Topics in Physical Chemistry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3750 words

Topics in Physical Chemistry - Essay Example The understanding of chemical equilibrium has also advanced by different research studies thereby bringing new knowledge. Through exploration of different studies on the topic, this paper presents current study from peer reviewed journals and how research advance the studies in chemical equilibrium and its application. The use of computer simulations in the study of simple and long chain chemical reactions has also beenexplored. Finally, the paper explores the law of thermodynamics and how it applies to chemical equilibrium. Introduction Chemical reactions involve reactants and interacting under certain conditions to produce a product. It refers to the process of transforming a set of chemical compounds or substances to another or others with totally different identities. It involves the changes of the position of electrons with regards to formation or breaking of the bonds while the original elements always remain the same. Since there is no change in the original elements present, a chemical reaction can always be represented by an equation. Reagents or reactants are the initial substances that participate in a chemical reaction thus during a chemical reaction, there is always a change. This is because the new products exhibit different properties. New products may have differences with regard to physical, biological or chemical properties depending on the nature of chemical reaction. Chemical reaction equation must have the starting materials (reactants), conditions for reaction, intermediate products and finally the end products. However, there are certain chemical reactions that are very simple and do not need to pass through the intermediate product in order to get to the final product. In a chemical equation, we may have two different types of chemical reaction as well. Chemical reaction that takes place according to concentration and temperature at a specific rate is called non spontaneous while one that require no other conditions except thermal energy is known as spontaneous. This principle forms the basis of calculating the rate of reaction as well as managing it. In this respect, non spontaneous reaction is very slow and thus requires an additional energy or catalyst to increase its rate. Objective of the Study The objective of this study is to explore different literature and explore the current studies in chemical equilibrium. This paper aims at exploring studies in academic journals mainly focusing on equilibrium constant and its application in different industries. Chemical Reaction Chemical reactions can be well illustrated by chemical equations. Chemical equations consist of two or more reactants on the left side and the resultant products of that particular reaction on the right side. An arrow at the middle of the equation always represents the direction of reaction which can be either to the right or to the left depending on the conditions. It is therefore important to note that most chemical reactions are reversible r eactions. This is often represented by a double arrow which points on the both sides. The meaning of this is that products can also produce reactants depending on the concentrations and certain conditions. aA + bB cC + dD Irreversible reactions aA + bB cC + dD Reversible reactions The above equations shows the basic principle of a chemical reaction where A and B substances react to produce C and D substances. However, a, b, c and d