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Surface Chemistry
Adsorption, catalysis, colloids and emulsions
Key Concepts
- Adsorption: accumulation of substance on surface (adsorbate on adsorbent)
- Physisorption: weak van der Waals forces; chemisorption: chemical bonds
- Colloids: dispersed particles 1–1000 nm in size; show Tyndall effect
- Coagulation: colloidal particles aggregate and settle
- Catalysis: catalyst provides alternative pathway with lower activation energy
Important Formulae
| Freundlich adsorption isotherm | x/m = kP^(1/n), n ≥ 1 |
| Langmuir adsorption isotherm | x/m = abP / (1 + bP) |
Quick Tips
- Physisorption increases at low T; chemisorption increases at high T (up to a limit).
- Sols: solid dispersed in liquid; gels: liquid dispersed in solid; emulsion: liquid in liquid.
- Hardy-Schulze rule: higher valency of coagulating ion → more effective coagulation.
Practice Questions
Practice 20 randomly selected NEET questions on Surface Chemistry. Answers are revealed after each question.
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