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IB 04.3

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Allotropes

LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

Page 1 of 8
LE 01/16

NAME/PER: _________________________________/___

Allotropes
Allotropes of the same element can vary in both physical and chemical properties. Carbon is one of the
most fascinating elements in the periodic table, and life forms on Earth are based on carbon. Carbon has a
number of allotropes: graphite, diamond, graphene, and C60 fullerene.

Covalent network solids

Graphite, diamond, and graphene are examples of covalent network solids. A covalent network solid is
one in which the atoms are held together by covalent bonds in a giant three-dimensional lattice structure
(in large networks or chains). Another well known example of a covalent network solid is quartz, which is
silicon dioxide, SiO2. In contrast, C60 fullerene is molecular.

Graphite
Graphite is an example of a covalent network solid. In graphite, there are layers of hexagonal rings
consisting of carbon atoms. These layers are connected by weak intermolecular forces of attraction, which
are called London forces (also commonly referred to as van der Waals forces), leading to the use of
graphite as a lubricant and in pencils (the so-called lead in our pencils is not lead, but carbon in the form
of graphite). Each carbon atom adopts a trigonal planar geometry, and is covalently bonded to three other
carbon atoms at a bond angle of 120. The coordination number of each carbon is three in the structure.
Although the covalent bondes are strong within the sheets, the London forces between the layers are weak,
which allows the layers to slide past each other, and thus graphite can be used as a lubricant. Unlike other
covalent network solids, graphite is a good conductor of electricity as it has delocalized electrons. A
diagram showing the bonding of graphite can be found at the top of the next page.

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IB 04.3

LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

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LE 01/16

Diamond
Diamond is also a covalent network solid. In the lattice
structure of diamond, each carbon atom is covalently bonded to
four other carbon atoms in a tetrahedral arrangement, with a
CCC bond angle of 109.5. The coordination number of each
carbon within diamond is four. Diamond is one of the hardest
substances known because of this covalently bonded
interlocking structural arrangement of tetrahedra. For this
reason, diamond is often used in heavy-duty cutting tools such
as saws, polishing tools, and dental drills. A structural diagram
of diamond can be found on the right.
The melting and boiling points of diamond are very high (3550 and 4827 C, respectively). Unlike graphite,
in diamond, the valence electrons are localized in the single covalent bonds, and therefore cannot move
freely. This means that diamond does not conduct electricity. Strong covalent bonds in diamond make it
insoluble in all common solvents.

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LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

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Graphene the super material

Graphene is not only one of the thinnest and strongest of known materials, but it is also the first twodimensional crystal ever discovered. Graphene is a covalent network solid, but differs from graphite in that
it consists of a single planar sheet of carbon atoms arranged hexagonally, and is only one atom thick. As in
graphite, each carbon atom is covalently bonded to three other carbon atoms, so the coordination number
of each carbon in graphene is three. The carbon atoms are densely packed in a honeycomb crystalline
lattice, but the lattice is actually planar, which makes it remarkable as a crystalline structure.

The experimental evidence for the existence of graphene was obtained in 2004 by the Russian scientists
Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010 for their groundbreaking experiments at the University of Manchester in the UK.
Graphene is an excellent thermal and electrical conductor, 300 times more efficient than copper. A piece of
graphite 1 mm thick consists of three million sheets of graphene, with one stacked on top of another. When
graphite is prised apart, it becomes essentially graphene. If a graphene sheet is rolled up, it forms a carbon
nanotube. When this, in turn, is folded up into a sphere, it becomes a fullerene, which looks like a soccer
ball.
Graphene is a remarkable material, especially because of its superb electrical conductivity, strength,
flexibility, and transparency.
Graphene has been described as the new silicon. Some of the future applications of graphene lie in the
following research areas:

Development of graphene-plastic composite materials to replace metals used in the aerospace industry
because of their low density and high strength.

Liquid-crystal displays (LCD) and flexible touch-screens for mobile devices due to the flexibility,
transparency, and electrical conductivity of graphene.

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LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

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LE 01/16

After the discovery of graphene in 2004, a whole class of two-dimensional materials have emerged, which
include the single layers of boron nitride, BN, and molybdenum disulfide, MoS2. BN is an excellent lubricant
and can be used in a vacuum so it is important in space research and is also used in ceramic materials.
MoS2 is also a very good lubricant.

