transition-state theory: Quick Facts

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Facts

Also Known As	theory of absolute reaction rates • activated-complex theory

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A graph showing a potential energy curve for a chemical reaction, with the y-axis labeled potential energy and the x-axis labeled progress of reaction. The curve rises from the initial state (reactants) to a peak labeled transition state (activated complex), indicating activation energy, then drops to the final state (products).

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Topics

reaction mechanism heat of reaction catalyst chemical intermediate

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