In the reaction of hydrogen peroxide with iron (II) ion in acidic solution to form iron (III) ion and water,
the oxidizing agent is____
is it hydrogen peroxide? cus its not water right?
Look at the equation. The oxidizing agent is the one that is reduced. The one reduced gained electrons. Which one did that?
so Fe did that... im getting confused because i to oxidize means to lose electrons that makes it more positive and then reduction is actually the addition of electrons
???? are u in my class
No, you were right the first time. Don't get confused by it all. I remember just one of the definitions because it CAN get very confusing. Oxidation is the loss of electrons. That's the one I remember. The oxidizing agent must be reduced. Since oxidation is the loss of electrons, then reduction MUST be the gain of electrons.
Fe^+2 ==> Fe^+3 + e had to lose electrons which makes that the oxidation. So H2O2 is the only one left to be the oxidizing agent. H2O2 + 2H^+ + 2e ==> 2H2O
You see O2^-2 on the left goes to -4 on the right (for both oxygens) and it must lose electrons to do that.
To determine the oxidizing agent in the reaction of hydrogen peroxide with iron (II) ion in acidic solution, we need to identify the species that gets reduced.
In the given reaction:
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) reacts with iron (II) ion (Fe2+) to form iron (III) ion (Fe3+) and water (H2O).
The process of reduction involves the gain of electrons. In this reaction, iron (II) ion (Fe2+) gets oxidized to iron (III) ion (Fe3+), which means it loses electrons. Therefore, the species that causes the oxidation (loss of electrons) is the oxidizing agent.
In this case, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is the oxidizing agent because it causes the oxidation of iron (II) ion (Fe2+) to iron (III) ion (Fe3+). The product, water (H2O), is not involved in the oxidation-reduction process and does not cause the oxidation of iron (II) ion.