C60 fullerene
In 1985, a new form of carbon allotrope called
fullerene, with carbon atoms arranged in closed
shells, was discovered by Robert F. Curl Jr.
(working at Rice University in the US), Sir Harold
W. Kroto (working at Sussex University in the UK),
and Richard E. Smalley (also at Rice). In 1996,
these scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in
Chemistry for their discovery of fullerenes. The
number of carbon atoms in the shell was found to
vary, which led to the discovery of several new
carbon structures. Fullerines were found to form
when vaporized carbon condensed in an
atmosphere of an inert gas. Clusters of C70 and C60
were initially synthesized, with more C60 than C70
clusters being formed. The structure of each C60
molecule was found to consist of a truncated
icosahedral cage, which has the shape of a soccer
ball. The spherically symmetrical C60 molecule
was unique in nature at the time of its discovery.
In the C60 polyhedron cage, there are 20 hexagonal surfaces and 12 pentagonal surfaces, and each carbon is
covalently bonded to three others so that the coordination number is three, but the arrangement is not
planar.
The geodesic dome designed by the US architect R. Buckminster Fuller for the 1967 Montreal World
Exhibition in Canada has this shape of a soccer ball and hence, C60 has been named buckminsterfullerene.
These spherical fullerenes are sometimes referred to as buckyballs.
C60 fullerene is not a covalent network solid, and so is different from graphite, diamond, and graphene. C60
is composed of individual molecules with strong covalent bonds, but with weak London forces between the
molecules.

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LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

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Fullerenes are black solids that do not dissolve in water, but can dissolve in some non-polar solvents (for
example, benzene). In organic solvents, they form colored solutions; the color depends on the solvent and
varies from red to brown to magenta. C60, unlike both graphite and graphene, does not conduct electricity.
Although it does contain delocalized electrons, the electrons do not have the capacity to move from one C60
molecules to the next because of the symmetrical nature of C60.
Many new compounds of fullerenes have been synthesized subsequently, with atoms or small molecules
enclosed within the fullerene cage. Such inclusion complexes can potentially be used as gene and drug
carriers; other applications lie in the areas of superconductivity and ferromagnetism, because of the
unusual electromagnetic properties of inclusion complexes. Fullerenes also have the ability to fit inside the
hydrophobic cavity that forms the active site of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease enzymes
and thereby inhibit them.
Carbon nanotubes are tube-shaped molecules, closely related to C60, and have electrical conductivity
approximately ten times better than copper and are 100 times stronger than steel. They are also used in
many electronic applications, replacing silicon, and in the synthesis of new compounds that allow unstable
substances to become stabilized when incorporated within the tubes. The diameter of such tubes is
extremely small, in the order of 109 mm, on the nano scale. Buckyballs and carbon nanotubes have
become a vibrant and dynamic area of chemical research in materials science, with numerous applications.

Silicon dioxide, SiO2 (quartz)

Silicon dioxide, SiO2, often called silica, is found in its amorphous form (that is, a solid with no ordered
structure) as sand. In its most common crystalline form, it is called quartz. Quartz is another example of a
three-dimensional covalent network solid. It consists of arrays of SiO4 tetrahedra arranged in a lattice.
Each silicon atom is bonded covalently to four oxygen atoms, and each oxygen atom is bonded covalently to
two silicon atoms. The SiOSi geometrical arrangement is bent because of the presence of two nonbonding pairs of electrons on each oxygen atom. Silicon dioxide has both a high melting point (1710 C)
and a high boiling point (2230 C) due to the existence of strong covalent bonds.
Both crystalline and amorphous
dioxide are insoluble in water
and solid, crystalline SiO2 does
not conduct electricity (since
there are no delocalized
electrons present) or heat.
Note that molten silicon dioxide
can conduct electricity, however,
as electrons are free to move in
the molten state.

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IB 04.3

LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

EFQ 01 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

EFQ 02 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

EFQ 03 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

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IB 04.3

LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

EFQ 04 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

EFQ 05 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

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IB 04.3

LPHS IB HL Chemistry
Allotropes

TP 168-173

EFQ 06 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

EFQ 07 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

EFQ 08 Circle the letter corresponding to the best answer. In the box, support your answer with a brief explanation.

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