Question

Consider the chemical reaction, where moving from left to right represents moving forward in time. At what point does the reaction first reach equilibrium?

A) Beginning of the Reaction
B) Middle of the Reaction
C) End of the Reaction
D) Equilibrium is never reached

Answer 1

The chemical reaction first reaches equilibrium at the end of the reaction process (option C), when the concentrations of reactants and products become constant and the reaction quotient ceases to change.

Step-by-step explanation:

The chemical reaction first reaches equilibrium at a point where the rates of the forward and reverse reactions become equal. This equilibrium point is not at the beginning (A), middle (B), or end (C) of the reaction, but rather at a specific point where the concentrations of reactants and products stop changing and become constant. So, the correct answer would be (C) End of the Reaction, assuming the 'end' refers to the point when the reaction dynamics plateau at equilibrium, not necessarily the physical stopping point of the experiment.

Dynamically, as the reaction proceeds toward equilibrium in the forward direction, reactant concentrations decrease, and product concentration increases. This process equates to a changing reaction quotient (Qc), which will eventually stabilize when equilibrium is reached and Qc remains constant. Understanding equilibrium is crucial, as it defines the state at which the number of particles becoming products is equal to the number of particles becoming reactants, and the reaction is said to be at dynamic equilibrium.