Question

What do you mean by selectivity of catalyst?

What do you understand by selectivity of catalyst?

Answer 1

The ability of the catalyst to direct a reaction to yield a particular product is referred to as the selectivity of the catalyst. For example, by using different catalysts, we can get different products for the reaction between H₂ and CO.

(i) \[\ce{CO_{(g)} + 3H2_{(g)} ->[Ni] CH4_{(g)} + H2O_{(g)}}\]

(ii) \[\ce{CO_{(g)} + 2H2_{(g)} ->[Cu/ZnO][CrO3] CH3OH_{(g)}}\]

(iii) \[\ce{CO_{(g)} + H2_{(g)} ->[Cu] HCHO_{(g)}}\]