Lecture 2

Bioenergetics & Thermodynamics

By
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia Hanif
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
Bioenergetics and Thermodynamics

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Bioenergetics
“Bioenergetics is the quantitative study of
the energy transductions that occur in living
cells and of the nature and function of the
chemical processes underlying these
transductions.”

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Biological Energy Transformations Obey the
Laws of Thermodynamic

first law of thermodynamics is the principle of

the conservation of energy:

“for any physical or chemical change, the total

amount of energy in the universe remains
constant; energy may change form or it may
be transported from one region to another, but
it cannot be created or destroyed.”
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Biological Energy Transformations Obey the
Laws of Thermodynamic

The second law of thermodynamics, which

can be stated in several forms, says that:

“the universe always tends toward

increasing disorder: in all natural processes,
the entropy of the universe increases.”

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Gibbs free energy (G)
• G, expresses the amount of energy capable of
doing work during a reaction at constant
temperature and pressure.
• When a reaction proceeds with the release of
free energy (that is, when the system changes
so as to possess less free energy), the free-
energy change, G, has a negative value and the
reaction is said to be exergonic.
• In endergonic reactions, the system gains free
energy and G is positive.
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Enthalpy (H)
• Enthalpy, H, is the heat content of the reacting
system. It reflects the number and kinds of
chemical bonds in the reactants and products.
• When a chemical reaction releases heat, it is
said to be exothermic; the heat content of the
products is less than that of the reactants and H
has, by convention, a negative value.
• Reacting systems that take up heat from their
surroundings are endothermic and have positive
values of H.
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
• Enthalpy is a measure of the total energy of a thermodynamic
system. It includes the internal energy, which is the energy required
to create a system, and the amount of energy required to make
room for it by displacing its environment and establishing its volume
and pressure.

• Enthalpy is a thermodynamic potential. It is a state function and an

extensive quantity. The unit of measurement for enthalpy in the
International System of Units (SI) is the joule, but other historical,
conventional units are still in use, such as the British thermal unit
and the calorie.

• The enthalpy is the preferred expression of system energy changes

in many chemical, biological, and physical measurements, because
it simplifies certain descriptions of energy transfer. This is because a
change in enthalpy takes account of energy transferred to the
environment through the expansion of the system under study.
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Entropy
• Entropy, S, is a quantitative expression for
the randomness or disorder in a system.

• When the products of a reaction are less

complex and more disordered than the
reactants, the reaction is said to proceed
with a gain in entropy.

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Biological Energy transformations
obey the Laws of Thermodynamics
• For any physical or chemical change, the total amount of
energy in the universe remains constant; but it cannot be
created or destroyed.
• The universe always tends toward increasing disorder: in
all natural processes, the entropy of the universe
increases.
• Living cells and organisms are open system, exchanging
both material and energy with their surroundings;
• living systems are never at equilibrium with their
surrounding, and the constant transactions between
system and surrounding explain how organisms can
create order within themselves while operating within the
second law of the thermodynamics.
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
13.1 Bioenergetics and Thermodynamics

A. Free-Energy Change

• Free-energy change (G) is a measure of the

chemical energy available from a reaction
G = Gproducts - Greactants
• H = change in enthalpy
• S = change in entropy

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
Relationship between energy and
entropy
• Both entropy and enthalpy contribute to G
G = H - TS
(T = degrees Kelvin)
-G = a spontaneous reaction in the
direction written
+G = the reaction is not spontaneous
G = 0 the reaction is at equilibrium
BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Standard Free-Energy Change
(Go)
• Reaction free-energy depends upon conditions
• Standard state (Go) - defined reference conditions
Standard Temperature = 298K (25oC)
Standard Pressure = 1 atmosphere
Standard Solute Concentration = 1.0M
• Standard transformed constant = Go’
Standard H+ concentration = 10-7 (pH = 7.0)
H2O concentration = 55.5 M
Mg2+ concentration = 1 mM BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
 Equilibrium Constants and
Standard Free-Energy Change

• For the reaction: aA + bB cC + dD

Greaction = Go’reaction + RT ln([C]c[D]d/[A]a[B]b)

• At equilibrium: Keq = [C][D]/[A][B] and

Greaction = 0, so that:

Go’reaction = -RT ln Keq

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
The standard free-energy change is directly
related to the equilibrium constant

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
Energy coupling in mechanical and
chemical processes. (a) The downward
motion of an object releases potential
energy that can do mechanical work. The
potential energy made available by
spontaneous downward motion, an
exergonic process (pink), can be coupled
to the endergonic upward movement of
another object (blue). (b) In reaction 1, the
formation of glucose 6-phosphate from
glucose and inorganic phosphate (Pi)
yields a product of higher energy than the
two reactants. For this endergonic
reaction, △G is positive. In reaction 2, the
exergonic breakdown of adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) can drive an
endergonic reaction when the two
reactions are coupled. The exergonic
reaction has a large, negative free-energy
change (△G2), and the endergonic
reaction has a smaller, positive free-
energy change (△G1). The third reaction
accomplishes the sum of reactions 1 and
2, and the free-energy change, △G3, is
the arithmetic sum of _G1 and △G2.
Because △G3 is negative, the overall
reaction is exergonic and proceeds
spontaneously. BCH-307 (2nd Semester)
Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
Standard free-energy changes
are additive

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia
Equilibrium constants are
multiplicative

BCH-307 (2nd Semester)

Dr. Nafeesa Qudsia