Convex Geometry and Stoichiometry

Abstract

We demonstrate the benefits of a convex geometric perspective for questions on chemical stoichiometry. We show that the balancing of chemical equations, the use of "mixtures" to explain multiple stoichiometry, and the half-reaction for balancing redox actions all yield nice convex geometric interpretations. We also relate some natural questions on reaction mechanisms with the enumeration of lattice points in polytopes. Lastly, it is known that a given reaction mechanism imposes linear constraints on observed stoichiometries. We consider the inverse question of deducing reaction mechanism consistent with a given set of linear stoichiometric restrictions.