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Carbon—(L. carbo, charcoal), C; atomic weight 12 exactly (C12); atomic weight (natural carbon) 12.011; atomic number 6; melting point ~ 3550°C, graphite sublimes at 3367±25°C; triple point: (graphite-liquid-gas), 3627±50°C at a pressure of 10.1 MPa and (graphite-diamond-liquid), 3830-3930°C at a pressure of 12-13 GPa; specific gravity amorphous 1.8 to 2.1, graphite 1.9 to 2.3, diamond 3.15 to 3.53 (depending on variety); gem diamond 3.513 (25°C); valence 2, 3, or 4.

Carbon, an element of prehistoric discovery, is very widely distributed in nature. It is found in abundance in the sun, stars, comets and atmospheres of most planets. Carbon in the form of microscopic diamonds is found in some meteorites. Natural diamonds are found in kimberlite of ancient volcanic "pipes," such as found in South Africa, Arkansas and elsewhere. Diamonds are now also being recovered from the ocean floor off the Cape of Good Hope. About 30% of all industrial diamonds used in the U.S. are now made synthetically. The energy of the sun and stars can be attributed at least in part to the well-known carbon-nitrogen cycle.

Carbon is found free in nature in three allotropic forms: amorphous, graphite and diamond. A fourth form, known as "white" carbon, is now thought to exist. Graphite is one of the softest known materials while diamond is one of the hardest. Graphite exists in two forms: alpha and beta. These have identical physical properties, except for their crystal structure. Naturally occurring graphites are reported to contain as much as 30% of the rhombohedral (beta) form, whereas synthetic materials contain only the alpha form. The hexagonal alpha type can be converted to the beta by mechanical treatment, and the beta form reverts to the alpha on heating it above 1000°C.

In 1969 a new allotropic form of carbon was produced during the sublimation of pyrolytic graphite at low pressures. Under free-vaporization conditions above ~2550 K, "white" carbon forms small transparent crystals on the edges of the basal planes of graphite. The interplanar spacings of "white" carbon are identical to those of a carbon form noted in the graphitic gneiss from the Ries (meteoritic) Crater of Germany. "White" carbon is a transparent birefringent material. Little information is presently available about this allotrope.

In combination, carbon is found as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of the earth and dissolved in all natural waters. It is a component of great rock masses in the form of carbonates of calcium (limestone), magnesium, and iron. Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are chiefly hydrocarbons.

Carbon is unique among the elements in the vast number of variety of compounds it can form. With hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, and other elements, it forms a very large number of compounds, carbon atom often being linkend to carbon atom. There are upwards of a million or more known carbon compounds, many thousands of which are vital to organic and life processes. Without carbon, the basis for life would be impossible. While it has been thought that silicon might take the place of carbon in forming a host of similar compounds, it is now not possible to form stable compounds with very long chains of silicon atoms. The atmosphere of Mars contains 96.2% CO2.

Some of the most important compounds of carbon are carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon disulfide (CS2), chloroform (CHCl3), carbon tetrachloride (CCl4), methane (CH4), ethylene (C2H4), acetylene (C2H2), benzene (C6H6), ethyl alcohol (C2H5OH), acetic acid (CH3COOH), and their derivatives.

Carbon has seven isotopes. In 1961 the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry adopted the isotope carbon-12 as the basis for atomic weights. Carbon-14, an isotope with a half-life of 5730 years, has been widely met to date in such materials as wood, archeological specimens, etc. Carbon-13 is now commercially available.

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