Chemistry / Unit 9 Chem 1686 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Collision Orientation Requirement
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The idea
A collision reacts only if the colliding particles meet in an orientation bringing the atoms that will bond into contact.
In practice
Carbon monoxide forms carbon dioxide with oxygen far more readily when its carbon end, not its oxygen end, strikes the oxygen molecule.
Where people slip
A collision between the right particles at the right concentration still fails if their geometry is wrong at impact.
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