Phenomenological field equations that describe isothermal chemical kinetics are cast into Hamiltonian form. The formalism is applied to a model reaction with autocatalytic chemicals in an extensive solution of substrate. Transforming the Hamiltonian into a collective representation shows that the autocatalytic subsystem can exist as a localized object with a discrete negative energy spectrum. It is observed that the collective state of matter exemplified by the model system also applies to other hypothetical reactions.