Which of the following situations would help speed up a chemical reaction?

• A. Decreasing the concentration of the reactants
• B. Increasing the temperature of the reactants
• C. Lowering the surface area of a solid reactant
• D. Removing a catalyst from the reaction mixture

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand that the rate of a chemical reaction depends on factors such as concentration, temperature, surface area, and the presence of a catalyst.
2. Recall that increasing the concentration of reactants generally increases the reaction rate because more reactant particles are available to collide and react.
3. Recognize that increasing the temperature increases the kinetic energy of the particles, leading to more frequent and energetic collisions, which speeds up the reaction.
4. Know that increasing the surface area of a solid reactant exposes more particles to react, thus speeding up the reaction; conversely, lowering the surface area slows it down.
5. Understand that catalysts provide an alternative reaction pathway with a lower activation energy, so removing a catalyst will slow down the reaction rather than speed it up.