The Slow Step Writes the Rate Law

A mechanism has several steps, but only one of them is in charge. The reaction can go no faster than its slowest step — the bottleneck — and that step alone dictates the rate law. Not the overall equation. Watch the ledger derive it, one step at a time, and then watch it refuse to accept an answer that contains an intermediate.

8 STEPS · 6 QUICK CHECKS · NO₂ + CO → NO + CO₂ · v1