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Chemistry

How Isotope Effects Reveal Reaction Mechanisms in Kinetic Studies

Quick fact

Replacing a hydrogen atom with deuterium can slow a reaction by up to 7-fold or even more, because the heavier isotope lowers the vibrational zero-point energy and raises the activation barrier.

Why this is interesting

Imagine two identical reactions, one with a hydrogen atom and one with a deuterium atom—yet one runs slower. Why would swapping a single neutron change the reaction speed?