Potassium, a silvery metal, reacts with bromine, a corrosive, reddish liquid, to yield potassium bromide, a white solid. Write the balanced equation, and identify the oxidizing and reducing agents.

2K + Br2 ==> 2KBr

What is oxidation? The loss of electrons. (This is also the reducing agent).
The gain of electrons is reduction. This is also the oxidizing agent.

K goes from an oxidation state of zero to +1. Br goes from an oxidation state of zero to -1.

2K(s)+Br2(1)--->2KBr(s)

2K+Br----2kBr

Why wouldn't it be KBr? Why are the twos added? How come its not just K + Br ==> KBr since their charges cancel out? Help!

because Bromine is one of the 7 Diatomic molecules.....so it is understood as Br2

To write the balanced equation for the reaction between potassium and bromine, we need to determine the correct stoichiometric coefficients that balance the number of atoms on both sides of the equation.

The reaction can be represented as follows:

2 K (s) + Br2 (l) → 2 KBr (s)

In this balanced equation, we see that two potassium atoms react with one molecule of bromine to produce two molecules of potassium bromide.

Now let's identify the oxidizing and reducing agents in this reaction.

The reducing agent is the species that gets oxidized, meaning it loses electrons. In this case, the reducing agent is potassium (K), which goes from its elemental state with an oxidation state of 0 to an oxidation state of +1 in potassium bromide (KBr). Potassium loses one electron, causing it to be oxidized.

The oxidizing agent is the species that gets reduced, meaning it gains electrons. In this reaction, bromine (Br2) is the oxidizing agent. Bromine goes from an oxidation state of 0 to an oxidation state of -1 in potassium bromide. Bromine gains one electron, causing it to be reduced.