Graphene : A Thin Layer Of Pure Carbon

* Protons and electrons have equal and opposite electrical charges. Protons are positively charged, and electrons are negatively charged.

* Diamond is the strongest natural mineral known by a man. It is a crystalline form of carbon.

In 1779, Carl Wilhelm Scheele showed another allotrope of carbon graphite, which were known as a form of lead in early times. He found out that graphite was almost identical to charcoal except a small admixture of iron, and when it oxidized with nitric acid, it gave out “aerial acid” (carbon dioxide). In 1786, the French scientists Claude Louis Berthollet, Gaspard Monge and Vandermonde confirmed that graphite was mostly carbon by oxidizing with oxygen in the same way

The use of nano-materials and extreme precision micro-engineering has the potential for great improvement in the world of electronics and information technology by providing smaller, faster, and more powerful computers and this has been at the forefront of the nanotechnology commercialization . Great examples of how nanotechnology is currently being used in these fields are products such as processors, data storage, and memory components made with nano-materials, TVs, monitors and even smartphone screens that use organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), and waterproof electronics such as smartphones due to the application of nano-coatings

Carbon has six total electrons; two of the electrons it has are in its first electron shell while the other four are its valence electrons. Due to its four valence electrons, it rarely gains and/or loses electrons and/or form ionic bonds due to the fact it would have to give away or take four other electrons. In order to complete its outer shell, carbons shares its valence electrons with other atoms by having four separate covalent bonds. The carbon atom then becomes the crossing point where each molecule branches off into four separate directions.Carbon’s electron configuration allows it to bond frequently with oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, and phosphorus. If the carbon atom forms only a single covalent bond, The electrons form so that its bonds angle towards an imaginary tetrahedron.

This is the story of Buckminsterfullerene, the 60 carbon, all carbon spheres with hexagons and pentagons interspersed. Harry Kroto, an organic chemist, was on the lookout for the origins of long linear interstellar carbon chains. “Did the carbon gases from the giant carbon rich red stars condensed in the dark and cold interstellar space to form these long carbon molecules?” He wondered.

Carbon dioxide, I'm sure you've heard of it, we in fact have learned early on why it takes a very important role in our lives. What we exhale is Co2(Carbon Dioxide). The plant life takes in this Co2 and they release O2(Oxygen) in which we inhale in order to live. Co2 is a colorless and odorless gas that is vital to life on Earth, this element can be both harmful but useful to the human race or the things around us. The compound is made up of a carbon atom that is double bonded into two oxygen atoms. This element on the periodic table is what I chose to talk about for my presentation.

Some examples of compounds formed by carbon include diamonds which are pure carbon and are the hardest substance known to man with no known other material that can cut them. Graphite which is also a pure carbon-based molecule can be found in your pencil as lead. The oil in our cars is made of carbon, and the plastic of your keypad is carbon-based. Additionally, Carbon nanotubes which can self assemble and provide not only incredible strength, but also electrical, optical, thermal and kinetic properties like no other materials (The Biochemical Essense of Life: Carbon, n.d.). Another key feature of carbon is that its bonds are strong enough to resist environmental stresses, but weak enough to be manipulated by our bodies with enzymes which is a requirement of any organism’s metabolism (The Biochemical Essense of Life: Carbon, n.d.).

The structure of Graphite is different from a diamond. It has carbon atoms connected in a hexagonal pattern. The bonds between the carbon atoms are stronger in graphite than they are in diamonds.

It is currently used to manufacturer sporting goods and electronic components. Scientists tout graphene as the next silicon. The material is one million times thinner than paper and harder than diamonds, while conducting 200 times more electricity than silicon – a tremendous implication for the electronics industry. These advances come at a hefty price, but researchers at Caltech have discovered an improved manufacturing process for the material. Once researchers refine this process, manufacturers may also use the material for goods such as solar power and surface

Carbon is the fundamental element for everything on Earth. All life on Earth depends on carbon. Carbon has different forms of allotropes including diamond, graphene and charcoal. Carbon is found in position 12, with 4 colvalent electrons. All the allotropes have different properties nd uses due to how the carbon atoms are bonded. Carbon is able to single, double and triple bond with other elements to form complex molecules. Carbon can also use its four electrons to form diamond, where it is strong and stable, or three electrons to form graphite found in pencils, buckyball or all forms of nanocarbon including carbon nanotube.

This conglomerate composed of protein-lipid, sponge-like carbon, and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) was administrated by the researchers to mice in order to study the material’s ability to “transport the hydrophobic drug docetaxel (DTX) and perfluorohexane (PFH) for deep tumor penetration and therapy” (Su et al, 2016). The Lf-lipo-GNS composite is capable of carrying large amounts of drugs in its pores which can be released through the absorption of light by the GNS. By applying near-infrared (NIR) irradiation, the gasification of PFH occurs due to “an increase in local temperature” in the graphene nanosponge which as a result “damages and ruptures tumor spheroids” (Su et al, 2016). Consequently, the combined effects of “gasification and chemo- and thermotherapy” can substantially reduce tumors and even completely eliminate them without future reappearance.

An Atom is the the basic building block of all matter. Atoms are made up of Particles, called: Protons, neutrons and Electrons. Protons carry a positive charge, the neutron carry 's a neutral charge and the electron carry’s a negative charge. The Atom has two main parts the Nucleus and the Electron Shell. The Nucleus contains the Protons and Neutrons. The electron Shell Contains the The electrons.

Graphene is a form of carbon which has recently been receiving a great deal of attention. Some have come to call it “the wonder material” due to its many extraordinary properties. Although isolated in 2004, graphene's properties had been calculated decades earlier. It consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a hexagonal lattice. A single sheet of graphene is stronger than steel and yet remains very flexible, retaining all of its properties despite being bent and unbent multiple times. It is able to sustain extremely high electric current densities, is impermeable to all gasses, has a thermal conductivity double that of diamond and a very high electron mobility at room temperature. It is also easily chemically functionalized,

Now we will move onto other materials that are involved with electronics. The next group of materials that will be discussed are insulators. An insulator is a material that does not conduct electricity at all but will resist or stop it from traveling further. An insulating atom has eight electrons in its valance shell which makes this shell complete. Eight is the most electrons that any atoms can have in their valance shell this is why these are called insulators, no more electrons can fit in the valance shell of these atoms.