143-449: Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, called charcoal burning, often by forming a charcoal kiln , the heat is supplied by burning part of the starting material itself, with a limited supply of oxygen . The material can also be heated in
286-412: A charcoal pile or clamp . This was essentially a pile of wooden logs (e.g. seasoned oak) leaning in a circle against a chimney. The chimney consisted of 4 wooden stakes held up by some rope. In the clamp too the logs were completely covered with soil and straw allowing no air to enter. It must be lit by introducing some burning fuel into the chimney. The logs burned slowly and transformed into charcoal over
429-730: A hexagonal crystal lattice with all atoms covalently bonded and properties similar to those of diamond. Fullerenes are a synthetic crystalline formation with a graphite-like structure, but in place of flat hexagonal cells only, some of the cells of which fullerenes are formed may be pentagons, nonplanar hexagons, or even heptagons of carbon atoms. The sheets are thus warped into spheres, ellipses, or cylinders. The properties of fullerenes (split into buckyballs, buckytubes, and nanobuds) have not yet been fully analyzed and represent an intense area of research in nanomaterials . The names fullerene and buckyball are given after Richard Buckminster Fuller , popularizer of geodesic domes , which resemble
572-706: A nuclear halo , which means its radius is appreciably larger than would be expected if the nucleus were a sphere of constant density. Formation of the carbon atomic nucleus occurs within a giant or supergiant star through the triple-alpha process . This requires a nearly simultaneous collision of three alpha particles (helium nuclei), as the products of further nuclear fusion reactions of helium with hydrogen or another helium nucleus produce lithium-5 and beryllium-8 respectively, both of which are highly unstable and decay almost instantly back into smaller nuclei. The triple-alpha process happens in conditions of temperatures over 100 megakelvins and helium concentration that
715-468: A wood gas generator . In 1931, Tang Zhongming developed an automobile powered by charcoal, and these cars were popular in China until the 1950s, and in occupied France during World War II , where they were called gazogènes . Charcoal is used in the production of black powder , which is used extensively in the production of fireworks. It is usually ground into a fine powder, with air float grade being
858-434: A π-cloud , graphite conducts electricity , but only in the plane of each covalently bonded sheet. This results in a lower bulk electrical conductivity for carbon than for most metals. The delocalization also accounts for the energetic stability of graphite over diamond at room temperature. At very high pressures, carbon forms the more compact allotrope, diamond, having nearly twice the density of graphite. Here, each atom
1001-833: A 3.2% rise in global deforestation. Massive wildfires in Canada , exacerbated by climate change , contributed to a 24% increase in global tree cover loss, highlighting the ongoing threats to forests essential for carbon storage and biodiversity . Despite some progress, the overall trends in forest destruction and climate impacts remain off track. The IPCC Sixth Assessment Report stated in 2022: “Over 420 million ha of forest were lost to deforestation from 1990 to 2020; more than 90% of that loss took place in tropical areas (high confidence), threatening biodiversity, environmental services, livelihoods of forest communities and resilience to climate shocks (high confidence).” See also: Global deforestation sharply accelerated around 1852. As of 1947,
1144-418: A carbon atom with six bonds. More specifically, the dication could be described structurally by the formulation [MeC(η -C 5 Me 5 )] , making it an "organic metallocene " in which a MeC fragment is bonded to a η -C 5 Me 5 fragment through all five of the carbons of the ring. It is important to note that in the cases above, each of the bonds to carbon contain less than two formal electron pairs. Thus,
1287-550: A carbon-metal covalent bond (e.g., metal carboxylates) are termed metalorganic compounds. While carbon is understood to strongly prefer formation of four covalent bonds, other exotic bonding schemes are also known. Carboranes are highly stable dodecahedral derivatives of the [B 12 H 12 ] unit, with one BH replaced with a CH . Thus, the carbon is bonded to five boron atoms and one hydrogen atom. The cation [(Ph 3 PAu) 6 C] contains an octahedral carbon bound to six phosphine-gold fragments. This phenomenon has been attributed to
1430-459: A closed retort . Modern charcoal briquettes used for outdoor cooking may contain many other additives, e.g. coal . The history of wood charcoal production spans ancient times, rooted in the abundance of wood in various regions. The process typically involves stacking wood billets to form a conical pile, allowing air to enter through openings at the bottom, and igniting the pile gradually. Charcoal burners, skilled professionals tasked with managing
1573-433: A deep brown-black after some time at 280 °C (540 °F), and an easily powdered mass at 310 °C (590 °F). Charcoal made at 300 °C (570 °F) is brown, soft and friable, and readily inflames at 380 °C (720 °F); made at higher temperatures it is hard and brittle, and does not fire until heated to about 700 °C (1,300 °F). Modern methods employ retorting technology, in which process heat
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#17327807461691716-462: A density of about 2 kg/m . Similarly, glassy carbon contains a high proportion of closed porosity , but contrary to normal graphite, the graphitic layers are not stacked like pages in a book, but have a more random arrangement. Linear acetylenic carbon has the chemical structure −(C≡C) n − . Carbon in this modification is linear with sp orbital hybridization , and is a polymer with alternating single and triple bonds. This carbyne
1859-399: A filter, catalyst , or adsorbent. Charcoal burns at temperatures exceeding 1,100 degrees Celsius (2,010 degrees Fahrenheit). By comparison, the melting point of iron is approximately 1,200 to 1,550 °C (2,190 to 2,820 °F). Due to its porosity, it is sensitive to the flow of air and the heat generated can be moderated by controlling the air flow to the fire. For this reason charcoal
2002-456: A filter. Activated charcoal readily adsorbs a wide range of organic compounds dissolved or suspended in gases and liquids. In certain industrial processes, such as the purification of sucrose from cane sugar, impurities cause an undesirable color, which can be removed with activated charcoal. It is also used to absorb odors and toxins in gaseous solutions, as in home air purifiers and some types of gas mask . The medical use of activated charcoal
2145-518: A hardness superior to diamonds. In the vapor phase, some of the carbon is in the form of highly reactive diatomic carbon dicarbon ( C 2 ). When excited, this gas glows green. Carbon is the fourth most abundant chemical element in the observable universe by mass after hydrogen, helium, and oxygen. Carbon is abundant in the Sun, stars, comets, and in the atmospheres of most planets. Some meteorites contain microscopic diamonds that were formed when
2288-413: A high activation energy barrier, the transition into graphite is so slow at normal temperature that it is unnoticeable. However, at very high temperatures diamond will turn into graphite, and diamonds can burn up in a house fire. The bottom left corner of the phase diagram for carbon has not been scrutinized experimentally. Although a computational study employing density functional theory methods reached
2431-425: A hydrogen based engine in cars. The amorphous form is an assortment of carbon atoms in a non-crystalline, irregular, glassy state, not held in a crystalline macrostructure. It is present as a powder, and is the main constituent of substances such as charcoal, lampblack (soot), and activated carbon . At normal pressures, carbon takes the form of graphite, in which each atom is bonded trigonally to three others in
2574-503: A large range of purposes including art and medicine, but by far its most important use has been as a metallurgical fuel. Charcoal is the traditional fuel of a blacksmith's forge and other applications where an intense heat is required. Charcoal was also used historically as a source of black pigment by grinding it up. In this form charcoal was important to early chemists and was a constituent of formulas for mixtures such as black powder . Due to its high surface area , charcoal can be used as
