EasyChemistryHigh School (9–10)GeneralCarbon and Its Compounds › Covalent Bonding and AllotropesConceptual
Carbon makes more than ten million compounds.
Contributed by StemPy LabTry it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
Carbon makes more than ten million compounds. Which two properties of carbon explain this? Explain each in one sentence. Which of the two lets carbon form rings?
Need a reminder? The key ideaShow
Covalent compounds are made of molecules. The forces between the molecules are weak, so they melt and boil low, and they have no ions, so they do not conduct. Carbon forms millions of compounds because of catenation (chains, branches and rings) and tetravalency (four bonds).
The worked solution
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Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. Catenation. Carbon atoms join to one another in long chains, branches and rings, held by strong carbon to carbon bonds.
Step 2. Tetravalency. Each carbon atom forms four bonds, so it can hold other carbons, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen or chlorine.
Step 3. Rings. A ring is a chain whose ends join, so catenation makes rings possible.
Answer: catenation and tetravalency; catenation gives the rings.
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