Reducing agent

A reducing agent is a chemical that gives away electrons to another chemical compound. A chemical gaining electrons is called reduction. A chemical that gains electrons is said to be reduced by the reducing agent. At the same time, the reducing agent loses electrons, which is called oxidation. The whole chemical reaction is called redox.

Carbon, hydrogen, and reactive metals like magnesium are common reducing agents. Using carbon as a reducing agent is called a carbothermic reaction, and is a way of smelting ores into pure metal. Some types of sugar are reducing agents, so they are called reducing sugars. Glucose is a reducing sugar in cellular respiration.

Examples

• Tin(II) chloride
• Zinc
• Aluminum
• Alkali metal
• Sulfur
• Hydrogen