(1) Define the term “Chemical

Equilibrium.”

(2) Define the “Law Of Mass Action.”

(3) Define the terms “Kc” and “Kp.”

(4) Illustrate the characteristics of the

Equilibrium Constant.
 Chemical Reactions
 Most chemical reactions do not go to completion.

 They are to some extent, reversible.

 As such, they can occur in either direction and are
called REVERSIBLE REACTIONS, i.e.:-
 Reactants Products
 Products Reactants
 The Reversible Reaction
 In 1798, the French chemist Claude Louis
Berthollet noticed deposits of Na2CO3 around the
edges of some salt lakes in Egypt.

 He was already familiar with the reaction

Na2CO3 + CaCl2 CaCO3 + 2 NaCl

 He immediately realized that the Na2CO3 must

have been formed by the reverse of this process
due to the very high concentration of salt in the
slowly-evaporating waters.

 The concept - “Reversible reaction” was born!

 Equilibrium
Equilibrium is basically a term that refers to a “balance
of forces.”
 Chemical Equilibrium

 When a chemical reaction occurs in a container,

the quantities of the components change as some
are consumed and others are formed.
 Eventually this change stops, the composition
remains unchanged as long as the system remains
undisturbed.
 The system is then said to be "at equilibrium".
Definition of Chemical Equilibrium

 Chemical equilibrium occurs when the rates of

the forward and reverse reactions are EQUAL and
the concentration of the reactants and products
no longer change with time.
Definition of Chemical Equilibrium
NOTE
The concentrations of reactants and
products are NOT equal; they are
CONSTANT.
 Chemical Equilibrium
Consider the following two reactions:-

H2 + I2 2HI “synthesis of hydrogen iodide”

2HI H2 + I2 “dissociation of hydrogen iodide”

 These two reactions represent the same chemical

reaction system in which the roles of the
components are reversed, and both yield the same
mixture of components when the change is
completed.
 Chemical Equilibrium
Graph 1 Graph 2

 Hence, the equilibrium state is independent

of the direction from which it is approached
(composition after equilibrium is the same).
 The Law Of Mass Action

 It is the law that states the following principle:

 the rate of a chemical reaction is directly proportional
to the product of the masses of the reacting substances.
 Equilibrium Constant
 “Equilibrium Constant” (K) is the term used to describe an
equilibrium reaction.

 It is defined as the ratio of the concentration of products

(raised to a power) to the concentration of reactants (raised
to a power).
 For a reaction:-
aA(aq) + bB(aq) cC(aq) + dD(aq)

 The equilibrium constant (K) is:-

[C(aq)]c[D(aq)]d
[A(aq)]a[B(aq)]b
 Kc and Kp
 Kc is the equilibrium constant used for aqueous
solutions.

 Kp is the equilibrium constant used for gases.

 The relationship between Kc and Kp is expressed by

the following reaction:-

Kp = Kc (RT)∆n
 What does the Equilibrium
Constant tell us?
 The value of the equilibrium constant gives an
indication of the relative quantities of reactants and
products formed at equilibrium.

 Hence it can tell us the yield.

 When:
 K>1: there are more products than reactants
 K<1: there are more reactants than products
 K≈1: products are almost equal to reactants
Characteristics of Equilibrium Constant
 The value of K is the same, at constant 'T' and 'P'.

 The value K does not depend on the concentrations of

the various species involved in the reaction.

 For a reversible reaction, K for the backward reaction is

inverse (reciprocal) of K for the forward reaction.

 A catalyst has no effect on K.

 The numerical value of K depends on the stoichiometry

of the chemical equation used in representing the reaction.
 Point 5
 The following rxn.
A2 + B 2 2AB (1)
 Can also be expressed as:
½ A2 + ½ B2 AB (2)
 If we look at the two equilibrium expressions for these
rxns.:

So K2 = √K1