where the products if the reactions can react themselves again to produce the original products
how can reversible reactions be represented as ?
A + B -- C + D
What does the double arrows mean in the abcd thing ?
reactions can go either way , by changing the conditions of a reaction , the overall direction can be changed and the relative amounts of products and reactants can be altered
what is equilibrium ?
is when the amounts of reactants and products reach a balance
if a reversible reaction takes place in an closed system then a state of equilibrium will always be reached
concentrations stop changing
a closed system is basically none of the reactants or the products can get in or out of it
how does the concentration differ in a reversible reaction ?
the reactants in the reversible reaction , their concentrations fall , so the forwards reaction will slow down , but as more and more products are made the concentration rises the backward reaction will speed up
after a while the forward reaction will be going exactly the same rate as the backward one , the system has reached equilibrium . both reactions are still happening , but the overall effect is nil because the forward and reverse reactions cancel each other out
when a reactions at equilibrium it doesn't mean the amounts of reactants and products are equal :
if the equilibrium lies to the right , the concentration of products the greater than that of the reactants
if the equilibrium lies to the left , the concentration of the reactants is greater than that of the products
