What is a catalyst, and how does it affect the rate of reaction?

A catalyst is a substance which provides an alternative pathway requiring a lower activation energy for the chemicals to react, and speeds up the rate of reaction. A catalyst also remains chemically unchanged at the end of the reaction.

JE
Answered by Julia E. Chemistry tutor

2616 Views

See similar Chemistry GCSE tutors

Related Chemistry GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Explain how covalent and ionic bonding works.


What mass of sodium hydroxide would need to be dissolved to make 100 cm^3 of a 0.5 mol dm^-3 solution? (3 marks)


If 350gNaCl is dissolved in water and made up to a volume of 3dm^3, calculate the concentration of the solution.


Butane, C4H10 is burned completely in excess oxygen, write the balanced chemical formula for the reaction, name the products and type of reaction.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning