Redox Reaction Essay

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Redox reaction Introduction: |C7H12 |+ |11 O2 |[pic] |7 CO2 |+ |8 H2O | |Heptane | |oxygen | |carbon dioxide | |Water | Redox is the shorthand for the words reduction and oxidation, the formal name for the redox reaction is “oxidation reduction reaction”. Therefore in any redox reaction there must be an oxidation and a reduction, there cannot be an oxidation reaction without a reduction reaction corresponding to it. Reduction can be defined as it is “the gaining of hydrogen”, the combustion reactions (formula1) are a good examples for these definitions where one molecule gains oxygen and one molecule gains hydrogen. Oxidation is the process of a loss of electrons, resulting in a gain of Oxygen while reduction is the opposite process of a gain of electrons resulting in loss oxygen. The general definition of redox reactions stats “oxidation is the loss of electrons; reduction is the gain of electrons.” An everyday example of redox reaction is the process of rusting. Formula 1 Rust is the peeling brown substance that forms on iron when it left exposed to air and water. |iron |+ |water |+ |air |= |rust | |Fe |+ |H2O |+ |O2 |[pic] |Fe2O3 | Oxidation reaction: Iron is oxidized (loses e-) Reduction reaction: Oxygen is reduced (gains e-) O2 + 4e- + 4 H+ [pic] 2 H2O Those Fe2+ ions react with the OH- ions in water to produce iron hydroxide, which will dry in several steps to produce rust: Fe2+ + 2OH- [pic] Fe(OH)2 [pic][pic] Fe2O3 (rust) Iron is one of the most widely used metals in the world. This is due to its innumerable applications in industries and fields of engineering to make machines. Nevertheless, as pure iron is a soft metal, it is often converted into other forms such as cast iron, pig iron wrought iron, carbon steel and alloy steel. These

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