be canceled out, the reaction can be simplified and written as the net ionic
equation:
2 Ag+(aq) + Cu(s) → Cu2+(aq) + 2 Ag(s)Analysis of the reaction shows that for the process to occur, the positively
charged silver ion in the reactants must turn into a silver atom in the products.
Likewise, the copper atom must become a positively charged copper ion. How do
these changes occur? The answer is simple and represents a major driving force
for chemical change—the transfer of electrons from a substance that wants them
less to a substance that wants them more.
REMEMBER
“Leo the lion says Ger” stands for Loss of Electrons is Oxidation and Gain of Electrons is
ReductionWhenever the transfer of electrons occurs during a chemical process, one
substance must lose electrons in order for the other to gain them. The loss of
electrons has a name in chemistry: oxidation. Accordingly, the gaining of
electrons is named too: reduction. Since one process can’t happen without the
other, these processes are often intertwined into one distinctly chemical term
called redox. Redox reactions are those in which oxidation and reduction occur
in complementary ways. Redox is a major reaction category in chemistry. All
single replacement reactions are redox reactions; however, all redox reactions
are not single replacement reactions. Before we move on to other reaction types
that can be seen as redox, let’s take a further look at the single replacement
category from a redox perspective.
The activity series of metals, whose use is described in Chapter 8 as another
way to predict the spontaneity of single replacement reactions, can now be seen
as a measure of the desire of certain metals to lose electrons compared to other
metals. In the single replacement reaction example previously discussed, the
process can be said to occur because the copper atom has a greater desire to lose
electrons than does the silver atom. In other words, the reaction will proceed in
the forward direction as written (as opposed to going backward) because there is