2717-435: A lower binding affinity. Cyanide (CN ), has a similar structure, but behaves much like a halide ion ( pseudohalogen ). For example, it can form the nitride cyanogen molecule ((CN) 2 ), similar to diatomic halides. Likewise, the heavier analog of cyanide, cyaphide (CP ), is also considered inorganic, though most simple derivatives are highly unstable. Other uncommon oxides are carbon suboxide ( C 3 O 2 ),
2860-413: A microscopic scale. Charcoal may be used as a source of carbon in chemical reactions. One example of this is the production of carbon disulphide through the reaction of sulfur vapors with hot charcoal. In that case, the wood should be charred at high temperature to reduce the residual amounts of hydrogen and oxygen that lead to side reactions. Charcoal may be activated to increase its effectiveness as
3003-425: A period of 5 days. If the soil covering became torn or cracked by the fire, additional soil was placed on the cracks. Once the burn was complete, the chimney was plugged to prevent air from entering. The true art of this production method was in managing the sufficient generation of heat, by combusting part of the wood material, and the transfer of the heat to the wood in the process of being carbonized. The operation
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#17327807461693146-414: A plane composed of fused hexagonal rings, just like those in aromatic hydrocarbons . The resulting network is 2-dimensional, and the resulting flat sheets are stacked and loosely bonded through weak van der Waals forces . This gives graphite its softness and its cleaving properties (the sheets slip easily past one another). Because of the delocalization of one of the outer electrons of each atom to form
3289-539: A raw material in pyrotechnics. It is also utilized in cosmetics, horticulture, animal husbandry, medicine, and environmental sustainability efforts, such as carbon sequestration. However, the production and utilization of charcoal can have adverse environmental impacts, including deforestation and emissions. Illegal and unregulated charcoal production, particularly in regions like South America and Africa, poses significant challenges to environmental conservation efforts. The production of wood charcoal in locations where there
3432-464: A regulated charcoal industry that required replanting and sustainable use of the forests "would give their people clean efficient energy – and their energy industries a strong competitive advantage". Recent assessments of charcoal imported to Europe have shown that many charcoal products are produced from tropical wood, often of undeclared origin. In an analysis of barbecue charcoal marketed in Germany,
3575-526: A small number of stabilized carbocations (three bonds, positive charge), radicals (three bonds, neutral), carbanions (three bonds, negative charge) and carbenes (two bonds, neutral), although these species are much more likely to be encountered as unstable, reactive intermediates. Carbon occurs in all known organic life and is the basis of organic chemistry . When united with hydrogen, it forms various hydrocarbons that are important to industry as refrigerants, lubricants, solvents, as chemical feedstock for
3718-592: A smelting fuel has been experiencing a resurgence in South America resulting in severe environmental, social and medical problems. Charcoal production at a sub-industrial level is one of the causes of deforestation. Charcoal production is now usually illegal and nearly always unregulated, as in Brazil , where charcoal production is a large illegal industry for making pig iron . Massive forest destruction has been documented in areas such as Virunga National Park in
3861-432: A vast number of compounds , with about two hundred million having been described and indexed; and yet that number is but a fraction of the number of theoretically possible compounds under standard conditions. The allotropes of carbon include graphite , one of the softest known substances, and diamond , the hardest naturally occurring substance. It bonds readily with other small atoms, including other carbon atoms, and
4004-426: A way to improve the health of people burning raw biomass for cooking and/or heating. Modern "charcoal" briquettes, widely used for outdoor cooking, are made with charcoal but may also include coal as an energy source as well as accelerants, binders and filler. To contain the charcoal and use it for cooking purposes, a barbecue grill may be used. A small Japanese charcoal grill is known as a shichirin . A brazier
4147-589: Is a container used to burn charcoal or other solid fuel. To start the charcoal burning is harder than starting a wood fire and charcoal lighter fluid may be employed. A chimney starter or electric charcoal starter are tools to help with starting to light charcoal. Approximately 75% of fuel burned in Haiti is charcoal. Certain types of charcoal, such as wood charcoal, are used for reducing heated metallic oxides to their respective metals: Charcoal can also be used to reduce super heated steam to hydrogen (along with
4290-441: Is a two-dimensional sheet of carbon with the atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. As of 2009, graphene appears to be the strongest material ever tested. The process of separating it from graphite will require some further technological development before it is economical for industrial processes. If successful, graphene could be used in the construction of a space elevator . It could also be used to safely store hydrogen for use in
4433-407: Is agreement that destruction of rainforests remains a significant environmental problem. The rate of net forest loss declined from 7.8 million ha per year in the decade 1990–2000 to 5.2 million ha per year in 2000–2010 and 4.7 million ha per year in 2010–2020. The rate of decline of net forest loss slowed in the most recent decade due to a reduction in the rate of forest expansion. In many parts of
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4576-439: Is almost constant, but decreases predictably in their bodies after death. This principle is used in radiocarbon dating , invented in 1949, which has been used extensively to determine the age of carbonaceous materials with ages up to about 40,000 years. There are 15 known isotopes of carbon and the shortest-lived of these is C which decays through proton emission and has a half-life of 3.5 × 10 s. The exotic C exhibits
4719-407: Is also found in methane hydrates in polar regions and under the seas. Various estimates put this carbon between 500, 2500, or 3,000 Gt. According to one source, in the period from 1751 to 2008 about 347 gigatonnes of carbon were released as carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from burning of fossil fuels. Another source puts the amount added to the atmosphere for the period since 1750 at 879 Gt, and
4862-479: Is an abundance of wood dates back to ancient times. It generally began with piling billets of wood on their ends to form a conical pile. Openings were left at the bottom to admit air , with a central shaft serving as a flue . The whole pile was covered with turf or moistened clay . The firing began at the bottom of the flue, and the fire gradually spread outward and upward. The traditional method in Britain used
5005-758: Is around 38%. Since 1960, roughly 15% of the Amazon has been removed with the intention of replacing the land with agricultural practices. It is no coincidence that Brazil has recently become the world's largest beef exporter at the same time that the Amazon rainforest is being clear cut. Another prevalent method of agricultural deforestation is slash-and-burn agriculture , which was primarily used by subsistence farmers in tropical regions but has now become increasingly less sustainable. The method does not leave land for continuous agricultural production but instead cuts and burns small plots of forest land which are then converted into agricultural zones. The farmers then exploit
5148-415: Is at 10.8 ± 0.2 megapascals (106.6 ± 2.0 atm; 1,566 ± 29 psi) and 4,600 ± 300 K (4,330 ± 300 °C; 7,820 ± 540 °F), so it sublimes at about 3,900 K (3,630 °C; 6,560 °F). Graphite is much more reactive than diamond at standard conditions, despite being more thermodynamically stable, as its delocalised pi system
