Reaction Equilibrium

$Q$ symbolizes the mass action expression for any system ( not necessarily at equilibrium )

$\ce{aA + bB <=>cC + dD}$

Info

For any system that is not at equilibrium, there is a driving force toward the equilibrium state
The magnitude of that driving force is described as $\Delta G$
$\Delta G^{\circ} =$ the magnitude of the driving force to obtain equilibrium starting from "standard conditions"
T = 25°C, pressure1 bar, concentration = 1 M
If we add additional substrate A, the concentrations of all 4 compounds will change to get back to the equilibrium state
This is the same equation as the equilibrium constant expression $K$
The big difference is $Q$ can be calculated for any conditions , and the concentrations used are not necessarily equilibrium values
The coefficients (small letters) for each item in the equilibrium equation become superscripts in the mass action equation

$Q = \frac{Products}{Reactants} = \frac{[C]^c*[D]^d}{[A]^a*[B]^b}$

					if ( products > reactants ) {
						Q === LARGE
					}
					else if ( reactants > products ) {
						Q === SMALL
					}