Question

In many chemical reactions, the activation energy can be high for the process to occur naturally. If both curves represent the same reaction, what happened in the reaction represented by the bottom curve?

a) An enzyme lowered the activation energy needed in the reaction.
b) An enzyme increased the activation energy to speed up the reaction.
c) An inhibitor lowered activation energy to slow down the reaction.
d) An inhibitor lowered activation energy to speed up the reaction.

Answer 1

In the reaction represented by the bottom curve, an enzyme has lowered the activation energy needed for the reaction. Enzymes function by providing an alternate pathway with lower activation energy for the reactants to form products, thereby speeding up the reaction without being consumed themselves. option (A)

Step-by-step explanation:

If both curves represent the same chemical reaction with one showing a higher activation energy than the other, it indicates that something has altered the energy landscape of the reaction. The option that best describes what happened in the reaction represented by the bottom curve, which has a lower activation energy, is: a) An enzyme lowered the activation energy needed in the reaction.

Enzymes are biological catalysts that speed up chemical reactions by lowering the activation energy, which is the minimum energy required to initiate a reaction. By providing a new reaction pathway with lower activation energy, enzymes make it easier for the reactant molecules to transition into products without affecting the overall energy of the reactants or products.Enzymes achieve this by binding to reactants, also known as substrates, bringing them into close proximity at an active site, and contorting the substrate molecules in a way that facilitates bond-breaking. This process helps reactants reach the transition state more readily, promoting quicker reaction rates. Enzymes, in their role, remain unchanged after the reaction, ready to assist in subsequent reactions.