Driving Forces

The driving force for a reaction is the reason the reaction moves forward.  It is the reason the reactants become the products.  To truly analyze the driving force, you must write the ionic reaction.  At this point in the semester, we will use the following reasons.

• a solid is produced from an aqueous solution
• a gas is produced
• water is produced
• a more active metal replaces a less reactive metal in a single replacement reaction
• a more reactive nonmetal replaces a less reactive nonmetal in a single replacement reaction
• neutral elements combine to form an ionic compound in a synthesis reaction

The last 3 reasons are types of redox reactions where electrons are transfered.  We will discuss redox reaction in the future.