Question

How do you increase surface area (Chemical reaction)?

Answer 1

A chemical reaction is directly proportional to the surface area of the combining substrates. The more the area of the surface of reacting species the higher is the rate of the reaction.

Complete step by step answer:
To answer the given question first we have to know the factors which govern the rate of a chemical reaction. The rate depends on
a. Nature of the reactants
b. Size of the particles of reacting species
c. Concentration of reaction mixture
d. Temperature at which the reaction is carried out
e. Any catalyst used.
The above five factors are responsible for the reaction to occur at a fast rate or in a slow rate.
Moreover the rates of reaction are also affected by the frequency of colliding species. If the number of collisions is more then the rate of the reaction increases. The reacting species offers more number of particles to expose during the reaction. This is explained with the help of dissolution of sugar in water. If the granules of sugar are powdered and allowed to dissolve in water than the granules itself, we observe that the powder dissolved faster than the granules.
This is the result of increasing the surface area from granules to powder. The reaction for such observation is obvious as the interaction between the powder and liquid is more than the interaction between the granules and the liquid.
Thus it is clear that the surface of the reactant where the number of collisions taking place is greater will result in more collisions per mole of reactant to take place. Hence the reactions occur smoother and faster which leads to the increase in the rate of reaction.

Note:
Please note that surface area of the reacting species is only one factor that affects rate. This affects the rate when other factors are constant throughout the reaction. If the increase in the surface area and the decrease in the temperature occur simultaneously then the rate of the reaction is not affected much as one change is nullified by the other.