In a chemical reaction, chemical equilibrium is the state in which both the reactants and products are present in concentrations which have no further tendency to change with time, so that there is no observable change in the properties of the system. This state results when the forward reaction proceeds at the same rate as the reverse reaction.

Arenes are aromatic hydrocarbons. The term “aromatic” originally referred to their pleasant smells (e.g., from cinnamon bark, wintergreen leaves, vanilla beans and anise seeds), but now implies a particular sort of delocalized bonding. Aromatic hydrocarbons (or sometimes called arenes or aryl hydrocarbon) are hydrocarbons with sigma bonds and delocalized π electrons between carbon atoms forming rings.