Equilibrium Intro (20 Min) - macroscopic properties, changing conditions

In stoichiometry, to make product, you learned that what limits how much product is formed is based solely on the limiting reagent. But we should never assume reactants becoming products will always go to completion. The rate of the concentration of products and reactants if equally going in opposite direction are actually exhibiting no change in overall concentration of those products and reactants. This is because reactants combine at the same rate as products decompose and are therefore not equal but constant. Factors in equilibrium systems are the following: the rate of the forward reaction equalling the rate of the reverse reaction, macroscopic properties such as pressure, colour, mass, state must be constant, and reactions must occur in a closed system. It is important to note that changing conditions can alter the effect of equilibrium by altering the equilibrium constant (also known as the ration of product and reactant concentration). An example of a changing condition that can do this is temperature. No other factor can do this. In fact, increasing or decreasing pressure, reactants, products, inert gases or catalysts have zero effect on the equilibrium constant.