What is the role of a catalyst in a chemical reaction?

A catalyst plays a crucial role in accelerating chemical reactions by providing an alternative reaction pathway that requires lower activation energy. This means that reactants can convert to products more quickly when a catalyst is present, leading to an increased reaction rate. Importantly, a catalyst is not consumed in the reaction; it can be recovered unchanged at the end of the process, thus emphasizing how it does not undergo permanent change.

This characteristic of catalysts is vital in both industrial processes and natural biochemical reactions, where efficiency and speed are key factors. By lowering the activation energy, catalysts enhance the frequency of successful collisions between reactant molecules, ultimately speeding up the rate of the reaction without altering the outcome or changing the reactants permanently.