Equation 3 · Chemical Dynamics and Catalysis in Practice: An Advanced Technical Guide
What does this equation mean?
Read the formula alongside the article passage below. Each part has a deeper page with its role in the equation, the supporting passage and nearby citations.
the rate constant of step i , and the partial derivative is taken holding the equilibrium constant of that step fixed (so that only kinetics, not thermodynamics, is perturbed) and all other rate constants constant. Read the equation part by part below; each part has a contextual explanation and a link to its mathematical background.
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Symbol k_i
the rate constant of step i , and the partial derivative is taken holding the equilibrium constant of that step fixed (so that only kinetics, not thermodynamics, is perturbed) and all other rate constants constant.
subscript
The lower label selects a particular version, component, or indexed member of the quantity. For example, x₀ and xₜ can be values at different positions.
How to interpret it
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What the article says around this equation
Here r is the overall reaction rate, is the rate constant of step i , and the partial derivative is taken holding the equilibrium constant of that step fixed (so that only kinetics, not thermodynamics, is perturbed) and all other rate constants constant. This equation matters because it is the formal object the rest of this section’s isotope analysis is trying to estimate indirectly — DRC values are rarely measured directly; they are inferred from how observables like isotope ratios and apparent activation energies respond to controlled perturbations.
Sources cited in the article section
These citations give research context. Read each source to check which claims it supports.
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