What do you understand by activity and selectivity of a catalyst ? Give one example of each.

Explanation

Activity of a catalyst. The ability of a catalyst to accelerate the rate of a chemical reaction is called activity. The degree of catalytic activity of a catalyst may be as high as `10^(10)`. For example, hydrogen and oxygen do not-react at room temperature but in the presence of platinum as-catalyst, the reaction is violently explosive.
Selectivity of a catalyst. It is the ability of a catalyst to direct a reaction to yield particular products e.g., n-heptane gives toluene selectivity over platinum as a catalyst.