The first reversible reaction to ever be discovered was identified by Claude Lou
ID: 718436 • Letter: T
Question
The first reversible reaction to ever be discovered was identified by Claude LouisBerthollet in 1803 when he was observing the formation of natron, a household cleaner used for thousands of years in Egypt. This natron, otherwise known as hydrated sodium carbonate crystals, was forming along the edge of extremely salty lakes cut into limestone in Egypt. The salt in the lake was sodium chloride and the limestone was made of calcium carbonate, thus the equation for the reaction he observed is:
2 NaCl + CaCO3 -> Na2CO3 + CaCl2
He realized that this was the reverse of the then familiar reaction:
Na2CO3 + CaCl2 -> 2 NaCl + CaCO3
About 85 years later Henri Louis Le Châtelier developed his famous principle which
more formally explained Berthollet’s observations.
State Le Châtelier's principle and describe how it is applied to Berthollet’s observations to explain the formation of natron.
Explanation / Answer
If a chemical system at equilibrium experiences a change in concentration, temperature, volume, or partial pressure, then the equilibrium shifts to counteract the imposed change and a new equilibrium is established. In Berthollet’s observations the Nacl was much more in quantity ,so due to this the equilibrium moved in the direction of the formation of Na2Co3 But in normal labaratory conditions Its not so,so the Formation of Nacl is preffered their which justifies Le Chateliers pricicple
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