Why is the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide slow
Decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide | Reactions | Chemistry | The Fuse School
in this lesson we will learn about how a
catalyst affects the rate of the
decomposition of hydrogen peroxide
fairly dilute solutions of hydrogen
peroxide approximately three to thirty
percent volume by volume can be used as
a household cleaning agent to remove
stains on furniture and clothing it can
also be used to bleach or lighten darker
hair whatever the real-life uses
hydrogen peroxide is always stored in a
dark plastic container away from
sunlight this is because in the presence
of warm conditions and UV light hydrogen
peroxide can decompose into water and
oxygen because the oxygen oxygen bond in
the molecule is unstable
since aqueous hydrogen peroxide and
water are clear and colorless liquids we
will monitor the rate of this reaction
by measuring the amount of oxygen
produced this decomposition reaction can
be catalyzed by manganese for oxide the
oxygen produced can be measured using a
gas syringe place a set amount of
hydrogen peroxide and add a small
spatula of manganese for oxide a fine
black powder quickly stopper the flask
so to prevent any evolved oxygen from
escaping into the surroundings you will
see that fizzing happens which shows
that oxygen gas is being produced this
is an exothermic reaction meaning that
heat energy is released the volume of
oxygen evolved can be recorded at
specific time intervals plotting the
volume of oxygen produced right against
time will give a graph that's similar to
this one right here we can measure the
rate of this reaction at any time in
this reaction by selecting a point on
the curve and drawing a line tangent to
the curve calculating the gradient of
the tangent will give you the rate of
the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide
that point in time a steeper gradient is
representative of a faster rate of
reaction whereas a less steep gradient
is representative of a slower rate of
reaction as you can see at the start of
the reaction the rate of decomposition
is very fast
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