Introduction

This is a simulation of two molecules of Hydrogen Iodide interacting with each other. One molecule is designated as the "bullet" molecule, which is shot into the "target" molecule. The hydrogen atom is displayed as the small red sphere, and the iodide is shown as the larger blue sphere. The various game levels allow the user to control different motions of the molecules.

Your objective is to get the molecules to react to form a molecule of Hydrogen. The mechanism for this step is illustrated below:

HI + HI --> H₂ + 2I^-

This equation illustrates that one HI molecule can react with another HI molecule to form a hydrogen molecule and two iodide ions.

Your task is to determine the conditions under which THIS reaction may occur. But beware, other reactions can also occur under certain conditions...

Instructions

For each level, you have certain controls:

Level 1:

Use the Bullet Orientation slider to change the orientation of the "bullet" molecule.
Use the Target Orientation slider to change the orientation of the "target" molecule.
Use the Bullet Speed slider to change the speed of the "bullet" molecule when it is fired.

Level 2:

Use the Bullet Orientation slider to change the orientation of the "bullet" molecule.
Use the Bullet Speed slider to change the speed of the "bullet" molecule when it is fired.

Level 3:

Bullet Speed

When you have set the values to whatever you like, click the GO! button to watch the reaction and see the results.
When the reacton is over, hit the Reset button to try again. You can try as many times as you like, but the more times you get a reaction, the higher your score will be.
When you decide to finish and go to the next level, click the Quit button.

Please wait for all graphics to load (about two minutes).

Note: this simulation requires Netscape Navigator 4.0 or higher. 3.0 has some problems with Java.