JCE Software, 6B1: Oxidation Number Rules

Oxidation Number Rules: A Program to Test the Effect of Various Rules on the Assignment of Oxidation Numbers

James P. Birk
Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1604

Note:
Series B (MS DOS) software previously included on the General Chemistry Collection CD-ROM is now available for free download by Journal of Chemical Education subscribers.
Go to the download page.

In developing the inorganic reactivity expert system, PIRExS (1), it was necessary to teach the computer to assign oxidation numbers to inorganic compounds (2). A set of six rules, those normally provided to students for oxidation number assignment, was used initially. It soon became obvious, however, that this set of rules would not work when interpreted literally by the computer. A major problem with the initial set of rules was the absence of information about the composition and charge of common oxoanions and other polyatomic ions. For example, compounds containing a metal with a variable oxidation number and an oxoanion, such as FeSO₄, could not be assigned oxidation numbers. To provide the computer with enough information to reliably assign oxidation numbers to all our test compounds, it was necessary to develop a set of 16 major rules, one of which consisted of 12 subrules.
Oxidation Number Rules allows an instructor to select any combination from the list of 27 rules and subrules that were taught to the computer. The user can then test the selected set of rules to see which compounds can be assigned oxidation numbers correctly. The computer will assign oxidation numbers to those elements for which the selected rules apply and indicate those elements that it was unable to assign. In this way, it is possible to select a subset of the rules if students will be expected to assign oxidation numbers only to a subset of inorganic compounds. Depending on the inorganic species, the number of necessary rules can be as few as 6 or as many as all 27 rules. The program is menu-driven and on-line instructions are available.
Hardware and Software Requirements
Oxidation Number Rules requires an IBM PS/2, PC, or PC-compatible microcomputers with 640K of RAM and one floppy disk drive. CGA or compatible graphics and PC- or MS-DOS 3.1 or later are also required.
Literature Cited

Birk, J. P. PIRExS: Predicting Inorganic Reactivity Expert System, J. Chem. Educ.: Software, 1990, 3B, No. 1.
Birk, J. P. Predicting Inorganic Reactions: The Development of an Expert System in Expert System Applications in Chemistry, ACS Symposium Series No. 408, pp. 2033, ACS Books, Washington, DC, 1989.

First Published: April 1993
Citation: Birk, J. P. . Oxidation Number Rules: A Program to Test the Effect of Various Rules on the Assignment of Oxidation Numbers J. Chem. Educ. Software 6B1
Keywords: Lecture Aid; Computer Room; High School; General; Oxidation numbers

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Last Updated: April 26, 2001
Created: December 4, 1996 Created by: J. L. Holmes
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© 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.



Oxidation Number Rules: A Program to Test the Effect of Various Rules on the Assignment of Oxidation Numbers
James P. Birk Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1604

Note:	Series B (MS DOS) software previously included on the General Chemistry Collection CD-ROM is now available for free download by Journal of Chemical Education subscribers. Go to the download page.

In developing the inorganic reactivity expert system, PIRExS (1), it was necessary to teach the computer to assign oxidation numbers to inorganic compounds (2). A set of six rules, those normally provided to students for oxidation number assignment, was used initially. It soon became obvious, however, that this set of rules would not work when interpreted literally by the computer. A major problem with the initial set of rules was the absence of information about the composition and charge of common oxoanions and other polyatomic ions. For example, compounds containing a metal with a variable oxidation number and an oxoanion, such as FeSO₄, could not be assigned oxidation numbers. To provide the computer with enough information to reliably assign oxidation numbers to all our test compounds, it was necessary to develop a set of 16 major rules, one of which consisted of 12 subrules. Oxidation Number Rules allows an instructor to select any combination from the list of 27 rules and subrules that were taught to the computer. The user can then test the selected set of rules to see which compounds can be assigned oxidation numbers correctly. The computer will assign oxidation numbers to those elements for which the selected rules apply and indicate those elements that it was unable to assign. In this way, it is possible to select a subset of the rules if students will be expected to assign oxidation numbers only to a subset of inorganic compounds. Depending on the inorganic species, the number of necessary rules can be as few as 6 or as many as all 27 rules. The program is menu-driven and on-line instructions are available. Hardware and Software Requirements Oxidation Number Rules requires an IBM PS/2, PC, or PC-compatible microcomputers with 640K of RAM and one floppy disk drive. CGA or compatible graphics and PC- or MS-DOS 3.1 or later are also required. Literature Cited Birk, J. P. PIRExS: Predicting Inorganic Reactivity Expert System, J. Chem. Educ.: Software, 1990, 3B, No. 1. Birk, J. P. Predicting Inorganic Reactions: The Development of an Expert System in Expert System Applications in Chemistry, ACS Symposium Series No. 408, pp. 2033, ACS Books, Washington, DC, 1989.


News \| Issues \| CD-ROM / Video \| Find It! \| Technical Support \| For Authors
JCE Online \| Journal \| Software \| Internet \| Happenings \| About JCE \| Contact JCE

Last Updated: April 26, 2001 Created: December 4, 1996	Created by: J. L. Holmes Comments to: jceonline@chem.wisc.edu

© 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.