Half-life of second order reactions

[FeralisExtremum]

Why does the half-life of second order reactions change as the reaction progresses? The equation for this halflife is t1/2 = 1/{k[A0]}

Where k is the rate constant and [A0] is the initial concentration. According to QVault, the half-life changes as the reaction progresses because it is dependent on concentration. But why does that matter if the only concentration used in the equation is the initial?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Minion]

Why does the half-life of second order reactions change as the reaction progresses? The equation for this halflife is t1/2 = 1/{k[A0]}

Where k is the rate constant and [A0] is the initial concentration. According to QVault, the half-life changes as the reaction progresses because it is dependent on concentration. But why does that matter if the only concentration used in the equation is the initial?

As time progresses, the initial concentration won't be the same anymore. Think of it like it is decaying, so technically the concentration does change.

 

[Illfavor]

Well, the "initial" concentration changes with each successive half life.

The definition of a half life is the time it takes a quantity to decay to 1/2 it's current amount. So, after the first half life, the second half life is measured from the value at the end of the first half life.