What is the Role of Gibbs Free Energy in Catalysis?
The Gibbs free energy (ΔG) of a reaction is a thermodynamic potential that measures the maximum reversible work that may be performed by a thermodynamic system at constant temperature and pressure. The second law of thermodynamics states that for a reaction to be spontaneous, ΔG must be negative. Catalysts lower the activation energy but do not change the ΔG of the reaction. They help the system reach a state where the free energy is minimized, consistent with the second law.
