Subtopic: Kinetics of microbial death – pasteurization and sterilization of milk and other liquid foods
Question Statement:
Thermal destruction of bacterial spores exhibits first-order kinetics. The reaction rate constants are $k_1 = 0.046\text{ s}^{-1}$ at $T_1 = 383.15\text{ K}$ ($110^\circ\text{C}$) and $k_2 = 0.460\text{ s}^{-1}$ at $T_2 = 393.15\text{ K}$ ($120^\circ\text{C}$). Taking the universal gas constant $R = 8.314\text{ J/(mol}\cdot\text{K)}$, the Arrhenius activation energy ($E_a$) in $\text{kJ/mol}$ is ________ (round off to 1 decimal place).