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Elemental Carbon Compounds
Carbon, widely distributed in nature, is the element found in all living organisms. It is among the five most abundant elements in the universe. In nature, free carbon occurs in three allotropic forms: amorphous, graphite, and diamond, with graphite being one of the softest known solids, and diamond being one of the hardest. Properties of products made from elemental carbon can be controlled by the manufacturing process and the type of carbon selected as raw material.
The above-mentioned allotropes of carbon have been known since ancient times. More recently, two other naturally occurring forms of pure carbon have been discovered, namely fullerene and graphene for which the discoverers were awarded the Nobel Prize. Spherical fullerenes awere originally known as buckminsterfullerenes after the American architect and philosopher R. Buckminster Fuller who popularized geodesic domes. They are also called buckyballs because they resemble the balls used in football (soccer). Fullerene itself, which consists of a hollow cluster of 60 carbon atoms, is the most symmetrical large molecule known. The atoms are connected by single and double bonds, forming a closed or partially closed mesh, with fused rings of five to seven atoms. Fullerenes with more than 60 carbons are known today. The fullerenes are also found to be soluble in common solvents such as benzene, toluene, or chloroform.
Thermo Fisher Scientific's extensive portfolio of elemental carbon products is suitable for a wide range of laboratory applications, and is also available in bulk and custom quantities and formats.
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Find carbon in our interactive periodic table
Click on image to learn the physical properties of carbon or any element, as well as to select products by format or find compounds and alloys.