Chemical Equilibrium

1. Dynamic equilibrium: Imagine a crowded dance floor where couples are constantly changing partners, but the overall number of couples remains the same. This is similar to dynamic equilibrium, where reactions keep happening in both directions, but the concentrations stay balanced. 2. Equilibrium constant (Kc): Think of Kc as a recipe. It’s a fixed ratio of ingredients (products) to reactants, just like how a cake recipe has specific amounts of flour, sugar, and so on. 3. Le Chatelier’s principle: Picture a balancing act like a circus performer on a tightrope. If you add more weight on one side, they shift to the other side to maintain equilibrium. That’s how systems respond to changes, trying to balance things out. 4. Common-ion effect: Imagine a party where some guests are invited twice. If you suddenly invite more guests with the same name, the attention shifts towards them, sidelining the original guests. This is like how adding a common ion changes the equilibrium. 5. Solubility product (Ksp): Visualize a saturated sugar solution. You can’t dissolve any more sugar without it crystallizing. Ksp is like a limit for how much solute can dissolve in a solvent before hitting equilibrium. 6. Henry’s law: Picture bubbles rising in a glass of soda. The more you shake it, the more bubbles appear. This is because the gas concentration in the liquid increases with pressure, just like Henry’s law describes. 7. Gibbs free energy (∆G): Think of ∆G as a sort of energy currency. If ∆G is negative, the reaction is spontaneous and tends to happen on its own. If it’s positive, the reaction needs an energy boost. At equilibrium, ∆G is zero, meaning no net change. 8. Reaction quotient (Q): Imagine a race with a starting line and a finish line. Q tells you where the reaction is compared to equilibrium. If Q is less than Kc, the reaction will proceed in the forward direction. If Q is greater than Kc, it’ll go in the reverse direction.