Hi again, I just wanted to check something as the question/answers are vague for this test.
How will an increase in temperature affect equilibrium?
A. The equilibrium shifts in the direction of the endothermic reaction.
B. There is no effect of temperature on equilibrium.
C. The equilibrium shifts equally in the directions of the endothermic and exothermic reactions.
D. The equilibrium shifts in the direction of the exothermic reaction.
I know that when heated exothermic reactions shift left and endothermic reactions when heated shift right.
However I don't get the question, as wouldn't I need to know what the reaction is, either endo or exo to determine how it will shift?
I know it can't be B, and because C is basically the same thing (ie nothing will happen to equilibrium) I know these two can't be the answer.
Is there something I missed? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.
-Sydney
You're right. It is confusing with the answers. Also, you're right, B and C are non-players. A or C, but not both, must be correct. Here is what I think and I'm trying to interpret the answers.
Endothermic would be A + B + heat ==> C
Exothermic would be A + B ==> C + heat
So we know that for an increase in T the endothermic reaction will shift to the right and the exothermic reaction will shift to the left.
Answer A says "The equilibrium shifts in the direction of the endothermic reaction." which means to me that my endothermic reaction above goes as written .
Answer D says "The equilibrium shifts in the direction of the exothermic reaction." which means to me that my exothermic reaction above goes as written. However, we know it won't go that way. We know it will shift to the left and that's the opposite of the answer. So I would go with answer A.
I think the wording is poor but I believe my analysis of the wording is correct. Good luck.
Thank you, that was correct, really appreciate it :)
Hi Sydney! You're correct in thinking that the direction of the shift in equilibrium depends on whether the reaction is exothermic or endothermic. In this case, since the question does not specify whether the reaction is exothermic or endothermic, we need to consider both possibilities.
An increase in temperature will shift the equilibrium towards the direction that absorbs heat, which is called the endothermic reaction. This means that the correct answer is A, "The equilibrium shifts in the direction of the endothermic reaction."
It's possible that the question is intentionally left vague to test your understanding of how temperature affects equilibrium. In real-life applications, it's important to consider the nature of the reaction (whether it's exothermic or endothermic) to determine the shift in equilibrium.