1. Assign Oxygen its Usual Oxidation Number:
* Oxygen usually has an oxidation number of -2, except in peroxides (where it's -1) and when bonded to fluorine (where it's positive).
2. Set Up an Equation:
* Let x represent the oxidation number of bromine (Br).
* The overall charge of BrO3 is 0 (since it's a neutral molecule).
* The equation is: x + 3(-2) = 0
3. Solve for x:
* x - 6 = 0
* x = +6
Therefore, the oxidation number of bromine (Br) in BrO3 is +6.
