in the lab you place two reactants together and measure the concentration of product at regular intervals. After a time, the amount of product becomes stable. What has happened to the reaction? The Role of Equilibrium in Chemical Reactions

The Role of Equilibrium in Chemical Reactions

 When two reactants are placed together in a lab and their product is measured at regular intervals, a fascinating phenomenon occurs. Over time, the amount of product becomes stable and no further change is observed. This is due to a process known as chemical equilibrium, in which the rates of the forward and reverse reactions of a chemical reaction are equal (Ruhl, 2019). As the reactants are converted to products, the products are converted back to reactants, and the concentrations of both remain constant. This is the point at which a chemical reaction is said to be at equilibrium (Mukherjee, 2020). Chemical equilibrium is a dynamic process, meaning that it is always in flux, even when the concentrations of the reactants and products remain constant. This is because the forward and reverse reactions are still occurring, just at the same rate (Mukherjee, 2020). In order for equilibrium to be reached, the reaction must be reversible, meaning that the products of the reaction can react with one another to form the original reactants (Ruhl, 2019). Once equilibrium has been reached, the concentrations of the reactants and products remain unchanged, no matter what conditions are changed or how the reaction is manipulated (Mukherjee, 2020). Cont….