Gibbs free energy

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/gibbs-free-energy

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. Who discovered Gibbs free energy?By Josiah Willard Gibbs in the 1870s
2. What is the related topics?Thermodynamics, chemical equilibrium, enthalpy, entropy, electrochemistry, biochemical energy
3. Why does a negative ΔG mean a reaction will happen?When ΔG is negative, the reaction can happen by itself because it releases useful work. It means the system is moving toward a more stable state.
4. How does temperature affect Gibbs free energy?Temperature changes the weight of the entropy part of the equation. At higher temperatures, the increase in disorder (TΔS) can make a reaction that needs heat still happen.

Thermodynamic Potential: A function whose derivatives yield thermodynamic properties of a system.
Spontaneity: The tendency of a process to occur without external intervention.
Equilibrium: A state where a system's properties do not change over time.