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By the process of photosynthesis, trees take in Carbon Dioxide (CO2) and Water (H2O) to produce simple sugars which the tree uses as food. Sunlight provides the energy to break the existing covalent bonds and form new bonds between the elements. Since a tree only needs carbon atoms and water molecules to form its simple sugars, the oxygen atoms which were part of the CO2 molecules are "surplus" or "waste" in the photosynthesis reaction and are released back into the atmosphere. In order to produce the simplest sugar (called glucose or dextrose), 6 carbon atoms and 6 water molecules are required. The basic (simplest) photosynthesis reaction is 6CO2 + 6H2O ---> C6H12O6 + 6O2.

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15y ago

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