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Carbon is unique because it can form four covalent bonds (tetravalency) and has the ability to link with other carbon atoms to form long chains (catenation).
Carbon has four electrons in its outermost shell. It cannot lose or gain four electrons easily due to energy considerations, so it shares electrons to achieve stability.
Diamond has a rigid three-dimensional structure where each carbon is bonded to four others. Graphite has a layered hexagonal structure where each carbon is bonded to three others, leaving one free electron, which makes it a good conductor of electricity.
Alcohols can be converted to carboxylic acids using oxidizing agents like alkaline KMnO4cap K cap M n cap O sub 4
These are different physical forms in which an element can exist. For carbon, the main allotropes are diamond, graphite, and buckminsterfullerene. Saturated and Unsaturated Hydrocarbons
These contain only single bonds between carbon atoms. General formula: CnH2n+2cap C sub n cap H sub 2 n plus 2 end-sub Unsaturated Hydrocarbons: These contain double (Alkenes, CnH2ncap C sub n cap H sub 2 n end-sub ) or triple bonds (Alkynes, CnH2n−2cap C sub n cap H sub 2 n minus 2 end-sub ) between carbon atoms.
It is the unique ability of carbon atoms to form bonds with other atoms of carbon, giving rise to large molecules.