Why Equilibrium Constants Are Unitless

J Phys Chem Lett. 2022 Apr 21;13(15):3507-3509. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.2c00314.

Abstract

The importance of the nonexistence of a unit for equilibrium constants is well-recognized by the chemistry community. However, it is still common to encounter the use of equilibrium constants with units in recent chemistry education papers, which may mislead students and even instructors. This is mainly due to the lack of studies on the representation of the derivations of equilibrium constants in a logical manner. We hope that the explanations provided in this Viewpoint will help to clarify this issue.

MeSH terms

  • Entropy*
  • Humans