Ostwald's Rule of Stages

Ostwald's Rule of Stages is a principle in chemistry that explains how certain substances change from one form to another during a reaction, often through a sequence of intermediate states. Instead of transitioning directly from a starting material to an end product, the process goes through multiple stages or phases. Each stage is more stable than the previous one, but less than the final product. This concept is important for understanding processes like crystallization and how materials evolve, reflecting changes in energy and stability throughout the transformation.