5291-434: Is based on a Czech legend about a king who gets lost in a forest and is rescued by a charcoal burner. Carbon Carbon (from Latin carbo 'coal') is a chemical element ; it has symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent —meaning that its atoms are able to form up to four covalent bonds due to its valence shell exhibiting 4 electrons. It belongs to group 14 of
5434-594: Is bonded tetrahedrally to four others, forming a 3-dimensional network of puckered six-membered rings of atoms. Diamond has the same cubic structure as silicon and germanium , and because of the strength of the carbon-carbon bonds , it is the hardest naturally occurring substance measured by resistance to scratching . Contrary to the popular belief that "diamonds are forever" , they are thermodynamically unstable ( Δ f G ° (diamond, 298 K) = 2.9 kJ/mol ) under normal conditions (298 K, 10 Pa) and should theoretically transform into graphite. But due to
5577-406: Is capable of forming multiple stable covalent bonds with suitable multivalent atoms. Carbon is a component element in the large majority of all chemical compounds , with about two hundred million examples having been described in the published chemical literature. Carbon also has the highest sublimation point of all elements. At atmospheric pressure it has no melting point, as its triple point
5720-553: Is carbon dioxide (CO 2 ). This was once the principal constituent of the paleoatmosphere , but is a minor component of the Earth's atmosphere today. Dissolved in water, it forms carbonic acid ( H 2 CO 3 ), but as most compounds with multiple single-bonded oxygens on a single carbon it is unstable. Through this intermediate, though, resonance-stabilized carbonate ions are produced. Some important minerals are carbonates, notably calcite . Carbon disulfide ( CS 2 )
5863-399: Is covered by forests at present. This is one-third less than the forest cover before the expansion of agriculture, with half of that loss occurring in the last century. Between 15 million to 18 million hectares of forest, an area the size of Bangladesh , are destroyed every year. On average 2,400 trees are cut down each minute. Estimates vary widely as to the extent of deforestation in
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6006-421: Is defined as the conversion of forest to other land uses (regardless of whether it is human-induced). Deforestation and forest area net change are not the same: the latter is the sum of all forest losses (deforestation) and all forest gains (forest expansion) in a given period. Net change, therefore, can be positive or negative, depending on whether gains exceed losses, or vice versa. The FAO estimates that
6149-663: Is dissolved in the oceans; if bacteria do not consume it, dead plant or animal matter may become petroleum or coal, which releases carbon when burned. Carbon can form very long chains of interconnecting carbon–carbon bonds , a property that is called catenation . Carbon-carbon bonds are strong and stable. Through catenation, carbon forms a countless number of compounds. A tally of unique compounds shows that more contain carbon than do not. A similar claim can be made for hydrogen because most organic compounds contain hydrogen chemically bonded to carbon or another common element like oxygen or nitrogen. The simplest form of an organic molecule
6292-605: Is estimated that some 420 million hectares of forest have been lost through conversion to other land uses , although the rate of deforestation has decreased over the past three decades. Between 2015 and 2020, the rate of deforestation was estimated at 10 million hectares per year, down from 16 million hectares per year in the 1990s. The area of primary forest worldwide has decreased by over 80 million hectares since 1990. More than 100 million hectares of forests are adversely affected by forest fires, pests, diseases, invasive species , drought and adverse weather events. Deforestation
6435-801: Is found in large quantities in the United States (mostly in New York and Texas ), Russia, Mexico, Greenland, and India. Natural diamonds occur in the rock kimberlite , found in ancient volcanic "necks", or "pipes". Most diamond deposits are in Africa, notably in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, the Republic of the Congo, and Sierra Leone. Diamond deposits have also been found in Arkansas , Canada,
6578-422: Is found in trace amounts on Earth of 1 part per trillion (0.0000000001%) or more, mostly confined to the atmosphere and superficial deposits, particularly of peat and other organic materials. This isotope decays by 0.158 MeV β emission . Because of its relatively short half-life of 5700 ± 30 years, C is virtually absent in ancient rocks. The amount of C in the atmosphere and in living organisms
6721-425: Is mainly the absorption of poisons . Activated charcoal is available without a prescription, so it is used for a variety of health-related applications. For example, it is often used to reduce discomfort and embarrassment due to excessive gas ( flatulence ) in the digestive tract. Animal charcoal or bone black is the carbonaceous residue obtained by the dry distillation of bones. It contains only about 10% carbon,
6864-462: Is much more vulnerable to attack. For example, graphite can be oxidised by hot concentrated nitric acid at standard conditions to mellitic acid , C 6 (CO 2 H) 6 , which preserves the hexagonal units of graphite while breaking up the larger structure. Carbon sublimes in a carbon arc, which has a temperature of about 5800 K (5,530 °C or 9,980 °F). Thus, irrespective of its allotropic form, carbon remains solid at higher temperatures than
7007-550: Is no evidence to determine its safety and effectiveness. Red colobus monkeys in Africa have been observed eating charcoal for self-medication. Because their leafy diets contain high levels of cyanide , which may lead to indigestion, they learned to consume charcoal, which absorbs the cyanide and relieves discomfort. This knowledge is transmitted from mother to infant. Production and utilization of charcoal, like any use of woody biomass as fuel, typically results in emissions and can contribute to deforestation. The use of charcoal as
7150-605: Is not an issue because of longer fallow periods and lesser overall deforestation. The relatively small size of the plots allowed for no net input of CO 2 to be released. Consumption and production of beef is the primary driver of deforestation in the Amazon , with around 80% of all converted land being used to rear cattle. 91% of Amazon land deforested since 1970 has been converted to cattle ranching. Livestock ranching requires large portions of land to raise herds of animals and livestock crops for consumer needs. According to
7293-506: Is of considerable interest to nanotechnology as its Young's modulus is 40 times that of the hardest known material – diamond. In 2015, a team at the North Carolina State University announced the development of another allotrope they have dubbed Q-carbon , created by a high-energy low-duration laser pulse on amorphous carbon dust. Q-carbon is reported to exhibit ferromagnetism, fluorescence , and
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#17327807461697436-577: Is one such star system with an abundance of carbon, enabling the existence of life as we know it. It is the opinion of most scholars that all the carbon in the Solar System and the Milky Way comes from dying stars. The CNO cycle is an additional hydrogen fusion mechanism that powers stars, wherein carbon operates as a catalyst. Rotational transitions of various isotopic forms of carbon monoxide (for example, CO, CO, and CO) are detectable in
7579-453: Is projected to occur by the mid-21st century. In the early 2000s, some scientists predicted that unless significant measures (such as seeking out and protecting old growth forests that have not been disturbed) are taken on a worldwide basis, by 2030 there will only be 10% remaining, with another 10% in a degraded condition . 80% will have been lost, and with them hundreds of thousands of irreplaceable species. Estimates vary widely as to
7722-420: Is recovered from, and solely provided by, the combustion of gas released during carbonization. Yields of retorting are considerably higher than those of kilning, and may reach 35%-40%. The properties of the charcoal produced depend on the material charred. The charring temperature is also important. Charcoal contains varying amounts of hydrogen and oxygen as well as ash and other impurities that, together with
