The Effect of Temperature on the Equilibrium Constant of Chemical Reactions

The Influence of Temperature on Chemical Reaction Equilibrium Constants

Kc is an important concept for chemical reaction research. Kc can be defined as the sum of all the products and reactants, multiplied by their respective stoichiometric coefficients. Kc is a measurement of relative concentrations between reactants and products after the reaction has reached equilibrium. Kc is affected by temperature. As the product-to-reactant ratio changes with increasing temperature, Kc will also change (Cengel, Boles, 2017). The reaction 2E (g) F (+ G) illustrates the influence of temperature on Kc. At 25°C, the equilibrium constant, Kc, for this reaction is 0.04. If a mixture of 1.200 moles of G and 0.800 moles F is allowed to reach equilibrium in a container of 2.0 liters, then the equilibrium concentration (E in molar) is 0.064. The above example shows that equilibrium will not be achieved until the temperature matches the equilibrium constant Kc.