Oxidizing agent Notes: Definitions & Explanations PDF | Download eBooks

Study Oxidizing agent lecture notes PDF with biology definitions and explanation to study What is Oxidizing agent?. Study oxidizing agent explanation with biology terms to review biology course for online degree programs.

Oxidizing agent Notes:

The agent that is itself being reduced is called the oxidizing agent. So in any redox reaction, an oxidizing agent, or oxidant, gains electrons and is reduced in a chemical reaction. Also known as the electron acceptor, the oxidizing agent is normally in one of its higher possible oxidation states because it will gain electrons and be reduced. For example, during the combustion of a log, electrons are transferred from carbon atoms in the log to oxygen atoms in the air. The oxygen atoms undergo reduction, gaining electrons, while the carbon atoms undergo oxidation, losing electrons. Thus oxygen is the oxidizing agent and carbon the reducing agent in this reaction.

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