Carbonite Diamond

To say that carbon is a unique element is perhaps

self-evident. All elements are unique, but carbon
especially so. Its polymorphs range from the hard,
transparent diamond to the soft, black graphite, with a
host of semicrystalline and amorphous forms also
available. It is the only element which gives its name
to two scientific journals, Carbon (English) and Tanso
(Japanese). Indeed, I do not know of another element
which can claim to name one journal. While there have
been recent books on specific forms of carbon notably
carbon fibers, it is a long time since somebody had the
courage to write a book which encompassed all carbon
materials. High Pierson perhaps did not know what he
was getting into when he started this work. The recent
and ongoing research activity on diamond-like films and
the f ullerenes, both buckyballs and buckytubes, has
provided, almost daily, new results which, any author
knows, makes an attempt to cover them almost futile. In
this book, the author provides a valuable, up-to-date
account of both the newer and traditional forms of
carbon, both naturally occurring and manmade. An
initial reading of chapters dealing with some very
familiar and some not-so-familiar topics, shows that
the author has make an excellent attempt to cover the
field. This volume will be a valuable resource for both
specialists in, and occasional users of, carbon
materials for the foreseeable future. I am delighted to
have had the opportunity to see the initial manuscript
and to write this foreword.
 This research is a review of the science and technology of
the element carbon and its allotropes: graphite, diamond and the
fullerenes. This field has expanded greatly in the last three
decades stimulated by many major discoveries such as carbon
fibers, low-pressure diamond and the fullerenes. The need for
such a book has been felt for some time. These carbon materials
are very different in structure and properties. Some are very
old (charcoal), others brand new (the fullerenes). Common

JAEMNA NICOLE GEMOTEA carbon which bonds

the various sections of the book together. The carbon and
graphite industry is in a state of considerable flux as new
designs, new products and new materials, such as high-strength
fibers, glassy carbon and pyrolytic graphite, are continuously
being introduced. Likewise, a revolution in the diamond business
is in progress as the low-pressure process becomes an industrial
reality. It will soon be possible to take advantage of the
outstanding properties of diamond to develop a myriad of new
applications. The production of large diamond crystal at low
cost is a distinct possibility in the not-too-distant future and
may lead to a drastic change of the existing business structure.
The fullerenes may also create their own revolution in the
development of an entirely new branch of organic chemistry. For
many years as head of the Chemical Vapor Deposition laboratory
and a contributor to the carbon-carbon program at Sandia
National Laboratories and now as a consultant, I have had the
opportunity to review and study the many aspects of carbon and
diamond, their chemistry,

2.1 The Element Carbon The word carbon is derived from the Latin
"carbo", which to the Romans meant charcoal (or ember). In the modern
world, carbon is, of course, much more than charcoal. From carbon come
the highest strength fibers, one of the best lubricants (graphite),
the strongest crystal and hardest material (diamond), an essentially
non-crystalline product (vitreous carbon) , one of the best gas
adsorbers (activated charcoal), and one of the best helium gas
barriers (vitreous carbon). A great deal is yet to be learned and new
forms of carbon are still being discovered such as the fullerene
molecules and the hexagonal polytypes of diamond. These very diverse
materials, with such large differences in properties, all have the
same building block—the element carbon—which is the thread that ties
the various constituents of this book and gives it unity.

SHAINA CASTILLO 2.2 Carbon Terminology The carbon

terminology can be confusing because carbon is different from other
elements in one important respect, that is its diversity. Unlike most
elements, carbon has several material forms which are known as
polymorphs (or allotropes). They are composed entirely of carbon but
have different physical structures and, uniquely to carbon, have
different names: graphite, diamond, lonsdalite, fullerene, and others.
In order to clarify the terminology, it is necessary to define what is
meant by carbon and its polymorphs. When used by itself, the term
"carbon" should only mean the element. To describe a "carbon"
material, the term is used with a qualifier such as carbon fiber,
pyrolytic carbon, vitreous carbon, and others. These carbon materials
have an sp2 atomic structure, and are essentially graphitic in nature.
Other materials with an sp3 atomic structure are, by common practice,
called by the name of their allotropic form, i.e., diamond,
lonsdalite, etc., and not commonly referred to as "carbon" materials,
although, strictly speaking, they are. The presently accepted
definition of these words, carbon, graphite, diamond, and related
terms, is given in the relevant chapters. These definitions are in
accordance with the guidelines established by the International
Committee for Characterization and Terminology of Carbon and regularly
published in the journal Carbon.
2.3 Carbon and Organic Chemistry The carbon element is the basic
constituent of all organic matter and the key element of the compounds
that form the huge and very complex discipline of organic chemistry.
However the focus of this book is the polymorphs of carbon and not its
compounds, and only those organic compounds that are used as
precursors will be reviewed.