Reaction Kinetics, Thermodynamics &

Equilibrium
This report gives a brief oversight regarding a comparison of kinetics,
thermodynamics and equilibrium of a chemical reaction. The effect of
catalyst is also mentioned.
MT-E(PRS/HO)-Faizan Ahmed - 4728
11/23/2015

Reaction Thermodynamics

Reaction Kinetics

Equilibrium

It discusses free energy given off during a

chemical reaction i.e. energy of products
relative to reactants.

It is associated with the rate constant k which

is related to activation energy required for
reaction to proceed.

It refers to a state in a chemical

reaction when reactants and
products are in equal
concentrations with no further
tendency to change with time.

It describes conditions of products (e.g.

Pressure, Temperature etc.) at equilibrium
after reaction has occurred.

It describes rate of reaction & how fast

equilibrium is reached

At equilibrium reaction rate for

forward & backward reactions are
equal.

It gives no information about reaction rates.

It gives no information (regarding

conversion) about a reaction when it is at
equilibrium.

Above mentioned state is referred

to as a dynamic equilibrium.

It refers to energy stored with in a reactant,

product etc.w.r.t Gibbs free energy it is
negative in case of spontaneous reaction and
positive in case of a non-spontaneous reaction.
Gibbs free energy is useful in calculating
equilibrium temperature

Different reactants have different transitions

states and activation energies, and k which is
dependent upon reactants nature (i.e. Phase,
Surface area etc) and prevailing conditions.
The value of k for reactants in homogeneous
phase is greater than heterogeneous case
because of increased collisions.

Thermodynamics favors a reaction which is

spontaneous and does not need constant
energy supply. Non-spontaneous reactions are
endothermic and do not favor product
formation under normal conditions.
Thermodynamics is related with stability
Thermodynamic equation for a process is as
follows

G = U + PV - TS

Kinetics is related to reactivity.

The rate equation of chemical reactions link

reaction rates with reactant conc. , rate
coefficients and reaction orders (determined
experimentally)

r = k [A]x[B]y
Here
r = Reaction rate
k = Equilibrium constant
A,B = Reactants
x ,y = Reaction orders
Catalysts simply accelerate a thermodynamic
chemical reaction.

Catalysts provide alternative routes for

reactions to proceed with lower activation
energy req.

Typical chemical reaction at

equilibrium

aA + bB cC + dD
The equilibrium constant for this
equation is defined as follows

Kc = [C]c[D]d/[A]a[B]b

Catalysts do not have any effect

on chemical equilibrium. It is just
present to reach that state quickly.