Covalent Bonding and Carbon Allotropes

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering atomic structure, simple covalent molecules, giant covalent lattices (diamond, graphite, silicon dioxide), and carbon allotropes.

Electron Shell Configuration

The arrangement of negatively charged electrons orbiting the nucleus, organized in capacities of $2, 8, 8$ for the shells.

Neutron Calculation Formula

The formula used to find the number of neutrons in an atom: $\text{Neutrons} = \text{Atomic mass} - \text{protons}$.

Covalent Bond

A bond formed when two non-metals bond together by merging, overlapping, and sharing electrons to achieve a full outer shell.

Dot and Cross Diagram

A representation showing overlapping electron shells where shared pairs of electrons form covalent bonds between non-metal atoms.

Simple Molecules

Molecules formed by covalent bonding that have low melting and boiling points, almost all exist as gases at room temperature, and do not conduct electricity.

Giant Covalent Structures

Large structures composed of many non-metal atoms bonded together by strong covalent bonds, giving them high melting points.

Diamond

A giant covalent allotrope of carbon where each carbon atom forms $4$ bonds in a pyramid or lattice structure, resulting in a high melting point and a hardness rating of $10$.

Silicon Dioxide (Silica)

A giant covalent structure of silicon and oxygen that sand is made of, where each grain of sand is one giant structure.

Graphite

A giant covalent structure where each carbon atom forms $3$ covalent bonds to create hexagonal layers; it is soft due to its layered structure, has a high melting point, and conducts electricity.

Allotropes

Different structural forms of the same element (such as diamond and graphite for carbon) that have different structures designed to do a job.

Graphene

A single-atom-thick carbon super-material discovered from graphite using Scotch tape by Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov in Manchester; it is transparent, bendable, harder than diamond, and conducts electricity.