C
Carbon
Atomic number: 6Mass: 12.011 uCategory: Nonmetal
About Carbon
Carbon is the basis of all known life on Earth. It can form more compounds than any other element because of its unique ability to form stable chains and rings. Its allotropes include graphite, diamond, and graphene.
Properties
Period
2
Group
14
Block
P
Category
Nonmetal
Electronegativity
2.55 (Pauling)
Ionization Energy
1086.5 kJ/mol
Melting Point
3823 K (3550°C)
Boiling Point
4098 K (3825°C)
Density
2.267 g/cm³
Oxidation States
-4, -3, -2, -1, 0, +1, +2, +3, +4
Electron Configuration
1s² 2s² 2p²
[He] 2s² 2p²
Shell 1:2e⁻
Shell 2:4e⁻
Real-World Uses
Steel production
Pencils (graphite)
Diamonds (jewellery)
Carbon fibre
Fuels (coal, oil, gas)
Fun Fact
A single gram of carbon contains about 50 sextillion atoms — that's 50,000,000,000,000,000,000,000!