Question

What are oxidizing and reducing agents? Give examples.

Answer 1

Oxidizing and reducing agents

• In a chemical reaction the substance to which oxygen is added or hydrogen is removed is said to be oxidized and the substance oxidized is the reducing agent and the substance which gets reduced is the oxidizing agent.
  

Examples

• The first example is as follows:-

$$\begin{gathered} \mathrm{Reaction}:2\mathrm{Na}\left(\mathrm{s}\right)+{\mathrm{Cl}}_2\left(\mathrm{g}\right)\to 2{\mathrm{Na}}^{+}{\mathrm{Cl}}^{-}\left(\mathrm{s}\right) \\ \mathrm{Oxidation}\mathrm{state}:00+2-2 \end{gathered}$$

• In the above reaction, sodium, which is oxidised, acts as a reducing agent because it donates electrons to chlorine.
• Chlorine is reduced and acts as an oxidizing agent because it accepts electrons from sodium.
• The second example is as follows:-

$$\begin{gathered} \mathrm{Reaction}:2\mathrm{Na}\left(\mathrm{s}\right)+{\mathrm{O}}_2\left(\mathrm{g}\right)\to {\left({\mathrm{Na}}^{+}\right)}_2{\mathrm{O}}^{2-}\left(\mathrm{s}\right) \\ \mathrm{Oxidation}\mathrm{state}:00+2-2 \end{gathered}$$

• In the above reaction, sodium, which is oxidized, acts as a reducing agent because it donates electrons to oxygen.
• Oxygen is reduced and acts as an oxidizing agent because it accepts electrons from sodium.