BRAIN STORMING

Q) What would happen to the human

body if the level of oxygen in the air
increases?
Irreversible reactions
 Most chemical reactions are considered
irreversible – the products that are made
cannot readily be changed back into their
reactants.
For example,
 when wood burns it is impossible to turn it back
into unburnt wood again.

 Similarly, when magnesium reacts with

hydrochloric acid to form magnesium chloride
and hydrogen, it is not easy to reverse the
reaction and obtain the magnesium.
Reversible reactions

 It produce products, like all reactions do.

reactants → products
We call this step the forward reaction.

 The reaction go backwards as well:

reactants ← products
We call this step the backward reaction.
Reversible reactions

 Chemical reactions can be reversible.

 The sign is the symbol for a reversible reaction. It is used for reactions
which we call equilibrium reactions.
 Example of oxy-haemoglobin in blood
 Some reactions, for example the dehydration of hydrated salts, can be
reversed if the conditions are changed.
Heating ammonium chloride
An ammonium salt can be made by reacting ammonia with an acid. Some of
the salt will decompose back into the reactants when heated.

hydrogen ammonium
ammonia + chloride chloride

NH3 (g) + HCl (g) NH4Cl (s)

Reaction of ammonia and hydrogen
chloride
NH4Cl reforms
in the cooler
part of the test
NH4Cl decomposes tube
back into NH3 and
HCl gases when
heated
 What is a reversible reaction?
 How can you tell from a chemical equation whether a reaction is reversible or
not?
 What would you observe, if you heated copper(II)sulfate 5-water gently?
 How will you reverse the reaction?
 Hydrated cobalt(II)chloride has the formula CoCl2.6H2O. It also shows
reversible reaction. Write the overall equation for it.
CONCENTRATION CHANGE IN A REACTION
As the rate of reaction is dependant on the
concentration of reactants. The forward reaction
starts off fast but slows as the reactants get less
concentrated.
FASTEST AT
THE START

SLOWS DOWN
AS REACTANTS
ARE USED UP

In an ordinary reaction; all TOTAL

CONVERSION
reactants end up as products; TO PRODUCTS
there is 100% conversion
What are reversible reactions?
 Reversible reactions occur when the backwards reaction (products 
reactants) takes place relatively easily under certain conditions. The
products turn back into the reactants.
 A + B C + D
(reactants) (products)

For example, during a reversible reaction

reactants A and B react to make products C
and D.
However, products C and D can also undergo
the reverse reaction, and react together to
form reactants A and B.
Two reactions will be taking place in opposite
directions and we will call it as a forward and
reverse/backward reactions.
Equilibrium

 In some reactions, however, both the forward and reverse reactions are going
on at the same time. We call these equilibrium reactions.

 These reactions have certain features.

 The reactants and products must not escape
from the reaction mixture. We call this a
closed system.
 At equilibrium the reactants are continually
being changed to products and the products
being changed back to reactants. We call this a
dynamic equilibrium.
 At equilibrium concentration of reactants and
products does not change. This is because the
rate of the forward reaction is the same as
the rate of the reverse reaction.
 What is a chemical equilibrium?
 If a chemical reaction happens in a container where one or more of the
reactants or products can escape, you have an open system. If a chemical
reaction happens in a container where none of the reactants or products
can escape, you have a closed system. Reversible reactions that happen
in a closed system eventually reach an equilibrium.
Dynamic equilibrium

 A chemical reaction at a constant temperature in a closed system is in a state

of dynamic equilibrium.
 Dynamic means the reaction occurs in both directions.
 Rate of forward reaction = rate of reverse reaction.
 The equilibrium can be approached from either
direction. Whichever we start with, we end up with
fixed concentrations of reactants and products in the
equilibrium mixture.For example, when we heat
hydrogen and Iodine in a sealed tube:
H2 (g) + I2 (g) 2HI(g)
We get the same fixed concentration of hydrogen,
iodine and hydrogen iodide at equilibrium whether we
start from hydrogen and iodine or hydrogen iodide.
Position of equilibrium

