Catalyst of the week

Catalyst of the week makes me think this posting should spur thought and conversation - but doesn't a catalyst not affect the outcome, just the speed of the reaction. hmmmmm


A Catalyst is a substance that speed/ promotes a chemical process without altering the intended outcome of the reaction. This means that at the end of the chemical reaction there will be the same amount of catalyst as you had in the beginning.


They tend to work rapidly and are used over and over again, so only a very small amount is required. Biologically thinking all enzymes are catalyst’s as well – but one thing that separates them from their chemical brethren is that they are easily denatured by heat. To add to this (or perhaps clarify) there are two types of catalysts; the Promoters I’ve described above and another brand referred to as inhibitors. Inhibitors slow down a chemical reaction. Some food “manufacturers” will put chemical inhibitors in the food to retard or delay for example bread going stale.

Nickel (from the German word kupfernickel meaning false copper) can be used as a Catalyst. Fine powdered nickel is grayish colored and is used to promote the chemical action in manufacturing synthetics and to process vegetable oil and petroleum. Metal Cayalysts react with oxidizing agents. Their degree of reactivity is influenced by their state or form. For example: in bulk they resist chemical combination; in powdered form they react rapidly. Thus, as a bulk metal it is somewhat non-reactive, but finely ground/granular material may be explosive.

FYI: Catalyst is also a superhero team appearing in comics published by Dark Horse Comics.