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Q.Explain the instantaneous rate of a reaction.

Gujarat GsebGSEB Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) Examination 2022Subjective· 2mImportance★★★★★
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Instantaneous rate is the limiting value of the average rate as the time interval approaches zero - it captures the rate at a single, precise moment rather than over a finite interval.

The average rate over an interval Δt is (Δ[R])/Δt, but this changes throughout the reaction as reactant is consumed. The instantaneous rate is obtained by taking the limit as Δt -> 0:

Instantaneous rate = lim(Δt→0) (-Δ[R]/Δt) = -d[R]/dt = d[P]/dt.

Graphically, it equals the slope of the TANGENT drawn to the concentration-vs-time plot at the specific time of interest, unlike the average rate, which is the slope of a straight line (chord) connecting two points on the curve.

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