7865-727: Is responsible for 48% of deforestation; commercial agriculture is responsible for 32%; logging is responsible for 14%, and fuel wood removals make up 5%. More than 80% of deforestation was attributed to agriculture in 2018. Forests are being converted to plantations for coffee, tea, palm oil , rice, rubber , and various other popular products. The rising demand for certain products and global trade arrangements causes forest conversions , which ultimately leads to soil erosion . The top soil oftentimes erodes after forests are cleared which leads to sediment increase in rivers and streams. Most deforestation also occurs in tropical regions. The estimated amount of total land mass used by agriculture
8008-453: Is similar. Nevertheless, due to its physical properties and its association with organic synthesis, carbon disulfide is sometimes classified as an organic solvent. The other common oxide is carbon monoxide (CO). It is formed by incomplete combustion, and is a colorless, odorless gas. The molecules each contain a triple bond and are fairly polar , resulting in a tendency to bind permanently to hemoglobin molecules, displacing oxygen, which has
8151-566: Is stabilized in various multi-atomic structures with diverse molecular configurations called allotropes . The three relatively well-known allotropes of carbon are amorphous carbon , graphite , and diamond. Once considered exotic, fullerenes are nowadays commonly synthesized and used in research; they include buckyballs , carbon nanotubes , carbon nanobuds and nanofibers . Several other exotic allotropes have also been discovered, such as lonsdaleite , glassy carbon , carbon nanofoam and linear acetylenic carbon (carbyne). Graphene
8294-483: Is still widely used by blacksmiths. Charcoal has been used for the production of iron and steel (where it also provided the necessary carbon) since at least 2000 BCE , with artifacts having been found in Proto-Hittite layers at Kaman-Kalehöyük . Charcoal briquettes can burn up to approximately 1,260 °C (2,300 °F) with a forced air blower forge. In the 16th century, England had to pass laws to prevent
8437-461: Is that deforestation reduces the uptake of carbon dioxide ( carbon sequestration ) from the atmosphere. This reduces the potential of forests to assist with climate change mitigation . The role of forests in capturing and storing carbon and mitigating climate change is also important for the agricultural sector. The reason for this linkage is because the effects of climate change on agriculture pose new risks to global food systems . Since 1990, it
8580-681: Is the hydrocarbon—a large family of organic molecules that are composed of hydrogen atoms bonded to a chain of carbon atoms. A hydrocarbon backbone can be substituted by other atoms, known as heteroatoms . Common heteroatoms that appear in organic compounds include oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, and the nonradioactive halogens, as well as the metals lithium and magnesium. Organic compounds containing bonds to metal are known as organometallic compounds ( see below ). Certain groupings of atoms, often including heteroatoms, recur in large numbers of organic compounds. These collections, known as functional groups , confer common reactivity patterns and allow for
8723-502: Is used for drawing , making rough sketches in painting , and is one of the possible media used for making a parsemage . It usually must be preserved by the application of a fixative . Artists generally utilize charcoal in four forms: One additional use of charcoal was rediscovered recently for horticulture . Although American gardeners have used charcoal for a short time, research on Terra preta soils in Amazonia has discovered
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#17327807461698866-436: Is used to obtain showers of golden sparks in pyrotechnic compositions. Charcoal is also incorporated in multiple cosmetic products. It can be produced from regular bamboo cut into small pieces and boiled in water to remove soluble compounds. Raw bamboo charcoal is obtained after drying and carbonization in an oven at elevated temperature. The role of charcoal in cosmetics is based on its highly effective absorbing properties at
9009-560: The Congolese rainforest increased by 5%. The World Wildlife Fund 's ecoregion project catalogues habitat types throughout the world, including habitat loss such as deforestation, showing for example that even in the rich forests of parts of Canada such as the Mid-Continental Canadian forests of the prairie provinces half of the forest cover has been lost or altered. In 2011, Conservation International listed
9152-634: The Democratic Republic of Congo , where it is considered a primary threat to the survival of the mountain gorillas. Similar threats are found in Zambia . In Malawi , illegal charcoal trade employs 92,800 workers and is the main source of heat and cooking fuel for 90 percent of the nation's population. Some experts, such as Duncan MacQueen, Principal Researcher–Forest Team, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) , argue that while illegal charcoal production causes deforestation,
9295-493: The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) adopted the isotope carbon-12 as the basis for atomic weights . Identification of carbon in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments is done with the isotope C. Carbon-14 ( C) is a naturally occurring radioisotope , created in the upper atmosphere (lower stratosphere and upper troposphere ) by interaction of nitrogen with cosmic rays. It
9438-514: The Kingsford Company . The modern process of carbonizing wood, either in small pieces or as sawdust in cast iron retorts , is extensively practiced where wood is scarce, and also for the recovery of valuable byproducts ( wood spirit , pyroligneous acid , wood tar ), which the process permits. The question of the temperature of the carbonization is important; according to J. Percy, wood becomes brown at 220 °C (430 °F),
9581-512: The PAH world hypothesis where they are hypothesized to have a role in abiogenesis and formation of life. PAHs seem to have been formed "a couple of billion years" after the Big Bang , are widespread throughout the universe, and are associated with new stars and exoplanets . It has been estimated that the solid earth as a whole contains 730 ppm of carbon, with 2000 ppm in the core and 120 ppm in
9724-608: The Philippines , Indonesia , Thailand , Burma , Malaysia , Bangladesh , China, Sri Lanka , Laos , Nigeria , the Democratic Republic of the Congo , Liberia , Guinea , Ghana and the Ivory Coast , have lost large areas of their rainforest. Much of what remains of the world's rainforests is in the Amazon basin , where the Amazon Rainforest covers approximately 4 million square kilometres. Some 80% of
9867-530: The World Wildlife Fund found that most products contain tropical wood. As a notable exception, reference is made to barbecue charcoal imports from Namibia , where charcoal is typically produced from surplus biomass resulting from woody plant encroachment . Charcoal trafficking in Somalia is an economic and environmental issue with significant regional-security implications. The last section of
10010-409: The World Wildlife Fund , "Extensive cattle ranching is the number one culprit of deforestation in virtually every Amazon country, and it accounts for 80% of current deforestation." The cattle industry is responsible for a significant amount of methane emissions since 60% of all mammals on earth are livestock cows. Replacing forest land with pastures creates a loss of forest stock , which leads to
10153-425: The aurophilicity of the gold ligands, which provide additional stabilization of an otherwise labile species. In nature, the iron-molybdenum cofactor ( FeMoco ) responsible for microbial nitrogen fixation likewise has an octahedral carbon center (formally a carbide, C(-IV)) bonded to six iron atoms. In 2016, it was confirmed that, in line with earlier theoretical predictions, the hexamethylbenzene dication contains
10296-695: The biosphere has been estimated at 550 gigatonnes but with a large uncertainty, due mostly to a huge uncertainty in the amount of terrestrial deep subsurface bacteria . Hydrocarbons (such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas) contain carbon as well. Coal "reserves" (not "resources") amount to around 900 gigatonnes with perhaps 18,000 Gt of resources. Oil reserves are around 150 gigatonnes. Proven sources of natural gas are about 175 × 10 cubic metres (containing about 105 gigatonnes of carbon), but studies estimate another 900 × 10 cubic metres of "unconventional" deposits such as shale gas , representing about 540 gigatonnes of carbon. Carbon
