Redutseerudes

Redutseerudes is a term used in chemistry to describe a process where a substance gains electrons. This gain of electrons results in a decrease in the oxidation state of the substance. Conversely, oxidation is the process where a substance loses electrons, leading to an increase in its oxidation state. These two processes, reduction and oxidation, are always coupled and occur simultaneously in what is known as a redox reaction.

During reduction, an atom, ion, or molecule acts as an oxidizing agent, meaning it causes another substance to be oxidized by accepting electrons from it. The substance that is reduced is the one that receives these electrons. Common reducing agents are those that readily donate electrons, such as active metals or hydrogen gas. The reverse process, where a substance is oxidized, involves a reducing agent that loses electrons.

Redox reactions are fundamental to many chemical and biological processes. For example, the rusting of iron is an oxidation process, while the process of cellular respiration, where organisms extract energy from food, involves a complex series of redox reactions. Electrochemistry, the study of the relationship between electricity and chemical reactions, is heavily reliant on understanding reduction and oxidation. Batteries and fuel cells, for instance, operate based on controlled redox reactions. Identifying which species is reduced and which is oxidized in a reaction is a key skill in chemistry.