Guldberg and Waage

Guldberg and Waage are known for formulating the concept of chemical equilibrium, encapsulated in their law of mass action. This principle states that, in a reversible chemical reaction, the rate at which reactants form products is proportional to the concentrations of the reactants. In simpler terms, if you increase the amount of a substance in a reaction, it will shift the balance toward forming more products—until equilibrium is reached, where the rates of the forward and reverse reactions are equal. This foundational idea helps chemists predict how reactions will behave under different conditions.