The SIR Dynamic Model of Infectious Disease Transmission and Its Analogy with Chemical Kinetics

The classic Susceptible-Infectious-Recovered (SIR) mathematical model of the dynamics of infectious disease transmission resembles a dynamic model of a batch reactor carrying out an autocatalytic reaction with catalyst deactivation. This analogy between disease transmission and chemical reactions allows chemists and chemical engineers to peer into dynamic models of infectious disease transmission used to forecast epidemics and assess mitigation strategies. Moreover, analysis of SIR model dynamics gives insights into the kinetics of autocatalytic reactions.