Students usually first meet chemical reactions that go in one direction. In this topic we will explore reactions that can be reversed.
After working through this topic you will be able to:
- describe a range of different types of reversible reactions, including the change of state between solid and liquid and liquid and gas, the change between hydrated and anhydrous salts, and the formation and hydrolysis of esters;
- appreciate some of the difficulties students have in understanding reversible reactions;
- use a number of strategies to encourage students to speculate about the outcome of reactions;
- understand how students' ideas about reversible reactions develop.