Question

Is oxidaton number a representation of the charge or is it a representation of the number of electrons accepted or donated?

Answer 1

Oxidation number, also called Oxidation State, the total number of electrons that an atom either gains or loses in order to form a chemical bond with another atom.

Each atom that participates in an oxidation-reduction reaction (q.v.) is assigned an oxidation number that reflects its ability to acquire, donate, or share electrons. The iron ion Fe3+, for example, has an oxidation number of +3 because it can acquire three electrons to form a chemical bond, while the oxygen ion O2− has an oxidation number of −2 because it can donate two electrons. In an electronically neutral substance, the sum of the oxidation numbers is zero; for example, in hematite (Fe2O3) the oxidation number of the two iron atoms (+6 in total) balances the oxidation number of the three oxygen atoms (−6).