Jul 15, 2026 • 1 min read
Understanding Chemical Equilibrium: Le Chatelier's Principle Explained
A visual, intuitive guide to one of the most important concepts in physical chemistry.
Le Chatelier's Principle states that if a dynamic equilibrium is disturbed, the system will shift to counteract the change.
Concentration Changes
Add more reactant? The equilibrium shifts to produce more product. Remove product? Same thing.
Temperature Changes
For exothermic reactions, increasing temperature shifts equilibrium toward reactants. For endothermic, toward products.
Pressure Changes
Only affects reactions involving gases. The system shifts toward the side with fewer gas molecules.
Catalysts
Catalysts speed up both forward and reverse reactions equally — they do NOT shift the equilibrium position.