Question

in the provided reaction profile, the black line represents the pathway of the reaction of a and b going to ab. the red line represents the pathway when catalyst k is added. what is catalyst k doing in the reaction? a. lowering the enthalpy of the reaction. b. lowering the activation energy of the reaction. c. changing the mechanism of the reaction. d. both lowering the enthalpy of the reaction and lowering the activation energy of the reaction. e. both lowering the activation energy of the reaction and changing the mechanism of the reaction.

Explanation:

Catalysts work by providing an alternative reaction - mechanism with a lower activation energy. They do not change the enthalpy of the reaction. The red line in the reaction profile represents the pathway when the catalyst K is added, which has a lower activation energy due to a different reaction mechanism.

Answer:

C. Changing the mechanism of the reaction.