8
Question Question 8
Hydrogen is a good reducing agent. What do you understand by the above statement? Explain with the help of copper oxide as an example.
When hydrogen is passed over hot metallic oxides of copper, lead, iron, etc. it removes oxygen from them and thus reduces them to their corresponding metals. Hence, hydrogen acts as a good reducing agent.
When hydrogen gas is passed over heated copper oxide, copper oxide gets reduced to metallic copper by the removal of oxygen from it. The equation for the reaction is given below:
CuO + H2 ⟶ Cu + H2O