The water used in this experiment is sparged with nitrogen toremove any dissolved oxygen. The proton-coupled reduction of oxygenis shown in the following half reaction:
O2 + 4 H+ + 4 e- = 2 H2O
a.Explain why sparging a solution with N2to remove dissolvedoxygen is an equilibrium process.
b.Using the half reaction above, write the balanced equation forthe reaction of ascorbic acid with oxygen. Show your work.
c.If you didn’t know whether or not O2is capable of oxidizingascorbic acid, how would you determine this by consulting data?What data would you consult and what would you look for? (Simplytrying the reaction is not an acceptable answer.)
