catalysis
Sign in to savethumb|A range of industrial catalysts in pellet form thumb|An air filter that uses a low-temperature oxidation catalyst to convert [[carbon monoxide to less toxic carbon dioxide at room temperature. It can also remove formaldehyde from the air.]] Catalysis (, ) is the increase in rate of a chemical reaction due to an added substance known as a catalyst ( ). Catalysts are not consumed by the reaction and remain unchanged after the reaction. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst is recycled quickly, a very small amount of catalyst often suffices; mixing, surface area, and temperature are imp
AI overview
Catalysis is the process of speeding up a chemical reaction by adding a substance called a catalyst, which itself remains unchanged and unconsumed by the reaction. Because catalysts aren't used up and can be recycled, small amounts of them can make reactions happen much faster, which is why they're valuable in industrial applications and environmental solutions like air filtration.
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Article
25 sectionsContents
- General principles
- Example
- Units
- Catalytic reaction mechanisms
- Reaction energetics
- Related concepts
- Classification
- Heterogeneous catalysis
- Electrocatalysts
- Homogeneous catalysis
- Organocatalysis
- Photocatalysts
- Enzymes and biocatalysts
- Significance
- Energy processing
- Bulk chemicals
- Fine chemicals
- Food processing
- Environment
- History
- Inhibitors, poisons, and promoters{{anchor|Catalyst modifiers}}
- Prebiotic catalysis in the origin of life
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|A range of industrial catalysts in pellet form thumb|An air filter that uses a low-temperature oxidation catalyst to convert [[carbon monoxide to less toxic carbon dioxide at room temperature. It can also remove formaldehyde from the air.]] Catalysis (, ) is the increase in rate of a chemical reaction due to an added substance known as a catalyst ( ). Catalysts are not consumed by the reaction and remain unchanged after the reaction. If the reaction is rapid and the catalyst is recycled quickly, a very small amount of catalyst often suffices; mixing, surface area, and temperature are important factors in reaction rate. Catalysts generally react with one or more reactants to form intermediates that subsequently give the final reaction product, in the process of regenerating the catalyst.
The rate increase occurs because the catalyst allows the reaction to occur by an alternative mechanism which may be much faster than the noncatalyzed mechanism. However the noncatalyzed mechanism does remain possible, so that the total rate (catalyzed plus noncatalyzed) can only increase in the presence of the catalyst and never decrease.