Question

What is the difference between oxidation and corrosion?

Answer 1

Hint: A chemical reaction in which the reduction and oxidation of molecules takes place simultaneously is known as a redox reaction. Oxidation is a part of the simultaneous redox reaction while corrosion is chiefly a type of oxidation reaction.

Complete answer:
Corrosion is defined as the destruction of a metal or an alloy when it is exposed to moist air and undergoes physical and chemical changes. The most common example of corrosion is rusting of iron when it is exposed to atmospheric conditions and the chemical reaction involved in the process is as follows:
 $ 2Fe(s) + \dfrac{3}{2}{O_2}(g) + x{H_2}O(l) \to F{e_2}{O_3}.x{H_2}O(s) $
Oxidation: In a chemical reaction, loss of electrons or increase in the value of oxidation state is known as oxidation. For example, iron metal or reaction with oxygen gets oxidized and forms iron oxide. The chemical reaction involved in the process is as follows:
 $ 4F{e^{(0)}} + 3{O_2} \to 2Fe_2^{( + 3)}{O_3} $
As the oxidation number of iron increases from $ 0 $ to $ + 3 $ therefore, it is said to be oxidized.
The main differences between corrosion and oxidation can be summarized as follows:

S. No	Corrosion	Oxidation
1	It is the deterioration of a material due to the different chemical reactions taking place at the surface of the material when it is exposed to the environment.	It is the loss of electrons by an atom, molecule or ion during a chemical reaction.
2	It is not a beneficial process.	It is a very helpful process for different laboratory practices
3	It always occurs in the presence of oxygen.	It can happen in the presence or absence of oxygen.

Note:
It is important to note that although corrosion is a type of oxidation reaction, corrosion occurs majorly on the surface of metals whereas the oxidation reaction can happen anywhere i.e., either on a metal or a nonmetal.