Question 12.EP.1: For the BMA process, the equilibrium below would be establis...
For the BMA process, the equilibrium below would be established if the products were not removed from the reaction vessel:
NH_{3}(g)+CH_{4}(g)\rightleftarrows HCN(g)+3 \ H_{2}(g)
Write the equilibrium expression for this reaction.
Strategy
We use the definition of the equilibrium expression. Write the products in the numerator and the reactants in the denominator. The exponent for each concentration term is given by the corresponding stoichiometric coefficient from the chemical equation.
K=\frac{\left[HCN\right]\left[H_{2} \right]^{3}}{[NH_{3}][CH_{4} ]}
Analyze Your Answer
The only way we can assess an answer like this is to make sure that we used the definition of the equilibrium constant correctly. We have the products (HCN and H_{2}) in the numerator and the reactants (NH_{3} and CH_{4}) in the denominator, which is correct, and we have exponents to match the stoichiometric coefficients. So our answer is correct.