From Point Blank....What Is Oxidation/Oxidation States
and what exactly is the point of them???
*please explain in detail*
2007-10-12 14:54:34 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
Oxidation numbers are an arbitrary systrem of bookkeeping to help in balancing oxidation-reduction equations. Some persons imagine that they are the "same" as valence. This is not true. The system assumes that the oxidation number of hydrogen is +1 except in hydrides, NaH, when it is -1. Oxygen is always -2, except in peroxides, H2O2, when it is -1. The oxidation number of an element in its elemental state is 0. So H in H2 is 0; O in O2 is 0.
2007-10-12 15:27:36 · answer #1 · answered by steve_geo1 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The best way to remember oxidation and reduction is that reduction which tells by its name as to reduce the electrons actually fills in the electrons, the opposite of the word 'reduction'.oxidation is removal of electrons/oxygen from an oxide like a metal oxide.now oxidation states are the charge an element acquires when all other atoms linked to it are removed.simply saying, it is the number given to an element when its electrons are removed or filled in with greatest force.for example take fluorine. it has 2 electrons in the 2s orbitals and 5 in 2p orbitals represented by 2s2 2p5.now if you exert a very great force to remove all the electrons, only the 2p electrons will be removed, not the 2s because the force of attraction on the 2s electrons is very great in fluorine, so they are almost impossible to remove.that is also called inert pair effect.2s orbital in this case is inert..now the remaining 5 electrons from the 2p orbitals can be removed easily. so when you remove one electron the oxidation state is represented by +1, when removing 2 electrons +2 and so on till +5.now fluorine being a very electronegative element i.e very high attractive power, it is only 1 electron less for the stable octet so it readily accepts 1 electron, and oxidation states is -1.remember, when an element accepts electrons oxidation state is -ve, when it loses electrons by a very electronegative element oxidation state is +ve.
2007-10-12 22:40:05 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
oxidation is when oxygen reacts with a material. oxidation in other words is rust.
2007-10-12 21:57:24 · answer #3 · answered by Felix Arcanus 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
use the search bar,
you can find many details about oxidation state...!!!
2007-10-12 22:02:24 · answer #4 · answered by Tommy 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