13: Oxidation and Reduction
- Page ID
- 373532
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The rusting of an old car. A burning campfire. A toy battery-operated car. The chemical processes in your body that break down carbohydrates to produce water, carbon dioxide and energy. The ripening of fruit. It's not easy to see what all of these types of reactions have in common, but they all belong to a very important category of chemical reactions known as oxidation-reduction (or redox) reactions.
- 13.1: Oxidation and Reduction- Some Definitions
- "Redox" is short for "oxidation and reduction", two complimentary types of chemical reactions. The term oxidation originally referred to substances combining with oxygen, as happens when an iron bar rusts or a campfire log burns. We often refer to these two examples as corrosion and combustion. Reduction originally referred to the process of converting metal ores to pure metals, a process that is accompanied by a reduction in the mass of the ore.
- 13.E: Oxidation and Reduction (Exercises)
- These are homework exercises to accompany Chapter 5 of the Ball et al. "The Basics of GOB Chemistry" Textmap.