Chemical kinetics
Graduate · Chemistry
Syllabus focus
Standard syllabus · Theoretical / proof-based
Pricing
Graduate-level rates are set on consultation. See the pricing page for K–12 and undergraduate rates.
Topics typically covered
Standard syllabus
Experimental kinetics
- Rate law determination: initial rates and integration methods
- Temperature dependence: Arrhenius, Eyring, and isokinetic relationships
- Isotope effects: primary, secondary, solvent, equilibrium
- Kinetic isotope effect theory and tunneling corrections
- Stopped-flow and rapid mixing techniques
- Relaxation methods: temperature-jump, pressure-jump
- Laser flash photolysis and pump–probe spectroscopy
- Matrix isolation kinetics
- Competition kinetics and relative rate measurements
- Error analysis and statistical treatment of kinetic data
Complex mechanisms
- Steady-state and pre-equilibrium approximations: validity criteria
- Rate laws for consecutive, parallel, and reversible reactions
- Chain reactions: initiation, propagation, termination, inhibition
- Explosion limits and branched chain mechanisms
- Oscillating reactions: Belousov–Zhabotinsky, Oregonator model
- Enzyme kinetics: Michaelis–Menten, inhibition, allostery
- Heterogeneous catalytic kinetics: Langmuir–Hinshelwood, Eley–Rideal
- Photochemical kinetics and quantum yields
- Radiation chemistry kinetics
- Microkinetic modeling of reaction networks
Gas-phase and solution dynamics
- Collision theory and hard-sphere model
- Transition state theory: partition function formulation
- Diffusion-controlled reactions: Smoluchowski theory
- Kramers rate theory for reactions in solution
- Marcus theory for electron transfer: reorganization energy
- RRKM and master equation for unimolecular reactions
- Molecular beam kinetics and crossed-beam studies
- State-resolved dynamics and steric effects
- Solvent effects on reaction rates and selectivity
- Ionic strength and activity coefficient effects
Industrial and environmental kinetics
- Reactor design: batch, CSTR, PFR kinetics
- Heterogeneous catalyst deactivation kinetics
- Combustion kinetics and atmospheric chemistry models
- Polymerization kinetics: chain-growth rate expressions
- Bioreactor kinetics and cell growth models
- Environmental degradation kinetics of pollutants
- Drug degradation and shelf-life kinetics
- Process safety: runaway reaction kinetics
- Scale-up effects on observed kinetics
- Real-time monitoring in manufacturing (PAT)
Theoretical / proof-based
Rigorous kinetic theory
- Derivation of rate laws from mechanistic schemes
- Proof of steady-state approximation conditions
- Linear free-energy relationships in kinetics
- Potential energy surface topology and reaction coordinates
- Variational transition state theory
- Rice–Ramsperger–Kassel–Marcus (RRKM) theory derivation
- Unimolecular falloff and Lindemann mechanism
- Master equation approach to chemical kinetics
- Stochastic simulation algorithms (Gillespie)
- Connection between deterministic and stochastic kinetics
Advanced dynamics
- Transition path sampling and committor analysis
- Reaction coordinate identification: PCA, committor, MSM
- Nonadiabatic dynamics and surface hopping (overview)
- Femtochemistry: transition state spectroscopy
- Photodissociation dynamics and vector correlations
- Statistical theories of reaction rates in clusters
- Quantum effects on rate constants at low temperature
- Kinetic isotope effects as probes of transition state structure
- Heavy-atom tunneling in enzymatic reactions
- Computational kinetics: variational TS search and VTST
Notes
Graduate-level chemical kinetics. Topics reflect common chemical kinetics syllabi at US research universities. Prior physical chemistry coursework essential. Overlap with chemical dynamics and physical organic chemistry is typical.