e x p e r i m e n t2- r a t e c o n s t a n t o f a p s e u d o- f i r s t o r d e r r e a c t i o n（e x p e r m e n t2 - r t e c o n s t n t o f p s e u d o - f i r s t o d e r r e c t i o n）.doc

EXPERIMENT 2 - RATE CONSTANT OF A PSEUDO-FIRST ORDER REACTION OBJECTIVE To determine the rate constant of a pseudo-first order reaction (ie - the hydrolysis of sucrose) by polarimetry. THEORY Sucrose, cane sugar, undergoes the following hydrolysis reaction. The reaction is catalyzed by acid. C12H22O11 + H2O C6H12O6 + C6H12O6 rxn (2-1) sucrose D-glucose D-fructose The rate of hydrolysis is given by the second order rate equation, Rate = k [sucrose] [H+]. eqn (2-1) If [H+] is present in great excess, the rate equation becomes, Rate = k [sucrose] eqn (2-2) where k = k [H+]. Under this condition, the hydrolysis of sucrose is said to follow a pseudo-first order reaction. The purpose of the experiment is to accurately determine the apparent rate constant k for this reaction. Let c = concentration of sucrose remaining at any time t. = rate of hydrolysis of sucrose at any time t. Then, the rate of hydrolysis is, - = kc eqn (2-3) where the negative sign shows the rate of hydrolysis of sucrose is decreasing. This differential equation can be integrated to yield the integrated rate equation, c = coe-kt eqn (2-4) or eqn (2-5) or eqn (2-6) ( y = mx ) where co = initial concentration of sucrose before hydrolysis. We can calculate the concentration of sucrose remaining at any time t, if we know k and co. Alternatively, we can use the integrated rate equation to accurately determine k, since a plot of log() versus time should be a straight line. Optical Rotation A sucrose solution is said to be optically active because it can rotate the plane of a beam of polarized light. The angle of rotation is proportional to the number of optically active molecules in the path of the polarized light. Expressed mathematically, = [ eqn (2-7) where = angle of