Chemical properties of Carbon Compounds


Introduction

In chemistry, carbon is considered a very surprising and different element. The symbol of this element is C and the atomic number is 6. This element is known as a non-metallic tetravalent element. This element has a valence of 4 that makes the element enable to enter into covalent bonding with the other properties, based on these attributes of carbon, the present tutorial will discuss the properties of carbon and its chemical properties of it as well.

Carbon Properties: Definition

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Figure 1: Carbon atom

In chemistry, it has been believed that the element carbon has an unusual capacity that enables the elements to create a bond with the atoms of other carbon. This reaction helps the atoms to generate more complex molecules. These characteristics of the molecules of carbon properties are termed Catenation (Kokorina et al. 2020).The complex molecules have been formed on the basis of the size of the atom that is too small to form such molecules. In the outer shell of every atom, there are four valence electrons have been found. These electrons are considered responsible for generating the formation of chemical bonds with other atoms and molecules.

Combustion of Carbon Compounds

In accordance with the diction of chemistry, the process of burning is usually referred to as the process of combustion. When a carbon compound is burnt in the air, it produces, water, heat, light and carbon dioxide. In some cases, vapours have been used after being burnt in the air as the reaction can be represented as Hydrocarbon + Oxygen = Heat energy (Aftanaziv et al. 2022).

For an instance of such a reaction, Alkanes can be taken as the burning of such compounds generates lots of heat and for this particular reason; this is considered a good fuel. The equation of such reactions can be ${C+O_2\rightarrow CO_2+heat\:and\:light}$

Oxidation of Carbon Compounds

In the particular reaction where it has been observed that a hydrogen atom is lost, on the contrary, an addition of an oxygen atom happens; the reaction will be termed Oxidation. However, it can be observed that not every reaction adds oxygen by losing a hydrogen atom (Harvard, 2022).

The reaction, where such a phenomenon has been observed is represented as ${2Cu+O_2\rightarrow 2CuO}$ This specific reaction suggests that the chemical reaction has been conducted between copper and oxygen which generates a new element called copper oxide.

Addition of Carbon Compounds

In the Addition of Carbon Compounds, the reaction takes place between an atom of unsaturated hydrocarbon and hydrogen that can generate a singular product (Jegatheesan & Rajasekaran, 2021). This type of reaction is generally taking place in the presence of the catalysts of palladium or nickel.

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Figure 2: Effect of catalyst

Catalysts are referred to as the particular substance that is responsible for the reaction to occur or proceed at a rate that is not similar to the rate for which the reaction itself can be affected (Sciencedirect, 2022). Based on the above figure, it can be stated that the presence of a metal catalyst, like rhodium, palladium, platinum and many more, the reaction boosts the rate of the reaction in a drastic manner.

Substitution of Carbon Compounds

This specific type of reaction within the carbon compounded is found in such kinds of reactions where the involvement of a less reactive element is observed with the more reactive element. This reaction is mostly observed in the reactions of hydrocarbons that are hydrocarbons. These reactions are usually considered single displacement reactions (Sciencedirect, 2022). This reaction can be represented as a chemical reaction. The chemical representation of such kind of reaction can be represented as ${CH_4(g)+Cl_2(g)=CH_3Cl(g)+HCl(g)}$ This reaction represents the chemical reaction that is observed between methane and chlorine. The electrons of methane are considered less reactive in comparison to the more reactive element chlorine. Based on these aspects, it can be stated that the atoms of chlorine have the ability to create a displacement of hydrogen atoms of the atomic formulation of the saturated hydrocarbons. In this particular process, the element that will be generated in a frequent manner is Higher homologue.

Conclusion

The present tutorial has included an explanation of the carbon compounds and the several chemical properties that are generally applied for different chemical reactions. The tutorial has further included an explanation regarding the process named Combustion of Carbon Compounds. The other chemical compounds that have been explained in accordance with the reactions are found while addition of oxygen, is commonly known as oxidisation and the Substitution of Carbon Compounds. The explanation of Addition of Carbon Compounds has included the reactions that are mostly seen between unsaturated hydrocarbon and hydrogen where a single product can be generated.

FAQs

Q1. Which of the following hydrocarbons undergo an addition reaction with C2H6, C3H8, C3H6, C2H2 and CH4?

According to chemistry, the addition reaction takes place in unsaturated hydrocarbons. Therefore, the reaction can take place with the elements like ${C_2H_2}$ and ${C_3H_6}$ because both the compounds have a double bond between the bond of carbon compounds.

Q2. Why are the compounds of carbon applied as fuels?

The main reason for applying the carbon compounds as fuels are that the carbon can produce a clean flame and after the reaction, dioxide and water are produced. Moreover, no smoke is evolved during the combustion but the heat and light are evolved.

Q3. What is the type of Covalent Bond?

The single covalent bond refers to the molecular bond where a single pair of electrons is shared between two atoms. The reaction between two pairs of electrons and two atoms is referred to as a Double Covalent Bond. At times when three pairs of electrons are shredded between two molecules of an atom, the reaction is called a Triple Covalent Bond.

References

Journals

Aftanaziv, I., Malovanyy, M., Shevchuk, L., Strogan, O., & Strutynska, L. (2022). Economic and Environmental Benefits of Using Cavitation Treated Fuel in Vehicles of Internal Combustion Engines. COMMUNICATIONS, 24(3), B158-B169. Retrieved from: https://scholar.archive.org

Jegatheesan, A., & Rajasekaran, E. (2021, November). Characterization of Organic Compound Doped Inorganic Ammonium Phosphate: Crystal Formation and Opto-Electrical Properties. In Journal of Physics: Conference Series (Vol. 2070, No. 1, p. 012004). IOP Publishing. Retrieved from: https://iopscience.iop.org

Kokorina, A. A., Ermakov, A. V., Abramova, A. M., Goryacheva, I. Y., & Sukhorukov, G. B. (2020). Carbon nanoparticles and materials on their basis. Colloids and Interfaces, 4(4), 42. Retrieved from: https://www.mdpi.com/2504-5377/4/4/42/pdf

Websites

Harvard, (2020). Oxidation of carbon compounds by silica. Retrieved from: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2013EP&S...65..811I/abstract [Retrieved on 27th June 2022]

Sciencedirect, (2022). Carbon Atom. Retrieved from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/carbon-atom [Retrieved on 27th June 2022]

Sciencedirect, (2022). Effect of catalyst on energy diagram profile. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net [Retrieved on 27th June 2022]

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Updated on: 13-Oct-2022

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