Thermodynamically Favorable

[inlovewithchemistry]

How do you determine which product or which reactant is more favorable based on the K value? This question is referring to 7th edition 5H13 part C. Thank you!

[Steven Garcia 1H]

Do you mean based on the quotient value? You can compare Q to R in order to determine which direction of a reaction is favorable. If Q<K, then this implies that there are less products and more reactants relative to K (think of the expression for calculating K, [products]/[reactants]). Therefore, more products would have to be made in order to reach equilibrium. If Q>K, then there must be more products and less reactants relative to K. As a result, more reactants would be made at the expense of products to reach equilibrium. The reaction will favor whatever direction allows the Q value to reach the equilibrium K value.

[kateminden]

Thank you, I was confused about this too! I know we have not learned thermodynamics in detail, but I still wanted to understand the basic concepts before the test.