One of the concerns about the use of Freons is that they will migrate to the upper atmosphere, where chlorine atoms can be generated by the following reaction:

Question

CCl2F2 --> CF2Cl + Cl

Chlorine atoms can act as a catalyst for the destruction of ozone. The Activation energy for the reaction

Cl + O3 --> ClO + O2

is 2.1kJ/mol. Which is the more effective catalyst for the destruction of ozone, CL or NO?

Please show all steps!!

Here is my work so far:

K(catalyzed by Cl) / K (catalyzed by O) = e^(Ea (CO catalyzed) - Ea (Cl catalyzed) / RT)

Ea (O Catalyzed) - Ea (Cl catalyzed) / RT

11,900 J mol - 2,100 J mol / 8.3145 J/ K mol x 241 K = 4.891.

K (Cl catalyzed) / K (O Catalyzed) = e (Ea(O Catalyzed) - Ea (Cl catalyzed) / RT = e^4.89101 = 133.0886

Cl is the more effective catalyst????

Answer 1

Yes, Cl is the more effective catalyst for the destruction of ozone. This is because the reaction catalyzed by Cl has a higher rate constant than the reaction catalyzed by O. The rate constant for the reaction catalyzed by Cl is 133.0886 times higher than the rate constant for the reaction catalyzed by O.