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General Chemistry 2
Quarter 3 - Week 8
Module 8 – Catalyst Affecting Reaction
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General Chemistry 2
Grade 11/12 Quarter 3: Week 8 - Module 8 – Catalyst Affecting Reaction
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First Edition, 2021

Copyright © 2021
La Union Schools Division
Region I

All rights reserved. No part of this module may be reproduced in any form
without written permission from the copyright owners.

Development Team of the Module

Author: ARLENE D. ORIBELLO

Editor: SDO La Union, Learning Resource Quality Assurance Team

Illustrator: Ernesto F. Ramos Jr., P II

Management Team:

Atty. Donato D. Balderas, Jr.

Schools Division Superintendent

Vivian Luz S. Pagatpatan, Ph.D

Assistant Schools Division Superintendent

German E. Flora, Ph.D, CID Chief

Virgilio C. Boado, Ph.D, EPS in Charge of LRMS

Rominel S. Sobremonte, Ed.D, EPS in Charge of Science

Michael Jason D. Morales, PDO II

Claire P. Toluyen, Librarian II
 General Chemistry 2
Quarter 3: Week 8
Module 8 – Catalyst Affecting
Reaction Rate
 TARGET

Catalysts typically speed up a reaction by reducing the activation

energy or changing the reaction mechanism. Enzymes are proteins that act
as catalysts in biochemical reactions. Common types of catalysts include
enzymes, acid-base catalysts, and heterogeneous (or surface) catalysts
which will be discuss as you go through with this module.

In your previous lesson, you’ve learned about how various factors

influence the rate of a reaction and as you go through, this module explains
how adding a catalyst affects the rate of a reaction.

After going through this learning material, you are expected to:

1. Explain activation energy and how a catalyst affects the

reaction rate (STEM_GC11CK-IIIi-j-137)

2. Cite and differentiate the types of catalysts (STEM_GC11CK-

IIIi-j-138)
 JUMPSTART

For you to understand the lesson well, study the pictures below
and answer the questions that follow. Let’s start…

Figure A. Fireworks at Night Over River Figure B. Rusted Barbed Wire

Source: http://www.coolscience.org/CoolScience/KidScientists/h2o2.htm

Compare the chemical reactions between the two figure

above.

.
 DISCOVER

A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a reaction, but is

chemically unchanged at the end of the reaction. When the reaction has
finished, you would have exactly the same mass of catalyst as you had at
the beginning.

Some examples:

REACTION CATALYST

manganese(IV) oxide,
Decomposition of hydrogen peroxide
MnO2

concentrated
Nitration of benzene
sulphuric acid

Manufacture of ammonia by the Haber Process iron

Conversion of SO2 into SO3 during the Contact vanadium(V) oxide,

Process to make sulphuric acid V2O5

Hydrogenation of a C=C double bond nickel

THE EFFECT OF CATALYSTS ON REACTION RATES

Catalysts and activation energy

To increase the rate of a reaction you need to increase the number of

successful collisions. One possible way of doing this is to provide an
alternative way for the reaction to happen which has a lower activation
energy.

In other words, to move the activation energy on the graph like this:
 As before, particles which don't have enough energy at a particular
time will at some time in the future gain energy from random collisions, just
as other particles will lose energy. You mustn't get the idea that those
particles in the blue area of the graph can never react - given time they will.

Adding a catalyst has exactly this effect of shifting the activation

energy. A catalyst provides an alternative route for the reaction. That
alternative route has a lower activation energy. Showing this on an energy
profile:

The activation energy of a chemical reaction is closely related to its

rate. Specifically, the higher the activation energy, the slower the chemical
reaction will be. This is because molecules can only complete the reaction
once they have reached the top of the activation energy barrier. The higher
the barrier is, the fewer molecules that will have enough energy to make it
over at any given moment.

Many reactions have such high activation energies that they basically
don't proceed at all without an input of energy. For instance, the
combustion of a fuel like propane releases energy, but the rate of reaction is
effectively zero at room temperature. (To be clear, this is a good thing – it
wouldn't be so great if propane canisters spontaneously combusted on the
shelf!) Once a spark has provided enough energy to get some molecules over
the activation energy barrier, those molecules complete the reaction,
releasing energy. The released energy helps other fuel molecules get over the
energy barrier as well, leading to a chain reaction.

Most chemical reactions that take place in cells are like the
hydrocarbon combustion example: the activation energy is too high for the
reactions to proceed significantly at ambient temperature. At first, this
seems like a problem; after all, you can’t set off a spark inside of a cell
without causing damage. Fortunately, it’s possible to lower the activation
energy of a reaction, and to thereby increase reaction rate. The process of
speeding up a reaction by reducing its activation energy is known
as catalysis, and the factor that's added to lower the activation energy is
called a catalyst. Biological catalysts are known as enzymes, and we’ll
examine them in detail in the next section.

