Q.For the following equilibrium, Kc= 6.3 × 10¹⁴ at 1000 K NO
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →For an elementary reaction, the equilibrium constant of the reverse reaction is simply the reciprocal of the forward constant. Therefore, .
The key idea here is beautifully simple: when a reaction is elementary (meaning it occurs in a single step, exactly as written), the equilibrium constant for the reverse reaction is just the reciprocal of the forward constant. This isn't a guess — it follows directly from the law of mass action.
Let’s see why.
- Write the forward equilibrium expression. For the forward reaction
the equilibrium constant is defined as
- Now consider the reverse reaction. The reverse reaction is simply the forward equation read from right to left:
Its equilibrium constant is
- Spot the relationship. Compare the two expressions. The reverse constant is exactly the reciprocal of the forward constant:
This is always true for any equilibrium, regardless of mechanism — but the problem explicitly tells us both directions are elementary, which confirms we don’t need to worry about rate laws or intermediates.
- Plug in the number. …
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