Question

Without a catalyst, a reaction may require very high temperatures in order to occur. How does a catalyst speed a reaction at low temperatures? It raises the amount of energy required to break chemical bonds. It lowers the amount of energy required to break chemical bonds. It increases the concentration of the reactant particles. It decreases the concentration of the reactant particles.

Answer 1

It lowers the amount of energy required to break chemical bonds.

Answer 2

The correct answer is "It lowers the amount of energy required to break chemical bonds."

Catalyst work by decreasing the activation energy of a chemical reaction. Activation energy is the minimum energy required to start a chemical reaction. For a chemical reaction to start the bonds in the reactant molecules are broken and new bonds are formed in the product molecules. Thus catalyst facilitate to break chemical bonds in reactants  by lowering the activation energy.