10439-455: The carbon cycle . For example, photosynthetic plants draw carbon dioxide from the atmosphere (or seawater) and build it into biomass, as in the Calvin cycle , a process of carbon fixation . Some of this biomass is eaten by animals, while some carbon is exhaled by animals as carbon dioxide. The carbon cycle is considerably more complicated than this short loop; for example, some carbon dioxide
10582-616: The periodic table . Carbon makes up about 0.025 percent of Earth's crust. Three isotopes occur naturally, C and C being stable, while C is a radionuclide , decaying with a half-life of 5,700 years. Carbon is one of the few elements known since antiquity . Carbon is the 15th most abundant element in the Earth's crust , and the fourth most abundant element in the universe by mass after hydrogen , helium , and oxygen . Carbon's abundance, its unique diversity of organic compounds , and its unusual ability to form polymers at
10725-399: The submillimeter wavelength range, and are used in the study of newly forming stars in molecular clouds . Under terrestrial conditions, conversion of one element to another is very rare. Therefore, the amount of carbon on Earth is effectively constant. Thus, processes that use carbon must obtain it from somewhere and dispose of it somewhere else. The paths of carbon in the environment form
10868-577: The tropics . In 2019, nearly a third of the overall tree cover loss, or 3.8 million hectares, occurred within humid tropical primary forests . These are areas of mature rainforest that are especially important for biodiversity and carbon storage . The direct cause of most deforestation is agriculture by far. More than 80% of deforestation was attributed to agriculture in 2018. Forests are being converted to plantations for coffee , palm oil , rubber and various other popular products. Livestock grazing also drives deforestation. Further drivers are
11011-574: The wood industry ( logging ), urbanization and mining . The effects of climate change are another cause via the increased risk of wildfires (see deforestation and climate change ). Deforestation results in habitat destruction which in turn leads to biodiversity loss . Deforestation also leads to extinction of animals and plants, changes to the local climate, and displacement of indigenous people who live in forests. Deforested regions often also suffer from other environmental problems such as desertification and soil erosion . Another problem
11154-468: The 17th century. A strong disadvantage of this production method is the huge amount of emissions that are harmful to human health and the environment (emissions of unburnt methane). As a result of the partial combustion of wood material, the efficiency of the traditional method is low. The massive production of charcoal (at its height employing hundreds of thousands, mainly in Alpine and neighbouring forests)
11297-589: The Association of American Feed Control Officials banning it in 2012 from use in commercial livestock feeds. Charcoal in the form of charcoal biscuits was consumed in the past for gastric problems. Now it can be consumed in tablet, capsule, or powder form for digestive effects. Research regarding its effectiveness is controversial. Charcoal has been used in combination with saccharin in research to measure mucociliary transport time. Charcoal has also been incorporated into toothpaste formulas; however, there
11440-519: The Industrial Revolution, charcoal was occasionally used as a cooking fuel . It is counted as a smokeless fuel ; that is, the carbon is sufficiently pure that burning it causes substantially less air pollution than burning the original uncarbonized organic material would. In the 20th century, clean-air legislation mandated smokeless fuels (mostly coke or charcoal) in many areas of Europe. In the 21st century, charcoal has been advocated as
11583-657: The Latin carbo for coal and charcoal, whence also comes the French charbon , meaning charcoal. In German, Dutch and Danish, the names for carbon are Kohlenstoff , koolstof , and kulstof respectively, all literally meaning coal-substance. Deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms , ranches , or urban use. About 31% of Earth's land surface
11726-645: The Russian Arctic, Brazil, and in Northern and Western Australia. Diamonds are now also being recovered from the ocean floor off the Cape of Good Hope . Diamonds are found naturally, but about 30% of all industrial diamonds used in the U.S. are now manufactured. Carbon-14 is formed in upper layers of the troposphere and the stratosphere at altitudes of 9–15 km by a reaction that is precipitated by cosmic rays . Thermal neutrons are produced that collide with
11869-459: The Solar System was still a protoplanetary disk . Microscopic diamonds may also be formed by the intense pressure and high temperature at the sites of meteorite impacts. In 2014 NASA announced a greatly upgraded database for tracking polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the universe. More than 20% of the carbon in the universe may be associated with PAHs, complex compounds of carbon and hydrogen without oxygen. These compounds figure in
12012-503: The addition of phosphorus to these other elements, it forms DNA and RNA , the chemical-code carriers of life, and adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the most important energy-transfer molecule in all living cells. Norman Horowitz , head of the Mariner and Viking missions to Mars (1965–1976), considered that the unique characteristics of carbon made it unlikely that any other element could replace carbon, even on another planet, to generate
12155-510: The allotropic form. For example, graphite is opaque and black, while diamond is highly transparent . Graphite is soft enough to form a streak on paper (hence its name, from the Greek verb "γράφειν" which means "to write"), while diamond is the hardest naturally occurring material known. Graphite is a good electrical conductor while diamond has a low electrical conductivity . Under normal conditions, diamond, carbon nanotubes , and graphene have
12298-451: The biochemistry necessary for life. Commonly carbon-containing compounds which are associated with minerals or which do not contain bonds to the other carbon atoms, halogens, or hydrogen, are treated separately from classical organic compounds; the definition is not rigid, and the classification of some compounds can vary from author to author (see reference articles above). Among these are the simple oxides of carbon. The most prominent oxide
12441-529: The carbon is bonded to. In general, covalent radius decreases with lower coordination number and higher bond order. Carbon-based compounds form the basis of all known life on Earth, and the carbon-nitrogen-oxygen cycle provides a small portion of the energy produced by the Sun, and most of the energy in larger stars (e.g. Sirius ). Although it forms an extraordinary variety of compounds, most forms of carbon are comparatively unreactive under normal conditions. At standard temperature and pressure, it resists all but
12584-406: The coal-gas reaction used in coal gasification : Carbon combines with some metals at high temperatures to form metallic carbides, such as the iron carbide cementite in steel and tungsten carbide , widely used as an abrasive and for making hard tips for cutting tools. The system of carbon allotropes spans a range of extremes: Atomic carbon is a very short-lived species and, therefore, carbon
12727-489: The combined mantle and crust. Since the mass of the earth is 5.972 × 10 kg , this would imply 4360 million gigatonnes of carbon. This is much more than the amount of carbon in the oceans or atmosphere (below). In combination with oxygen in carbon dioxide, carbon is found in the Earth's atmosphere (approximately 900 gigatonnes of carbon — each ppm corresponds to 2.13 Gt) and dissolved in all water bodies (approximately 36,000 gigatonnes of carbon). Carbon in
12870-590: The commodity is consumed. For example, consumption patterns in G7 countries are estimated to cause an average loss of 3.9 trees per person per year. In other words, deforestation can be directly related to imports—for example, coffee. In 2023, the Global Forest Watch reported a 9% decline in tropical primary forest loss compared to the previous year, with significant regional reductions in Brazil and Colombia overshadowed by increases elsewhere, leading to
