For the equilibrium COCl2 (g) ⇌ CO (g) + Cl2 (g), what is the expression for Ke in terms of concentrations?

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Multiple Choice

For the equilibrium COCl2 (g) ⇌ CO (g) + Cl2 (g), what is the expression for Ke in terms of concentrations?

Explanation:
The expression used for an equilibrium constant takes the product concentrations in the numerator and the reactant concentrations in the denominator, each raised to the power of their coefficients. For COCl2 ⇌ CO + Cl2, the products are CO and Cl2 and the reactant is COCl2, all with coefficient 1. So Ke (or Kc) = [CO][Cl2]/[COCl2]. This form matches the ratio of products to reactants at equilibrium. If you used the opposite arrangement, you’d be taking the reciprocal of the true constant. For gases, the same idea applies with partial pressures (Kp), related to Kc by Kp = Kc(RT)^(Δn) with Δn = 1 here.

The expression used for an equilibrium constant takes the product concentrations in the numerator and the reactant concentrations in the denominator, each raised to the power of their coefficients. For COCl2 ⇌ CO + Cl2, the products are CO and Cl2 and the reactant is COCl2, all with coefficient 1. So Ke (or Kc) = [CO][Cl2]/[COCl2]. This form matches the ratio of products to reactants at equilibrium. If you used the opposite arrangement, you’d be taking the reciprocal of the true constant. For gases, the same idea applies with partial pressures (Kp), related to Kc by Kp = Kc(RT)^(Δn) with Δn = 1 here.

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