In chemical kinetics, the rate (or velocity) of a reaction mechanism with several steps is often determined by the slowest step, known as the rate-determining step (RDS) or rate-limiting step. The experimental rate equation can help to identify which step is rate-determining.
In a reaction coordinate, the transition state with the highest energy is the rate-determining step of a given reaction.
The concept of the rate-determining step is very important to the optimization and understanding of many chemical processes such as catalysis and combustion.
Read more about Rate-determining Step: Example Reaction: NO2 + CO, Nucleophilic Substitution, Diffusion Control
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