Question

What do you call the energy that must be overcome in order for a chemical reaction to occur, or the minimum energy required to start a chemical reaction?

Answer 1

activation energy

Regardless of whether reactions are exothermic reactions or endothermic reactions , they all need energy to get started. This energy is called activation energy . Activation energy is like the push you need to start moving down a slide. The push gives you enough energy to start moving. Once you start, you keep moving without being pushed again. Activation energy is defined as the energy that must be overcome in order for a chemical reaction to occur, or the minimum energy required to start a chemical reaction. The concept of activation energy is illustrated in Figure below .