Three Types of Catalyst:

A. Homogeneous Catalysis

A reaction is considered homogeneously catalyzed when the catalyst

and the reactant(s) are in the same physical state or phase. This most often
happens with gaseous catalyst-reactant pairs. Types of homogeneous
catalysts include organic acids in which the donated hydrogen atom is
replaced by a metal, a number of compounds blending carbon and metal
elements in some form, and carbonyl compounds joined to cobalt or iron.
 An example of this type of catalysis involving liquids is the conversion of
persulphate and iodide ions to sulfate ion and iodine:

S2O82- + 2 I- → 2 SO42- + I2

This reaction would have a difficult time proceeding on its own despite
the favorable energetics, because both reactants are negatively charged
and therefore their electrostatic qualities are in opposition to their chemical
qualities. But if iron ions, which carry a positive charge, are added to the
mix, the iron "distracts" the negative charges and the reaction moves
forward quickly.

A naturally occurring gaseous homogeneous catalysis is the conversion

of oxygen gas, or O2, in the atmosphere to ozone, or O3, where oxygen
radicals (O-) are intermediates. Here, ultraviolet light from the sun is the
true catalyst, but every physical compound present is in the same (gas)
state.

B. Heterogeneous Catalysis

A reaction is considered heterogeneously catalyzed when the catalyst

and the reactant(s) are in different phases, with the reaction occurring at
the interface between them (most commonly, the gas-solid "border"). Some
of the more common heterogeneous catalysts include inorganic – that is,
non-carbon-containing – solids such as elemental metals, sulfides and
metallic salts, as well as a smattering of organic substances, among them
hydroperoxides and ion exchangers.

Zeolites are an important class of heterogeneous catalysts. These are

crystalline solids made up of repeating units of SiO4. Units of four of these
joined molecules are linked together to form different ring and cage
structures. The presence of an aluminum atom in the crystal creates a
charge imbalance, which is offset by a proton (i.e., a hydrogen ion).

C. Enzymes

Enzymes are proteins that function as catalysts in living systems. These

enzymes have components called substrate binding sites, or active sites,
where the molecules involved in the reaction under catalysis become
attached. The component parts of all proteins are amino acids, and each of
these individual acids has an uneven charge distribution from one end to
the other. This property is the main reason enzymes possess catalytic
capabilities.

The active site on the enzyme fits together with the correct part of the
substrate (reactant) rather like a key going into a lock. Note that the
catalysts described earlier often catalyze an array of dissimilar reactions
and therefore do not possess the degree of chemical specificity that
enzymes do.
 In general, when more substrate and more of an enzyme are present,
the reaction will proceed more quickly. But if more and more substrate is
added without adding more enzyme as well, all of the enzymatic binding
sites become saturated, and the reaction has reached its maximum rate for
that enzyme concentration. Each reaction catalyzed by an enzyme can be
represented in terms of the intermediate products formed owing to the
presence of the enzyme. That is, instead of writing:

S→P

to show a substrate being transformed into a product, you can depict this
as:

E + S → ES → E + P

wherein the middle term is the enzyme-substrate (ES) complex.

Enzymes, although classified as category of catalyst distinct from

those listed above, can be either homogeneous or heterogeneous.

Enzymes function optimally within a narrow temperature range,

which makes sense given that your body temperature does not fluctuate by
more than a few degrees in ordinary conditions. Extreme heat destroys
many enzymes and causes them to lose their specific three-dimensional
shape, a process called denaturing that applies to all proteins.

EXPLORE

Let’s try the next activity wherein we can observe the difference in the rate of
reaction of an uncatalyzed and catalyzed reaction

Enrichment Activity 1: The Rate Of Reaction Of An Uncatalyzed And

Catalyzed Reaction

Materials:
• One empty 500 mL soda plastic bottle or a 500 mL plastic water bottle
• ½ cup 3% or 6% hydrogen peroxide (the former is available in drug stores,
the latter may be available in beauty supply stores)
• Dish washing liquid solution or any soap solution
• Baker’s active yeast (available in supermarkets or bakery supply stores)
• Food coloring (optional)
Procedure:
1. Dissolve one teaspoon or one packet of active yeast in a small amount of
warm water. Keep still for about 5 minutes.
2. Dilute a small amount of dishwashing liquid in about ¼ cup of water, or
dissolve soap in water.
3. Place about ¼ cup of the dishwashing liquid solution or soap solution
into the plastic bottle. Two to three drops of food color can be added and
mixed.
4. Add ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide to the soap solution.
5. What is your observation?

6. Add the yeast to the mixture in the bottle.

7. What is your observation? Explain the phenomenon. Which reagent
caused the reaction to proceed?

DEEPEN

Answer the following questions briefly.: Write your answer on the space
provided after the question.

1. How long does it take an iron nail exposed to the rain to rust?

2. Compare the rusting of iron to how fast milk curdles when an acid
like vinegar or calamansi juice is added to it.
3. Which has a more rapid reaction, the burning of liquid gasoline in
air, or gasoline in a car engine that is first vaporized, then mixed
with air?

4. Do you think you could light a log with a single matchstick? e. How
about twigs or smaller pieces of wood?