13013-453: The conclusion that as T → 0 K and p → 0 Pa , diamond becomes more stable than graphite by approximately 1.1 kJ/mol, more recent and definitive experimental and computational studies show that graphite is more stable than diamond for T < 400 K , without applied pressure, by 2.7 kJ/mol at T = 0 K and 3.2 kJ/mol at T = 298.15 K. Under some conditions, carbon crystallizes as lonsdaleite ,
13156-467: The country from becoming completely denuded of trees due to production of iron. In the 19th century charcoal was largely replaced by coke in steel production due to cost, even though coke usually adds sulphur and sometimes other deleterious contaminants to the pig iron. Wooded metallurgical regions devoid of coal like Sweden, the Urals, or Siberia transitioned from charcoal in the early 20th century. Prior to
13299-478: The country's western regions at a rate of 15,000 hectares at a randomly studied 2-month period in 2010. In 2009, Paraguay's parliament refused to pass a law that would have stopped cutting of natural forests altogether. As of 2007, less than 50% of Haiti's forests remained . From 2015 to 2019, the rate of deforestation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo doubled. In 2021, deforestation of
13442-780: The decades 1990–2000 and 2000–2010. Some claim that rainforests are being destroyed at an ever-quickening pace. The London-based Rainforest Foundation notes that "the UN figure is based on a definition of forest as being an area with as little as 10% actual tree cover, which would therefore include areas that are actually savanna-like ecosystems and badly damaged forests". Other critics of the FAO data point out that they do not distinguish between forest types, and that they are based largely on reporting from forestry departments of individual countries, which do not take into account unofficial activities like illegal logging. Despite these uncertainties, there
13585-498: The deforestation of the Amazon can be attributed to cattle ranching, as Brazil is the largest exporter of beef in the world. The Amazon region has become one of the largest cattle ranching territories in the world. The regions with the highest tropical deforestation rate between 2000 and 2005 were Central America —which lost 1.3% of its forests each year—and tropical Asia. In Central America , two-thirds of lowland tropical forests have been turned into pasture since 1950 and 40% of all
13728-423: The delicate operation, often lived in isolation to tend their wood piles. Throughout history, the extensive production of charcoal has been a significant contributor to deforestation, particularly in regions like Central Europe. However, various management practices, such as coppicing , aimed to maintain a steady supply of wood for charcoal production. The scarcity of easily accessible wood resources eventually led to
13871-496: The end of the 19th century resulted in rapid re-forestation of affected areas. The American form of the charcoal briquette was first invented and patented by Ellsworth B. A. Zwoyer of Pennsylvania in 1897 and was produced by the Zwoyer Fuel Company . The process was further popularized by Henry Ford , who used wood and sawdust byproducts from automobile fabrication as a feedstock . Ford Charcoal went on to become
14014-463: The extent of deforestation in the tropics. In 2019, the world lost nearly 12 million hectares of tree cover. Nearly a third of that loss, 3.8 million hectares, occurred within humid tropical primary forests, areas of mature rainforest that are especially important for biodiversity and carbon storage. This is equivalent to losing an area of primary forest the size of a football pitch every six seconds. A 2002 analysis of satellite imagery suggested that
14157-560: The film Le Quattro Volte (2010) gives a good and long, if poetic, documentation of the traditional method of making charcoal. The Arthur Ransome children's series Swallows and Amazons (particularly the second book, Swallowdale ) features carefully drawn vignettes of the lives and the techniques of charcoal burners at the start of the 20th century, in the Lake District of the UK. Antonín Dvořák's opera King and Charcoal Burner
14300-412: The finest particle size available commercially. When used in black powder compositions, it is often ball-milled with other ingredients so that they are intimately mixed together. Certain charcoals perform better when used to make black powder; these include spruce, willow, paulownia and grapevine among others. Charcoal produces fine dark orange/golden sparks . Usually, powder with a mesh size from 10 to 325
14443-432: The form of charcoal or timber ), while cleared land is used as pasture for livestock and agricultural crops. The vast majority of agricultural activity resulting in deforestation is subsidized by government tax revenue . Disregard of ascribed value, lax forest management , and deficient environmental laws are some of the factors that lead to large-scale deforestation. The types of drivers vary greatly depending on
14586-503: The formal electron count of these species does not exceed an octet. This makes them hypercoordinate but not hypervalent. Even in cases of alleged 10-C-5 species (that is, a carbon with five ligands and a formal electron count of ten), as reported by Akiba and co-workers, electronic structure calculations conclude that the electron population around carbon is still less than eight, as is true for other compounds featuring four-electron three-center bonding . The English name carbon comes from
14729-575: The formation of carbon monoxide): Like many other sources of carbon, charcoal can be used for the production of various syngas compositions; i.e., various CO + H 2 + CO 2 + N 2 mixtures. The syngas is typically used as fuel, including automotive propulsion, or as a chemical feedstock. In times of scarce petroleum, automobiles and even buses have been converted to burn wood gas: a gas mixture consisting primarily of diluting atmospheric nitrogen , but also containing combustible gasses (mostly carbon monoxide ) released by burning charcoal or wood in
14872-484: The future, but is currently technologically impossible. Isotopes of carbon are atomic nuclei that contain six protons plus a number of neutrons (varying from 2 to 16). Carbon has two stable, naturally occurring isotopes. The isotope carbon-12 ( C) forms 98.93% of the carbon on Earth, while carbon-13 ( C) forms the remaining 1.07%. The concentration of C is further increased in biological materials because biochemical reactions discriminate against C. In 1961,
15015-568: The global forest carbon stock has decreased 0.9%, and tree cover 4.2% between 1990 and 2020. As of 2019 there is still disagreement about whether the global forest is shrinking or not: "While above-ground biomass carbon stocks are estimated to be declining in the tropics, they are increasing globally due to increasing stocks in temperate and boreal forest. Deforestation in many countries —both naturally occurring and human-induced —is an ongoing issue. Between 2000 and 2012, 2.3 million square kilometres (890,000 square miles) of forests around
15158-423: The heavier group-14 elements. The electronegativity of carbon is 2.5, significantly higher than the heavier group-14 elements (1.8–1.9), but close to most of the nearby nonmetals, as well as some of the second- and third-row transition metals . Carbon's covalent radii are normally taken as 77.2 pm (C−C), 66.7 pm (C=C) and 60.3 pm (C≡C), although these may vary depending on coordination number and what
15301-675: The highest thermal conductivities of all known materials. All carbon allotropes are solids under normal conditions, with graphite being the most thermodynamically stable form at standard temperature and pressure. They are chemically resistant and require high temperature to react even with oxygen. The most common oxidation state of carbon in inorganic compounds is +4, while +2 is found in carbon monoxide and transition metal carbonyl complexes. The largest sources of inorganic carbon are limestones , dolomites and carbon dioxide , but significant quantities occur in organic deposits of coal , peat , oil , and methane clathrates . Carbon forms
