CHAPTER 12 : OXIDATION AND REDUCTION

REDOX REACTION

Definition of oxidation and reduction according to 4 aspects

a) Oxidation occurs when there is b)Reduction occurs when there is

(i) a gain in oxygen (i) a loss of oxygen
(ii)a loss of hydrogen (ii)a gain of hydrogen
(iii)a loss of electron (iii)a gain of electron
(iv)an increase in the oxidation state (iv)a decrease in the oxidation state

RUSTING AS A REDOX REACTION

• Corrosion of a metal is a redox reaction in which a metal is oxidized by losing

electrons to form positive ions
• Metals which are more electropositive corrode faster
• When iron corrodes , the process is also known as rusting.
• Two conditions for the rusting of iron to occur are
-The presence of water
-oxygen
• Arrangement of metals in the descending order in terms of the ease of corrosion.
K Na Al Zn Fe Sn Pb Cu Ag Au
• The diagram below shows the mechanism of rusting

• The following table shows the redox process in rusting by stating the electrode
and write the half equation for each terminal
Terminal Electrode Half-equation
A Anode Fe→Fe2+ + 2e-
B Cathode O2 + 2H2O + 4e- → 4OH-

• Overall redox equation in rusting : 2Fe(aq) + O2(g) + 2H2O(l) →Fe(OH) 2(s)

• Name for the rust : Iron(III) oxide
• Chemical Formula for the rust : Fe2O3.xH2O, where x varies
• Three main ways to prevent rusting
-by using protective coating
-by forming alloys
-by using sacrificial metal
• Three metals that can be used in sacrificial protection for an underground iron
pipe
-magnesium
-aluminium
-zinc
• A reagent that is usually used to detect the presence of iron (II) ion in a laboratory
experiment.
-Potassium hexacyanoferrate(III) solution

THE REACTIVITY SERIES OF METALS AND ITS APPLICATION

• In the reactivity series, metals are arranged in the order of their reactivity with
oxygen
• The metal at the top of the series is the most reactive. They burn more vigorously
and most quickly in oxygen.
• The more reactive the metal is the more powerful it is as a reducing agent.

Reactivity Decreases
K Na Mg Al Zn Fe Sn Pb Cu Hg Ag Au
Very Reactive Very
Unreactive

• When metal X is heated with an oxide of metal Y , metal X will displace metal Y
from its oxide if metal X is more reactive than metal Y
X + metal Y → oxide of X + Y

Reactivity Decreases

K Na Mg Al C Zn H Fe Sn Pb Cu Hg Ag Au
Very Reactive
Very Unreactive
• If metal remove oxygen from carbon dioxide , the metal is more reactive than
carbon
metal + carbon dioxide → metal oxide + carbon

• If hydrogen is more reactive than the metal oxide , the metal oxide, the metal
oxide will be reduced to metal
hydrogen + metal oxide → metal + carbon dioxide
• Two application of the reactivity series
-to predict the possibility of reactions involving metals
-to predict the method of metal extraction from its ore.