Acetone And Iodine Reaction Lab Report

Discussion In this experiment, the chemical reaction between acetone (CH3COCH3) and iodine (I2) to make CH3COCH2I, I-, and H+ was observed. Under normal circumstances, this reaction would occur very slowly. In order to speed up the process, hydrochloric acid (H+) was used as a catalyst. A catalyst is a substance that can speed up a reaction by lowering the activation energy of the reaction. It does this by changing the mechanism of the reaction and providing more energetically favorable elementary steps that would otherwise not exist without its presence. In addition, a catalyst does not get used up in the reaction. In this case, hydrochloric acid reappears in the products of the reaction because it does not get consumed. Hydrochloric acid acts through the process of homogenous catalysis since it is in the same liquid phase as the other reactants. …show more content…
the exponent values and the proportionality constant). The rate law information given was that rate= k[acetone]x[H+]y. The exponent values give information on the order of the reaction and how varying the concentration of the reactants will directly affect rate. This rate law shows that only the concentrations of acetone and hydrochloric acid affect the rate of the reaction, meaning that varying the concentration of iodine will have no effect on reaction rate. In relation to iodine, the reaction order would be 0. However, this doesn’t mean iodine is not useful. Molecular iodine has a brownish-yellow tinge. In contrast, once it undergoes the chemical reaction with acetone it loses this color. What this means is that iodine can be used as an indicator to measure if the reaction is taking place and when it stops. When all the molecular iodine is used up, the overall solution will become