The oxidation numbers of C in HCN and HNC,respectively, a

To determine the oxidation numbers of C in HCN and HNC, we need to follow a step-by-step process.

1. Start by assigning the oxidation number of hydrogen (H) as +1. This is a common rule, as hydrogen typically has an oxidation number of +1 in most compounds.

2. Next, assign the oxidation number of nitrogen (N) in both HCN and HNC. Since hydrogen has an oxidation number of +1 and the overall charge of the compound is 0, we can determine the oxidation number of nitrogen by subtracting the oxidation number of hydrogen from the overall charge. In this case, nitrogen would have an oxidation number of -3.

3. Finally, we can determine the oxidation number of carbon (C) by subtracting the oxidation numbers of hydrogen and nitrogen from the overall charge. In HCN, since hydrogen has an oxidation number of +1 and nitrogen has an oxidation number of -3, the oxidation number of carbon would be +2. In HNC, since hydrogen has an oxidation number of +1 and nitrogen has an oxidation number of -3, the oxidation number of carbon would be -2.

Therefore, the oxidation number of carbon in HCN is +2, and the oxidation number of carbon in HNC is -2.