Question

When a clean iron nail is placed in an aqueous solution of copper(ii) sulfate, the nail becomes coated with a brownish black material. (a) what is the name of the material coating the iron? (b) what are the oxidizing and reducing agents? (omit states-of-matter in your answer.) oxidizing agent: chempadhelp?

Answer 1

(a) What is the material coating the iron? Cu(s) 

(b) What is the oxidizing agent? The oxidizing agent is reduced (goes down in oxidation number) since Cu starts off as Cu^2+ and ends up as Cu^0, it went down in oxidation number, was reduced, and thus was the oxidizing agent.