the following reaction is endothermic; 3O2(g) = 2O3(g) If this reation is at equilibrium will it shift to the right or left if we:
1) add some oxygen
In simple one syllable words, Le Chatelier's Principle tells us that a system at equilibrium will try to undo what we do to it. So if we add O2 to it it will try to get rid of the extra O2 we've added. How can it do that? Only one way. If it shifts to the right it uses O2 (which is what it does to get rid of the extra O2 added). If it shifts to the left, more O2 will be formed (which isn't getting rid of it).
If the reaction 3O2(g) → 2O3(g) is at equilibrium and we add some oxygen (O2), according to Le Chatelier's principle, the reaction will shift to the right in order to relieve the stress caused by the increase in the concentration of oxygen.
Adding oxygen to the system increases its concentration, which disturbs the equilibrium. The reaction will respond by favoring the forward reaction (to the right) in order to consume the excess oxygen and establish a new equilibrium.
To determine the direction of the shift in an equilibrium reaction when a change is made to the system, we can apply Le Chatelier's principle. According to Le Chatelier's principle, when a change is imposed on a system at equilibrium, the system will adjust itself to minimize the effect of that change.
In this case, if we add oxygen (O2) to the system, we are increasing the concentration of the reactant. According to Le Chatelier's principle, the system will shift in a direction that minimizes the effect of the increase in O2 concentration.
In the given reaction, the forward reaction (formation of O3) consumes O2 to produce O3. To minimize the effect of the increased O2 concentration, the system will shift to consume some of the added O2, which means the reaction will shift to the right.
Therefore, if we add some oxygen to the system, the reaction will shift to the right to consume the additional oxygen and form more O3.