Can someone explain what a state property is in simplest terms?

[Caleb Kim 1K]

I was going over the notes and it mentioned how enthalpy is a state property. Can someone explain what that means as a definition and in relation to enthalpy?

[Martha Tuna 1K]

Hi,

According to the textbook, it is "a property of a substance that is independent of how the sample was prepared."
Examples: pressure, enthalpy, entropy, color

A change in enthalpy is defined as "equal to the heat transferred at constant pressure."

Hope this helps!

[Reuben 1H]

A state property is a measurement that is independent of the means a value changes; the only values you're concerned about are the initial and final values. In the case of enthalpy, we are only concerned with the starting and ending energies of a reaction. It doesn't matter how energy was affected between when the reaction starts or ends, all we care about are the initial and final values.

[Angela Ke]

I agree with the other responses here. A state property means the overall reaction is not dependent on the pathway that any particular reaction occurs in.

[Yijia_ZHOU]

A state property is not dependent upon the path traveled. In other words, you only care about the results and the beginning. Doesn’t matter which way you hike up a mountain, you are going to reach the same height.

[emmavandal1K]

A state property is a property where its quantity isn't dependent on how it changed or the path taken to change it. Only the value itself is taken into consideration, which is why the change in any state property can be found by subtracting the initial value from the final value.

[Harun Momin 1L]

Hello,

A state property is a property that does not change based on the pathway it takes. An example of this is the change in elevation when hiking a mountain. Group A could take a longer, more scenic route from the base of the mountain to reach the top. Group B could take a shorter and more direct route from the base of the mountain to reach the top. Although there paths are different, their change in elevation, a state property, is the same. A state property is only dependent on its final and initial states.

[505769291]

A state property is not dependent on the path taken to obtain that state. Since enthalpy is a state property this means its value is determined by its current state. Enthalpy = final state - initial state.