Chemists must control the rate of reactions to ensure that processes are both economical and safe. Reaction pathway diagrams display information about the energy changes during chemical reactions.
A catalyst alters the rate of a reaction, allowing it to be done at a lower temperature. Catalysts are therefore used in the chemical industry to make manufacturing processes more economical.
Some examples of catalysts used in industry are:
Iron – used to make ammonia by the Haber Process
Platinum – used in manufacture of nitric acid (Ostwald process)
Rhodium and Platinum - in catalytic converters
Nickel – to make margarine by hardening vegetable oil
Vanadium (V) Oxide – in the contact process, to make sulphuric acid
Adding a catalyst lowers the activation energy. This increases the number of molecules with the minimum kinetic energy required for a reaction to take place. This increases the number of successful collisions, thus increasing the rate of reaction.
