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Question

Is a positive change in Gibbs free energy G spontaneous?


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Solution

Step 1: Where G is take negative , G<0

Gibbs free energy:

  1. Gibbs Free energy is a system's thermodynamic quantity that represents the workable energy. It is employed to ascertain if a reaction is spontaneous or not. In other words, spontaneous processes are those that happen "naturally," whereas nonspontaneous processes do not.
  2. By "naturally," I mean that a reaction will take place in a system even in the absence of a net inflow of free energy from the environment. For instance, ice will melt spontaneously at 100Cand 1atm, but not at -100C and 1atm.
  3. In this case G releases energy , which means that they can proceed without an energy input so the process is spontaneous.

Step 2: Where G is take positive , G>0

  1. In this case Gneed an input of energy in order to take place the process is non-spontaneous.

Step 3: Equation for Gibbs energy

  1. The following equation states that the change in enthalpyH and the change in entropy Sdetermine the change in Gibbs free energy G for a system:

ΔG=ΔH-TΔSΔG0=ΔH0-TΔS0

  1. Where, G= change in Gibbs free energy, H=change in enthalpy, S=change in entropy
  2. Whether the situation is normal or unusual, the relationship still holds true. Regarding whether a reaction will be spontaneous (i.e., when G<0), there are a few generalizations that we can draw.
  3. A negative value forG and a spontaneous reaction are both produced by a negative value for H and a positive value forS And at least one of them (negative Hor positive S) must be true for a reaction to even stand a chance of being spontaneous.
  4. Enthalpy change, the first term in the computation of G, is frequently the major term in the equation for reactions and circumstances. This is why we frequently assume that the majority of exothermic reactions (negative H) will occur spontaneously and the majority of endothermic reactions (positive H) will not, but we cannot be assured of this.
  5. -TS serves as the second term in the computation ofG.Sis frequently much smaller than H, which explains whyH is frequently the dominant factor in the equation. However, this term also includes temperature, and as the temperature rises, this term, and S in particular, become more significant.

Step 4: The following can be summed up in terms of when a reaction is spontaneous.

If H is Negative andS is Positive

  1. A reaction will never be spontaneous at any temperature if H is positive and S is negative. G will always be negative, alternatively, you could state that the reverse reaction is spontaneous at all temperatures.

If H and S are Both Negative

  1. When bothH andSare negative, the reaction is only spontaneous at "low temperatures" since G will only be negative below a specific temperature threshold.

If H and S are Both Positive

  1. When bothH and S are positive, the reaction is only spontaneous at high temperatures because G will only become negative above a specific temperature.

Hence , a positive change in Gibbs's free energy (G) is a non-spontaneous process .


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