Mechanism of Molecular Action. 799 



To obtain some idea as to what these may be, is the object 

 of this paper. 



In Part I. a relation is obtained thermodynamically ex- 

 pressing the velocity of a chemical (or other) gaseous action 

 in terms of the temperature, &c. 



In Part II. the mechanism of the reaction is shown to 

 be limited to two alternatives, as other mechanisms give 

 results inconsistent with the thermodynamical result and 

 with experiments. 



In Part III. it is shown that the various molecules of a 

 pure substance, though having similar constituent atoms 

 (same atomic composition), differ from one another in the 

 configuration and motion of these constituent atoms according 

 to a definite law that is there deduced. 



Part I. 



By considering the condition of maximum entropy of a 

 gaseous mixture (mass and volume constant) Willard Gribbs * 

 and Planck t derive the relation 



which, by a change of notation J, may be written 



n[QiT __-(*) 

 n[P0 



* Gibbs, Am. J. of Sc, Nov. 1897 ; Coll. Papers, i. p. 372. 

 t Planck, Thermodynamic, equation (204). 



11 

 \ According to Planck's notation C\= , V where n if n 2t &c. 



are the number of molecules of each substance present, p 19 p 2f &c. are 

 the partial pressures, v lf v 2f &c. are the number of molecules" of each 

 substance actually taking part in the action. 



M =ae • (I-) 



Whence 

 becomes 



i. e. 



.« H)/a 



2i 



110,," -« < \p) ^ 





"W" -ac K " eJ C\( l Y"' since ^-R 



*'. e. U{n x ) ' = At' 

 ■which in our notation is 



nwi 1 (-1) 



n[P,] A '= a<; 



