For an exothermic reaction , temperature increase by `10^@C` , the equilibrium constant will

Options

A. 2 times
B. Same
C. 1/2 times
D. 4 times

Answer

To solve the problem regarding the effect of temperature on the equilibrium constant for an exothermic reaction, we can follow these steps:

### Step-by-Step Solution:

1. **Understand the Nature of the Reaction**:
- We are dealing with an exothermic reaction, which means that heat is released during the reaction. The general form can be represented as:
\[ \text{Reactants} \rightleftharpoons \text{Products} + \text{Heat} \]

2. **Effect of Temperature Increase**:
- The question states that the temperature increases by \(10^\circ C\). For exothermic reactions, an increase in temperature shifts the equilibrium position to the left (towards the reactants) to counteract the added heat.

3. **Le Chatelier's Principle**:
- According to Le Chatelier's Principle, if a system at equilibrium is subjected to a change in temperature, pressure, or concentration, the system will adjust itself to counteract that change. In this case, since the temperature is increased, the equilibrium shifts to the left.

4. **Impact on Equilibrium Constant (K)**:
- The equilibrium constant \(K\) is defined as:
\[ K = \frac{[\text{Products}]}{[\text{Reactants}]} \]
- When the equilibrium shifts to the left, the concentration of reactants increases while the concentration of products decreases. This means that the denominator of the equilibrium expression increases while the numerator decreases.

5. **Conclusion about K**:
- Since the concentration of reactants increases and the concentration of products decreases, the overall value of \(K\) will decrease. Therefore, we can conclude that:
\[ K \text{ decreases} \]

6. **Final Answer**:
- The equilibrium constant will decrease, which corresponds to the option that states the equilibrium constant is halved.