Homogenous/Heterogeneous Catalysts

[Milena Aragon 2B]

We briefly covered the difference between Homogeneous and Heterogenous Catalysts in lecture so I was wondering how much we would need to know about these concepts and if we should expect problems that relate to this on the final (& if so what kind)? Thank you.

[Chem_Mod]

In terms of the difference between the two, understand that a homogenous catalyst is more effective because it mixes much better with your reactants. This makes sense if you think about liquid reactants mixing with a liquid catalyst as opposed to liquid reactants interacting with a solid catalyst. The liquid-liquid interaction allows for more points of contact.

[Matthew Mar 1J]

Also, don't get tripped up if they mention adsorption alongside heterogeneous catalysts. It's probably not a typo, it's just a fancy way to describe the relationship between reactants and catalysts in different states (specifically reactants on a solid catalyst). I think heterogeneous might also apply somewhat for solid reactants interacting with a solid catalyst since that's the way the notation was used in electrochemistry cell diagrams.