 The position of equilibrium tells us how far the

reaction goes in favour of reactants or products.
 If the concentration of products is greater than
the concentration of the reactants, we say that
the position of equilibrium is to the right – it
favours the products.
 If the concentration of reactants is greater than
the concentration of the products, we say that
the position of equilibrium is to the left – it
favours the reactants.
LE CHATELIER’S PRINCIPLE

“ When a change is made to the conditions

of a system in dynamic equilibrium, the
system moves so as to oppose that
change.”
Shifting the equilibrium

 Changing the concentration,temperature or pressure of reactants / products

has an effect on the equilibrium reaction. The reaction tries to oppose the
changes that are made.
 Catalysts do not affect the position of equilibrium – they just speed up the
forward and reverse reactions equally.
Changing the concentration

When the concentration of a reactant is increased,

the equilibrium moves to the right. Adding more
reactants unbalances the equilibrium. So the
equilibrium moves to the right to form more
products until the equilibrium is restored. In this
way it keeps the relative concentrations of
products and reactants the same as before. When
the concentration of a product is increased, the
equilibrium moves to the left. Products are
changed to reactants until equilibrium is restored.
 THE EFFECT OF CHANGING THE CONCENTRATION ON THE POSITION OF
EQUILIBRIUM

INCREASE CONCENTRATION OF A REACTANT EQUILIBRIUM MOVES TO THE RIGHT

DECREASE CONCENTRATION OF A
EQUILIBRIUM MOVES TO THE LEFT
REACTANT

INCREASE CONCENTRATION OF A PRODUCT EQUILIBRIUM MOVES TO THE LEFT

DECREASE CONCENTRATION OF A PRODUCT EQUILIBRIUM MOVES TO THE RIGHT

Warm Up:
Changing the pressure

 Pressure can only affect reactions where there is a

gas in the equation. Increasing the pressure moves
the equilibrium to the side with the smaller volume /
less moles of gas. So in the reaction:
 2SO2 (g) + O2 (g) 2SO3 (g)
 There are three moles of gas on the left and two on
the right. So increase in pressure moves the reaction
to the right. More SO2 and O2 combine to form SO3.
This happens because increasing the pressure
squashes the molecules closer together – increasing
their concentration.
 The reaction mixture tries to overcome this by moving the equilibrium to the
right so that the overall number of molecules is reduced.
 Decreasing the pressure has the opposite effect. It pushes the reaction to the
left.
 If there are equal volumes or moles of gas on both sides of the equation,
increasing the pressure has no effect.
 THE EFFECT OF PRESSURE ON THE POSITION OF EQUILIBRIUM

MOVES TO THE SIDE WITH FEWER GASEOUS

INCREASE PRESSURE
MOLECULES

DECREASE MOVES TO THE SIDE WITH MORE GASEOUS

PRESSURE MOLECULES
REACTION TYPE DH INCREASE TEMP DECREASE TEMP

EXOTHERMIC - TO THE LEFT TO THE RIGHT

ENDOTHERMIC + TO THE RIGHT TO THE LEFT

Changing the temperature
 If a reaction is exothermic in the forward reaction, it will be endothermic
in the reverse reaction. The reaction for the formation of ammonia:
 exothermic
 N2 (g) + 3H2 (g) 2NH3 (g)
 endothermic
 Nitrogen dioxide is in constant equilibrium with
dinitrogen tetroxide. The forward reaction is
exothermic and the backwards reaction is
endothermic.
nitrogen dioxide dinitrogen tetroxide
2NO2 (g) N2O4 (g)

What will happen if the temperature is increased?

 More NO2 will be produced.

If the temperature is decreased, more N2O4 will be produced.

 The equilibrium will shift to decrease the temperature, i.e. to the left
(endothermic).