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Chemistry Forums for Students => Organic Chemistry Forum => Topic started by: flipflopflippy on June 12, 2014, 08:39:42 PM

Title: Organic Chemistry Equilibrium question
Post by: flipflopflippy on June 12, 2014, 08:39:42 PM

Hey guys, I have an equilibrium question about the following reaction

acetalsalicyilic acid+water<----->salicylic acid + acetic acid

Ok here is my question, increasing the temperature increases the amount of salicylic acid produced. However I am having a hard time pinpointing exactly why. I have two reasonable guesses as to why.

1. I think that maybe increasing the temperature is increasing the K constant and therefore there has to be more products to account for this.

2. That possibly the reaction is endothermic in the direction going to the right, and therefore increasing temperature favors that side.

Title: Re: Organic Chemistry Equilibrium question
Post by: zsinger on June 12, 2014, 08:45:18 PM

OK…..Well, what makes a reaction go one way or the other?  Think about Le'Chatlier's principle :).
            -Z