15444-509: The highest-melting-point metals such as tungsten or rhenium . Although thermodynamically prone to oxidation, carbon resists oxidation more effectively than elements such as iron and copper, which are weaker reducing agents at room temperature. Carbon is the sixth element, with a ground-state electron configuration of 1s 2s 2p , of which the four outer electrons are valence electrons . Its first four ionisation energies, 1086.5, 2352.6, 4620.5 and 6222.7 kJ/mol, are much higher than those of
15587-402: The implication of increased greenhouse gas emissions by burning agriculture methodologies and land-use change . A large contributing factor to deforestation is the lumber industry . A total of almost 4 million hectares (9.9 million acres) of timber, or about 1.3% of all forest land, is harvested each year. In addition, the increasing demand for low-cost timber products only supports
15730-510: The introduction of more active and easily managed reagents, but it is still employed to some extent in laboratory practice. The bleaching action of the charcoal in solution diminishes as it adsorbs colored contaminants, and it must be reactivated periodically by separate washing and reheating. While wood charcoal effectively removes some pigments and contaminants from solutions, bone charcoal is generally more effective as an adsorption filter due to its increased porosity and surface area. Charcoal
15873-649: The largest annual rate of net forest loss in 2010–2020, at 3.9 million ha, followed by South America, at 2.6 million ha. The rate of net forest loss has increased in Africa in each of the three decades since 1990. It has declined substantially in South America, however, to about half the rate in 2010–2020 compared with 2000–2010. Asia had the highest net gain of forest area in 2010–2020, followed by Oceania and Europe. Nevertheless, both Europe and Asia recorded substantially lower rates of net gain in 2010–2020 than in 2000–2010. Oceania experienced net losses of forest area in
16016-430: The main driver of deforestation and forest fragmentation and the associated loss of forest biodiversity. Large-scale commercial agriculture (primarily cattle ranching and cultivation of soya bean and oil palm) accounted for 40 percent of tropical deforestation between 2000 and 2010, and local subsistence agriculture for another 33 percent. Trees are cut down for use as building material, timber or sold as fuel (sometimes in
16159-414: The manufacture of plastics and petrochemicals, and as fossil fuels. When combined with oxygen and hydrogen, carbon can form many groups of important biological compounds including sugars, lignans , chitins , alcohols, fats, aromatic esters , carotenoids and terpenes . With nitrogen, it forms alkaloids , and with the addition of sulfur also it forms antibiotics, amino acids , and rubber products. With
16302-1053: The most polar and salt-like of carbides are not completely ionic compounds. Organometallic compounds by definition contain at least one carbon-metal covalent bond. A wide range of such compounds exist; major classes include simple alkyl-metal compounds (for example, tetraethyllead ), η -alkene compounds (for example, Zeise's salt ), and η -allyl compounds (for example, allylpalladium chloride dimer ); metallocenes containing cyclopentadienyl ligands (for example, ferrocene ); and transition metal carbene complexes . Many metal carbonyls and metal cyanides exist (for example, tetracarbonylnickel and potassium ferricyanide ); some workers consider metal carbonyl and cyanide complexes without other carbon ligands to be purely inorganic, and not organometallic. However, most organometallic chemists consider metal complexes with any carbon ligand, even 'inorganic carbon' (e.g., carbonyls, cyanides, and certain types of carbides and acetylides) to be organometallic in nature. Metal complexes containing organic ligands without
16445-408: The nuclei of nitrogen-14, forming carbon-14 and a proton. As such, 1.5% × 10 of atmospheric carbon dioxide contains carbon-14. Carbon-rich asteroids are relatively preponderant in the outer parts of the asteroid belt in the Solar System. These asteroids have not yet been directly sampled by scientists. The asteroids can be used in hypothetical space-based carbon mining , which may be possible in
16588-460: The nutrients in the ashes of the burned plants. As well as, intentionally set fires can possibly lead to devastating measures when unintentionally spreading fire to more land, which can result in the destruction of the protective canopy. The repeated cycle of low yields and shortened fallow periods eventually results in less vegetation being able to grow on once burned lands and a decrease in average soil biomass. In small local plots sustainability
16731-514: The original 16 million square kilometres (6 million square miles) of tropical rainforest that formerly covered the Earth. More than 3.6 million hectares of virgin tropical forest was lost in 2018. The global annual net loss of trees is estimated to be approximately 10 billion. According to the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2020 the global average annual deforested land in the 2015–2020 demi-decade
16874-418: The other hand, a 2005 analysis of satellite images reveals that deforestation of the Amazon rainforest is twice as fast as scientists previously estimated. From 2010 to 2015, worldwide forest area decreased by 3.3 million ha per year, according to FAO . During this five-year period, the biggest forest area loss occurred in the tropics, particularly in South America and Africa. Per capita forest area decline
17017-423: The outer wall of a nanotube) that combine the properties of both in a single structure. Of the other discovered allotropes, carbon nanofoam is a ferromagnetic allotrope discovered in 1997. It consists of a low-density cluster-assembly of carbon atoms strung together in a loose three-dimensional web, in which the atoms are bonded trigonally in six- and seven-membered rings. It is among the lightest known solids, with
17160-410: The planet had 15 to 16 million km (5.8 to 6.2 million sq mi) of mature tropical forests , but by 2015, it was estimated that about half of these had been destroyed. Total land coverage by tropical rainforests decreased from 14% to 6%. Much of this loss happened between 1960 and 1990, when 20% of all tropical rainforests were destroyed. At this rate, extinction of such forests
17303-492: The rainforests have been lost in the last 40 years. Brazil has lost 90–95% of its Mata Atlântica forest. Deforestation in Brazil increased by 88% for the month of June 2019, as compared with the previous year. However, Brazil still destroyed 1.3 million hectares in 2019. Brazil is one of several countries that have declared their deforestation a national emergency. Paraguay was losing its natural semi-humid forests in
17446-526: The rapid expansion and cooling of the early universe prohibited, and therefore no significant carbon was created during the Big Bang. According to current physical cosmology theory, carbon is formed in the interiors of stars on the horizontal branch . When massive stars die as supernova, the carbon is scattered into space as dust. This dust becomes component material for the formation of the next-generation star systems with accreted planets. The Solar System
17589-472: The rate of deforestation in the humid tropics (approximately 5.8 million hectares per year) was roughly 23% lower than the most commonly quoted rates. A 2005 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimated that although the Earth's total forest area continued to decrease at about 13 million hectares per year, the global rate of deforestation had been slowing. On
17732-476: The region in which they take place. The regions with the greatest amount of deforestation for livestock and row crop agriculture are Central and South America, while commodity crop deforestation was found mainly in Southeast Asia. The region with the greatest forest loss due to shifting agriculture was sub-Saharan Africa. The overwhelming direct cause of deforestation is agriculture. Subsistence farming
17875-407: The remaining being calcium and magnesium phosphates (80%) and other inorganic material originally present in the bones. It is generally manufactured from the residues obtained in the glue and gelatin industries. Its bleaching power was applied in 1812 by Derosne for clarifying sugar syrup , but its use in this direction has now greatly diminished. Today it is seldom used for this purpose due to
