Ask a Teacher
what happens when speed of forward reaction increases? |
Many of the reactions you observe only go one way - this means that reactants react to form products and the reaction comes to a stop. However, some reactions are never completed because there are two competing reactions occurring, a forward reaction and a backward reaction. For eg; the reaction between nitrogen gas and hydrogen gas, the two competing reactions that occur are: The forward reaction: The backward reaction: This is an example of a reversible reaction, and is often written as: The symbol indicates a reversible reaction. If the back and forward reaction rates become the same, we say that the reaction is in equilibrium. Adding a catalyst: Iron acts as a catalyst for this reaction. The catalyst does not affect the equilibrium position since it increases the rate of the forward and back reactions equally, but it does speed up the speed at which equilibrium is reached. If the rate of forward reaction increases , more the products will be formed and if the rate of backward reaction increases more the reactants will be formed. |