In the reaction 2Na + Cl2 gives 2NaCl, chlorine acts as
- A. a reducing agent because it gains electrons
- B. neither an oxidising nor a reducing agent
- C. a catalyst
- D. an oxidising agent because it accepts electrons from sodium
Explanation
Each chlorine atom accepts one electron and falls from zero to minus 1, so chlorine is reduced and is therefore the oxidising agent, while sodium is oxidised and acts as the reducing agent. The confusion in the first option comes from linking gaining electrons with the word reducing, when in fact the species that gains electrons is the oxidising agent. Naming the agent always means describing what it does to the other substance.