Carbon has an atomic structure of 6 protons plus 6 neutrons and 6 electrons having an atomic mass of 12.

Carbon is 15th most abundant element in the Earths crust and the forth most abundant in the universe by mass. Its the second most abundant element in the human body 18.5% by mass.

Atoms of carbon bond together in different ways and are termed allotropes. ( structurally different forms of the same element which is due to the electron valency. )

Where does carbon come from in the universe?

 

Organic compounds are those upon which all life depends, and they all contain carbon. Carbon is the building block of life and why its so important is that virtually all molecules in the body contain carbon. Carbon relates directly to the biochemistry of living systems. 

Carbon has an outer shell of only 4 electrons  and to make its outer shell stable it requires 4 electrons from somewhere? 

Because of carbon valency it can form 4 covalent bonds with other atomic elements. Hydrogen has 1 outer electron available to produce CH4 or Methane being the simplest organic molecule.

But what makes carbon so special it can bond with itself and other atoms to an unlimited degree. 

So carbon has the ability to create a vast array of long chain molecular compounds. 

Allotropes ( different  forms of an atomic element ) of Carbon.

Graphene is a single layer of graphite. The remarkable thing about it is that its crystalline structure is two-dimensional. In other words, the atoms in graphene are laid out flat, like billiard balls on a table. Just like in graphite, each layer of graphene is made of hexagonal “rings” of carbon (like lots of benzene rings connected together, only with more carbon atoms replacing the hydrogen atoms around the edge), giving a honeycomb-like appearance. Since the layers themselves are just one atom high, you’d need a stack of about three million of these layers to make graphene 1mm thick!

Nanotube is cylindrical, with at least one end typically capped with a hemisphere of the buckyball structure.

Their name is derived from their size, since the diameter of a nanotube is on the order of a few nanometers (approximately 50,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair), while they can be up to several millimeters in length.

There are two main types of nanotubes: single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs) and multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs).

Fullerenes were discovered in 1985 by researchers at Rice University, are a family of carbon allotropes named after Buckminster Fuller.

They are molecules composed entirely of carbon, in the form of a hollow sphere, ellipsoid, or tube.

Spherical fullerenes are sometimes called buckyballs, the C60 variant is often compared to a typical white and black soccer football.

Cylindrical fullerenes are called buckytubes.

Recently discovered is the “buckyegg”, by researchers at UC Davis.

Fullerenes are similar in structure to graphite, which is composed of a sheet of linked hexagonal rings, but they contain pentagonal (or sometimes heptagonal) rings that prevent the sheet from being planar.

On Earth, carbon cycles through the land, ocean, atmosphere, and the Earth’s interior in a major biogeochemical cycle (the circulation of chemical components through the biosphere from or to the lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere). 

The global carbon cycle can be divided into two categories: the geological, which operates over large time scales (millions of years), and the biological/physical, which operates at shorter time scales (days to thousands of years).

Photosynthesis traps carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to produce glucose and it stores energy. Glucose, of course, is used to make other organic molecules and is used as a source of energy in respiration.

 

 

 

In respiration and in the oxidative decomposition of plant materials, the carbon in organic molecules is converted to CO₂. Only a very small percentage of the organic carbon is sequestered in sediments.

 

 

 

The biological carbon cycle is not only faster than the geological carbon cycle. The amount of carbon taken up by photosynthesis and released back to the atmosphere by respiration each year is 1,000 times greater than the amount of carbon that moves through the geological cycle on an annual basis.

The biological carbon cycle plays a role in the long-term, geological cycling of carbon. The presence of land vegetation enhances the weathering of soil, leading to the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In the oceans, some of the carbon taken up by phytoplankton is used to make shells of calcium carbonate that settle to the bottom after the organisms die to form sediments. Marine animals, such as corals, also use dissolved carbon dioxide in biomineralization.

During the daytime in the growing season, leaves absorb sunlight and take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Plants, animals and soil microbes consume the carbon in organic matter and return carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

When conditions are too cold or too dry, photosynthesis and respiration cease along with the movement of carbon between the atmosphere and the land surface.

The amounts of carbon that move from the atmosphere through photosynthesis, respiration, and back to the atmosphere are large and produce oscillations in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations.

Significant amounts of carbon are stored in the biomass of forests and in the soil. Terrestrial sources release the stored carbon when forests are cleared for agriculture. 

Organisms in the ocean consume and release large quantities of carbon dioxide but ocean biological carbon cycles are faster than terrestrial cycles. There is virtually no storage of carbon as as biomass. Photosynthetic plankton are consumed by zooplankton within days to weeks.

Carbon dioxide exchange in the oceans is controlled by sea surface temperatures, circulating currents, and by the biological processes of photosynthesis and respiration. Carbon dioxide solvation is temperature dependent. 

Cold ocean temperatures favor the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while warm temperatures can cause the ocean surface to release carbon dioxide. Cold, downward moving currents such as those that occur over the North Atlantic absorb carbon dioxide and transfer it to the deep ocean. Upward moving currents such as those in the tropics bring carbon dioxide up from depth and release it to the atmosphere.

Biological Pump

https://vimeo.com/162911910https://youtu.be/bpa0aFY–pE

Carbon as an atom due to its four missing outer electrons makes a ideal for long chain molecular compounds and because of this the latest carbon super material is graphene.  Carbon has been in our atmosphere keeping the surface of the earth warm and of moderate temperature ( average 15 degrees Celsius ) for life to flourish in all it amazing forms. We call it the natural Greenhouse Effect.

From start of the industrial age of mining for Carbon/coal which Britain had in abundance buried within the ground. We were able to harness it for steam power locomotion to increase work. At the end of the 19th century we then harnessed Carbon oil for internal combustion engine to create work.

That has brought us to the modern age of highly developed high energy/ power output using fossilised hydrocarbons.

The unfortunate paradox is the inefficencies of using carbon based hydrocarbons for energy through combustion. The process of combustion expels vast amounts of exhaust gases containing carbon based gases back into the atmosphere.  

https://youtu.be/oe2kPpmhLuchttps://youtu.be/DZojRwkGsBg

Moving away from a carbon economy is going to create wonderful opportunities for new creative ways to generate energy. Maybe we will have to go back to older methods of harnessing natures natural energy, such as sailing ships?  Replicate the modern high speed racing yachts but developed on a larger commercial basis.

Maybe globalisation in its present form will probably be reduced, such as shipping things from far distant corners of the world might not be so cost effect in a non carbon fossil fueled energy world? 

What ever we do will have to be creative and novel. There will be powerful forces to try and slow this process down, but I believe we are now at a tipping point, like an avalanche once it gains momentum there no stopping it.  But it won’t be a painless process. 

it will be an individual and collective choice adapting to new reduced energy world. maybe we have learn to live much less fanatic livestyles.

 

Carbon Dioxide is one of the most important compounds in the world which relates directly to respiration and combustion.

https://youtu.be/rOC9-3aqqyshttps://youtu.be/7RyApq8COZw

Conclusion; the crux of the problem relates with combustion of fossilised carbons it pumps extra carbon and oxygen over and above the natural carbon cycle and that’s why we have this real carbon equlibrium problem.  

We have all been  living on the fossil fuel carbon debt, and suddenly its now payback time. The more affluent of us have been using a much bigger share of this carbon debt than others.  That’s why climate change so inequitable on a global scale.