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 P4.  OXIDATION & REDUCTION: REDOX PROCESSES 

 P4.1  Introduction: ideas of oxygen gain & loss / hydrogen loss & gain 

Antoine Lavoisier suggested the name oxygene (‘acid-former’) for the substance absorbed from air when a substance burns

Y_P4_O2_then_H2O.jpg

since the products of the combustion of non-metals such as phosphorus form acidic solutions once dissolved in water, in this case phosphoric acid.

Y_P4_O2_then_H2O.jpg

Lavoisier's oxygen theory of combustion was eventually accepted and chemists began to describe any reaction between an element or compound and oxygen as oxidation, e.g.,

Thus early ideas concerning oxidation and reduction focused on oxygen gain and loss: on the basis of such a definition, the conversion of an element
to its oxide would be viewed as oxidation while the removal of oxygen
from a substance constitutes reduction. 

Y_redox_basic_eqn_Mg_O2_MgO.jpg

You can check your understanding of these ideas by viewing the pdf download above which also considers the terms OXIDIZING AGENT & REDUCING AGENT.

The ideas concerning oxidation and reduction were later extended to include substances which lose hydrogen (oxidation) or gain hydrogen (reduction).

Attempting the question via the linked pdf on the left should clarify this complementary view.

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