Topic Details (Notes format)

Oxidation States

Subject: Chemistry

Book: General Chemistry

Oxidation states (or oxidation numbers) describe the hypothetical charge an atom would have if all bonds were 100% ionic. Common rules include assigning oxygen an oxidation state of –2 (except in peroxides, where it is –1), and hydrogen +1 (except in metal hydrides, where it is –1). Tracking oxidation states helps identify what is oxidized and reduced in redox reactions, an essential step in balancing redox equations.

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