Carbon as an element

Most important of all the elements……

Where is carbon on the periodic table?
Carbon, group 4 element.
Different forms of Pure carbon
• Pure carbon is made up of carbon atom. If these different atoms are
arranged differently we get different forms of this element. Diamond
and Graphite are different forms of the same element… they are
ALLOTROPES.

• ALLOTROPES are different forms of the same element

• E.g Allotropes of carbon are diamond, graphite,

buckminsterfullerenes, or graphene. Of these diamond and graphite
are on the exam syllabus, lets look at these in more detail…..
Diamond and Graphite, in our world.
Allotropes of Carbon. Made of carbon atoms!
DIAMOND structure
Graphite structure
Properties of diamond and Graphite
Diamond
• Toughest material, as all carbons are
firmly held in place with 4 strong
covalent bonds per C atom. So used in
expensive drill bits to drill through rocks.
• Very high melting and boiling points for
the same reason, to melt diamonds we
must overcome these strong covalent
bonds.
• Does not conduct electricity as there are
no free ions or free electrons.
Graphite
• Layers slide over each other easily due to
weak intermolecular forces of attraction
between the layers. So graphite is a great
lubricant used in oils for cars.
• Very good at conducting electricity, as
there are free electrons within the
layers.
• Very high m.pts and b.pts as to melt
graphite the strong covalent bonds have
to be overcome.
MACROMOLECULAR structures
• A MOLECULE is defined as a collection of atoms covalently bonded together

• There exist small molecules, e.g. H2, H2O, CH4, CH3COOH (up to a hundred atoms in
each molecule)

• Then there exist large molecules, e.g protein, or polymer, plastic molecules
(hundreds/thousands of atoms per molecule)

• Then there exist HUGE, GIGANTIC molecules e.g. diamond, graphite, sand
(millions/billions of atoms in each molecule.) THESE we call MACROMOLECULES, and
they have very high melting and boiling points. Also sometimes called GIANT
COVALENT
Burning Carbon
• The cheapest form of carbon is CHARCOAL which is 95% carbon with 5% impurities. Charcoal is
obtained from coal.
• Whenever we burn carbon, we will get carbon oxides; there are two possible oxides of carbon,
carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide, both are gases.
• If carbon is burned with plenty of air or oxygen then only carbon dioxide is produced, this burn
is then called COMPLETE combustion.

• If carbon is burned in a limited air supply, then it is INCOMPLETE combustion. Then we get BOTH
carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide gases formed

• .
 • Normally in the lungs, vital oxygen gas is taken by
heamoglobin in our blood; this heamoglobin delivers
the oxygen to wherever it is needed by our bodies,
where it leaves the heamoglobin molecules, allowing
heamoglobin molecules to go again and collect more
oxygen.
Carbon
monoxide gas • CO (g) molecules are similar is size to O2 (g)
molecules.
is poisonous • With carbon monoxide gas, breathed into our lungs,
the haemoglobin BINDS with the carbon monoxide
molecules, IRREVERSIBLY.
• This reduces the amount of haemoglobin available
for transporting oxygen gas. If insufficient
haemoglobin is available for transporting oxygen
gas then, we will risk dying of oxygen starvation.