The Role of a Catalyst
- A catalyst is a substance that increases the rate of reaction by providing the particles with an alternative mechanism with a lower activation energy
- Catalysts do not have to be directly involved in the chemical reaction
- They can provide a surface for the reaction to occur on, e.g. iron in the Haber process
- Alternatively, they can provide a particle (often an ion) to start the reaction but this particle is regenerated at the end so the catalyst appears unaltered, e.g. chlorine radicals in ozone depletion
A catalyst increases the rate of a reaction by providing an alternative pathway which has a lower activation energy