Chemistry Project

By
Mateo Estrada
Pablo Martinez

Catalysis
What is catalysis?

Catalysis is the increase in the rate of a chemical reaction

due to the participation of an additional substance called
catalyst. With a catalyst, reactions occur faster and require
less activation energy. Because catalysts are not consumed in
the catalyzed reaction, they can continue to catalyze the
reaction of further quantities of reactant. Often only tiny
amounts are required.

The catalysis in our lives

The use of catalysts in the chemical industry is so

widespread that virtually participate in 90% of chemical
processes. The development of industrial chemistry is
largely due to catalysis, but also found catalysts in
everyday life: in catalytic stoves, in cars and, above all,
ourselves. Living beings are the most complex chemical
industry, in which millions of reactions occur
simultaneously; life would be impossible without the
presence of biological catalysts: enzymes.

Homogeneous Catalysts
They are catalysts which exist in the same phase as the
reactants. If the reactants were gaseous, then such
catalyst would also be gaseous (saying). Remember that
part where I said catalysts don't get used up? I lied. They
do get used up, it is just that they reform at the end again
so it looks like they are not being used up at all. Here is
an example of a homogeneous catalyst in action.
-Hydrogen peroxide decomposes into water and oxygen
gas.

Heterogeneous catalysts
They are catalysts which exist in a different phase than
the reactants. If the reactants were gaseous, then such
catalyst would not be gaseous. It could be, say a solid.
These catalysts work by the principle of Adsorption (not
absorption). Adsorption would be adhesion of something
onto a surface. We can take example of the
hydrogenation process, which hydrogenates (add
hydrogen) to an alkene to form an alkane.
Why is catalyst important?
Now that we have established a catalyst's definition,
mechanism and working, we can now ask the question
why a catalyst is important. Imagine you're carrying a
reaction for the first time. You're trying to synthesize a
plastic but the conditions to make it are rather unrealistic.
You're given a paper which says '500 ATM pressure at
750 K for synthesis, takes about 1 hour for 1% yield'.
You'd naturally want to make this more efficient, for if it
were you'd save energy and time and therefore, money.
Now, with your knowledge you have come to understand
that you'd need something to facilitate this reaction. The
way you can do that is by using a catalyst. It increases
your rate of reaction, lowers the activation energy barrier
and improves your yield. Profit? Definitely. You save time
and energy to get the same results in the end. Therefore,
catalysts enable us to perform a reaction quickly and
efficiently. Thanks to catalysts, we have been able to
create newer materials and products.
 Osmosis
Is the Passage of a solvent (such as water) from a lower-
concentration solution to a higher-concentration solution,
through a semi-permeable membrane (that allows the
solvent to pass but not what is dissolved in it) separating
the two solutions. The flow of solvent stops when both
solutions become equal in concentration. In nature,
osmosis is an essential process by means of which
nutrients are delivered to the cells. Osmosis is the
spontaneous net movement of solvent molecules through
a semi-permeable membrane into a region of higher
solute concentration, in the direction that tends to
equalize the solute concentrations on the two sides. It
may also be used to describe a physical process in
which any solvent moves across a semipermeable
membrane (permeable to the solvent, but not the solute)
separating two solutions of different concentrations.
Osmosis can be made to do work.
The osmosis in our lives
Osmosis is very important in biology. A cell is surrounded
by a semipermeable membrane. Normally inside it has
more concentration of large molecules outside, so the
water can flow from the outside to the inside. It is the way
that cells have to drink (pinocytosis).
An applesauce left elements decays in a few days due to
bacteria. If you add too much sugar to the puree (sauce),
will remain bacteria, but as much sugar, outside the
bacteria is more concentrated than within them, water-for
osmosis- passes from inside bacteria desiccated
environment and die. That is the explanation that
compotes not decompose.

Osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure is defined as the external pressure
required to be applied so that there is no net movement
of solvent across the membrane. Osmotic pressure is a
colligative property, meaning that the osmotic pressure
depends on the molar concentration of the solute but not
on its identity.
Importance of osmosis
Osmosis and dialysis are of prime importance in living
organisms, where they influence the distribution of
nutrients and the release of metabolic waste products.
Living cells of both plants and animals are enclosed by a
semipermeable membrane called the cell membrane,
which regulates the flow of liquids and of dissolved solids
and gases into and out of the cell. The membrane forms
a selective barrier between the cell and its environment;
not all substances can pass through the membrane with
equal facility. Without this selectivity, the substances
necessary to the life of the cell would diffuse uniformly
into the cell's surroundings, and toxic materials from the
surroundings would enter the cell.
If blood cells (or other cells) are placed in contact with an
isotonic solution, they will neither shrink nor swell. If the
solution is hypertonic, the cells will lose water and shrink
(plasmolysis). If the solution is hypotonic (or if pure
solvent is used) the cells will swell; the osmotic pressure
that is developed may even be great enough to rupture
the cell membrane. Saltwater from the ocean is
hypertonic to the cells of the human body; the drinking of
ocean water dehydrates body tissues instead of
quenching thirst.
In plants osmosis is at least partially responsible for the
absorption of soil water by root hairs and for the
elevation of the liquid to the leaves of the plant. However,
plants wilt when
Watered with saltwater or treated with too much fertilizer,
since the soil around their roots then becomes
hypertonic.
 Hydrolysis
What is hydrolysis?
Hydrolysis is a chemical reaction of water with a
substance. Among the substances that can undergo this
reaction are numerous salts which, when dissolved in
water, its constituent ions combine with H3O + and OH-,
from the dissociation of water. This results in a shift of
equilibrium dissociation of water and consequently
modifies the ph.

Salts of weak acids or weak bases are hydrolyzed by

water, depending on the degree of the reaction of a weak
acid or base. That is, the weaker the acid or base
hydrolysis