The industrial production of sulfuric acid involves several steps. One of these steps is the reaction of sulfur dioxide, SO2, with oxygen to form sulfur trioxide, SO3. The reaction to produce sulfur trioxide reaches an equilibrium. A manufacturer considered two sets of conditions, A and B, for this reaction. In each case sulfur dioxide is mixed with excess oxygen. The manufacturer changed the temperature and the pressure and only used a catalyst in B and also r chooses set of conditions B rather than set of conditions A. Explain, by considering the effect of changing the conditions on the rate of attainment of equilibrium and on the equilibrium yield of sulfur trioxide, why the manufacturer chooses the set of conditions B rather than the set of conditions A – 9030

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1. Equilibrium was reached faster in set A because it had a higher temperature, while in set B the lower temperature meant equilibrium was reached more slowly. This is because at higher temperatures, the particles have more energy and collide more frequently and with greater force.
   However, the yield in set A was lower because the forward reaction is exothermic. A high temperature favours the reverse (endothermic) reaction, so less product is formed. A lower temperature increases the yield, but it takes longer for the reaction to reach equilibrium.
   Set B also had a higher pressure, which caused the particles to be closer together and collide more often. This made the reaction in set B reach equilibrium faster than in set A. Since the products occupy a smaller volume than the reactants, the higher pressure also gave a higher yield.
   The catalyst used in set B helped the reaction reach equilibrium faster by increasing the rate of both the forward and backward reactions. However, it did not change the equilibrium position, so it didn’t affect the yield.

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