What does a ΔG value of zero indicate about a reaction?
Practice Questions
Q1
What does a ΔG value of zero indicate about a reaction?
The reaction is spontaneous.
The reaction is at equilibrium.
The reaction is non-spontaneous.
The reaction is exothermic.
Questions & Step-by-Step Solutions
What does a ΔG value of zero indicate about a reaction?
Step 1: Understand what ΔG means. ΔG stands for Gibbs free energy change, which tells us about the energy available for a reaction to do work.
Step 2: Know that a ΔG value can be positive, negative, or zero. A positive ΔG means the reaction needs energy to occur, a negative ΔG means the reaction releases energy, and a zero ΔG means something different.
Step 3: Recognize that a ΔG value of zero indicates that the reaction is at equilibrium. This means that the rate of the forward reaction (reactants turning into products) is equal to the rate of the reverse reaction (products turning back into reactants).
Step 4: Conclude that at equilibrium, the concentrations of reactants and products remain constant over time, even though both reactions are still happening.
