The effect of a catalyst on an equilibrium is to ________. Select one: a. increase the rate of the forward reaction only b. slow
the reverse reaction only c. increase the equilibrium constant so that products are favored d. shift the equilibrium to the right e. increase the rate at which equilibrium is achieved without changing the composition of the equilibrium mixture
A catalyst is a substance which alters the rate of a chemical reaction. We check for the correctness of each of the options as follows:
A. Is wrong.
A catalyst can increase the rate of the forward and backward reaction
B. Is wrong
A catalyst does not slow the reverse reaction only. This particular case is the case of a negative catalyst
C is wrong
A catalyst has no effect on the equilibrium nor the equilibrium constant
D is wrong
Catalyst has no effect on equilibrium value
E is correct
Although Catalysts has no effect on equilibrium or its constant value, it can increase the the rate at which equilibrium is achieved by speeding up the reaction through bringing down the activation energy
