Pure carbon commonly occurs in two forms: strong diamonds and soft, brittle graphite. The graphite is much more brittle because its carbon atoms are held together by single bonds, compared to double bonds in diamonds.

Question

True
False

Answer 1

False. Graphite is actually composed of layers of carbon atoms arranged in a planar hexagonal lattice, where each carbon atom is bonded to three others with strong covalent bonds (not just single bonds). The layers are held together by weaker van der Waals forces, which allows them to slide over each other, making graphite soft and brittle. In contrast, diamonds have a three-dimensional network structure where each carbon atom is bonded to four others with strong covalent bonds (which are all single bonds but in a tetrahedral geometry), contributing to its strength. So, the statement incorrectly characterizes the bonding in graphite and diamonds.