LESSON 3

READ CAREFULLY THIS LESSON TO UNDERSAND

THE PARAGRAPHS. INTENSIVE READING TO FIND
SPECIFIC INFORMATION.
 1. Read the whole passage rapidly in order to
answer these questions concerning specific
EXERCISE detail:
Let’s see how we can
use these strategies to
identify specific

1
a) What is the proportion of carbon in the information in the
earth’s crust? text.
b) Where are diamonds found?

2. Read the passage again paragraph by

paragraph in order to answer the
comprehension questions. Use the language
study questions in margins to help you
understand the paragraphs.

CARBON

1
Carbon is a solid non-metallic chemical element
(symbol C) occurring in the pure crystalline form
As here means:
as1 diamond and graphite. It is also found in the
a. In the form of combined form as a constituent of all organic 2
b. Since
c. Similar to materials, including coal and petroleum2, and of
This means:
inorganic compounds such as limestone and
a. Carbon includes coal
baking powder. Despite its wide distribution, and petroleum.
carbon constitutes only 0.19 per cent of the b. Organic materials
contain coal and
earth's crust. petroleum.
c. Coal and petroleum
1. Summarize the paragraph by completing the are examples of
organic materials.
following diagram.
Name of Forms Examples
Element

Carbon As a constituent of Examples

Organic materials
Combined

The two elementary forms of carbon 3 have very 3

different properties. In diamond the atoms are Which are the two elementary
4 so tightly bound one to another that it provides forms?

What diagram represents the
structure of diamond and
which represents that of
graphite?
man with his hardest 4 known substance. On the 5
other hand, the second crystalline form of
Hard is the opposite of _____
carbon, graphite, is a soft black substance with
______ is the opposite of
atoms hexagonally arranged in parallel sheets 5.
tight.

2
6 Each sheet is only loosely bound to that above
and to that below it 6, giving graphite a slippery
The word that appears
twice in this sentence. feeling and explaining its use as a lubricant and
What does it refer to in writing instruments.7 The "lead" of lead
each?
pencils is basically graphite. Another important
7
difference between diamond and graphite is that
What gives graphite its of electrical conductivity. Diamond is a non-
slippery feeling and
explains its uses conductor while graphite conducts in the
mentioned? direction parallel to the hexagonal sheets. Both
have high melting and boiling points.

2. Complete the following table to show what

determines the properties given in the table.

SUBSTANCE MOLECULAR STRUCTURE PROPERTY

Diamonds Hard

graphics Soft

Then properties depend on…

3. In what other ways are diamond and

graphite different? In what ways are they
similar?

The optical properties of diamond are extremely

significant. It has the highest index of refraction
of any familiar gemstone and therefore reflects 8

more light back to the eye than any other gem. 8 What explains diamond’s
It also has remarkable dispersive power. 9 The ability to reflect so much
light back to the eye?
light is broken up into the colours of the
9
spectrum. These optical factors combined with
the unusual clarity and transparency of the What phrase explains the
meaning of dispersive
mineral, give the diamond its brilliance. Over powers?
90% of the world´s diamonds come from South
Africa where they are found in kimberlite rock in
the craters of extinct volcanoes. It takes several 10

tons of kimberlite obtained from the earth by Diamonds are found in

kimberlite rock. Several
mining methods to yield a fraction of a carat of tons of kimberlite are
perfect diamond. 10 necessary to yield a
fraction of a carat of
perfect diamond ... what
does yield mean in this
context?

3

11
What are needed in order
to produce artificial
diamonds?
a. Graphite, carbon -
containing
compounds and
carbohydrates.
b. Either graphite or a
carbon-containing
compound.
c. Graphite and
carbohydrates.
12
At high temperatures
carbon reacts, but at low
temperatures, it is inert.
What can you deduce as
the meaning of inert?
13
What is found in an
automobile exhaust?
14
What is found wood,
petroleum products an
paper examples of?
16
An oxidizing acid is an acid
which causes oxidation.
Carbon undergoes
oxidation when heated
with these acids. ...
Carbon undergoes
oxidation means:
The popular interest in diamond concentrates on
their value as gemstones, but the stones have
greater value as industrial tools, industrial
diamond tools may be used to drill or shape
glass and ceramic articles and to grind and polish
steels. Artificial diamonds have been produced
by heating and compressing carbon in the form
of graphite or carbon-containing compounds
such as carbohydrates11.
4. What optical properties of diamonds are
mentioned?
5. Choose the best title for the paragraph:
a. Diamonds as gemstones and industry.
b. The optical properties of diamonds.
c. The occurrence and properties of diamonds.
At low temperatures all forms of carbon are
relatively inert12, but at elevated temperatures
will combine with oxygen to form oxides. Any
form of carbon when combined with a large
quantity of oxygen at an elevated temperatures
forms carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is
also formed in the incomplete combustion of
petroleum products and is found in appreciable
percentages in the automobile exhaust 13.
Elementary carbon, when heated in an
atmosphere of excess oxygen, is converted to
the dioxide. Carbon dioxide is moderately non-
reactive. Materials which burn at relatively low
temperature, such as wood, petroleum products
and paper14, do hot continue to burn in CO 2.For
this reason carbon dioxide is used as a fire-
suppressing agent in fire extinguishers15. Carbon 15
is stable towards water but undergoes slight Why is CO2 used as fire-

a. Carbon causes
oxidation when heated with the oxidizing acids 16. suppressing agent?

oxidation. In reaction with alkali, however, it does not

b. Carbon suffers
oxidation. suffer any attack.
c. Carbon combines
with oxidation.

4
 6. Suggest a title for the paragraph.

7. Complete the following table to show carbon

combines with oxygen.

FORM CARBON AMOUNT OF OXIGEN RESULT

Any form