TODAY

CHEMICAL
EQUILIBRIUM
EQUILIBRIUM CONSTANT
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
EQUILIBRIUM CONSTANT VALUES &
REACTION COMPLETENESS

CHEMICAL EQUILIBRIUM

Is the state in which

forward and reverse
reaction occur
simultaneously the same
rate.

CHEMICAL EQUILIBRIUM

At this point the

concentrations of
products and
reactants no longer
change.

Reversible reaction
Is a chemical reaction in which the
conversion of reactants to products
(the forward reaction) and the
conversion of products to
reactants(the reverse reaction) occur
simultaneously.
Fe3+

+
SCN
(aq)

FeSCN2+

The half-headed arrow denote a chemical system at

Equilibrium constants
Is a numerical value that characterizes
the relationship between the
concentrations of reactants and
products in a system at equilibrium.
wA + xB
yC + zD
The equilibrium constant expression is :
D
y
z
C
Keq =
w

Note the following points about this

general equilibrium constants
expression:
The

square brackets refer to molar

(mole/liter) concentrations .
Product concentrations are always placed in
the numerator of the equilibrium constant
expression.
The coefficients in the balanced equation
for the equilibrium system determine the
powers to which the concentrations are
raised.
The abbreviation Keq is used to denote an
equilibrium constant.

Equilibrium constant expression

4NH3(g) + 7O2(g)
The equilibrium constant
4

NO

Keq =

4NO2(g) + 6H2O(g)
expression is :
6

H 2O

NH3

O27

Calculating the value of an equilibrium

constant from equilibrium
concentrations

Calculate the value of the

equilibrium
constant
for
the
equilibrium system
2NO(g)

N2(g) + O2(g)

at 1000 0C, given that the equilibrium

concentrations are 0.0026 M for NO,
0.024 M for N2 and 0.024 M for O2.

TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE OF
EQUILIBRIUM CONSTANTS
The value of Keq for a reaction depends on
the reaction temperature.
For reactions where the forward reaction is
exothermic, the equilibrium constant
decreases with increasing temperature.
For the reaction where the forward reaction is
endothermic, the equilibrium constant
increases with increasing temperature.

Equilibrium constant values and

reaction completeness
The magnitude of an equilibrium constant value
conveys information about how far a reaction
has proceeded toward completion.
If the equilibrium constant value is large (103) ,
the equilibrium system contains more products
than reactants.
If the equilibrium constant value is small (10-3) ,
the equilibrium system contains more reactants
than products.

Equilibrium constant values and

reaction completeness
Equilibrium position is a qualitative indication
of the relative amounts of reactants and
products present when a chemical reaction
reaches equilibrium.
Far to the right
To the right
Neither to the right nor to the left
To the left
Far to the left

Equilibrium constant values

and reaction completeness
Value of Keq

Relative Amounts of
Products and
Reactants

Description of
Equilibrium Position

Very large (1030)

Essentially all
products

Far to the right

Large (1010)

More products than

reactants

To the right

Near unity (between

103 and 10-3)

Significant amounts
of both products and
reactants

Neither to the right

nor to the left

Small (10-10)

More reactants than

products

To the left

Very small (10-30)

Essentially all
reactants

Far to the left