Consider the reaction Kinetics studies reveal a first-order rate dependence on the concentration of the (CH 3

Question:

Consider the reaction

CH3 H3C-C-Br + H2O T CH3 CH H3C-C-OH + HBr CH3

Kinetics studies reveal a first-order rate dependence on the concentration of the (CH₃)3C—Br and a zero-order dependence on the concentration of H₂O.

(a) What happens to the reaction rate as the (CH₃)₃C—Br concentration is changed? What happens to the reaction rate as the H₂O concentration is changed?

(b) Two mechanisms for this reaction are offered below. Can you rule out either of them? Is either mechanism plausible, given the overall balanced equation and kinetic data? Explain your answer fully.

Mechanism I CH3 H3C-C-Br T CH3 CH3 T HC-C++ HO T CH3 H+ + Br Slow Fast Fast CH3 H3C C++ Br CH3 CH3 H3C-C-OH +