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Carbon When one thinks of life, they must remember to acknowledge the carbon element because its compounds are essential to vitality, as we know it. Carbon is the sixth most abundant element in the universe. It makes up 0.32% of the earths crust. While the origin or founder is unknown, carbon dates back to the prehistoric times, but scientists did not discover the three different types of carbon until the 1700’s. The individual most responsible for putting this element to use is Dmitri Mendleev, in the 1860’s, when he organized the periodic table of elements. All the elements were arranged from lightest to heaviest in respect to carbon. Because carbon makes up millions of compounds, there is a special section in chemistry called organic chemistry devoted especially to the compounds formed by carbon and hydrogen. Besides being the basis of all life in living things, carbon is also used for one’s everyday purposes. We rarely realized the chemistry involved in our day-to-day existence. Carbon is a non-metallic element found in-group IVA of the periodic table. Its atomic number is 6, and the atomic mass is 12.01115. Carbon is used as the international standard number for atomic weight. The simple information about eh carbon atoms is that they have 6 protons, 6 electrons, and 6 neutrons in the 12C isotope. This isotope is the most abundant. There are actually two stable isotopes with the mass numbers 12 and 13. About 1% of carbon atoms are –13. Four radioactive isotopes are known, but the most useful on is Carbon –14, which makes up a very small fraction of all carbons. The melting point of carbon is 3550oC, and the boiling point is 4827oC. The electron configuration is written as [He]2s22p2. It must gain or lose four electrons in order to become a stable ion. Also, unlike metals and nonmetals, bonding in carbon is generally covalent rather than ionic, and it is usually strong. “It can form long chains by the process of catenation when bonding” (www.education.eth.net). These characteristics make carbon unique from other elements. In nature, the carbon element is found in three states. It comes in allotropic forms of graphite, diamond, and the amorphous form.
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