In the Contact process, sulfur dioxide reacts with oxygen to produce sulfur trioxide in the presence of a vanadium(V) oxide catalyst. A dynamic equilibrium is established according to the following equation:
2SO2(g)+O2(g)⇌2SO3(g) 2\text{SO}_2(\text{g}) + \text{O}_2(\text{g}) \rightleftharpoons 2\text{SO}_3(\text{g}) 2SO2(g)+O2(g)⇌2SO3(g)The forward reaction is exothermic.
State the effect of the vanadium(V) oxide catalyst on:
the rate of attainment of this equilibrium,
the equilibrium yield of sulfur trioxide.
38 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Chemistry 5.2 Reversible reactions and equilibria, covering 5.2.1 Reversible reactions and dynamic equilibrium, 5.2.2 The Haber process, and 5.2.3 Changing the position of a dynamic equilibrium. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.