How is the enthalpy change for a reaction related to the enthalpy of the reactants and products?
Is it that the enthalpy for the reactants and products equals the enthalpy change for the reaction?
dSrxn = (n*dSproducts) - (n*dSreactants)
what does N equal? Is that the number of mols?
Yes, n is the number of mols. I goofed when I wrote dS when I meant dH. S is entropy, H is enthalpy.
The enthalpy change for a reaction is directly related to the difference in enthalpy between the reactants and the products. It can be calculated by subtracting the enthalpy of the reactants from the enthalpy of the products.
To illustrate this, let's consider an example reaction:
A + B -> C
The enthalpy change (ΔH) for this reaction can be calculated as:
ΔH = H(products) - H(reactants)
Here, H(products) refers to the enthalpy of the products (in this case, C), and H(reactants) refers to the enthalpy of the reactants (in this case, A and B).
If the enthalpy change for the reaction is positive, it indicates that the reaction is endothermic, meaning it absorbs heat from the surroundings. On the other hand, if the enthalpy change is negative, it indicates that the reaction is exothermic, meaning it releases heat to the surroundings.
It's important to note that the enthalpy of the reactants and products represents the total energy content of the respective substances, while the enthalpy change for the reaction represents the difference in energy between the reactants and products.