For a general reversible reaction aA+bB⇌cC+dD, setting the forward rate (kf[A]a[B]b) equal to the reverse rate (kr[C]c[D]d) at equilibrium gives a constant ratio called the equilibrium constant: Kc=[A]a[B]b[C]c[D]d, using equilibrium concentrations (mol dm−3). For gaseous reactions it is often more convenient to use partial pressures instead: Kp=PAaPBdPCcPDd. When concentrations used in this same ratio are NOT necessarily equilibrium values, the ratio is called the reaction quotient Qc; comparing Qc with Kc predicts which way a reaction must shift to reach equilibrium (forward if Qc<Kc, reverse if Qc>Kc, already at equilibrium if Qc=Kc). The reverse reaction's equilibrium constant is the reciprocal of the forward one, Kc′=1/Kc. The unit of Kc is (mol dm−3)Δn, where Δn is the difference between the total moles of species in the numerator and denominator. In a heterogeneous equilibrium (more than one phase present, e.g. a solid subliming to a gas), only gaseous and dissolved species are included in the expression, since a pure solid or pure liquid's concentration (activity) is constant and gets absorbed into Kc itself. Key characteristics: Kc/Kp is independent of the initial amounts of reactants/products, depends only on temperature, is characteristic of a given balanced equation, and a larger value means more product is present at equilibrium. Its main uses are to predict the direction a reaction will shift, to judge the extent to which it proceeds (very large Kc, e.g. >103, means nearly complete conversion to products; very small Kc, e.g. <10−3, means the reaction barely proceeds), and to calculate the actual equilibrium composition of a reaction mixture from the known initial amounts.