What is Carbon
Carbon is a chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. It belongs to group 14 of the periodic table.
Welcome
Carbon by CGH Power
Date: Jan 2019
Website: www.info@cghpower.com
Carbon is in carbon dioxide, which is a greenhouse gas that works to trap heat close to Earth.
Carbon—Magic element for everything on Earth.
This is the magic element for everything on Earth. All life on Earth depends on carbon (C). It is in nearly every biological compound that makes up our bodies, systems, organs, cells, and organelles. When you breathe out, there is a lot of carbon dioxide (CO2). Carbon has been known and used for thousands of years. It was never really discovered. Ancient people knew of the black soot left over after a fire. That was carbon.
Where can you find carbon?
Plants
All plants have carbon as their most important element. Without carbon, plants would not exist. That means every animal on Earth also needs carbon to survive. You can’t just eat carbon, it needs to be in plants before humans can do anything with it.
Diamonds
When you see a diamond it is one big chunk of carbon. After a very long time and carbon is left in a very high-pressure area, all of the atoms are pushed together to form a crystal. That crystal is called a diamond.
Charcoal
The next time your family goes to a barbecue you’ll know that the main ingredient of the charcoal is carbon. Carbon compounds store lots of energy and is good at holding onto heat. That’s why it’s used for charcoal.
Carbon-fiber
Graphite
Take a look at your pencil. The black stuff you write with is made of carbon. It is a special type of carbon called graphite.
Everything that is plastic has carbon in it.
Everything that is plastic has carbon in it. We just talked about gasoline. Like gasoline, plastic things are made from oil. That means the carbon is also the most important element of plastic.
Element of life
The human body is about 20% carbon. This carbon is not present as an element but is joined with atoms of other elements, such as hydrogen and oxygen. All living things consist mostly of carbon-containing compounds.