Carbon is the sixth most abundant element in the cosmos, yet its abundance in the earth's crust does not even make it among the top ten elements on our planet. There are more known chemical compounds of carbon than any other element except for oxygen and hydrogen. Carbon composes compounds with diverse properties such as graphite and diamond, as well as the recently discovered Buckminster Fullerenes, or buckyballs. Carbon plays a critical role on Earth as the "stuff" that Life is made from. Every living cell, plant or animal contains carbon. Even in its pure, elemental form carbon is very versatile. 

This module will use elemental carbon to illustrate a number of key concepts. These concepts can also be applied to other materials. 

Key concepts:

  • Structure, property, processing, and performance parameters of carbon are linked at all size scales
  • Identical carbon atoms can form different crystalline structures, including diamond, graphite, and fullerenes that have diverse properties 
  • A substance's macroscopic properties are affected by its nanoscopic structure 
  • Processing methods can vary the properties and vary the performance of a material in technical applications

Learning Objectives:

After completing this module, you will be able to: 
  • Rationalize some of a material's physical properties after inspecting its crystal structure
  • Rationalize how to use a substance on the basis of its properties
  • Apply formula and crystal data to calculate the ideal density of the various crystalline forms of carbon
  • Experimentally estimate the value of Avogadro's Number from microscopy data 
  • Discovery based learning via SPM Live! using graphite 
In addition to addressing the needs of students at the beginning years of college, this module also addresses the following National Science Education Standards for grades 11-12:

Content Standard A 

  • Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry 
  • Understandings about scientific inquiry 

Physical Science Content Standard B 

  • Structure of atoms 
  • Structure and properties of matter 
  • Chemical reactions 
  • Motions and forces 
  • Conservation of energy and increase in disorder 
  • Interactions of energy and matter 

Science and Technology Content Standard E 

  • Abilities of technological design 
  • Understandings about science and technology 

Nature and History of Science Content Standard G 

  • Science as a human endeavor 
  • Nature of scientific knowledge 
  • Historical perspectives