Carbon and its Compounds

What you will learn

• Carbon is a versatile element that forms the basis for all living organisms and many of the things we use.

• This large variety of compounds is formed by carbon because of its tetravalency and the property of catenation that it exhibits.

• Covalent bonds are formed by the sharing of electrons between two atoms so that both can achieve a completely filled outermost shell.

• Carbon forms covalent bonds with itself and other elements such as hydrogen, oxygen, sulphur, nitrogen and chlorine.

• Carbon also forms compounds containing double and triple bonds between carbon atoms. These carbon chains may be in the form of straight chains, branched chains or rings.

• The ability of carbon to form chains gives rise to a homologous series of compounds

• in which the same functional group is attached to carbon chains of different lengths.

• The functional groups such as alcohols, aldehydes, ketones and carboxylic acids bestow characteristic properties to the carbon compounds that contain them.

• Carbon and its compounds are some of our major sources of fuels.

• Ethanol and ethanoic acid are carbon compounds of importance in our daily lives.

• The action of soaps and detergents is based on the presence of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic groups in the molecule and this helps to emulsify the oily dirt and hence its removal.