Le Chatelier's principle

Physiology

(noun)

A principle that states that if a chemical system at equilibrium experiences a change in concentration, temperature, or total pressure, the equilibrium will shift in order to minimize that change.

Related Terms

  • carbaminohemoglobin
Chemistry

(noun)

The principle used to predict the effect of a change in conditions on a chemical equilibrium.

Related Terms

  • buffer
  • common ion effect
  • conjugate acid
  • conjugate base

Examples of Le Chatelier's principle in the following topics:

  • Changes in Temperature

    • Changes in temperature shift the equilibrium state of chemical reactions; these changes can be predicted using Le Chatelier's Principle.
    • The effect of changes to the equilibrium state can be predicted using Le Chatelier's Principle.
    • Le Chatelier's Principle states that when changes are made to a reversible chemical reaction in equilibrium, the system will compensate for that change with a predictable, opposing shift.
    • Le Chatelier's Principle predicts that the addition of products or the removal of reactants from a system will reverse the direction of a reaction, while the addition of reactants or the removal of products from a system will push the reaction towards the formation of products.
    • Applied to temperature, Le Chatelier's Principle predicts that the addition of heat to a system will cause an opposing reaction in the system to remove heat.
  • Changes in Volume and Pressure

    • The effects of changes in volume and pressure on a reversible reaction in chemical equilibrium can be predicted by Le Chatelier's Principle.
    • The effects of changes in volume and pressure on chemical equilibrium can be predicted using Le Chatelier's Principle.
    • Le Chatelier's Principle states that disturbances to a system in equilibrium can be predicted: opposing shifts in the system will occur to restore equilibrium.
    • This principle can be applied to changes in temperature, concentration, volume, and pressure.
    • Le Chatelier's Principle can be used to predict the response of a reversible chemical reaction to a change in the system.
  • Le Chatelier's Principle

    • Le Chatelier's principle states that changes to an equilibrium system will result in a predictable shift that will counteract the change.
    • Le Chatelier's principle is an observation about chemical equilibria of reactions.
    • By Le Chatelier's principle, increasing the temperature will shift the equilibrium to the right, producing more NO2.
    • This lesson shows how Le Chatelier's principle predicts changes in an equilibrium.
    • Recall factors that Le Chatelier's principle states will affect the equilibrium of a system
  • Changes in Concentration

    • The effect of changes in the concentration of products and reactants in a reversible reaction can be predicted by Le Chatelier's Principle.
    • This principle has a variety of names; in chemistry it is known as Le Chatelier's principle.
    • Using Le Chatelier's principle, we can predict that the amount of methanol will increase, decreasing the total change in CO.
  • The Common Ion Effect

    • The common ion effect can be explained by Le Chatelier's principle of chemical equilibrium:
    • According to Le Chatelier's principle, addition of more ions alters the equilibrium and shifts the reaction to favor the solid or deionized form.
  • Regulation of H+ by the Lungs

    • This alters the concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood, shifting the above reaction according to Le Chatelier's principle, which in turn alters the pH.
    • The basic reaction governed by this principle is as follows:
  • Solid Solubility and Temperature

    • This temperature dependence is sometimes referred to as retrograde or inverse solubility, and exists when a salt's dissolution is exothermic; this can be explained because, according to Le Chatelier's principle, extra heat will cause the equilibrium for an exothermic process to shift towards the reactants.
  • Chemical Buffer Systems

    • This alters the concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood, shifting the above reaction according to Le Chatelier's principle, which in turn alters the pH.
  • Effect of a Common Ion on Solubility

    • This is because Le Chatelier's principle states the reaction will shift toward the left (toward the reactants) to relieve the stress of the excess product.
  • Preparing a Buffer Solution with a Specific pH

    • When some strong acid (more H+) is added to an equilibrium mixture of the weak acid and its conjugate base, the equilibrium is shifted to the left, in accordance with Le Chatelier's principle.
Subjects
  • Accounting
  • Algebra
  • Art History
  • Biology
  • Business
  • Calculus
  • Chemistry
  • Communications
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Microbiology
  • Physics
  • Physiology
  • Political Science
  • Psychology
  • Sociology
  • Statistics
  • U.S. History
  • World History
  • Writing

Except where noted, content and user contributions on this site are licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 with attribution required.