The kinetics of the combination of hydrogen and oxygen

Abstract

Although there are few gaseous reactions of more fundamental interest than the union of hydrogen and oxygen, it can hardly be said that the kinetics of this combination are at all completely understood. Many investigations have been made of the catalytic reaction which occurs in contact with various surfaces, and of the phenomena accompanying the production of flame or explosion in the gas. Little is known about the conditions governing the rate of the actual chemical change in the gas phase, because although flames and explosions depend very much upon these they are determined by a great many other factors as well. In 1899 Bodenstein, following up some work initiated by Victor Meyer, made a long series of experiments by streaming mixtures of the two gases through porcelain vessels, heated to a constant temperature, and then analysing the products. He came to the conclusion that the reaction is of the third order, following the equation d [H 2 O]/ dt = k [H 2 ] 2 [O 2 ]. Since the rate of combination was very different in different vessels, he inferred that the reaction was taking place almost entirely on the surface of the vessel.