18018-470: The size of India—by 2050. 36% of globally planted forest area is in East Asia – around 950,000 square kilometers. From those 87% are in China. Rates of deforestation vary around the world. Up to 90% of West Africa 's coastal rainforests have disappeared since 1900. Madagascar has lost 90% of its eastern rainforests. In South Asia , about 88% of the rainforests have been lost. Mexico , India ,
18161-470: The strongest oxidizers. It does not react with sulfuric acid , hydrochloric acid , chlorine or any alkalis . At elevated temperatures, carbon reacts with oxygen to form carbon oxides and will rob oxygen from metal oxides to leave the elemental metal. This exothermic reaction is used in the iron and steel industry to smelt iron and to control the carbon content of steel : Carbon reacts with sulfur to form carbon disulfide , and it reacts with steam in
18304-509: The structure of fullerenes. The buckyballs are fairly large molecules formed completely of carbon bonded trigonally, forming spheroids (the best-known and simplest is the soccerball-shaped C 60 buckminsterfullerene ). Carbon nanotubes (buckytubes) are structurally similar to buckyballs, except that each atom is bonded trigonally in a curved sheet that forms a hollow cylinder . Nanobuds were first reported in 2007 and are hybrid buckytube/buckyball materials (buckyballs are covalently bonded to
18447-402: The structure, determine the properties. The approximate composition of charcoal for gunpowders is sometimes empirically described as C 7 H 4 O. To obtain a coal with high purity, source material should be free of non-volatile compounds. Wood charcoal is obtained as the residue by destructive distillation of wood such that the products are: Charcoal has been used since earliest times for
18590-414: The systematic study and categorization of organic compounds. Chain length, shape and functional groups all affect the properties of organic molecules. In most stable compounds of carbon (and nearly all stable organic compounds), carbon obeys the octet rule and is tetravalent , meaning that a carbon atom forms a total of four covalent bonds (which may include double and triple bonds). Exceptions include
18733-460: The temperatures commonly encountered on Earth, enables this element to serve as a common element of all known life . It is the second most abundant element in the human body by mass (about 18.5%) after oxygen. The atoms of carbon can bond together in diverse ways, resulting in various allotropes of carbon . Well-known allotropes include graphite , diamond , amorphous carbon , and fullerenes . The physical properties of carbon vary widely with
18876-467: The top 10 most endangered forests, characterized by having all lost 90% or more of their original habitat , and each harboring at least 1500 endemic plant species (species found nowhere else in the world). As of 2015 , it is estimated that 70% of the world's forests are within one kilometer of a forest edge, where they are most prone to human interference and destruction. Deforestation in particular countries: Agricultural expansion continues to be
19019-458: The total going to the atmosphere, sea, and land (such as peat bogs ) at almost 2,000 Gt. Carbon is a constituent (about 12% by mass) of the very large masses of carbonate rock ( limestone , dolomite , marble , and others). Coal is very rich in carbon ( anthracite contains 92–98%) and is the largest commercial source of mineral carbon, accounting for 4,000 gigatonnes or 80% of fossil fuel . As for individual carbon allotropes, graphite
19162-497: The transition to fossil fuel equivalents like coal. Modern methods of charcoal production involve carbonizing wood in retorts, yielding higher efficiencies compared to traditional kilning methods. The properties of charcoal depend on factors such as the material charred and the temperature of carbonization. Charcoal finds diverse applications, including metallurgical fuel in iron and steel production, industrial fuel, cooking and heating fuel, reducing agent in chemical processes, and as
19305-775: The unstable dicarbon monoxide (C 2 O), carbon trioxide (CO 3 ), cyclopentanepentone (C 5 O 5 ), cyclohexanehexone (C 6 O 6 ), and mellitic anhydride (C 12 O 9 ). However, mellitic anhydride is the triple acyl anhydride of mellitic acid; moreover, it contains a benzene ring. Thus, many chemists consider it to be organic. With reactive metals, such as tungsten , carbon forms either carbides (C ) or acetylides ( C 2 ) to form alloys with high melting points. These anions are also associated with methane and acetylene , both very weak acids. With an electronegativity of 2.5, carbon prefers to form covalent bonds . A few carbides are covalent lattices, like carborundum (SiC), which resembles diamond. Nevertheless, even
19448-524: The widespread use of biochar by pre-Columbian natives to ameliorate unproductive soil into soil rich in carbon . The technique may find modern application, both to improve soils and as a means of carbon sequestration . Charcoal is mixed with feed, added to litter , or used in the treatment of manure . Poultry benefits from using charcoal in this manner. A concern that activated charcoal might be used unscrupulously to allow livestock to tolerate low quality feed contaminated with aflatoxins resulted in
19591-473: The world were cut down. Deforestation and forest degradation continue to take place at alarming rates, which contributes significantly to the ongoing loss of biodiversity . Deforestation is more extreme in tropical and subtropical forests in emerging economies. More than half of all plant and land animal species in the world live in tropical forests . As a result of deforestation, only 6.2 million square kilometres (2.4 million square miles) remain of
19734-576: The world, especially in East Asian countries, reforestation and afforestation are increasing the area of forested lands. The amount of forest has increased in 22 of the world's 50 most forested nations. Asia as a whole gained 1 million hectares of forest between 2000 and 2005. Tropical forest in El Salvador expanded more than 20% between 1992 and 2001. Based on these trends, one study projects that global forestation will increase by 10%—an area
19877-456: Was 10 million hectares and the average annual forest area net loss in the 2000–2010 decade was 4.7 million hectares. The world has lost 178 million ha of forest since 1990, which is an area about the size of Libya. An analysis of global deforestation patterns in 2021 showed that patterns of trade, production, and consumption drive deforestation rates in complex ways. While the location of deforestation can be mapped, it does not always match where
20020-546: Was a major cause of deforestation , especially in Central Europe . Complaints (as early as the Stuart period ) about shortages may stem from over-exploitation or the impossibility of increasing production to match growing demand. In England , many woods were managed as coppices , which were cut and regrown cyclically, so that a steady supply of charcoal was available. But the increasing scarcity of easily harvested wood
20163-492: Was a major factor behind the switch to fossil fuel equivalents, mainly coal and brown coal for industrial use. In Finland and Scandinavia , the charcoal was considered the by-product of wood tar production. The best tar came from pine , thus pinewoods were cut down for tar pyrolysis . The residual charcoal was widely used as substitute for metallurgical coke in blast furnaces for smelting . Tar production led to rapid local deforestation. The end of tar production at
20306-461: Was also greatest in the tropics and subtropics but is occurring in every climatic domain (except in the temperate) as populations increase. An estimated 420 million ha of forest has been lost worldwide through deforestation since 1990, but the rate of forest loss has declined substantially. In the most recent five-year period (2015–2020), the annual rate of deforestation was estimated at 10 million ha, down from 12 million ha in 2010–2015. Africa had
20449-646: Was so delicate that it was generally left to colliers (professional charcoal burners). They often lived alone in small huts to tend their wood piles. For example, in the Harz Mountains of Germany, charcoal burners lived in conical huts called Köten which still exist today. The success of the operation depends upon the rate of the combustion . Under average conditions wood yields about 60% charcoal by volume , or 25% by weight ; small-scale production methods often yield only about 50% by volume, while large-scale methods enabled higher yields of about 90% by
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