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We are aware that the amount of carbon in the atmosphere and crust of the earth is extremely low. The earth’s crust contains barely 0.02% carbon. This carbon can be found in minerals such as coal, carbonates, and hydrogen carbonates, among others. Carbon dioxide makes up 0.03% of the carbon in the earth’s atmosphere.
Do not, however, undervalue the relevance of carbon-based solely on its availability percentage. Carbon is essential for our survival, and it is used extensively in chemistry. Chemistry has been separated into two branches due to its undeniable importance:
Organic Chemistry: This is the branch of chemistry that deals with carbon-based substances.
Inorganic Chemistry: This field of chemistry deals with substances that do not include any carbon.
As we are all organic beings, you must understand that carbon is a vital component of every living organism!
The Anomalous Behaviour of Carbon
It’s important to note that the majority of a group’s initial members have unique qualities and properties. Carbon, too, behaves differently than the other members of the group for similar reasons. Carbon has a unique set of features. Carbon’s behaviour can be attributed to several factors:
The atom’s small size
High electronegativity
High ionisation enthalpy
The lack of d-orbitals
Let’s take a closer look at some of these abnormalities and their causes.
Unique Properties of Carbon
1) Carbon is a little molecule: Carbon’s small size gives it a lot of characteristics. Because of its small size, the compounds that carbon generates are extremely stable. The nucleus effectively holds on to bound and nonbonded electrons because of its small size.
As a result, carbon differs from other elements due to its tetravalency, tiny size, and catenation feature, and we have a whole field of chemistry dedicated to the study of this type of chemical.
2) Carbon Tetravalency: Tetravalency is a property of carbon. It can share four electrons to complete its octet. As a result, we know it binds to four monovalent atoms. With oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and halogens, carbon forms a wide range of compounds. As a result, a new collection of compounds emerges, each with its own set of traits and properties.
Only the s and p orbitals are available in carbon. As a result, its valence shell can only accommodate four pairs of electrons. As a result, we can limit the covalence to four. Due to the availability of d-orbitals, the other elements in the group can easily increase their covalence.
3) Catenation: Carbon’s propensity to create lengthy carbon chains is one of its distinguishing characteristics. Carbon connects to other carbon atoms to build lengthy carbon chains, according to this theory. Catenation is the term for this characteristic. This chain can sometimes be as long as 70-80 carbons in length. This results in a wide range of complicated molecules. Some of the compounds have a single carbon chain, while others have branching or even ring-like carbon chains.
The saturated hydrocarbons are carbon molecules with only one bond. Unsaturated hydrocarbons, on the other hand, are compounds containing a double or triple bond.
The size of the elements grows as we progress down the group. As a result, electronegativity decreases. As a result, the ability to display catenation declines. The bond enthalpy values demonstrate this. C >> Si > Ge >> Sn is the catenation order.
4) Electronegativity: Furthermore, carbon has a remarkable ability to form pp – multiple bonds between itself and with other molecules. Its reduced size and high electronegativity may play a role. C = C, C° C, C = O, C = S, and C° N are only a few instances.
The heavier elements do not shape pp – pp bonds. This is because their nuclear orbitals are just too large and diffuse to allow for practical overlapping. For example, Catenation is not indicated by lead.
Conclusion
Carbon belongs to the periodic table’s 14th group. It has been known in the form of graphite, diamond, coal, charcoal, and other materials since ancient times. It is a necessary part of all life systems. Carbon can be found in a wide range of compounds. Inorganic and organic carbon compounds are the two types of carbon compounds. Carbon’s unusual behaviour is due to its short atomic size, increased electronegativity, and the lack of unoccupied d orbitals in its valence shell.
