Question
Which species is the oxidizing agent in the reaction below? 2Ag^+(aq)+Cu_((s))arrow 2Ag_((s))+Cu^2+(aq) Cu Ag^+ 1 Cu^2+ Ag
Answer
4.3
(197 Votes)
Mavis
Professional · Tutor for 6 years
Answer
\(Ag^{+}(aq)\)
Explanation
## Step 1:Identify the species involved in the reaction: \(2Ag^{+}(aq) + Cu(s) \rightarrow 2Ag(s) + Cu^{2+}(aq)\).## Step 2:Determine the oxidation states of each species before and after the reaction.- \(Ag^{+}(aq)\) has an oxidation state of
.- \(Cu(s)\) has an oxidation state of
.- \(Ag(s)\) has an oxidation state of
.- \(Cu^{2+}(aq)\) has an oxidation state of
.## Step 3:Identify the changes in oxidation states.- \(Ag^{+}(aq)\) changes from
to
, indicating a reduction.- \(Cu(s)\) changes from
to
, indicating an oxidation.## Step 4:Define the oxidizing agent.- The oxidizing agent is the species that gets reduced (gains electrons).## Step 5:Determine which species is reduced.- \(Ag^{+}(aq)\) is reduced to \(Ag(s)\).## Step 6:Conclude that the oxidizing agent is \(Ag^{+}(aq)\).#