what is oxidation

Oxidation is a chemical process that involves the loss of electrons from a molecule, atom, or ion during a reaction. There are several definitions of oxidation, but one of the most common is the addition of oxygen to a substance or the removal of hydrogen from a substance. In terms of electron transfer, oxidation is the loss of electrons, while reduction is the gain of electrons/Electrochemistry/Redox_Chemistry/Definitions_of_Oxidation_and_Reduction). Oxidation can be considered as an addition of an oxygen atom to a compound, while the opposite process is called reduction, in which there is the removal of an electron. For example, when iron ore reacts with carbon monoxide, it produces iron and carbon dioxide gas through a redox reaction.