14. Solution to Chemistry Problem

1. When studying the kinetics of the methyl tosylate (MT) hydrolysis reaction at 25 C, the following spectrophotometric data were obtained at a wavelength of 261 nm
n-CH3C6H5SO3CH3 H2O=CH3C6H5SO3H CH3OH
t, h 0 5.0 9.0 18.0 24.0 44.0 67.0 infinity
D, 0.791 0.746 0.709 0.645 0.611 0.526 0.471 0.420
where D is the optical density of the solution D=e*l*CMT, where e and l are constants. Other reagents contribute to the value of D and therefore the difference deltaD=D-Dinfinity should be used for calculations. Show that the reaction is first order and determine the rate constant.