Final answer:
The question is about determining the order of reaction for the chemical equation A + B → C. When the reaction is first order with respect to both reactants A and B, it is a second-order reaction overall, and the rate law is expressed as rate = k [A] [B]. Reaction orders must be experimentally determined.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question involves determining the order of reaction with respect to different reactants in the reaction A + B → C. For the provided reaction where it is first order with respect to both A and B, the reaction rate is proportional to the concentrations of each reactant. This means that if you were to double the concentration of A, the reaction rate would double, and similarly, doubling the concentration of B would also double the reaction rate. Therefore, the rate law for this reaction can be written as: rate = k [A] [B].
Using the given data, if an experiment were conducted where the concentration of B is held constant while varying the concentration of A, and vice versa, initial reaction rates could be measured to determine the correct reaction order. This experimental approach is necessary because rate laws and reaction orders cannot be deduced solely from the reaction stoichiometry, but must be determined through experimental data analysis.
Summary
A zeroth-order reaction has a rate that is independent of the concentration of the reactants, whereas a first-order reaction rate is directly proportional to the concentration of a single reactant. For second-order reactions, the rate is either proportional to the square of the concentration of one reactant or proportional to the product of the concentrations of two different reactants.