittina in his office. selectine oroblems for the class assienment. and thushaving additional time for Kis scholarly activities. Students, of course, would resolve their problems in the library, instead of knocking on the professor's door or making trouble in class. I would like to suggest a student problem based on example 12. Study Example 12 in the problem book concerning the oxidation of propan-2-01 by aqueous chlorine. Derive the correct equilibrium expression for [CIz]/[OXIDANT] where [OXIDANT] = [Clz] [HOCI] and show that the expression in the problem book (p. 29) is incorrectly given as the reciprocal. Based on the equilibrium

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~

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CI&+HzO) = H+ + CI-

+ HOCI

show that the expression on the bottom of page 29 in the hook should read h o ~ =s hl[alcohol]l(l

+ KI[HC][C1-11)

Usr the numtwrs awen on ~3ge:I~110 ewluate thr rarecmstant, u s n y thr t q x r i a ~ m g ~ v r n . Compare the results with those given in the original article (Table 6) below. [Cl-1 added

0.03

koes

13.5

Note that a factor of probahly was omitted from the original publication. Solve for the equilibrium concentration of CI- and show that the first two C1- concentrations in the table above differ from the equilibrium values by 10% and 5%, respeetively. This book might be useful for problem work in kinetics when examples are available with content and level appropriate to the subjects to be discussed. Space does not permit a complete c?talog of topics in this review. The index is too brief to be a guide to selecting exereisesor topics. 1give theauthor high marks for his concept and look forward to an improved, revised edition after additional classroom use. Norman C. Peterson Polytechnic Institute of New York Brooklyn, NY 11201 and

Chem ca r( net.cs D ws on US Nat onal B.reau of Stanoaras Wash~ngton.DC 20234 Hazardous Chemicals: A Manual for Schools and Colleges Scottish Schools Science Equipment Research Centre. (Editors), Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh. England. 1980. xiv 225 pp. 17.5 X 21 cm. $12.95.

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The Introduction to this book opens with the following paragraph: "The natural disposition of those concerned to have safe ~ h a o laboratories l has been reinforced hy legislation with penalties for neglect or far infringement. The Health and Safety Work Act of 1974 requires the provision of information, instruction, and training of employees by the employer and of arrangements which ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, the safety and absence of risks to health in the use, handling and storage of articles and substances."