Well, you must have noticed changes around you. You look at your mom cooking and transforming the boring vegetables into yummy curries. How does that happen? In this chapter, we will cover all of it and know what are reversible and irreversible changes. We will discuss their sub-types and properties. And, by the end of the chapter, you would have known all about the magic of a melting ice and more!
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What are Reversible and Irreversible Changes?
Speaking in terms of chemistry, a change can be explained on physical grounds. Changes are very random or uncertain phenomena. Changes can be for the good or worse, depending on your view. You must be noticing different objects changing around you on a daily basis.
As we mentioned above, melting of ice, cooking of food are all changes that happen around us. In some cases, we find that the original substance can be recovered back, while in some other changes, you can never go back to obtaining the original substance.
Some changes are slow while some are fast. Also, some changes are natural while some are man-made. You will find that many changes are taking place around us for example growing of plants in your balcony, sometimes there is a change in color and sometimes you will find drying of leaves. Now, we look at the concept of reversible and irreversible changes.
Reversible Changes
The changes that can be reversed or are a temporary conversion are reversible changes. The reactions that are reversible are reversible reactions. In such kinds of reaction, one substance is modified into another form but a new compound is not formed. Processes such as melting, boiling, evaporation, freezing, condensation, dissolution are reversible changes.
Few examples of reversible changes are melting of wax, freezing of ice, boiling water which evaporates as steam and condenses back to water. Reactions are nothing but an interaction of two or more compounds called reactants to produce a product(s). In a reversible reaction, reactants and products formed are connected by a two-way arrow (⇌). This means that you can obtain the reactants back from the products. Consider the reaction below,
A +B ⇌ C + D
Here, A and B are two reactants which react to give C and D. The two-headed arrow indicates that reaction is reversible and you can obtain the reactants, A and B, from C and D.
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Irreversible Changes
As compared to reversible changes, irreversible changes are permanent changes. Reactants react to form an entirely new compound and cannot be reversed. Heating, burning, mixing, powdering are few processes which cause irreversible changes. A common observable instance in your daily life is the cooking of raw egg. You can’t get the raw egg back once it is cooked into your favourite omelette!
Once you burn a paper and it is fully combusted, you can’t get it back from the ash! When a reaction is taking place in a unidirectional way such reactions are irreversible reactions. In such reactions in a period of time reactants react completely to form a product. Here reaction is denoted by a one-way arrow (→). For example,
A → B +C
Here, A is the reactant which is completely converted into products B and C which do not react to form A.
Learn more about Different Ways to bring Changes here.
Question For You
Q. Give examples of reversible changes.
Ans: Few examples of reversible changes are melting of wax, freezing of ice, boiling water which evaporates as steam and condenses back to water.
name any 10 types of changes with long defination for class 8