Biology – 5.1 Enzymes | e-Consult

A catalyst speeds up both the forward and reverse reactions equally. It lowers the activation energy for both processes. Because the activation energy is lowered for both the forward and reverse reactions, the rate at which the forward reaction proceeds is increased by the same proportion as the rate at which the reverse reaction proceeds.

Therefore, while the forward reaction occurs faster and the reverse reaction occurs faster, the rate of the forward reaction relative to the rate of the reverse reaction remains the same. This means that the ratio of products to reactants at equilibrium is not altered. The equilibrium position, which represents the point where the rates of the forward and reverse reactions are equal, is therefore unchanged by the presence of a catalyst. The catalyst simply helps the system reach equilibrium faster.