Oxidation state

[605941366]

Hi, I am having trouble with calculating oxidation states, how is oxidation state different than formal charge?

[mlomas2004]

Oxidation state reflects the real or apparent charge on an atom in a compound, considering electronegativity and sharing of electrons. Formal charge, on the other hand, is a hypothetical charge assigned to an atom in a Lewis structure to indicate electron distribution. Oxidation state is more about real electron behavior, while formal charge helps with electron bookkeeping in structural representations.

[Evonne Xu 3I]

The oxidation number is basically the charge of an atom, or number of electrons lost or gained in an atom and has to do with electronegativity. Formal charge on the other hand is calculated assuming that the electrons are equally shared among atoms and is calculated with the equation FC=valence electrons - ((shared electrons/2)+ lone pair electrons).