Acidified permanganate solution does not oxidize : — d and f Block Elements Chemistry Question

💡 Solution & Explanation

Step 1: Acidified potassium permanganate (KMnO4) is a strong oxidizing agent. Step 2: It can easily oxidize oxalate (C2O4^2-) to CO2, and sulfide (S^2-) to sulfur. However, in nitrate (NO3^-), nitrogen is already in its highest possible oxidation state (+5) and cannot be oxidized further. Step 3: In the case of fluoride (F^-), fluorine is the most electronegative element with a very high standard reduction potential (E° = +2.87 V), which is much higher than that of MnO4^- (+1.51 V), so KMnO4 cannot oxidize fluoride. Thus, both NO3^- and F^- are not oxidized, matching the answer key (b, d).