EasyChemistryHigh School (9–10)GeneralCarbon and Its Compounds › Covalent Bonding and AllotropesConceptual

Which form of carbon, diamond or graphite, suits each use best?

Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.

Which form of carbon, diamond or graphite, suits each use best? Give a reason for each.

The tip of a dentist's drill.
The brushes that carry current into a spinning electric motor.
A crucible for melting metals, which must stand great heat.
A stone in a ring.

Need a reminder? The key ideaShow

Allotropes are forms of one element. Diamond: each atom bonded to four others, very hard, no free electrons. Graphite: layers of hexagons, each atom bonded to three, soft and slippery, conducts. Fullerene $\text{C}_{60}$ : a cage of $60$ atoms. All burn to carbon dioxide: $\text{C} + \text{O}_2 \rightarrow \text{CO}_2$ .

The worked solution

Have you tried it?

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.

← All Problems

← A chemist has 1.8 g of fullerene, C₆₀, whose molar mass is 720 g/mol.A graphite rod of mass 18 g burns completely in oxygen. →

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