Why does a catalyst make a reaction faster

This is like swapping partners at a square dance. Sometimes, those partnerships are easy to break. A molecule may have certain properties that let it lure away atoms from another molecule. But in stable partnerships, the molecules are content as they are. Left together for a very long period of time, a few might eventually switch partners. Catalysts make such a breaking and rebuilding happen more efficiently.

They do this by lowering the activation energy for the chemical reaction. Activation energy is the amount of energy needed to allow the chemical reaction to occur. The catalyst just changes the path to the new chemical partnership. It builds the equivalent of a paved highway to bypass a bumpy dirt road.

Like a wingman, it encourages other molecules to react. Once they do, it bows out. They play a role in everything from copying genetic material to breaking down food and nutrients. Manufacturers often create catalysts to speed processes in industry. One technology that needs a catalyst to work is a hydrogen fuel cell. How is vsepr used to classify molecules? What are the units used for the ideal gas law? How does Charle's law relate to breathing? What is the ideal gas law constant?

How do you calculate the ideal gas law constant? How do you find density in the ideal gas law? Does ideal gas law apply to liquids? This prevents them from re-forming the original molecules thus defeating the purpose of the reaction. In strongly exergonic reactions this may not help much, but in mildly exergonic reactions, decreasing the concentration of products will 'pull' a reaction in the direction of more product molecules.

The amount of extra energy, the activation energy needed to get a reaction started, can be reduced. If less activation energy is needed, then more reactant molecules will have enough energy to make productive collisions, and the speed of the reaction will increase. A catalyst is an agent that lowers the activation energy of a reaction.

In the presence of a catalyst, therefore, the speed of the reaction is increased. Many pure metals, like mercury or platinum make good inorganic catalysts. These agents provide large surfaces on which the reactant molecules are absorbed and oriented towards each other. Held in just the right relationship, the reactant molecules need less activation energy to make the collision productive, so the chemical reaction can take place faster at lower temperatures.