Silver tarnishes and turns black/black--do you think it is a physical change or a chemical change?

Question

please briefly explain why you think so?

Answer 1

since it tarnishes by exposure to air, this changes its chemical structure , so it is considered as a chemical change.

Answer 2

The tarnish you see on silver is silver sulfide; it forms from the silver reacting from small amounts of hydrogen sulfide in the air. This is a chemical change, because the silver has reacted with something to form a different material. A physical change is like melting, freezing, vaporizing, or grinding to powder, where it is still the same material as you started with, only the form has been changed.

Answer 3

It changes color either because it gets dirty, or because the silver or impurities in the silver are oxidized by the air around it (which is a chemical change).


Edit to note that "oxidized" is a chemical reaction term, not necessarily involving oxygen, rather a loss of electrons. In this case it is normally sulfur or hydrogen forming bonds with the silver that oxidizes it and turns it black.

Answer 4

Some links
on
"Why silver turns black"